Chapter 55 Tobias Is a Bit Unhappy
The school bell finally rang, signaling the end of class just before noon.
Amelia slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked out of the school, ignoring the curious glances from her classmates.
Michael said he’d wait for her under the big tree on the west side of the gate.
As she exited the school, she immediately spotted a familiar black car parked nearby, with Michael standing in front of it.
Michael was tall.
His dark suit accentuated his broad shoulders and slim waist, with his dark gray shirt unbuttoned at the collar. His long legs were encased in perfectly tailored trousers, exuding an air of restraint.
Just by looking at him, Michael exuded a powerful presence, with an aura of nobility and aloofness, as if he was born to stand out from the crowd.
His face was handsome and chiseled, with a depth reminiscent of European nobility. When his gaze met hers, his cold eyes suddenly softened.
He smiled, his expression warming like ice melting under the sun. Slowly, he opened his arms and seemed to call out softly.
"Amelia."
Michael was standing.
Amelia's eyes lit up with surprise.
The acupuncture treatments had worked even better than she had hoped; it had only been a week, and he was already able to stand.
Just as Amelia was about to run into Michael's arms, someone called out from behind her, "Miss Martinez!"
Turning around, she saw Lila holding Rex's hand, accompanied by two tall and handsome men.
"Ms. Glenn?" Amelia said, a bit surprised. "I thought you had already left."
"Well," Lila explained, "we didn't get to finish our conversation earlier because the bell rang. So we thought we'd wait for you to finish school and invite you to lunch. If you're willing, of course."
"Even though you said it was no big deal, you saved Rex's life. We should at least have a meal together and get to know each other. Plus, Rex didn't want to leave and insisted on waiting for you."
Amelia was taken aback. Lila and Rex had waited outside for nearly two hours just to invite her to lunch.
Seeing Rex's eager expression, Amelia couldn't bring herself to refuse.
"Sure, that's fine," Amelia said. "But I have plans with someone else. If you don't mind, maybe we can all go together?"
"Of course, that's no problem at all. Invite your friend along, lunch is on me," Lila said happily. "Oh, I haven't introduced you yet."
"This is Orval, my eldest son and Rex's brother. And this is Chris, your brother's good friend."
"Chris?" Amelia looked up.
Chris was also tall, dressed in a crisp shirt and trousers. His features and demeanor were as cool and distant as the moon in a clear night sky.
Amelia caught a faint scent of disinfectant from him, a strangely familiar smell.
"Amelia," Orval chimed in, "yesterday afternoon, you bumped into Chris and then passed out."
"I was the one who carried you into the apartment and put you on the couch. You don't remember at all?"
It really was him.
The man she had bumped into yesterday was Chris, what a coincidence.
"Orval, hi. Chris, hi."
Amelia looked at Chris. "Sorry, Chris, I didn't recognize you yesterday. I didn't realize it was you I bumped into."
Chris responded coolly.
Chris had thought Amelia's indifference in the hallway was overly cold, even more so than his usual demeanor towards others.
But now he realized she simply hadn't recognized him.
She didn't know he was Chris, nor did she know he was the person she had bumped into yesterday.
So she had likely rejected his friend request because she didn't know who he was. Chris reassured himself.
A mature man has to learn to comfort himself.
Meanwhile, Michael, waiting under the tree, saw Amelia being called over by Orval and Chris and frowned.
"Who are those two guys?" Michael asked.
Eric glanced over. "The one in the hoodie is Mr. Elton Church's eldest son, Orval Church. The one in the shirt is Chris Martinez, Amelia Martinez's brother."
As a competent assistant, Eric had memorized the faces and basic information of the Martinez family when they first investigated Amelia's background, just in case Michael asked him anything on the spot.
So, that's her brother.
Michael's frown relaxed.
"My friend is over there. I'll go talk to him and see if he wants to join us," Amelia said to Lila.
Amelia ran over to Michael. Though she wasn't short, she looked petite next to him.
With people watching, Amelia couldn't do anything intimate with Michael. She simply explained the situation and asked if he wanted to join them for lunch.
Michael had no objections. Restraining his urge to pull her into a hug, he reached up to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear and said in a deep voice, "Sure."
But before his hand could touch her hair, a voice shouted from behind, "What are you doing? Don't touch Amelia's hair! Put your hand down!"
Chris and the others had just walked over when Tobias suddenly appeared out of nowhere and pulled Amelia away from Michael.
Tobias glared at Michael protectively, like a mother hen guarding her chick. "Who are you? Are you close with Amelia?"
"Tobias?" Chris was surprised.
"Tobias?" Amelia was also taken aback.
"Mr. Johnson?" Lila looked shocked.
"Michael?" Tobias finally recognized Michael and his eyes widened in shock.
The scene seemed to freeze for a moment.
After a few seconds, Lila managed to speak. "Miss Martinez, the friend you mentioned meeting for lunch is Mr. Johnson?"
In River City, anyone with any status knew Michael. Even if they hadn't met him, they had certainly heard his name.
There were countless rumors about Michael. Some said he wielded immense power, controlling the city's fate with a flick of his hand. Others said he was cursed, with those close to him meeting tragic ends. And some said he was cold-hearted, with a dark and volatile personality.
Amelia had only recently arrived in River City. How did she know someone as influential as Michael? And they seemed quite familiar with each other.
Moreover, wasn't Michael supposed to be disabled? Wasn't he always in a wheelchair? How was he standing now?
Michael looked up. Although Chris and Tobias were younger than him, they were his future wife's brothers, so he needed to make a good impression.
"Hello," Michael introduced himself. "I'm Amelia's admirer. My name is Michael."
Admirer?
Tobias almost howled in disbelief.
He had only recently gotten close to Amelia, and now an admirer had appeared out of nowhere? And it was Michael, someone even Kevin wouldn't dare mess with?
How had Michael noticed Amelia and fallen for her when Tobias spent every day with her? Tobias was not pleased.