Chapter 80 - The Truth

Alex was listening intently to Lydia when she suddenly looked at Alan with a mischievous flash in her eyes, "Did you just say you made that promise with my mother?"

"Yes, that's why you are here, isn't it?" Lydia already knew the inside story, so she set about playing along with Alex's game.

Eliott just looked at the two women helplessly, thinking that they must have found each other!

"Well, I thought you had made this engagement promise with my father for either of his daughters, I did not know it was done with my mother," Alex gave a feigned worried impression and looked at Lydia.

Lydia just looked at Alan without saying a word, she wanted to see how he would react. It was one thing to lie to your daughter behind four walls, but another to do it in front of them.

Alan actually found himself in an awkward situation as everyone present in the living room looked at him with questioning eyes.

"You misunderstood me. I said it was a promise between our two families, you did not ask me who exactly it was made with," Alan said with an embarrassed smile. "Let us not talk about the past, I brought you the one you like anyway, did not I?" He looked at Eliott with a faint smile.

Eliott just nodded and took a drink of water. He was pleased to see the worried look on Alan's face as if he was reliving his worst nightmare.

"But actually, I am a little curious as to how my mother came to make that promise, and also why you agreed to it... I mean, I could have turned to be a bad girl after all, even if mother was your best friend..." Alex wanted to hear the story behind all of this now in front of her father. She did not want him to come to her one day and say that he was the one she owed her happy life with Eliott!

"Why talk about something sad on a happy day? Let us not talk about it today..." Alan hastily tried to change the subject.

"Yes, yes Alex, today is a happy day, let us talk about what you are actually here for now that Eliott is here..." Lydia was also hesitant to talk about this particular event. She did not know if Eliott had told Alex everything, she did not know if she could remember it all. She also did not want this happy day to become a sad day for Alex.

"Mother, I am curious too," Eliott said when he saw Alex's determined look, indicating to her mother that it was okay to talk about it because he knew why his mother was reluctant, but he also knew that it was a good opportunity for Alex to talk about it now, in front of Alan.

"Well, if you really want to know, I'll tell you. Actually, it started out as just a little joke. When Eliott was still in a coma after taking a blow to the head trying to save you, Alix was very worried that Eliott's head might have a sequel, and to make up for it, and to thank him for saving you, she told me that she would make you his wife if that was what he wanted in the future, so you could take care of him for the rest of your life!

We were just joking, but after thinking about it some more, I thought it was a good idea! I always liked you a lot, you were so sweet and dynamic I thought you would be a good match for Eliott, who was a very quiet and boring kid, so we made it official after talking to your grandfather about it..." Lydia quietly explained how she came to make this promise with Alex's mother.

"Wait a minute... What accident are you talking about?" Alex was a little confused. The only incident she had when she was here was when her half-brother tried to rape her, she did not remember an encounter with Eliott at all, so why are they talking about him being in the hospital?

When she asked that question everyone in the room next to Eliott tensed, Alan started to sweat profusely, that incident had always made him uncomfortable as a father, even if he had no feelings for Alex it was still a disgusting thing for a half brother to attack his own sister. He had made sure that no one but the people involved knew about this incident. He looked at Alex with angry eyes as she asked one embarrassing question after another.

Eli and Lydia were also a little confused about her question. They did not know what to answer since they did not even know what exactly she knew about the accident at the time.

"The day Clyde attacked you, I was the one who stopped him, and while I was protecting you, I got hit in the head... I also didn't remember much about that incident, mother reminded me about it only when she told me about the fact that I have someone they had engaged me to. And you know the end of the story," Eliott answered Alex curiosity calmly. He thought it was the best moment to finally talk about it. Alex remembered the incident with Clyde because he knew she had told Ethan about her fear of male touching, but it seemed like she had forgotten what happened after that.

"So it was you? You were the boy who helped me..." Alex looked at Eliott with tears in her eyes. Things were becoming clearer in her mind, she could not understand why she was okay with Eliott touches, now it was more logical. She also remembered how her mother had always told her that there was this guy that she should be thankful for in her whole life. It all made sense now.

But when she thought about it, she got a little angry. She understood that the story behind this betrothal was not a happy one, it was a time of worry, pain and anxiety for two parents who cared about their children, and here Alan was actually trying to take advantage of it...

She had asked her mother what her father had done about the matter, but she always avoided talking about it. She remembered the nonsense Alan had told her the day he asked her to marry him, and she could not help but get even angrier. It was the right time to ask him what she had always wanted to know. Even though she knew the answer, seeing how well Clyde was living, she could already guess that nothing had happened to him, but she was desperate to hear an answer from him, and she knew he would not dare lie to her in front of the Jensen family.

"So my half-brother tried to rape me while my best friend mother's child saved me and my mother was the only one who was with me in the hospital and gave me that promise of engagement, so why am I here with you? What did you actually do for me back then?" Alex looked her father in the eye, everyone else in the room was silent, feeling somehow out of place being here. Eliott was the only one who was not embarrassed, on the contrary, he felt like it was about him too, after all he was involved in the incident and it was about his future wife!

Alan's head was spinning, he was lost in thought. He had not expected to answer these questions about the past when he came here today. He could not help but blame Alex for all of this, it was as if she was doing it on purpose, with Eliott's persistence at that. He now found himself in a strange situation in front of his future-in-law. Since they already knew the story and Lydia had already accepted Alex as her daughter-in-law, he decided to answer Alex's curiosity with no shame.

"Well, when I got the news, you were already in the hospital, I was already separated from your mother, I punished Clyde severely... he was granted of three months."

Alex smirked when she heard that. She had not expected much, but it still hurt to hear it, after all, nothing happened to that bastard. What she did not understand was why the Jensen family did not punish Clyde for what he had done to Eliott. She looked at Eliott, who seemed to understand what she was about to ask.

"My parents did not do anything because your father used this incident to his advantage and asked my parents not to make a fuss about it so he could finally divorce your mother. My mother could not help but give in to get her friend out of the sad situation she was in and to protect you, he was willing to give you up only to that condition.

Alex just looked at her father blankly, she could not believe he was such a devil.. Her mother had never spoken to her about such things, and she could not imagine that the inside story was so depressing. She could not help but feel sad for her late mother, the suffering she had experienced with this man who was supposed to be her father was just too much!