Chapter 1032

Lucas stared at Yalena in disbelief. He thought, “What did this woman just say? She’s in love with me?” He simply couldn’t believe it–Lucas felt as if he was being mocked.

He asked, “Do you enjoy making fun of people? We’ve barely even met, and now you’re saying you’re in love with me?”

“Can’t I?” Yalena retorted, fixing her gaze on Lucas.

Lucas said, “If you really loved me, you wouldn’t have had people beat me up and hurt my family.”

Yalena hurriedly defended herself, “That’s only because I didn’t know it was you at first.”

“What do you mean by that?” Lucas pressed, his brows furrowing in confusion. He was sure he hadn’t known her before.

Yalena restrained herself. She thought, “I’ve had plastic surgery, so it’s understandable Lucas didn’t recognize me. Even without it, I am just a nobody in his life.”

She said, “You could say I fell for you at first sight. The very first time I saw you, I liked you. If I hadn’t shown you mercy, I would’ve had those guys tear you apart and destroy you for good.”

Lucas said, “So when you told Teresa you had someone set me up, you did it all on purpose, didn’t you? You pissed her off on purpose; you wanted her to go into early labor.”

Yalena snapped, “My grudge with Teresa is a whole different story. See? I didn’t actually ruin you, did I? You’re still sitting here, talking to me. Shouldn’t you be thanking me?”

Lucas asked, “So you think I should bow in gratitude or something?”

Yalena said, “Shouldn’t you? I’ve got loads of money now, you know, Lucas. I’m way out of your league, and there are plenty of people dying to marry me. Marrying me should be your honor.”

Lucas almost laughed at how ridiculous she sounded. He said, “And that’s supposed to impress me? Is this what you call love? Ms. Kelly, I don’t care if you’re actually into me, or if you’re just messing with me, or if this is some twisted game of yours. Let me make it crystal clear–I don’t like you.”

Yalena’s eyes flickered darker for a second, but she quickly masked it with a playful, almost mocking smile. She said, “Take your time and think it over. All you have to do is be with me, and I’ll give you everything you want. If you want to act, I can make you the leading man.”

“I don’t need any of that. Save your so-called generosity. Just hurry up and pay for my friend’s surgery–that’s all I want,” Lucas replied firmly.

With that, he got to his feet, making it clear he was done here and ready to leave. From start to finish, he never once gave Yalena so much as a friendly look.

“Wait!” Yalena called out, unwilling to let him leave just yet. She got to her feet and asked, “Lucas, can I ask you something?”

Lucas turned around to face her.

Yalena fixed her gaze on him, clenching her fingers tightly. She said, “If I weren’t who I am now, would you ever fall for me?”

Lucas looked confused, completely at a loss for what she was trying to pull. But he didn’t want to have anything to do with someone like Yalena. So he shook his head and said, “Never.”

Yalena drew a slow, meaningful smile and said, “Alright, so you don’t love me–no big deal. But think it over, Lucas. Being the Kelly family’s son-in-law? That’s a pretty sweet deal, isn’t it?”

Lucas replied, “That’s not a life I’d ever want. If you ever lay a hand on my family or my friends again, you’ll have me to deal with.” With that, he turned and walked away.

Yalena slowly sank back into her seat as snowflakes began to fall outside.

Vaguely, Yalena remembered the first time she’d met Lucas. It was on a snowy day just like this, only the snow back then was even heavier and colder. Back then, she wasn’t even called Yalena.