They signed the contract there and then before they parted. Sally gave Brianna a gentle hug and said, good night.
Brianna had not expected that her sketches would have helped so much. As Levi said, Streep Crystal was a very important client. She heaved a sigh of relief as she watched Sally leave.
***
Just as Brianna and Scott walked out of the café, Brianna's phone rang. It was her mother. Brianna hesitated. Could it be about the news? Has she seen it? Brianna worried.
"Hello, Mum."
Silence.
Brianna knitted her brows. "Mum?"
"Brianna, I need to know the truth. What have you been up to lately?" Sue asked.
"I...err...I've got a job at The Anderson Corporation, and I'm a jewelry designer now."
"Tell me, have you done anything indiscreet with Scott Anderson? Brianna, your father and I never expected you to be rich or famous, but we do hope you live an honest life with dignity."
Brianna could hear the anger in her mother's tone. Tears filled her eyes. She wanted to explain, but then she realized that there was nothing she could say for what her mother said was true.
Suddenly, Scott took Brianna's phone and said politely, "Mrs. Loren, this is Scott, your son-in-law."
Brianna stared at Scott in disbelief.
Sue was too shocked to speak.
"How are you?" Scott asked casually.
"Son, son-in-law?" Sue stuttered. "Do you have any idea what you are saying?"
"Brianna and I got married two months ago. Well, we have registered. I can't say that I love her as I'm in love with someone else who has gone missing, however, I can promise you that as long as Brianna is my legal wife, I will be loyal to her and protect her the best I can. As with the ridiculous rumors you have probably heard or read about, I trust that, as her mother, you know very well what your daughter is like and know that there isn't any truth in it." Scott said clearly.
Silence again.
It took a while for Scott's words to sink in. Then Sue asked calmly, "But still people talk and rumors hurt. How can I stand people speaking of my daughter like that? What good does it do to my daughter?"
"I've asked someone to investigate, and I will have an answer soon. Before I sort it out, I hope you have faith in your daughter and not worry much. I will protect her."
After a while, Sue said, "Thank you." She understood.
Brianna looked at Scott gratefully, tears in her eyes. Distant and cold as him, he actually spoke to my mum humbly and politely. He has assured mum that he will protect me.
Scott tapped her lips with his finger gently and said, "You don't need to say anything. I don't want to hear your pitiful gratitude." Brianna pouted her lips, and tears ran down her cheeks. She nodded, feeling grateful and loved.
Scott took her hand, and they walked to the car.
She felt the warmth of his palm and thought about how pathetic she had been with Liam Williams, how her dreams of love were slowly destroyed and forsaken during the past years. However, after spending two months with Scott, she had slowly regained her confidence and hope, in herself, in love, and in the future.
Perhaps I can still be the person I've dreamed of being since I was little.
On the way home, Brianna sat quietly looking out of the window while Scott made a few phone calls. She was lost in her thoughts.
After the last phone call, Scott put his phone down. He put his arm around Brianna's waist, lifted her up, and sat her down on his lap. He stroked her hair absent-mindedly.
It seemed that it had become something natural that he liked having her seated on his lap, in his embrace. Brianna had also got used to his bossy intimacy. She had even grown to like it. She looked at him with a smile.
Yet, there was a hint of sadness in her smile. However intimate he is with me, I can never reach his heart. She thought.
When the car stopped, Brianna looked around with her drowsy eyes and realized she had fallen asleep in the car and they had arrived home. Scott carried her out of the car, lifting her up and turning her to face him, he wrapped her left leg around his hips, and naturally, Brianna had to wrap her other leg around him and her arms around his neck.
Brianna blushed as she was conscious of the maids and bodyguards around seeing them so intimate, but Scott seemed to take no notice of anyone. He even grabbed and squeezed her bum, then bit her ear gently as he whispered to her. "You have a nice bum."
Brianna buried her head on his shoulder bashfully.
He carried her up to his room and put her down on the sofa. "Nice job at dinner. Keep it up, Mrs. Anderson." He said with a playful smile and a wink.
Brianna couldn't help gazing at Scott, utterly charmed by him, and she felt her heart racing. On realizing her losing control, she looked away and asked him what she could do to get rid of the rumors online.
"Check the news. I'm going for a shower." Scott said casually as he took off his tie and shirt and walked to the bathroom.
Anxiously, Brianna took out her phone from her bag and checked online, only to see that all the news had been changed completely. They were speaking highly of her for the pendant and the earrings she had designed for Sally, as well as confirming that Rare Gem was the real copycat. Liam Williams and Zara Berry were now accused as thieves.
People even left comments requesting Brianna to design for them, saying that they loved her design very much. Some headhunters and companies had even left their contact information hoping to hire Brianna. All the videos and photos about Brianna drinking in clubs were confirmed fake by the managers of the clubs. Even those that were called ‘rich old men' had apologized and denied the truth of the rumors.