Marry My Billionaire Second Husband - Chapter 82

Chapter 82: World of the Rich I
“Why did she not have money for treatment? Surely, she had to have something stashed away…”

Amelia’s mother had passed due to health complications. If she was a Hawthorne, they would’ve had enough money to treat her illness. Or even if they didn’t, her death could’ve been more painless and with less suffering.

Her father winced.

“Millie, your mother didn’t take a lot with her when she left her family. And her father had frozen her accounts, so we were living on hand and foot for a while. After a period of time, Elaine… your mother… she just refused to use the cards she brought any further. She was determined to cut ties with her family completely.”

He sighed. “Not to mention, Millie, you also fell seriously sick when you were younger, remember? We had to use up most of whatever she managed to squirrel away for your treatment.”

Amelia nodded, vaguely remembering the multiple hospital visits she had when she was very young, a sickening sensation in her gut. If she hadn’t fallen ill as a child, her mother might still be alive.

“Don’t cry, Millie…” Her father reached out and clasped her hands. “We would have done the same thing if it meant saving your life. I never thought that the Hawthornes would find you again, let alone accept you into their fold after how they treated your mother… but now, I guess there’s no going back.”

A bleak look entered his eyes.

“Millie, you must be careful. The world of the rich is dangerous. Those Hawthornes cannot be trusted… and Matteo Montgomery cannot be trusted!”

Amelia sighed. Her father was fully unconvinced that Matteo was a good man.

“Dad, you’re not being fair. You just have to give him a chance, and you’ll see that he’s not as bad as you think,” Amelia said. “Look, he helped me discover my true identity!”

“That makes it worse! What if he knew who you actually were all this while, and decided to get close to you because of it? And look, now you’re even living together after only knowing each other for a few weeks. Everything is moving so fast!”

Amelia couldn’t deny that such thoughts entered her head on the drive back. “Dad, he didn’t need me to get an in-road into the Hawthorne family. Emmeline was right there, remember? If anything, he didn’t need to bother with me at all, after our first meeting.”

“Then why did he?” her father asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Darling, in my eyes you are the best woman in the world, second only to your mom, but why would a man like Matteo Montgomery go through all this effort for you if he did not know who you were deep down inside? Maybe he wanted to marry into the Hawthornes, but he hated the other girl so much that he searched for you instead!”

Amelia paused. For once, she had no satisfactory answer. Matteo wanted to get out of the engagement with Emmeline, and she was a convenient escape. They had gone on a date, but it was more for the media than it was for themselves.

Did he want her for her? Or was it like her father said― that Matteo wanted to marry someone who was related to the Hawthornes, but not Emmeline?

“I… I don’t know, Dad,” Amelia confessed. “But you don’t have to worry about me, I won’t be falling in love with him so easily.” She tried to convince her father, and most importantly, herself. Yet there was a niggling thought that it was too late― she was already too far gone.

“I’ll make many surprise visits,” her father promised darkly. He wanted nothing more than to move in with Amelia and Matteo, but Matteo’s home was simply not convenient for him to live in. “That man better not try anything funny!”

***

Other than the talk with her father, the move back was highly uneventful. Amelia returned the device to Dimitri, but he gestured for her to keep it.

“You’ll never know when it’ll be useful,” he said simply. “I’ll make sure to create one that can record audio too. Now that Ronan has spread the word, I predict I’ll see an influx in orders soon enough.”

“Thanks,” Amelia said. “And I’m sorry to trouble you regarding my Dad. If there’s anything, please let me know.” Her father was going to be staying with Ronan and Dimitri for the time being.

“I should be telling you that,” Dimitri said. “But rest assured, I will treat your father better than I treat my own.”

Amelia could only laugh awkwardly, because how else was she supposed to reply?

She bid Ronan, Dimitri, and her father goodbye, before leaving for Matteo’s home. The drive back was silent, save for the radio which was broadcasting the latest news.

And of course, Amelia’s new identity was now made known to everyone with a working pair of ears. Feeling curious and masochistic, Amelia searched her name online to find that Lady Vanity had already put up an article about her true parentage, highlighting the romance between her parents and how love, in the end, won over all the odds.

Her engagement to Matteo was the second piece of news.

“Guess it’s no longer a secret,” Amelia mused.

It never was, to be fair. It had been announced by Matteo himself, but with Emmeline pulling the strings in the background, the status of their engagement was overshadowed by Emmeline’s insistence of theirs. Now that Amelia’s identity was revealed to be the Hawthorne heiress, she was a perfect fit for Matteo― or as Lady Vanity dubbed, a ‘perfect Cinderella story’.

Then her phone rang. It was Horace Hawthorne, her newly found grandfather. Amelia picked up the call.

“Hi… Mr. Hawthorne?” Amelia said.

“Who is Mr. Hawthorne? You should be calling me Grandpa!” Horace Hawthorne complained goodnaturedly at the other end of the call. “Things were too hectic just now, so I forgot to tell you something.”

“What is it, Grandpa?” Amelia asked, humoring him.

“I want to invite you and your father to the Hawthorne household for a family dinner. Too many years have gone by, and I wish for us to know each other better. Will this weekend be good for you?”

“I think so,” Amelia said. She chanced a look at Matteo, who nodded. “Can Matteo come along?”

“Of course! He’s your fiancé, isn’t he? We might as well use this opportunity to discuss wedding plans. And family planning. It’s never too early to start planning for children!”

Amelia nearly choked. Oh god. Wedding plans? Family planning? Children?!

Meanwhile, a small, pleased smirk crossed Matteo’s lips. He certainly had no complaints about it. If he had things his way, he would drive straight to the courthouse this instant to sign the wedding certificates with Amelia, but she deserved a proper wedding after the travesty that was her marriage to Caleb Walton.

And of course, he would like to have children with her. He would especially love the process of making said children with Amelia.

“Sure thing,” Amelia said weakly. “I’ll see you this weekend then, Grandpa.”

“Bye Amelia!” Horace Hawthorne hung up cheerily, leaving Amelia to stew in her thoughts.

Matteo cleared his throat and asked.

“So… what do you think about a spring wedding?”