After a short silence, Zivon replied, “…I’ve reviewed the paperwork you handed me last night, and I came over to tell you that the project is ready to be kickstarted. That aside, what’s with that expression? Did I interrupt something?” Though Keith would’ve jokingly denied it in the past, this time, he chose to say, “Just a bit. You should know that Xavia and I were having a… little moment of ours…” …A little moment?! Beneath the mask, Zivon’s face had contorted into an expression of pure fury. Even his veins on his arm—that was holding onto the documents—were extremely visible now! Tossing the files toward Keith, he then growled, “Fall in love at home, not in the office!” Following that, Zivon turned around and left with great strides… With how quickly he had walked off, it was clear that Zivon was truly pissed this time. He was like a walking thunderstorm waiting to erupt! Even so, Keith simply adjusted his spectacles. After all, he already knew that getting involved with Xav
Meanwhile, Bianca had just finished cooking a bowl of noodles in one of the rented penthouses within Darlsbury. Glaring at the man who was sleeping on her couch, she then grumbled, “It’s already nine, you know? Why haven’t you left for work? Are you giving up on the Saltman Group? Head to your office already!” Despite her evident displeasure, Chace wasn’t angry. Instead, he simply looked at her with his charming eyes before saying, “I simply wish to enjoy your scent for a bit longer. It lingers all over this place…” His statement made Biance momentarily speechless. When she finally found her voice, however, she was prompted to reply, “…Have you no self-respect? Did you not call me dirty and cheap before? You even said that my very breath tainted your soul, Master Saltman.” This left Chance slightly dumbfounded as he asked, “I… said such things? I don’t remember saying any of that at all! Don’t go framing me, now!” Astonished to hear that, Bianca—who was initially angry—eventual
“Even so, your name is still engraved in my heart…” replied Chace. Had Nathan been there to witness their interaction, he would’ve surely told Zivon to learn from Chace’s brazen pickup lines… Moving back to Xavia, she soon began making her return trip after getting some needles and thread from the supermarket. However, shortly after re-entering the construction site, she ended up coming across the prestigious man again… Somehow, even the messy site wasn’t able to impair his good looks. Regardless, she simply clenched her fists before quickly walking past him. Just when she had made it a few steps away from him, however, she heard his calm, yet serious voice call out, “We need to talk, Xavia.” In response, Xavia simply replied, “We have nothing to talk about.” Following that, she hurriedly ran away from him. Watching as she quickly headed off, Zivon couldn’t help but purse his lips. It was at that moment when Nathan ran up to Zivon. Revealing a pin in his hand, Nathan then
Regardless of whether her hand was injured or not, sewing Keith’s shirt was her right to decide! With that in mind, Xavia was prompted to say in a sweet, yet firm tone, “While I appreciate that you’re trying to look out for me, I really wish to sew my boyfriend’s shirt myself. Even so, it’ll probably take a while for me to be done. With that said, do you have any other clothes in your car? If you do, then consider lending them to Keith first, Uncle Zivon.” ‘…So you’re still insistent on sewing his shirt, even with your injured hand? Even if it’ll take longer than usual?’ Zivon thought to himself before sneering. Chuckling in a slightly dangerous tone, Zivon then stared straight into Xavia’s eyes before replying, “Even if you don’t mind lending him my clothes, I do.” There was a saying that women were like clothes to men… and he was clearly implying that she was the clothes! This, of course, caused Xavia’s cheeks to go red as she thought, ‘Is he sick or something?! How could he
“…Sure, let’s meet up,” replied Xavia. Fast forward to half an hour later, Xavia found herself face to face with Bianca who looked as beautiful and gentle as she had previously been. While Xavia was pleased to be able to meet the wonderful woman again, she couldn’t help but ask, “Is something up, Miss Jourdaine? Why did you wish to meet me in such a hurry?” Upon hearing that, Bianca—who had a waist-hugging, knee-length white dress that was inspired by Audrey Hepburn’s style—then sat next to Xavia before explaining, “Well, I heard from Chace that you love filming things. Since my self-established company needs more manpower, I was wondering if you’d be interested to join us.” ‘…Chace talked about her? That man who was as cold as ice? What led to her being brought up?’ Whatever the case was, Xavia awkwardly replied, “…Unfortunately, I’m only good at making handcraft… For context, I livestream during my free time. That aside, the quality of my videos isn’t really that good…” “Oh
Since Zivon didn’t want Xavia to sit in front, he had taken the initiative to sit in the passenger seat. However, it was only after he got into the car when he learned that Xavia had already left! Though Zivon was immediately irked by this, his profound eyes disallowed anyone from reading how he truly felt. As for Keith—who was sitting behind the wheel—, he was feeling increasingly uncomfortable by Zivon’s side. Eventually, he cleared his throat before dialing Xavia’s number. When the call connected, he was prompted to ask, “Xavia? Why didn’t you tell me before heading off…?” “Sorry, Young Master Keith! My friend offered me a job, and I was in such a hurry that I forgot to tell you… Honestly, I’m still busy with her at the moment, so I won’t be able to catch the movie with you later! I’m really sorry about this!” replied Xavia. …She said sorry twice…? It almost made it seem like their relationship wasn’t all that close, right…? That aside, she decided on something without telling
It was then when Yulia realized that she had messed up! Covering her mouth, she then muttered, “I-I’m so sorry, Brother Maison…! I forgot that that was a secret…!” To make matters worse, Yulia then ran to Zivon’s side and grabbed his arm before adding, “Could you pretend not to have heard anything I said, Uncle Burton…? Otherwise, Brother Maison will be sad since he said you can’t cook yet at your age…” This left Maison completely speechless. He clearly hadn’t meant it that way…! He… He didn’t know who Little Bun was anymore! He didn’t know anything for heaven’s sake! Realizing that Maison was now averting his gaze, Zivon felt his self-esteem getting crushed. The truth was, Zivon had initially been proud of Maison being able to cook. However, after hearing the full story from Yulia… To think that his son had been worried about his self-esteem! It was now much more humiliating that he couldn’t cook! Trying to patch things up, Yulia was prompted to say, “…Um… There’s nothing to
Xavia really didn’t want to head over… Keith, for one, didn’t want her to go there alone either, which prompted him to say, “I’ll go fetch her with you.” “…Sure. Let’s go,” replied Xavia, who knew that denying Keith’s request would make it seem like she was having an affair with Zivon. Then again, it wasn’t like she was planning to disagree anyway. After all, Zivon would never touch her with Keith around, right…? Regardless, the two soon arrived in Zivon’s private courtyard… The courtyard itself was silent, and though the house’s lights were on, no laughter from the children could be heard. This was weird… Why were the children so silent? Pursing her lips, Xavia then softly called out, “Yulia…? Maison…?” In response, she heard Maison quietly call back, “Aunt…? Come in…!” …Come in? After turning to look at Keith, both of them then stepped into Zivon’s home… and soon after, they were greeted by the sight of the children lying on a cozy-looking couch. Though Maison was awake, Yu
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