Love Began with the First Meeting

Aaron froze when he heard Ximena's question. He had been subconsciously evading the possibility of such a thing happening ever since he had changed his mind and had called Freya back. Now the storm had hit without warning, leaving him totally unprepared. Ximena pushed him and struggled out of his embrace, and he released her reflexively. She stared at him silently, waiting for his answer. Looking at her deathly pale face, Aaron sighed. Finally, he chose to answer her question and said in a low voice, "I found the truth when I received the report from the private detective whom you had asked to investigate about your aunt."

Complicated emotions flashed through Ximena's swollen, red eyes.

Seeing her sudden change in expression, Aaron said quickly, "I didn't interfere with the investigation." After a short pause, he continued, "Ximena, you know what kind of existence I am in QY Island." Seeing the changing expressions on Ximena's face, he felt his heart twist painfully. "Ken didn't give any special instruction to the private detective, and neither did I. In fact, I had no idea about the investigation that was going on. But in that circumstance and with the truth he had dug up, he thought that it might not be appropriate to tell you everything, at least not until he had consulted me about it. That's why he came to me to ask for my decision."

Ximena stared at Aaron in a daze. She had never seen any sign of doubt in that man's eyes before, but now he looked so flustered as he tried to explain the situation to her.

Although she knew that he was telling the truth, she could not forgive him for the time being. In order to comfort herself, she had to find somebody to throw the blame at. And it had to be him. She had no one else to point her fingers at.

Gently, she pushed away Aaron's hand that was about to touch her cheek. She stood up slowly and walked silently towards the door. Her steps were heavy, as if her feet and legs were made of lead. A family was something both she and Aaron were desperately eager to have, but they just couldn't attain it by any means.

All of a sudden, her body was pulled back into a pair of strong arms. Ximena blinked slightly. She could perceive the uneasiness in Aaron's body. She said weakly, "Aaron, let me go." Her voice was hoarse, like a piece of rusty iron. She continued, "When I solve this puzzle in my head, everything will be okay."

Her words couldn't console Aaron at all. On the contrary, he felt much more uneasy. He knew Ximena all too well. Once she decided to be 'calm', she would end up being cold towards everything and everyone. That was a common characteristic of people at the bottom of the society. In order to survive, they had to convince themselves that nothing could beat them.

"Ximena..." Aaron started.

"Is there something else that I am not aware of?" Ximena asked coldly, interrupting Aaron. After staying by his side for three years, she was sure that she was the only woman who knew him best, though she dared not say that she was the only person who knew him like no one else. "Are you still hiding something from me?" The question spilled out of her dry lips, but she had no doubt about the answer.

Aaron closed his eyes to bury the train of thoughts deep in his eyes painfully. What she was asking now was exactly what he had been trying his best to prevent Hugo from exposing. How could he tell her the truth?

"Tell me..." Ximena said in an apathetic tone, looking ahead with her empty eyes. "I have the right to know everything that is related to me, don't I?" "Ximena "

Before Aaron could say anything more, the door flew open abruptly. With one of her hands still on the doorknob, Freya looked at Ximena in a flustered way. Her worried eyes were saying that she didn't want her daughter to know any of those things. "Ximena, your Aunt Freya is begging you. Please don't ask any more questions. Please don't!" Everything had happened too quickly. Freya couldn't refer to herself as Ximena's mother yet.

Ximena fixed her eyes on her mother for so long a time that she didn't notice that Aaron had released his grip on her body.

Freya's eyes wavered. As someone who had survived life by acting according to the silent expressions of others, especially superior people, Ximena was able to see through Freya easily. She understood the subtext of Freya's expressions quite well. "What are you trying to hide from me?" she asked in a dull, hoarse voice which was filled with much pain. "What do you need to hide from me so badly that you won't even recognize me as your own daughter? " Ximena used all her strength to roar at Freya, "What is it? WHAT ARE YOU NOŤ TELLING ME?! Arrghh-" She broke down again. Stamping her feet on the ground, she questioned her mother, "For so many years...So many years... Do you know how I survived all these years? What I had to go through to get here... Do you know?!" Freya wept, covering her mouth with her hands. She felt deeply sorry for Ximena, but even so, she could not tell her the truth. How could she tell her daughter that her father had framed her mother and sent her to prison for the sake of another woman? She could not bear to think what Ximena would feel like if she ever found that out. She would rather Ximena hated her for not telling her the entire truth.

Aaron walked to Ximena, who was going through an emotional breakdown, and pulled her into his embrace. He held her tightly in his arms. "Ximena, calm down."

"Calm down? How can I calm down? Tell me how!" Ximena roared, her voice was now more pitiful and anxious. "How can I calm down? The person who I thought was my mother is not my real mother! Who knows... Maybe the one who I thought was my father is probably not my father either! The person who I thought and loved as my aunt is actually my mother! But this mother doesn't want to recognize me as her daughter. Tell me how I am supposed to calm down. How--" Ximena couldn't finish her words. Everything around her turned pitch black and she fell to the floor, unconscious. Before she lost consciousness, she heard Aaron and Freya call out her name in panic.

"Ximena! Ximena..." Freya cried out. She looked extremely distressed.

Aaron immediately scooped up Ximena in his arms and strode out of the study and headed to her bedroom. Freya followed them in a hurry. As soon as he saw what had happened, the butler immediately dispatched a servant to get the doctor.

The doctor rushed to the manor. After a general checkup, he arranged an intravenous infusion for her. Aaron, whose face was covered in a heavy haze, was sitting by Ximena's side. The doctor turned to him and said respectfully, "Miss Mo's sudden dizziness is the result of the emotional trauma she is going through right now. She was already weak due to the fever earlier. Her rage and distress have left her very tired and the blood circulation to her brain has been slightly affected. She will be okay after a good rest." Looking at her, he continued, "But she has to rest calmly and shouldn't be stimulated again. Another episode like this might not be good for her overall health."

The doctor's tone was somewhat heavy. He sighed silently, 'She was originally in poor health when she had arrived here in the beginning. His Highness' care for the past two or so years resulted in her improved health. But now, it was getting worse because of her emotional distress. It will probably take a while for her to recover once again.'000000000000