Love’s Cunning Ruse

Chapter 306

Daphne cast a timid glance at Julien before replying, “He’s returned to Noblewood.”

“He went back to Noblewood now, of all times?” Julie said, a hint of surprise in her voice.

Daphne nodded, “He’s gone home to fetch his passport. We’re getting ready to apply for our marriage license.”

This bombshell had Julie and Julien exchanging a look of mutual astonishment. Then Julie, bubbling with excitement, asked, “When did you two decide this?” “Yesterday. I wanted to tell you guys then, but you mentioned you were going to a gala, so… Anyway, he went back to Noblewood. He should be back tonight.”

Julie was still reveling in Daphne’s happiness, but Julien, still puzzled, asked, “Why the sudden decision to get married?”

“Didn’t Daphne say that if Mr. Lionel could win over her folks, she’d agree?” Julie turned her head to look at Daphne, who was sitting in the back seat. Daphne’s cheeks, flushed with a touch of bashfulness, held a hint of an embarrassed smile. Then she said, “It’s true that Lionel managed to charm my parents, but that isn’t the main reason. I just came to understand a lot of things that weren’t clear to me before.”

“Like what?” Julie asked on Julien’s behalf, and after posing the question, she turned to her.

“Yesterday, Lionel accompanied me to the prenatal checkup, he was tender and protective. The day before, he invited me home for dinner but brought along a lawyer to draft a prenup. Should we get married, his assets before and after the marriage would all be mine. This morning, I woke up to find the street swarming with reporters. Lionel was on the phone immediately. I’ve been thinking about what my

feelings really are for Lionel. Is it just a fan girl crush, or do I genuinely like the man? His recent actions have moved me. Every morning, he makes breakfast before I even get out of bed. He sits by me when I’m suffering morning sickness. He speaks up for me when I’m under media scrutiny…”

Her lips curled into a gentle smile, “What he gives me is more than just moving-it’s an irreplaceable sense of security.”

“I’m Daphne, after all!” she exclaimed, “If he wasn’t someone I liked, would I have slept with him? That’s intimate, and there are no accidents in such matters-it’s not like it was against my will. The so- called accidents are just excuses. I like him, and he likes me. It might not be full-blown love yet, but since there’s mutual affection, why not give it a shot? And besides, we have a little one on the way!” She caressed her belly contentedly, beaming with sweetness.

Julien asked, “So, did you sign that prenup?”

Daphne nodded, “Sure did. It’s all notarized already, though the terms are a bit different. We agreed that if one of us changed mind, they should come clean early. Whoever cheats loses custody but maintains financial responsibility for the child. But we value our freedom; if the heart is not in it, clinging to a marriage won’t bring happiness, nor will it to the parents. And a child in a sham family? Unlikely to be happy either. So, the cheater forfeits custody but is still financially responsible. As for the assets, we’ll divide them according to the state laws. Prenuptial assets remain personal, postnuptial assets are split legally.”

Daphne, who often seemed frivolous, was actually quite rational. She just had a tendency to avoid confronting issues.

Out of the blue, Lionel somehow found out that Daphne was with Julie and made a call to Julie’s phone since Daphne had turned hers off in fright.

Julie handed the phone to Daphne. After connecting, Daphne was met with a torrent of Lionel’s concern.

Once Lionel finished his fussing, Daphne teased, “Lord Lion, do you treat all your exes nicely?”

“Not one ex has given me as much trouble as you do,” Lionel countered with affectionate exasperation, “I’ve spoken to your parents; don’t worry. I’ll come to pick you up tonight.”

“Okay.”

“And another thing…”

“What is it?” Daphne asked, Julie all ears too.

Lionel said, “The online commentary is all one-sided. I’ve posted a tweet; you stay off the internet for now.”

“Alright.” Daphne swiftly changed the subject, “Everything going smoothly on your end?”

Don’t worry about me; just rest up.” With that, Lionel ended the call.

In truth, Lionel’s trip was anything but smooth. Fabian was reluctant to hand over the page of the family registry that Lionel needed. Lionel, unfazed, held a lighter casually, his expression indifferent as he looked at Fabian.

“Mr. Kemp, hand over my page of the family registry, and I’ll be out of your hair. If not, I’ll burn it, and we can both apply for a new one. What do you say?”

Lionel’s friend Chris sharply featured brother, stood nearby clapping, his voice clear and strong, “Burn it!”

On the way to the Noblewood Retreat, Daphne hung up the phone but didn’t immediately give it back to Julie.

Turning to face her, Julie asked, “What’s up? Planning on swallowing my phone?”

“I’m just checking Twitter,” Daphne replied, opening the app.

Julie quickly reached for the phone, “Didn’t Mr. Lionel tell you to stay offline? The comments right now are bound to be ugly, you…”

“I can handle it! How bad can it be?” Daphne opened the trending list, and the top tweet was from Lionel. Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.

It was a photo of her asleep on the couch, her hand in his, showing her peaceful face and their intertwined fingers.

The caption was simple: There is no love that needs to be hidden, only people who choose not to reveal it.

But the thing was, Daphne had no clue when that photo was taken.

Looking at Daphne, whose face was a picture of utter disaster, Julie cautiously reached out to snatch back her phone, only to be swatted away with a smack. “Don’t touch!”

Julien glanced at Daphne through the rear-view mirror, puzzled, and asked, “What’s up?”

“I don’t even know when this picture was snapped, but look at me! I had no makeup! No makeup! And to top it all off, he didn’t even put a filter on the picture? Come on! As a celebrity, an A-lister for crying out loud, could he not have edited the picture just a tad?” Daphne handed her phone to Julie, looking completely vexed. Julie just stared blankly.

“You look good without makeup,” Julien chimed in.

Her comment caught Julie off guard.

That… seemed to improve Daphne’s mood quite a bit.

Julie reached out again, “Can I have my phone back now?”

What’s the rush?” Daphne, upon seeing over two million comments and more than five million likes, realized she was quite the sensation.

She scrolled through the comments, the most liked one had nearly four hundred thousand thumbs up.

The comment read – [Feels like an April Fool’s joke come early, thumbs up if you agree.]

Below was a reply from Lionel himself. He wrote – [No joke, dead serious.]

That was the most harmonious one in the bunch. The rest were an assortment of jabs, many not wishing her and Lionel well. When Daphne logged into her account, it was like a bomb had gone off.

Daphne, with a surprisingly light-hearted tone, said to Julie, “You know, the last time my feed exploded like this, it was because of your public announcement with Mr.

Hernandez.”

Julie took Julien’s phone, curious to see how people were commenting on Daphne’s situation, only to find out that Julien… didn’t even have the app downloaded.

“There’s car WiFi,” Julien mentioned.

While Julie was busy downloading the app, she noticed Daphne in the backseat, typing away and laughing like a loon.

“What’s so funny? You are getting roasted and still this happy?”

Once Julie downloaded the app and found Daphne’s feed, she understood why she was smug.

The latest post from Daphne was a selfie from their trip to Machu Picchu. Blue skies, white clouds, and there she was in a white dress, sitting on the grass.

It was a genuinely refreshing and beautiful photo, but the comments were brutal.

The top one read- [ She’s so ugly, it’s an insult to the audience!]

Daphne had replied -[Due to my underwhelming looks, I am raising funds for a major transformation in South Korea. To my dear fans who can’t stand my face, please send cash to show your support. Thanks!]

Julie was speechless.

The second comment was no kinder: [This liar stole our Lionel! With skin that good, you must have had work done. Drop the act with that fake face.],

Daphne’s reply was fearless, [Your Lionel is on my bed, feel free to come and get him!]

The third comment took a jab at her attractiveness, [Is Mr. Lionel blind? She is so ugly. Can he really look at her in the morning without wanting to vomit?]

Daphne’s comeback was a zinger, [Actually, the one who vomits every morning is me… ugh, morning sickness is the worst.]

Daphne addressed each comment with her trademark sass, and Julie couldn’t stop laughing when she read.

Classic Daphne, never bored even when pregnant. If other top actor found a wife, it would be either a secret marriage or a gracious thanks to the fans, hoping for peaceful coexistence. But Mr. Lionel? He not only went public with his wife but also had her clapping back at the fans.

Julie was doubled over with laughter when she suddenly remembered something important and quickly said to Julien,, “Oh no, I forgot I’m supposed to meet Kieran.at the hospital after his shift.”

Julien pulled up right in front of the hospital entrance.

When Julie arrived at Sansa’s hospital room, Kieran was already there, looking like he’d been waiting for a while. The man was engrossed in his phone, head bowed.

She tiptoed up behind him and then wrapped her arms around the man’s neck from behind, “Have you been waiting long…” Before she could finish, she noticed Kieran was on a video call. On the phone screen was a woman with delicate features and a stunning smile, busy in an open kitchen making cupcakes, saying, “I just learned this cupcake recipe. When I get back, I’ll make them for you, okay?”

The woman’s smile felt like a warm breeze…