"He's my brother's friend."As usual, Nora was trying not to be associated with Julian. Julian gave her a furious glare at the introduction.After casting a glance at Julian with enthusiasm, the bearded old man, Victor Caldwell, proposed, "My darling Nora, I think our photoshoot for this issue would be even more perfect with this gentleman by your side."Nora was in despair. "You mean the two of us should shoot together?"Victor, who was the director, nodded. "My darling Nora, you must understand that a man enhances a woman's beauty."Victor only considered having them shoot together after being amazed by Julian's appearance. This man was very handsome. He had captivating features and seemed to have a good figure and a naturally elegant demeanor. All his qualities made him perfect for the camera!Furthermore, it was true that a man should complement a woman's beauty. Moreover, he could tell from how Julian looked at Nora that there was more to his interest than met the eye. Tog
"You just need to follow my instructions for the poses and expressions. Everything will be fine."Nora wanted to say something else, but Victor pushed her toward the shooting area.Julian took the opportunity to change into a casual suit. Just like that, Nora was reluctantly forced to stand alongside Julian in front of Victor's camera.She had no desire to engage with Julian and kept her expression cold.Initially, she thought Victor would make them pose intimately. To her surprise, he said nothing about it. He only instructed her to pose as she wished, similar to the previous photoshoot. Then, the camera started clicking away. Nora had no idea what kind of poses Julian was making, nor did she want to know.Because Victor didn't deliberately make them act intimately, Nora gradually relaxed, and her posture became less rigid.After a while, Victor asked them to stand facing each other. He said, "Get closer. The closer, the better."Nora froze in place and hesitated to move. I
Julian's phone was turned off. Despite Nora's repeated attempts to call, it remained unresponsive. She couldn't fathom why he had turned it off. Later, when she opened her computer to review some of Rowan's company’s financial accounts, she made several errors.Her mind wandered uncontrollably to various negative scenarios, most involving Julian.In reality, after leaving Nora, Julian decided against staying at a hotel as planned. Instead, he opted to go straight to the airport and leave.Realizing she might not take good care of herself, he ordered takeout for her from a nearby restaurant. After instructing them to deliver it at a particular time, he continued his journey to the airport.Julian chose to leave because he believed he needed to exercise restraint. He had underestimated his ability to control himself. He thought that merely being by her side and watching her would be enough, but he couldn't resist the urge to kiss and hold her once he was with her.Furthermore, dur
Nora froze in her tracks, utterly shocked. She was somewhat bewildered, but she understood that Julian had orchestrated this grand gesture.She hadn't expected such a high-profile public confession. Her first instinct was to escape the attention and leave. She wasn't accustomed to being in the spotlight in such a public manner."Nora!"Dressed sharply in a suit, Julian walked toward her with a gentle expression and a beautiful curve on his lips.He stood before her, his dark eyes gazing at her. Then, he spoke earnestly, "I want to marry you, have a child with you, and spend the rest of my life with you. I want to hold your hand even when we're old with white hair and hunched backs."Julian's declaration was a complete reversal of his previous actions, where he had initiated a breakup due to his fear of the long-term future. This time, he was making a firm commitment. He wouldn't easily give up, and he was offering a lifetime promise.Tears welled up in Nora's eyes inexplicabl
However, being together was one thing, and talking about marriage was another. Nora was still young, so there was no rush to get married.Given Julian's philandering, postponing the wedding for a few years might be a good idea. Perhaps Julian's current infatuation and passion for Nora were only temporary. Over the years, the passion might fade away, and he might lose his current dedication and enthusiasm. Only then could one truly assess a man's attitude toward love and marriage.Rowan dropped Nora off at the Old Pierce Manor. Nora invited him inside, but he declined.In their days in Detroit, Rowan had been occasionally visiting and meeting with Greg. However, they would always meet outside, at a cafe. Rowan had never set foot in the Old Pierce Manor because he didn't want to upset Ophelia. From Ophelia's perspective, she likely wouldn't want to see a child her husband had with another woman inside her own home.After Rowan left Nora and returned home, Julian's car pulled up. He h
So, she let him follow her. After all, she was going to work and would not have time to care about him.However, her mind was suddenly flooded with memories when she thought about Winsterdam being the destination, and then about Julian. He had come with her that time when she came to Winsterdam to get her mind off of things. The two of them had a very sweet time in Winsterdam, regardless of whether it was on the way to Winsterdam, those few days in Winsterdam, or in the heavy rain during their trip back, but now…The driver sent Nora to the hotel she had booked in advance before returning to Detroit. Silvia was in Detroit because she was still on maternity leave, and Ryan naturally stayed with Silvia. No one had been staying in their villa in Winsterdam for several months, so Ryan said that he would get someone to clean it in advance so that Nora could stay there, but Nora felt that it was not necessary. She was only coming to Winsterdam for a day or two to shoot a cover, so there
Nora thought that he would avoid her when she tried to grab his cell phone, but he let her grab it from him. Thus, she grabbed his hand and could not help but tremble slightly when her palm pressed against the warm skin on the back of his hand. Upset, she instantly let go.He looked at her and smiled as he said, “You can tell me if you want to touch my hand. I’ll let you touch it as much as you want.”Nora’s reaction to his shameless words was to throw the phone charger into his arms. She wanted to close the door immediately to keep him out.He stretched out his long leg to block her as he asked, “What are your plans for the afternoon?”Nora replied angrily, “I’m going to sleep!”She had wanted to sleep for a while in the car earlier, but she could not sleep anymore when the driver told her that Julian was following her. She suddenly felt dizzy and thought that she would just catch up on some sleep since she had nothing to do in the afternoon.After she was done speaking, Julia
Julian simply hugged her, and his voice became even more mellow as he asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to talk to me about anything?”Before Nora could say anything, Julian continued, “I know you still care about me. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have let me in when it rained in the United States, and you wouldn’t have lent me your phone charger out of fear that my work would be delayed—” “You’re speaking gibberish!” Nora’s voice trembled slightly as she interrupted him. She raised her tone and yelled, “I don’t care about you anymore, and I haven’t cared about you in a long time! Get over yourself!”Nora defended herself loudly, as if the louder her voice was, the more decisive her tone would be, and it would prove that she really did not care about him anymore.Julian straightened her slender body so that she would be facing him, his intense gaze focused on her face. She was wearing makeup which made her eyes look even more gentle and beautiful. Julian sighed before he said in a low