Chapter 200: Zara learned Liam’s secret
"Oh, that’s great," Zara said with a smile. "Riya is getting married."
It was surprising that Riya didn’t protest against the arrangement. She had agreed to marry Liam so easily.
’What happened to her obsession with Nathaniel?’ Zara wondered. ’Has she finally decided to let go...or is this another one of her schemes?’
Zara couldn’t trust this woman. A deceitful woman who had killed her in her past life just to be with Nathaniel. How could such an obsession vanish so easily?
’She is definitely up to something.’
Just as she was lost in her thoughts, she heard the old lady say, "Liam will be here tonight. It’s good that he and Riya will get to know each other before marriage. I’m excited."
Zara smiled. "Where is she? Is she not home?"
"She is getting ready in her room."
Zara’s gaze moved to Riya’s room on the first floor. She grew curious and wanted to have some words with her.
"Why is Nathaniel not here yet?" Vincent asked as he sat down on the sofa with Zane in his lap. "Doesn’t he know how important this dinner is? Liam will be here shortly. Call him now. Tell him to come quickly."
At his commanding tone, Zara dropped her idea of finding Riya. She fished out her phone from her bag and dialed Nathaniel’s number. The call rang for a long time until it stopped on its own without being connected.
Zara pulled the phone out of her ear and looked at the screen, wondering if he was still busy. But she doubted that.
Nathaniel had been willing to leave the hotel with her, even suggesting they return home together. It was she who had refused him since she was still upset with him. Now, with no response and no sign of him arriving, unease tugged at her chest.
’Where is he?’ she muttered to herself. ’Is he still at the office?’
Before she could dwell further, the housekeeper announced that Liam had arrived. Everyone stood up and went to the main door to welcome him. Zara also followed the group, eager to meet this man, who used to be Nathaniel’s best friend. She peered at the figure coming out of the luxurious car. But her expression froze the moment she recognized who it was.
’Shay Walsh?’ She almost screamed, her mouth forming a big circle. ’So Liam is actually Shay Walsh! But why did he hide his identity?’
"Liam," Vincent grinned and pulled him into his embrace. He drew back, holding his shoulders. "It’s good to see you after so many years." He studied him from head to toe. "You have become more handsome than before."
Liam chuckled softly. "You are flattering me."
"Liam, son, how are you doing?"
"Grandma." Liam approached and hugged the old lady. "It’s been a long time. I missed you."
"Don’t fool me. You didn’t miss me at all." Paulina pretended to be sulking. "Ever since you left town, you never once returned. Five whole years! Do you know how upset I’ve been?"
"I’m willing to make it up to you," Liam said apologetically. "Tell me: what do you want me to do?"
Paulina waved her hand dismissively. "By agreeing to marry our Riya, you’ve already earned my forgiveness."
Liam chuckled, dropping his gaze to the tip of his shoes. When he lifted his head, his gaze locked with Zara’s. Under her sharp, suspicious look, his smile faltered.
He had not expected Zara would be at the dinner tonight. Caught off guard, he stood speechlessly there, his mind buzzing.
"How long are we going to stand here?" Gracie’s voice pierced the haze of his mind. "Let’s go in."
Everyone came in and settled on the sofa. "I’ll go call Riya," said Gracie, and the next minute, she strode away.
Liam shifted uneasily in his place, his gaze moving to Zara.
"Hello, uncle," Zane said with a smile. "We met again."
Liam laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, we met again."
All eyes turned to him.
"You two met already!" Vincent exclaimed, surprised.
"Yes, Grandpa," Zane answered. "Mommy and I were on our way to get ice cream after school that day, and Uncle showed up and took us there."
"Oh!" Everyone looked surprised.
Before anyone could ask further questions, Liam quickly clarified, "I happened to be passing by for some work and saw them. I couldn’t resist stopping when I saw Zane."
He still refrained from revealing his identity as the famous designer, Shay Walsh. This puzzled Zara, who silently wondered why he was concealing it.
’He must have his reasons,’ she told herself, choosing not to expose him just yet. Still, she made a mental note to ask him about it later.
Liam looked at her, but she turned aside and pretended as if she didn’t know him. His heart sank. ’Is she angry?’ he questioned himself. ’I need to talk to her.’
Inside Riya’s room...
Riya couldn’t focus on anything. She didn’t care about the dinner tonight or her meeting with Liam Lawson. Her mind was on Nathaniel’s phone. She couldn’t stop wondering if the man had been successful in destroying the phone. She checked her phone, again and again, impatiently waiting for an update.
But there was no call from her manager. Unable to wait any longer, she phoned her. The call was connected in a few rings.
"Hello, is there any update? Is the work done?" she asked impatiently.
"There is no news from that man," the manager replied. "I’ll let you know once I get an update."
Riya was about to ask something, but the door was knocked on in the meantime and interrupted her.
"Riya, are you done?" Gracie’s voice came from the outside. "Liam has arrived."
Riya ended the call instantly. "Uh, Mom...Give me some time. I still need to fix my makeup."
Gracie chuckled softly. "Alright, take your time. But don’t keep Liam waiting too long. He won’t like being made impatient."
With that, she walked back to the hall.
Riya slumped her shoulders, letting out a deep sigh of dismay. "Marriage? Liam?" She scoffed. "I don’t want to..."
She loved Nathaniel and wanted to be with him. But he didn’t care about her, didn’t love her. Any future with him was impossible.
On top of that, there was Zachary. She had bound herself to him through a contract to be his lover. During this period, she couldn’t be with any man. Marriage was out of the question. And she still had unfinished business with Zara; without Zachary’s backing, she couldn’t do that.
"Liam can wait for me forever," she muttered with disdain. "It makes no difference to me. I’m not marrying him."
She was determined. "I’ll talk to him clearly and tell him to reject the proposal."