4. An Accident (AGAIN)

Lucas Orion walked confidently as he entered the authentic Italian restaurant that Felix had reserved for tonight. Wearing a white shirt paired with black trousers, he looked perfectly poised and elegant.

His hair, which used to be slicked back with a fringe, now sported a messy undercut with a brown hue. Even the thick-rimmed glasses that usually adorned his sharp nose were nowhere to be seen tonight.

Truly, Lucas Orion's appearance tonight was a 180-degree departure from his usual self at the office, where he appeared nerdy or awkward. Tonight, he had transformed into a handsome figure, resembling a true prince.

"Sorry, I'm late. Have you been waiting for long?" Lucas approached the table where his fiancée was seated. He pulled out a chair, took his seat opposite the beautiful woman in front of him, and greeted her politely.

"It's okay. I just got here one or two minutes ago, so I haven't been waiting long for you," Devina Hayes replied with a sweet smile. She was wearing an off-shoulder black A-line mini dress with glitter accents, making her look as beautiful and graceful as ever.

In fact, Lucas and Devina had known each other since childhood. Besides their parents being friends, they had even attended the same school a few times. Perhaps this closeness led Lucas's and Devina's parents to decide to arrange their marriage.

However, Lucas was not interested at all. As an independent person, he wanted to determine his own path in life. But fate had other plans. Why did he have to be born as the youngest son and a male?

He was burdened with great responsibilities from an early age. The enormous expectations placed upon him as the heir to the family business led his parents to be extremely careful in finding a suitable partner.

"Have you met with Mama and Papa?" Lucas asked, taking a sip of the drink served on the table.

"Yes," Devina nodded. Of course, she had met them. Upon arriving in England, she was immediately picked up and welcomed by Lucas's parents. "So, when are we getting married, Luc? Papa and Mama even gave me the option of either at the end of this year after Christmas or at the beginning of the new year," Devina asked.

Lucas almost choked on the drink he had just sipped. This was the question he had been avoiding all along. For the record, he used to dream that as an adult, he would marry and build a family with a woman he loved, not be arranged like this.

"Devina ... you know, from the beginning, I have been hesitant to talk about marriage. You also know that I---"

"Don't love me at all? That's what you wanted to say, right?" Devina interrupted with a bitter smile. "Oh, come on, Luc. Do you think I like and love you? If I could reject this engagement, we wouldn't be engaged, let alone preparing to get married like now. It's not like we don't know each other well since childhood. But what can we do? Neither of us can resist, can we?"

Lucas fell silent. Devina's words were not wrong at all. Since childhood, he had been raised as an obedient child, and he had no choice but to go along with all the plans his parents had prepared.

"There's nothing we can do except comply. I've even tried my best to learn to love you. So, please cooperate with me."

Devina then reached for her wine glass and took a sip while continuing to gaze at Lucas's face.

"Okay, we will still get married. But I'm asking you to give me some time first to complete an important task that Papa has assigned to me. After I finish this, I promise to marry you."

"How long do I have to wait?"

Devina narrowed her eyes, looking intently at Lucas, her face demanding an answer. She didn't want to come all the way to England without any results. So, she wanted to make sure when Lucas would marry her.

"Maybe six months," Lucas said.

"No!" Devina immediately shook her head in disagreement. "I think three or four months would be more than enough."

Lucas sighed softly, considering for a moment if the task given by his father could be completed within the time frame Devina had just set. Then, after a short while, he nodded and extended his hand for a handshake, indicating that he agreed to Devina's request.

"Deal. We will get married in four months. And during that time, please don't disturb me with anything related to the wedding. Give me space to finish what I need to do first."

Devina nodded in agreement. It wouldn't be difficult for her to wait for four months. After all, she was already used to waiting for certainty from her prospective husband.

"Okay. I'll be back as agreed. I hope, after this, there won't be any more reasons for you to postpone the wedding."

Lucas nodded with a smile. Afterward, they both continued their dinner before parting ways as usual.

***

After dropping Devina back at the hotel, Lucas didn't immediately head home. Instead, he decided to stop by one of the bars he often visited.

There, Felix was waiting for him. His assistant had promised to provide information related to what he had been investigating.

"Here's Mr. Argantara's documents. Everything from his total wealth to financial transactions and records of money going in and out."

Lucas reached for the brown folder that Felix handed him and began reading the contents.

"Finally, after so long investigating, I got this report," Lucas mumbled to himself as he continued to read. Then, his eyes stopped on one page that surprised him a little. "So, Mr. Argantara has offshore accounts?"

Felix nodded, confirming Lucas's question. It wasn't easy for him to obtain this information. After encountering several dead ends, he finally managed to complete the task Lucas had given him.

"They were deliberately created to conceal the illicit funds he embezzled, sir. There are also records of assets, including some properties, that he intentionally purchased abroad."

Lucas pursed his lips and then smiled wryly. He couldn't believe the cunning ways these rats had managed to gnaw at his father's company just to increase their wealth.

"I'll study all the data. After this, it's Daniel and Daniel's turn to be investigated."

"What about Ms. Deasy Winterborne?" Felix asked. As someone who often assisted Lucas and was frequently assigned tasks by him, Felix knew well who the targets were and who had not yet been touched by his boss.

"Sure. I'll look into Deasy as well. But so far, her data seems clean. Among all the candidates, it's Daniel who is suspicious."

"I know this task is quite challenging. But, I hope you can finish it soon, Mr. Lucas," Felix sincerely prayed.

As Lucas and Felix were still discussing, a commotion erupted from another corner with one of the customers. At first, Lucas wanted to ignore it, but when he realized who was the center of attention, he immediately got up and decided to approach.

"Ms. Deasy," Lucas greeted as he arrived at the table where Deasy was. His boss seemed to be having a heated argument with another customer.

"Is she your friend?" the customer asked.

"Y-yes. She's---"

"You better take her home. She's been making a lot of noise and it's been bothering the other customers. She was so rude when I tried to tell her."

"Sir, I think Ms. Deasy is heavily intoxicated."

Felix, who followed Lucas, carefully observed Deasy stumbling about. She was rambling incoherently and was genuinely disturbing the other patrons.

"Help me take her to the car. I'll drive her home."

Felix nodded and promptly assisted in guiding Deasy to Lucas's car with great care.

"Are you sure you want to take Ms. Deasy to her apartment? Your appearance doesn't match hers---"

"It's alright," Lucas interrupted. "Deasy is heavily intoxicated. She probably won't even notice. Even if she regains consciousness, she won't recognize me. So, let me handle it. Ask someone to bring her car back and take it to her apartment tonight."

Lucas then got into the car and drove his red Ferrari towards Deasy's apartment. He couldn't possibly abandon his boss in such a state, especially considering their history of sleeping together before.

Upon arriving at Park Avenue, Lucas struggled to support Deasy as he escorted her out of the car. He carefully guided her to the front door of her apartment unit.

Luckily, from past experiences of escorting Deasy while she was intoxicated, Lucas knew he could open the apartment unit door simply by touching it with his finger.

As expected, after the door opened, Lucas quickly helped Deasy inside and settled her on the sofa.

"Deasy... Deasy... looking so beautiful, but why do you have a drinking problem? Being heartbroken shouldn't lead to this kind of behavior. It's just a waste of time."

Lucas muttered, shaking his head. After making sure that Deasy was safely seated on the sofa, he intended to leave. It would be dangerous to stay any longer.

However, as he turned around and was about to walk away, Lucas suddenly felt his wrist being pulled from behind. He turned and found Deasy, half-conscious, smiling at him.

"Wait! Who are you? Your face looks familiar."

Lucas sighed. He turned and prayed silently that Deasy wouldn't recognize him tonight.

"I... I... I..."

"Ah, forget it, it doesn't matter who you are. But why are you in such a hurry?"

Once again, Lucas sighed. Turning, he explained that he was only there to take her home because she got too drunk at the bar. Now that she was safe, he should go home.

Deasy nodded. Lucas thought that after hearing his explanation, Deasy would let him go. But, once again, he was wrong. Instead, she pulled him back down onto the sofa.

"If I think about it, you're quite handsome. Would you mind keeping me company for a while before you leave?"

"Keep you company?" Lucas repeated, feeling a bit panicked, especially as he noticed Deasy becoming more assertive.

"Yes," Deasy nodded. "I'm heartbroken and need some distraction."

Deasy then moved closer, boldly straddling his lap.

"I don't know why, but your face seems familiar, and I really want to do this to you."

Without hesitation, Deasy reached up and planted her lips firmly on Lucas's. She kissed him repeatedly, catching Lucas off guard.

"Deasy!" Lucas admonished after managing to break free from the wild kiss she gave him. "You really don't hold back when you're drunk, do you?"

Lucas was puzzled. He didn't know if this was a habit of Deasy's or just a result of her heartbreak. Either way, she seemed to be acting out of bounds when drunk.

If last time, Deasy unexpectedly offered her virginity, who knows what she might do tonight.

"See, your lips feel familiar too. Have we...?"

Lucas quickly shook his head, even attempting to get up while Deasy was still on his lap.

However, his efforts were in vain. Deasy pulled him back down, not letting him go.

"Where are you rushing to?"

"I want to go home."

Deasy giggled. Standing up, she deliberately positioned herself in front of Lucas, slowly unbuttoning her shirt.

"Sure, you can go home. But let's have some fun together first."