Mr. CEO's Young Mistress
Chapter 46: Tell Me, Did Leonard Bully You?

Looking at Sharon's distressed state, Leonard's chest tightened. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, lifted the covers, and got out of the bed. "Master Leonard..." Sharon grabbed his hand, her eyes full of uneasiness.

Leonard bent over and placed another kiss on the corner of her lips. He looked at her firmly and said, "Trust me."

Sharon still looked worried, but she slowly loosened her grip.

Leonard gently patted her head and headed to his wardrobe.

He soon emerged, looking dashing in a black shirt and a pair of trousers.

Sharon sat on the bed quietly, watching him with her arms wrapped around her legs.

Leonard looked at her for a moment before turning around and walking out of the bedroom.

The moment the door closed, Sharon sucked in a deep breath.

She got off the bed and fumbled her way into the bathroom, desperately replaceing something to do to distract her.

After taking a shower and changing her clothes, everything still seemed normal downstairs.

Sharon knew that the silence either meant that everything was fine, or it was merely the calm before the storm. The two hours that followed were agonizing as she waited agitatedly.

...

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

Sharon, who was sitting on the bed, immediately straightened her back and stared nervously at the door.

"Miss, are you up?"

It was Kelley.

Sharon swallowed and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Master Lefebvre and Madam are about to return to the manor. Master Lefebvre wants to see you before leaving, so he sent me to check on you," Kelley replied.

"So, what's the current situation?" Sharon wondered, startled.

"Miss, can I come in?" Kelley asked.

Sharon did not reply. Her cheeks were burning as she looked around at a loss.

She did not know how to face Kelley after what happened last night.

Suddenly, there was a soft click and the door opened.

Sharon tensed and bit her lip as she watched Kelley enter the room.

Kelley closed the door and turned to look at Sharon.

When she saw how anxious Sharon looked and how swollen her eyes were, she sighed silently.

"Miss, don't worry." Kelley said.

Confused, Sharon said nothing.

Kelley walked over to stand in front of Sharon. She reached out a hand to pat Sharon's head. When her hand was about to touch Sharon, she hesitated for a moment before she placed her hand on Sharon's head.

When Sharon felt the tender hand brushing her head, the confusion in her eyes deepened. She looked up at Kelley in confusion and murmured, "Kelley."

Kelley hummed in acknowledgement, her eyes warm. "Miss, I've served you ever since you entered the Lefebvre family. Although you and Sir are my masters, and I am only a maid and a nanny, but over the past ten years, I've come to think of you as my family, even as my daughter."

Sharon's eyes immediately watered and her voice turned hoarse. "Don't say that. I've always seen you as an elder that I respect." Leonard had adopted Sharon when he was only seventeen. How could a boy from a noble family know how to take care of anyone?

Puvis had also been aware of that. That was the reason he sent Kelley to take care of Sharon.

Therefore, Kelley had been taking care of Sharon's needs since she was five, giving her the utmost care.

In fact, apart from not sharing blood, everything else she did for Sharon and how she cared for her all resembled a mother taking care of her daughter. So Sharon had long since considered Kelley as her family.

"I know how well you and Sir have treated me. That's why sometimes I even mistake this place as my home." Kelley said with a sigh.

"Kelley..." Sharon murmured.

"And I know how well Sir treats you. In fact, I think that you'll be very happy with him." Kelley suddenly said.

Sharon's face immediately flared up again. She looked at Kelley nervously in bewilderment.

Kelley could understand why Sharon looked about to faint at any slight change.

Kelley gave a slight smile and said, "I used to think that Sir was overprotective of you, but it all adds up now. Miss, it won't be easy for the two of you to be together, so you must be strong."

At the thought of getting together with Leonard, Sharon immediately shook her head to herself. She had never once considered that.

...

"Kelley must have gotten the wrong idea," Sharon thought.

Sharon quickly grabbed Kelley's hands and explained, "Kelley, I've never once thought of being together with Master Leonard. He saved my life. How can we possibly be together?"

However, Kelley's smile did not falter. "The two of you are not related by blood, so what's wrong with being together? Besides, you only call him Master Leonard out of respect. I know someone who even calls her boyfriend dad."

Dumbfounded, Sharon stared at Kelley silently.

"Oh, Kelley. You know far too much!" Sharon sighed to herself.

Sharon used to think that people at Kelley's age were usually very conservative. Never did she expect Kelley to be so open-minded.

Even so, there was no way she could ever call her boyfriend... dad! Yuck!

By the time Sharon followed Kelley downstairs, she was still in shock from Kelley's words.

It was obvious that Kelley thought that she and Master Leonard had feelings for each other. That's why they had been secretly doing those things in the kitchen last night.

"Sharon."

Puvis immediately waved her over when he saw her coming down the stairs.

Sharon lifted her head when she heard Puvis's voice.

She frowned slightly when she saw Puvis's bright face, guilt eating away at her.

"Grandpa loves me so much, but Master Leonard and I..." Sharon thought, solemness flashing in her eyes.

"Sharon." Puvis called out again, confused, when he saw Sharon stop in her tracks.

Leonard blinked and slowly lifted his head to look towards Sharon.

Sharon pursed her lips and glanced at Leonard before walking over to Puvis and sat down beside him.

"Grandpa." Sharon grabbed his arm and called him in a sweet voice.

Puvis gave her a kind smile and patted her head tenderly. When he withdrew his hand, he saw how swollen her eyes were and his eyes hardened. "What happened? Why did you cry? Did someone bully you?' he interrogated her.

Instantly, everyone turned to look at her.

Uncomfortable with all the attention, Sharon peered at Puvis and whispered, "No, nobody bullied me."

"Then why were you crying? Look how swollen your eyes are!" Puvis exclaimed, his jaw clenched. He turned around and looked at Leonard. "Is this your doing?"

Leonard merely stared at Sharon and said nothing.

"You brat! I asked you a question!" Puvis raised his eyebrows and glared at Leonard.

"He was so adorable as a child, but now he infuriates me! That poker face of him just makes my blood boil!" Puvis roared in his head.

...

Sharon glanced at Leonard's stoic expression and was impressed by how psychologically strong he was.

"Dad, you know how Leonard is with Sharon. How could he bear to bully her? Don't just pin the blame on Leonard without knowing the full story." Rosamond interjected unhappily. "Sharon, tell us what happened." Nathan asked, frowning.

"Why are you being so aggressive to her? In this house, there's no one else who would bully her except for him. I think you're the ones who don't understand that good-for-nothing son of yours!" Puvis snapped.

"Good-for-nothing? How dare he say that about his grandson! In front of me to boot!" Rosamond thought, about to blow a fuse.

"Dad, Leonard is your grandson. He's not a good-for-nothing. W-Wait... Erm, he's..." Rosamond trailed off, stumped.

It didn't seem right to call him a good-for-nothing either...

...

Puvis's lips twitched as he tried to force down a smile. Eventually, he gave in. Grinning, he pointed at Leonard and said, "Did you hear that? Your mother said that you're not a good-for-nothing." Rosamond bit her tongue and remained silent.

Leonard raised an eyebrow and turned to Sharon, who was stifling a smile. He humphed. "Sharon, did I bully you?"

Sharon was like a deer caught in the headlights.

As she stared into Leonard's deep eyes, she could feel the tip of her ears heating.

Her breathing labored, and her face was flushed. Her eyelashes fluttered, and she quickly looked away.

Leonard's lips curled up in satisfaction, and his eyes darkened at Sharon.

"Sharon, why is your face so red?" Puvis noticed Sharon's flushed cheeks and was shocked.

"Why did she suddenly turn red?" Puvis wondered.

First, Leonard had stared at her, making her blush. Now that Puvis had also noticed it, Sharon's cheeks turned a darker shade of red. Puvis could almost see the steam rising from her flushed cheeks.

...

Puvis stared at Sharon suspiciously. He reached out to touch her forehead with the back of his hand. "Did you catch a cold?"

Sharon's head hung low, embarrassed.

Her voice was quiet as she mumbled, "It's nothing. I-I'm just feeling a little hot."

"Hot? Is it hot in here?" Puvis wondered, turning to look at Rosamond and Nathan.

They looked confused as well.

How can it be hot when it was winter, with only a little heat turned on?

Sharon started feeling numb from the embarrassment when she felt everyone's gaze on her.

Leonard saw how uncomfortable Sharon was and knew that if Puvis and the others stared at her any longer, she might run away.