Chapter 47: Treasuring Her First Kiss
However, Lucas came back to his senses the next moment as he held her shoulders and backed off, "I-I am sorry…I can\'t…I can\'t betray…" Lucas mumbled before suddenly becoming silent.
He didn\'t know if he kissed Celia since he was afraid to hurt her even more or if he really wanted to. He had never felt so confused before, and his heart was a mess right now. He could only apologize to Nadia in his mind for kissing another girl.
Celia\'s face was red as she awkwardly waved her hand, "P-Please don\'t feel sorry…I understand. I know you probably don\'t see me as a woman," Celia said with a sad smile as she averted her gaze.
Her hands were trembling as she chided herself for being delusional into thinking that Lucas really had feelings for her. She also felt bad for forcing a kiss on him and was about to apologize when Lucas suddenly said, "I see you as a woman, Celia…and that is why I can\'t…"
Celia\'s eyes widened as she asked, "You can\'t what…Don\'t tell me…You already love someone else?" Celia had never seen any other woman around Lucas, but she couldn\'t think of any other reason. She thought that maybe he had fallen in love with someone else during the past few years. This only made her feel even more regretful for not meeting him sooner.
Lucas nodded with a heavy expression, "Yes…I-I am in love with someone else, and she loves me as well."
Celia felt a stabbing sensation in her heart as she asked with a tight-lipped smile, "I see…I am happy that you have someone who loves you like that. Can I know…who she is?"
Celia wanted to know what kind of woman won over Lucas before she could. It was only out of pure curiosity to understand what she lacked and why Lucas seemed so head over heels with that woman.Lucas\' expression became a bit complicated as he looked at her, "It\'s a bit complicated. But please don\'t tell this to anybody else, no matter how close they are. Okay?"
Celia was confused, seeing how Lucas\' expression was serious. But she nodded and pinched her throat as she said, "I promise. I would never tell anybody else whatever you say to me."
She now became even more curious, wondering why Lucas was being secretive about his lover\'s identity.
"It\'s actually Nadia…my mother…Well, we are not blood-related since she is my stepmother," Lucas said as he stroked his eyebrow, wondering if Celia would look down on him or something.
Celia\'s lips parted as she looked at him with a bewildered expression, not at all expecting him to be in love with his stepmother. She knew that Nadia was not related by blood to him. But still, in the eyes of the world, including the society, she was his mother in every way. She raised him from when he was just a baby.
But then she remembered Nadia\'s appearance all those years ago, especially the entrancing beauty that made her look like a goddess gracing the mortal world with her presence.
Even at that time, she had never seen a woman more beautiful than her. It was as if she was the incarnation of the goddess of beauty herself.
Which man in the world can resist falling in love with her? And after knowing how protective Nadia was of Lucas, it was only natural that the two would form a strong intimate connection.
Because of this, Celia didn\'t find it that surprising that Lucas fell in love with Nadia despite the social complications. She knew the kingdom\'s laws prohibited any romantic relationship between family members, even if they were not blood-related.
So she could understand why Lucas was being secretive about it. But this only made her feel worried for him. After all, he would never be able to have a public relationship with Nadia unless he leaves this kingdom. But she knew his current situation too well and felt sad for him, especially knowing how hard he was training to become stronger.
She felt that Nadia was quite the lucky woman to have someone with a gentle and sincere man like Lucas love her so much. She could only blame herself for not being in Lucas\' life longer.
Still, somewhere inside her heart, she felt it a bit unfair that her life was such a disaster. She was not only forced to deal with uncaring and insensitive parents but even the love of her life was stolen away by his own stepmother. Why can\'t she ever have something good happen to her? What wrong did she do to deserve this?
\'No…I should feel happy for him…\' Celia shook off these complicated thoughts since it was making her feel even more unsettled.
"How about you try to run away? I don\'t want you to marry someone you don\'t like and suffer. I can\'t bear to see that," Lucas said with a heavy gaze.
Celia shook her head with a sorrowful smile, "I wish I could. But I can\'t. I am not strong enough to survive out there alone. You know how it is, right? Our world is a cruel place, including the people in it, except for a very few like you. Even though you can\'t accept my love, I am glad you at least see me as a woman, and I got to give you my first kiss. I will forever treasure it. I hope you won\'t mind, right?"