Chapter 343 Man Begging to be Pitied
It was time to eat.
On the other hand, Amelie ended the stream and stretched before languidly walking down the stairs.
In the dining room, Bria was helping Steven set the table.
"Bria, it's time to eat," he said, cheerfully pulling out a chair for the girl.
However, she did not need his help, as she quickly climbed onto the chair and sat properly.
Then, he loaded her divided plate with some of every side dish he cooked before adding the carbohydrates.
Bria ate so fast and happily that Steven laughed by watching her. His heart was filled with joy to see his little granddaughter be so mature.
"You are much more well-behaved than your mother," he commented, stroking her head while he gave her a tender look.
She was enjoying the warmth of his hand when she suddenly spotted Amelie. "Mama, hurry up. Grandpa made lots of amazing food today."
When Amelie strode over, she found the table laden with various new dishes.
Bria then placed a forkful of food on her plate. "Here, Mama."
"Thank you, and here is some for you." Amelie reciprocated by serving her daughter more food.
She also filled Steven's plate with some food. "Let's eat, Dad."
"Alright." He was joyfully beside himself to see his daughter and granddaughter so well-behaved. Afterward, he gently patted Bria on the head. "Focus on your food now."
Bria gave him a firm nod but did not immediately return to her food. Instead, she turned to her mother and said, "Mama, I want to learn figure skating."
"Figure skating?" Amelie stared at her in astonishment.
Bria nodded several times consecutively while humming in the affirmative.
"Your performance with Mr. Gareth is so pretty. I want to skate too. I want to perform. I also want to be famous like him."
Amelie had thought of making her daughter learn a skill or craft before, but she always thought it could wait since Bria was so young. Now that Bria was asking to learn something, she naturally had no reason to reject the request.
"Okay." Amelie nodded. "Whether or not you can perform like Mr. Gareth is not important. What's important is that you enjoy learning how to skate."
"Yay!" Bria joyfully cheered, pumping her hands high. Meanwhile, there was a flash of a sly fox's cunning glint in her big eyes.
The following day was a weekend. Amelie brought Bria to a large skating rink.
After registering, Bria went with her female instructor for her lesson.
Nonetheless, Amelie had nothing to do but sit and watch since she felt uncomfortable leaving. Thus, she pulled out her phone and started on some simple tasks from work.
"Mama! Mama!"
Before ten minutes were up, someone was tugging at her shirt sleeve. So, she turned around to find Bria curled beside her while wearing her pink skating outfit.
"What is it?" She stroked Bria's head. "Why aren't you with your instructor?"
"I don't want to learn with her." Bria pouted with bulging cheeks. "She doesn't skate as well as you do. I want you to teach me instead, Mommy."
Amelie turned to glance at the instructor. The instructors at the skating rink were only to teach kids who had only started learning how to skate. Naturally, the instructors were only mediocre skaters.
"Mama, teach me." Bria pleaded in a soft and sweet voice as she continued to tug at Amelie's shirt. Combined with the sight of her shimmering eyes, Amelie's heart immediately melted.
Well, she had nothing to do anyway. Hence, Amelie went to the instructor and told her about the request. Nevertheless, the instructor had no objections.
Soon, Amelie was teaching Bria to skate at the rink's edges after buying a new outfit and a pair of new skates.
"Dada!" Bria suddenly called out in the middle of the lesson. She was waving hard at someone.
"What a coincidence," Leo said as he skated over with a man in an instructor's outfit. After exchanging a look with his daughter, he then turned to Amelie.
"Are you skating as well, Dada?" Bria exclaimed in faux surprise at seeing his outfit.
He was currently dressed in workout clothes instead of his usual suit. The beige outfit was tightly wrapped around his tall body, making his skin appear fair and smooth. He did not look as cold as usual, yet he was still a striking sight.
"Dada's handsome!" Bria swiftly gave him a thumbs-up.
She then hurriedly nudged Amelie. "Mama's pretty as well."
Then, Leo turned to look at Amelie's outfit when he heard that.
She wore a white exercise outfit, making her tiny face look so beautiful and fair. There was no makeup on her face, and her hair was tied up in a high ponytail. She looked so much younger than her actual age, like a young girl who had finished puberty.
While Amelie's outfit was not cinched, her curves were still visible. Leo's throat tightened when he saw that, and his eyes darkened.
"Ah, so you're family," the instructor exclaimed as he watched the trio interact. "In that case, I'll leave you to catch up." He then walked away.
Bria stealthily winked at Leo before saying, "You're here just in time, Dada. Mama's teaching me how to skate. You can ask her to teach you as well."
"It is already against the rules for me to teach you how to skate here, Bria. I can't teach anyone else." Amelie knew what her daughter was scheming. "Mr. Alston should find a qualified instructor to teach him."
She then pulled Bria away. "Let's go."
Upon realizing her plan had failed, Bria sadly blinked at her father before following Amelie.
Later, Amelie led Bria around the rink a few more laps.
She thought Leo would either leave the rink or go to the instructor. However, when they skated back to their original spot, he was alone, leaning against the railing for support. It was evident that he had never skated before. Even with the help of the support railing, he was still highly unbalanced.
Suddenly, Leo let go of the support railing and tried to skate forward.
Bang! He had not even taken a single step before he was sprawled out all over the ground.
Amelie was rendered speechless upon seeing that. She assumed that he would have at least skated a step or two, no matter how new he was to skating. Now, it seemed like he knew nothing about skating, nor did he have any experience.
The impact of his fall could be heard by anyone within a few feet radius.
She could not help but feel her body ache in sympathy.
Leo soon climbed to his feet, though. After dusting himself off, he tried to skate forward once more. Before he could even do a thing, he crashed to the ground once more. One fall soon became a series of crashes. Crash after crash reached her ears.
Therefore, every time he fell, Amelie and Bria would frown and close their eyes.
I'm sure he'll give up after a few tumbles. After all, embarrassing himself in public like that would be equivalent to social suicide for a president of his stature. He should have gone somewhere where no one could see him tumbling like that. However, Amelie was proven wrong.
"Mama, let's go help Dada." Bria could not watch on any longer. Hence, she yanked on her mother's shirt, her eyes turning red as if she were about to cry. Bria knew from experience how badly her father would hurt if he fell, as she had experienced it herself. Moreover, she should not have devised this scheme, which resulted in her father's suffering.
It had been a long time since Amelie saw Leo look so wretched.
He had never looked so miserable before, not even when he was blind and raging with anger.
His series of falls were not for show. Every time he got back up, he was slower than before. Still, he gritted his teeth and kept quiet.
However, the pain was so overwhelming that his entire jawline was emphasized by how hard he was clenching. The throbbing vein on his face shined with a sheen of sweat.
His neat and tidy hair was a sweat-soaked mess.
"Let me teach you, sir."
Before Amelie knew it, a young woman was standing near him.
The young woman held out a hand to him. When she saw his face, astonishment was painted all over her face. As a regular visitor of this rink, she had seen many outstanding men and women. Nevertheless, she had never seen a man as handsome as Leo. Seeing him in his disheveled state set off an adrenaline rush in her. Then, she looked directly into his eyes, her lust and desire for him written all over her face.
"Scram!" Leo did not even look at her before he shouted.
The young woman stared at him in shock. She knew she was an attractive woman with a beautiful physique. At the skating rink, she was constantly being pursued by strangers. Nevertheless, she had never been yelled at before. Suddenly, her eyes turned red as she skated away swiftly.
Afterward, he slowly sat back up with one hand on the ground. He did not try to get up another time. Instead, he turned around to glance in Amelie's direction. Although Leo wasn't staring at her, the distress on his face made it evident that he was trying to get her attention.
On the other hand, it strangely reminded her of the begging face of a dog she used to own.
Soon, a few more girls skated over to him, asking him if he needed help. Quite a few of them even tried to help him up. However, the sight of his eyes always struck terror into their hearts. He might have been attractive, but the chill in his eyes was enough to stop them in their tracks right there and then. Ultimately, those girls were better off running away.
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