Wedding Night Tears: A Pregnant Bride Marrying into High Society

Chapter 8: I am no beggar at your table

Drawn by the sharp retort, Scarlett cast her gaze in its direction, her eyes met with the sight of a young, beautiful face.

In all her twenty years, it wore an innocence that belied the heady jealousy simmering in her eyes.With a quirk of her brows, Scarlett had little doubt that this young woman harbored unspoken affections for Maximus.

Lillian's eyes flashed defiantly at Scarlett, “What’s with the stare? If not for the seed you carry, do you really think our young master would have stooped so low as to make a wife of you?” Lillian had caught whiffs of Scarlett's story online - a small-town girl plucked from the dregs and thrust into high society, now a tarnished flower sowing wild oats amid the glitterati.

There could be no doubt; this chit had played dirty, ensnaring their young master to land herself in this predicament.Imagine, this shameless woman entertaining the preposterous idea that marrying into the Harrison linage would turn her rags to riches, transforming her into a coveted phoenix overnight?!Over her dead body! Lillian all but swore not to make life comfy for her.

Unable to stand the vitriol peppering the air, Maisie chimed in her favor, “Lillian, the young master personally escorted the mistress home, a testament all of us have witnessed. The pains he has taken to provide for her wellbeing blatantly signals his acceptance.”Lillian’s gaze morphed into a death glare aimed at Maisie. “Hold your tongues!”Jolted, Maisie clammed up.

Scarlett, with prefect control over her demeanor, scrutinized the woman before her, finally asking nonchalantly, “Precisely, who are you?”

“Who, me?” Traces of arrogance creeping onto her lips, Lillian responded with an offhand pride, “I serve as the Chief Stewardess here.

Every soul beneath this roof attends to my command.”In the conspicuous absence of her steward father, she naturally filled his shoes.Scarlett responded with an amused chuckle, "Oh, so you're merely a servant then? Shouldn't you be heeding the orders of your ladyship?"Her remark hit a raw nerve on Lillian, whose cheeks promptly reddened in indignation.

"Mark my words, your stint as the mistress is temporary.

The moment the child in your belly is born, you'll find yourself promptly ousted by the young master. By then, you'll find yourself in a position lesser than that of a servant!"

"Well, I'm looking forward to it." Scarlett's breezily blithe words breezed over Lillian's jab, paying her no heed, she gracefully proceeded to take her seat at the dining table.Witnessing this stoic visage of unflappable serenity on Scarlett, Lillian could almost taste the blood curdled fury simmering in her veins. Her insults falling onto Scarlett felt akin to hurling feather-light punches at a mountain, bereft of any impact.Just as she was raring for a biting retort, a proclamation interjected.

"The young master has returned!"At the interruption, Lillian's face abruptly made an about-face from vicious to docile. A silent warning darted from her eyes, cautioning the others not to breathe a word on the recently transpired feud.

Scarlett, undeterred, quietly rolled her eyes, all too aware of Lillian's dual-faced game.

At that fleeting instance, Maximus glided slowly into the scene of the dining room.

Each of his footsteps echoed with a haunting authority, an invisible yet profound intimidation that suffused the room.

The once buzzing dining room plunged into an eerie silence, akin to a chilly autumn night.

Caught in this icy hush, Scarlett found her heart thumping faintly, her willowy fingers instinctively curling up.

The man then shrugged off his outer garment with an effortless grace, draping it over the backrest of a chair. His dusky eyes turned to his delicate wife.

A glint of mystery passed through his gaze as he noticed her slightly tensed expression.His lips slightly parted, casting a question into the still air, "Have you dined yet?"Scarlett shook her head innocently, her voice wistful and mildly plaintive, "Not yet. The little one inside is already famished.

"The overcast in Maximus's handsome face dropped another degree at her words. A chilling glance of reprimand shot towards the silent assembly of staff.His voice piercing the quiet with a chilling edge, “Did I, or did I not, order dinner to be prepared early?”Lillian, taken aback by this unexpected surge in his fury, hurried to pacify, "Preparations were in place...

Indeed, the dinner is ready. It will be served right away!”As the words darted out, she frantically signaled the kitchen staff to bring out the gastronomical spread.In less than a minute, the previously scant tabletop was magically transformed into a sumptuous feast.

An array of expertly crafted dishes sprawled across the grand table.A riot of colors, aromatic fragrances, and taste, teased one's senses into a gastronomical frenzy.

Maximus slid into the seat beside her, nonchalantly cuffing his sleeves and revealing his powerfully built arm, the pricy black watch on his wrist glinting tacitly."

Given that your precise culinary preferences remain a mystery to me, I had the kitchen whip up an assortment. Please tuck in, we wouldn't want the little one going hungry," he intoned.Caught off-guard, Scarlett responded, "Thank you, but such a feast is dispensable next time around. I am all but a gourmet."

Scarlett had scarcely anticipated that this man would go to such lengths to cater to her palate, his thoughtful gesture stoking a tiny ember of affection for him in her heart.

But perhaps…His abrupt remark that followed snuffed out those tiny sparks as swiftly as they'd been kindled.Maximus cast an irreverent glance at her, his voice overcast, "Don't misconstrue my intentions. I am merely catering to the child you carry.”Confronted with his acerbic candor, Scarlett's smile faltered.

She quietly busied herself with the food, playfully mouthing out an unvoiced monologue of a domestic comedy skit.Upon overhearing Maximus's comments, a wide grin of vindication bloomed on Lillian's face.

She'd nailed it! Their esteemed master would never lower his gaze to set it upon backwater riffraff.

He wasn't visually impaired, now was he?And here was the woman, lost in her fantastical daydream, a toad under the fallacious impression that it could devour swan meat.

What a spectacle!The dinner wound up, time fleeting.Scarlett, single-handedly, conquered the feast that sprawled before her, her voracious appetite leaving the bystanders lost for words.

To the uninformed bystander, Scarlett's ravenous hunger might imply a deprivation spanning centuries.

Adjacent to her, Maximus was a study in elegance, leisurely savoring his meal with a finesse that was beguiling and evoked a flutter of stolen hearts.

The stark contrast was indeed compelling.

Lillian's disdain for Scarlett heightened, branding her as an uncultured bumpkin, permeating an air of inescapable vulgarity!

Scarlett’s unbridled feasting was likely rooted in her austere past. Therefore, when faced with abundance, she ate heartily, loathing the very idea of wastage.

However, her robust appetite had seemingly written a check her body couldn’t cash. Barely through her halfway mark, she found herself satiated and replete.Pleasantly stroking her now rounded belly, stifling an indecorous burp, she made a proposition through her cherry-like lips, "I seem to have reached my limit. Perhaps we could pack the remaining?

Could serve me a delightful midnight bite!"Lillian scoffed; the innate mendicancy laying bare under the weight of luxury.Maximus, who had been all but ready to serve her a slice of tangy sweet-sour pork, subtly masked a grimace at her suggestion, reclaiming the slice onto his own plate, in silence.

His gaze on his visibly sated wife, his brows met in a frown, his tone gently dipping to convey, “I've no dependency on your provisions, not now, not ever.”

"Huh?"Scarlett wore a look of startled confusion, her doe-like eyes wide — his seemingly straightforward words tickling her senses with a nebulous ambiguity.

Interpreting his words - was he alluding to the absence of dependence on her culinary contributions for his future?Was he tacitly binding their paths of fate?!

An impossible conjecture!Certainly, he must have misapprehended something.

With an air of concern, she made a course correction, "My sentiments earlier weren't aimed to hint anything.

It's just my nature to detest wastage."Maximus's forehead unraveled at this, although a chill persisted in his response, "Leftovers mightn't be the most fitting choice for an expectant mother.

Besides, rest assured, leftover food seldom goes to waste, rather they find their purpose in feeding the strays."

"Oh..." So that's his thinking.

Comforted by the idea of no wastage, Scarlett's worries vaporized.Her gaze wandered to his immaculate side profile while a junior arc projected on her lips.

So, this seemingly impassive man had a soft corner for feeding strays, a surprisingly endearing trait.