Chapter 153 She Is Hostile to Me
"Sorry." Lucas said to me in a low voice.
I shook my head.
If this had been when I first fell in love with Lucas, I would have been happy to be introduced to his close friends, even if they mocked me.
But now I didn't care about getting approval from Lucas's friends. Their attitude wasn't enough to upset me.
"Don't leave, Lucas!" A woman's voice came from behind us.
Lucas and I stopped and turned around. It was that woman called Sophie.
"Everyone's just joking around. They care about you, no bad intentions." Sophie had neat short hair and patted Lucas on the shoulder. "Since you're already here, it would be such a bummer to just leave like this."
She had a cheerful smile, with a carefree energy in her eyes. She reached out her hand to me. "Isabella, hello, I'm Sophie. Please don't take what they said to heart."
She had a good attitude, so I readily shook her hand.
Lucas looked at the others. Richard pursed his lips, and Lionel also looked unwilling. But Fiona and Loris came over and apologized to me.
Lucas's expression grew darker. Richard and Lionel couldn't hold out and came over to apologize too. Only then did Lucas's expression soften. "I'll say this one more time - Bella is the most important woman in my life. If you still consider me a friend, you need to respect her the way you respect me."
"Got it." The five people in front of us exchanged glances, gradually dropping their mocking expressions, and their eyes showed more seriousness when they looked at me.
"Bella, hello, I'm Richard Thornfield."
"I'm Lionel Caudill."
Loris said, "Fiona and I are siblings. We're from the Beck family, just a small family."
I shook hands with each of them.
Sophie asked me enthusiastically, "Bella, do you like barbecue? We're having barbecue for lunch. Let's prepare the food together."
I nodded. The men and women split up - the men were going to light the charcoal, so I let go of Lucas's hand and followed Sophie and Fiona to their RV to get things.
As for preparing the food, everything in the cooler was basically already processed. We just needed to open the packages and put things on plates.
Sophie saw a blowtorch on the table and muttered "how careless," then quickly grabbed it and ran to find Richard and the others.
I watched her run off. Fiona beside me suddenly said, "Sophie and Lucas are childhood friends. They grew up together. Lucas's grandfather and Sophie's grandfather were good friends. We all used to think they would become a couple."
In the distance, Sophie stood behind Lucas, holding the blowtorch behind her back with one hand while poking Lucas's shoulder with the other.
Lucas turned around, and Sophie smiled as she handed him the blowtorch.
I looked away and continued pouring lemonade into cups, saying flatly, "But the fact is they didn't end up together."
Fiona smiled. "You and Lucas are a good match."
I replied, "Thanks."
We didn't speak again until we had put all the food on plates. Only then did Sophie run back. "You're all done? Oh my god, you guys are so fast. Bella, I heard you're really good at housework. Looks like it's true."
I frowned. Sophie was the one who suggested working together, but she didn't do anything. Although she complimented me, I felt her words were somewhat grating.
Maybe I was overthinking it.
"Lucas is pretty picky about food. I was just an average cook originally, but I took cooking classes specifically for him. As for housework, I just got good at it through practice. Lucas doesn't like strangers touching his personal belongings, so even though we had servants and a chef at home, he preferred having me take care of him."
Talking about our married life, I couldn't help feeling a bit emotional. After the divorce, my relationship with Lucas was completely different from what I had imagined.
In the distance, Lucas was talking with others, occasionally glancing my way with gentle eyes.
But Sophie's smile seemed a bit forced. "I see. You worked so hard taking care of him. That must have been tough for you."
The wind swept across the lawn, bringing the fragrance of grass and flowers.
In the distance, little lambs were bleating lazily, and a sheepdog lay drowsily on the grass, occasionally wagging its tail.
The charcoal in the grill crackled. Fat dripped onto the fire, sending up pale blue smoke. The aroma of wine and spices mixed under the heat into a tempting smell.
Sophie stood beside Lucas. She bent down to take a chilled soda from the ice bucket, poured half a glass, then added half a glass of vodka, followed by lemon slices and a bit of sea salt, and handed it to Lucas with practiced ease.
Then she picked up a small plate and mixed two portions of dipping sauce. One had less chili pepper, with fine crushed nuts and plum sauce. She handed it to Lucas, who casually took it and set it aside. I watched their interaction in silence.
Sophie seemed to sense something and said apologetically in a low voice, "Bella, it's just a habit. When we used to barbecue together, I always mixed sauce for both of us without thinking. Please don't mind."
I was almost certain now - it wasn't my imagination. Sophie was hostile toward me.
"I don't mind," I said coolly.
"Really?" Sophie bit her lip and looked at Lucas hesitantly.
Lucas walked over with skewered meat, asking her in confusion, "What's wrong?"
"I think I upset Bella." Sophie said uneasily. "I automatically prepared your drink and sauce, but Bella said that after you got married, she was the one taking care of you."
Lucas glanced at me. "It's fine. We're already divorced. She doesn't need to take care of me now."
Sophie showed a genuine smile, until Lucas sat down beside me and asked intimately in a low voice, "What flavor barbecue do you like? Now it's my turn to take care of you."
I looked at him, then glanced at Sophie whose smile had faded, and curled my lips slightly. "Whatever. Anything is fine."
"Then try my favorite flavor first. If you don't like it, I'll make something else." Lucas placed the sauce dish Sophie had given him beside me, then focused on grilling the meat.
Clearly, he didn't take Sophie's words to heart.
Lucas was quite good at grilling. As he turned the grill, the meat skewers and beef ribs gradually became fragrant.
He put the grilled meat on an empty plate to cool. I picked up a fork, about to spear a piece of beef rib, when another fork moved faster than mine and snatched away the piece I had my eye on.
Sophie bit into the delicious beef rib, her eyes sparkling, and gave Lucas a thumbs up. "Lucas, your grilling skills have improved even more!"
Lucas answered dismissively, "Thanks."
I put down my fork and picked up a meat skewer, eating it slowly.
The barbecue actually tasted pretty good, but I wasn't in a good mood.
Sophie ate happily. In no time, she had eaten several pieces of beef rib and transferred the rest to another plate. She stood up with a smile. "I'll take these for them to try!"
"Sophie's personality is just like that - a bit noisy, a bit clingy. Don't hold it against her." Lucas looked at the meat skewer I'd been eating for several minutes without finishing, and frowned. "You don't like it? Should I make you something else?"
I put down the skewer and said expressionlessly, "No need. I've lost my appetite."
What's the point of eating? I'm already full of anger.