...F*ck. He had a point! Knowing she wouldn’t be able to out-talk him, all the embarrassed woman could do was blush… Thankfully, a knock on the door broke the silence, followed by a rather familiar voice saying, “Hello? Young Master Burton?” The speaker was clearly a foreigner, and it didn’t take long for Xavia to realize that it was Zaui! She was just in time to distance herself from Zivon when the door was pushed open, revealing Zaui, Sophia, and several other business associates. As they walked in, Zaui turned to look at Zivon while saying, “I was told that you had anxiously brought Miss Lockhart back to her room, so we’re just here to check on the situation. With that said, are you feeling alright, Miss Lockhart?” Among all the people who had just entered, Xavia only recognized Sophia and Zaui. Even so, she knew that they had to all be big shots, so it was surprising that they’d be this concerned for her. Shaking the thoughts off, Xavia replied, “I’m fine now… I just got
Unlike the hundred-meter red carpet that could usually be seen back in Darlsbury, this event went the extra mile by making it a kilometer-long carpet! What’s more, though signing sessions and pictures could be taken at a domestic red carpet event, this one didn’t allow any signing to take place. Instead, it focused on the photography aspect… with a whopping thousand-over photographers snapping photos from all sides! In other words, if you slacked off for just a second, some of the cameras would surely capture that moment! It just went to show how seriously this event was taken. However, it’d be even more embarrassing if only a few of the photographers took the initiative to snap photos… Shaking those thoughts off, Xavia simply kept a subtle smile on as she began walking down the red carpet… Her smoky-blue dress that fitted nicely on her body was reminiscent of a dreamy sky, and its overall design reminded people of a cheongsam. Adding that to the fact that she had a ten-meter-lon
“Apologies, everyone, but Miss Lockhart isn’t ready to be interviewed for the time being. While I’m sure she appreciates your enthusiasm, if possible, try not to take close-ups of her either.” Following that, she led the stunned Xavia away… It was a while later when Xavia snapped out of it and asked, “They… can understand our language?” Smiling in response, Sophia replied, “We only allow reporters, photographers, and staff who are proficient in at least five languages to participate in such events. With that said, feel free to speak in our own language.” …So that was the case! True enough, it only made sense for that to be a requirement in such a grand international event… Feeling ignorant, Xavia sheepishly said, “…I see… Thanks for helping me out.” “There’s no need for that. Young Master Burton was the one who had told me to help you,” replied Sophia without the slightest hesitation. Surprised to hear that, Xavia followed Sophia’s gaze… and it wasn’t long before she saw the
Now simultaneously excited and embarrassed, Xavia quickly got to her feet and bowed thrice while exclaiming, “S-Sorry for the wait! I was just too excited to see my idols! I’m really sorry…!” With that said, she quickly walked up to a guide—who had patiently been waiting for her at the sidelines—who then led her upstage… Now that Xavia was finally on-stage, the beautiful host declared, “From the looks of it, the lovely Miss Lockhart is quite down-to-earth! How nice! Here’s your well-deserved trophy, now please! Do share a few words with the audience!” As Xavia took the golden trophy in hand, she ended up having to bend a little since it was a bit too heavy for her. Fortunately, she didn’t drop it, otherwise she would’ve surely made a fool of herself… Following a subtle gulp, she reached for the microphone and clenched her left fist tightly when she saw just how many people were staring at her… “…Um… Good day to all… I really appreciate being given a chance to obtain this trop
...And shortly after, the crowd erupted in deafening applause! Even though there were some within the crowd who weren’t native English speakers, there were still translation devices available, so everyone understood all that Xavia had said. Rather than choosing to use her sob story to promote herself, she had simply given the audience pure facts, and none of it had been exaggerated… It had all been her true feelings. A tale of a woman who had worked hard to improve herself, and finally attain success… It was touching, to say the least, especially since everyone in the crowd had their own goals, pains, and joys… Whatever the case was, Xavia was truly radiant at that moment… It took her a while, but the host eventually managed to release a heartfelt sigh as she said, “…Thank you for your touching speech, Miss Lockhart… and for recognizing all of us who have been trying our best… I believe from the bottom of my heart that you’ll definitely be able to go further than ever down the path
This, of course, left those in the car shocked. What a close call… That aside, had Zivon actually taken the initiative to rescue her…? It prompted those in the car to say things like, “My God, his reflexes are supreme!” “Agreed. That aside, she was fortunate Young Master Burton was around to save her…” Their comments momentarily left Xavia speechless. After all, she hadn’t thought that there’d be people in the car! Thank God she hadn’t rushed straight for Zivon earlier! Quickly wriggling out of his arms, Xavia then said, “T-thank you, Young Master Burton…” “You’re very welcome. Now get in the car…” replied the gentlemanly Zivon, making sure to glance at her ankles to ensure that she wasn’t hurt. Nodding in response, Xavia then removed her shawl before lifting her skirt a little as she got into the vehicle… Inside, was Zaui, Sophia, and several other impeccably dressed bigshots whom Xavia didn’t recognize. Even so, it was needless to say that they all bore extraordinary status
That night, someone proposed a toast to her, and whether it was inconvenient for Xavia to refuse or whether she was bitter from seeing how compatible Zivon and Sophia were, Xavia joined in with her own glass of wine. “Cheers!” “Thank you.”There were still many people who liked a traditional young lady, so they would either want to toast to her, talk to her, or try to approach her romantically.Unfortunately, Xavia had a weak alcohol tolerance and in less than a minute, she slumped over, drunk, on the sofa.“Miss, is your alcohol tolerance that low? You’re really an interesting woman.” Most of the women in their country had a high alcohol tolerance. The man reached out to carry her…Zivon narrowed his eyes, stood up, and walked over. “She’s tired. Let her sleep for a while.” As he spoke, he draped his suit jacket over her shoulders protectively. The group of people instantly went silent.They all knew that a party like this was for socializing, but if Young Master Burton
Zivon never played around with women, regardless of whether it was a fling or just a temporary solution to his needs.At least, she had never seen him do such a thing in the many years she had known him. Zivon was the kind of man who was the most attractive to women, but was also the most difficult to approach. Even if she wanted to become one of his options, it would always just be a hopeless dream.The more Sophia thought about it, the more wine she drank with the people around her.By the time the poker game was over at two o'clock in the morning, she was already drunk and drowsy.“Young Master Burton, Chairman Harrison is drunk.” “That's a hint to you, Young Master Burton.”“Have a good night tonight.” Everyone sent him teasing looks as they spoke.Zivon looked at Sophia contemplatively. He did not like women who drank too much, and he usually would never go near a drunk woman. However, he could not leave Sophia alone when everyone’s eyes were on him.“My little Mai
Staring in shock at the kneeling man, Yulia mustered her remaining sanity as she replied, “B-but you’re younger-” “Even if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean that I’m much more ‘capable’ than your older pursuers…?” …Why were his words so suggestive all of a sudden?! Forcing herself to calm down, she took a deep breath before saying, “…Elliot, I’m not sure what spurred this decision, but… I’m not the one for you. Please find someone your age. I’m sorry.” After saying that, she strode straight for the car… but before she could start the engine, she couldn’t help but notice how desolate he looked standing under the pouring rain… Clenching her fists, it took her a while to finally sigh and walk back to him… “…Are you really sure about this?” asked Yulia, much to Elliot’s delight. “I am! Please! Give me a chance! You won’t regret it!” …When he put it that way, all Yulia could do was help him up before finally deciding to return his kiss… Sure, things had taken a sudden, unex
She stared in horror as he removed his shirt right there and then! “W-what are you doing?!” yelped the startled woman as she quickly looked the other way. “…Huh? I mean, I’m drenched, so…” “E-even so, you shouldn’t change right in front of me!” “…Yulia, we bathed together as children… It’s not like you haven’t seen everything already…” “Y-you can’t compare that to this situation…!” “Fine, fine, I… Um… Go cook, I guess… I’ll go get a change upstairs first…” muttered Elliot as he headed upstairs. Yulia herself had to try her best to calm down! After all, Elliot had been plaguing her mind in the past few days, and… she even had dreams where he had… …No! She couldn’t be thinking about such things! She needed to cook! Maybe that would help get her mind out of the gutter! Once that was done, she’d leave and finally start devising a plan to get rid of him…! As Yulia scurried off, Elliot himself was currently staring at an old photo that showed him eating some candy in Yulia’
Just as she had arrived at her car, the president of the Halls Group suddenly walked up to her, a bouquet in hand! The Halls Group had collaborated several times with the Burtons before, and because of that, she was well acquainted with the man. Sadly, he had also proposed to her on multiple occasions… and though she kept rejecting him, he never seemed to get the hint! “There you are, Miss Burton… Since you’re off work, I was wondering if you’d join me for dinner tonight…” asked the charming man. Feeling awkward, she was just about to come up with an excuse when Elliot suddenly grabbed her by the waist and said, “Oh? Another one of your admirers, Yulia…? Sorry, but she already has a boyfriend, my man. If that doesn’t deter you enough, then you should know that she prefers her partners younger. Now please leave.” Startled to hear that, the man glanced at Yulia, his eyes begging for an explanation… Yulia herself was eager to just escape this embarrassing situation, but before s
With that tale done, it was now time to return to Yulia’s story… Ever since she was a child, she had undergone countless hardships with her mother… and even after she was able to reunite with her father, things didn’t go much easier from there. To make matters worse, Fabiola ended up getting kidnapped for the longest time, resulting in Frank ending up the way he was today… Because of all that, it only made sense that she’d mature much sooner than others her age, and unlike the naïve girl she used to be, she was an extremely competent woman today. Alas, because of how used she became with working, she soon lost the urge to find herself a romantic interest… Things continued that way until… Well, that time that Elliot… …Wait, what was she thinking?! He was younger than her, for heaven’s sake! Quickly shaking her head, she attempted to force herself to concentrate on work again… But before long, a knock was heard on the door. After being allowed in, the department manager entered t
Knowing that there was no point in keeping things a secret anymore, Rea took a deep breath before saying, “…Alright, so… The truth is, I’ve always been highly competent, but… I’ve been pretending to be useless just so that you’d eventually marry me… The trip my parents are taking… That was my suggestion too…” Feeling speechless, it took Frank a long while to reply, “…So you weren’t really drunk when you did all that last night?” Pursing her lips, Rea awkwardly muttered, “…I wasn’t… Luna suggested it, and since it sounded like a good idea to accelerate things…” …Fucking hell, to think that he had fallen straight into her trap without even putting up a fight! Watching as he glowered at her, Rea gulped before adding, “A-anyway, now that we’re married and there’s potentially a baby in my belly, you won’t divorce me, right…?” “…Oh, believe me when I say that divorce is the easy way out! From today onward, I’m making you pay for your actions for the rest of your life!” Fast forwa
Fast forward to the next morning, Rea awoke with a yawn… What a nice sleep… Wait. Why was she naked? And why was Frank…?! Her following scream immediately woke the icy man up… and upon looking at her, he was immediately reminded of what had transpired last night! Essentially, Rea ended up clinging to him, and though he initially wanted to just carry her to bed to let her rest… Damn it! Had she really been that sensual?! How had he lost control so easily?! His train of thought was cut short when he realized that Rea was bawling her eyes out… and after rubbing his temples, he was prompted to say, “…Why are you crying when you’re the one who initiated this? I’ll have you know that I never forced you-” “I-I know, but…! I’ve just…! This is my first time…!” whimpered the quivering woman, prompting Frank to purse his lips. As if he wasn’t in the same situation… “…You’re not alone there.” “It’s not the same! Men are free to sleep with whoever they want but when it comes to women, I’l
“Say, wouldn’t you agree that the food smells delicious…? Why don’t I teach you how to grill, Rea…? Oh, but make sure to take your clothes off first before we start! Wouldn’t want them to get dirty…” With how drunk Rea was, she wasn’t able to fully register his words… and just as he was about to touch her clothes, an icy voice roared, “Stop right there…!” Instantly feeling a shiver run down his spine, the man turned around… and to his horror, it was Frank! Young Master Burton’s perpetually icy son…! Why the hell was he here?! Before the frightened intern could think of how to even react, Frank walked up to him and growled, “Leave now before I chop your hands off…! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Nodding in terror, the man frantically bolted off… and once he was out of sight, Frank glared at the tipsy Rea before adding, “This is what you meant by learning how to be more responsible…?!” “Huh…? But the food really did smell super good… I want to learn…” mumbled the drunk woman.
After leaving his office, he headed off to look for Rea. She had said that she wanted to use the bathroom, but… It had already been half an hour since she disappeared. What trouble had that idiot gotten herself into this time? Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he found her laughing along with some of his interns… When the interns saw him, they were quick to bow and say, “Good morning, Mr. Burton.” Barely even glancing at them, Frank looked at Rea and said, “It’s time to head home.” “I… Won’t be following you back…” “…And why is that? Are your parents back?” “No, it’s just… These are my good friends back from school, and they’ve been staying together to learn to be more independent… With that said… I think that staying with them will be a good start for me to learn more about how the world works. Thank you for taking care of me up till this point, Frank… I won’t bother you anymore.” Raising a slight brow, Frank then looked at the interns for a while before saying, “…Are you
Regardless, after leaving her in the room, Frank returned to the shower to cool himself off… but no matter what he did, he simply remained irked. It got to the point where he couldn’t relax at all, and after wrapping a towel around his waist, he grabbed his phone to send his father a text. ‘Was there really nobody else who could’ve taken care of Rea?’ ‘What? Can’t even care for a woman properly.’ ‘I’m a busy man.’ ‘I trust in your time management skills.’ …Though he really wanted to tell Zivon that he had misplaced his trust in him, he didn’t want to disappoint his father either. With that, all he could do was clench his fists before giving Rea’s parents a call… “Hello? Frank? Why are you calling at this time of night?” “…When are you and Uncle Saltman returning, Aunt?” asked Frank who wanted them to take back their idiot already! “…Huh? What was that? Sorry, the line isn’t very good… I hope Rea isn’t giving you too hard a time! Don’t worry, we’ll be back after about a