“You should be thankful. You had already stopped breathing by the time I got you out of the water. If I were late for a few seconds, you would have fallen into a deep sleep forever. And instead of lying in my bed, you would be lying in a coffin.” The man’s seductive voice wafted into her ears. “Yeah, you’re right!” Sotiria stuck her tongue out.“Sigh! I don’t know what happened, but I’ve been so unlucky lately that it seems as if all of the bad things in the world have happened to me. I nearly got destroyed by someone the other day, and I almost got run over by a motorcycle today. Had it not been for Zac—”Sotiria came to an abrupt stop before she could finish her sentence. Even though she did not mention Zachary’s name, her heart was still filled with sadness when she thought about him. She shrugged and continued. “Anyway, thank you for saving my life, little brother. I will definitely repay you when I have the chance in the future.”A hint of shock crossed the man’s bewitchi
Sotiria pouted and asked, “You should at least tell me your name so I can repay you later.”The man stopped in his tracks, and a glint of pride crossed his radiant, blueish eyes. “This is interesting. There are actually people in this world who don’t know my name?”“Huh?” Sotiria couldn’t help laughing. “Although you’re handsome, your name is not written on your face, so how would I know?” Sotiria couldn’t tell why, but although the man in front of her was as handsome as Zachary, she did not feel as nervous and panicked as when she was facing Zachary. Instead, she felt very warm and relaxed, as if this man had been her brother in her previous life!“So you really don’t know who I am? Anyway, I’m sure you’ve heard my name before…” The man lifted his chin proudly and said, “I’m Zenios Connor.”Sotiria was stunned to her core.“Huh?! You are…”“Yes! It’s me.” The man turned around abruptly and faced her. “I’m Zenios Connor, the man every woman in this world loves.”Sotiria stared
“Nope. I don’t know her. But another person also said I look like her. That’s why I think the person you're talking about must also be her.”Sotiria’s eyes gleamed.This “other person” she was talking about was Zachary. Every time she thought of Zachary, her heart would ache as though she had lost something precious.“Ha ha.” Sotiria smiled halfheartedly. The pride in her bones did not allow her to show any sadness.“Your voice and gaze are exceptionally gentle when you’re talking about my resemblance to Charlotte. You also said before that you are only interested in one girl, so let me guess... Charlotte is the only girl you are interested in, right?”Zenios nodded but then shook his head a second later.“It’s none of your business.”Hah!Although Zenios’s attitude was not as cold as Zachary’s, he indeed looked pretty scary when he was not talking. Surprisingly, Sotiria did not feel afraid of him at all. Zenios was obviously annoyed. Just as he was about to turn around and
Zenios took his phone out of his pocket and opened an encrypted folder that contained Charlotte's photos. Sotiria felt excited and hastily added, “I want to see her face, so I’d very much appreciate it if you could show a close-up of her face to me.”“Okay.”When Zenios finished picking the photo, he walked up to the bed and gave his phone to Sotiria. At that moment, Sotiria’s heart leaped into a gallop, and she couldn't help but call out a name the moment the high-resolution photo came into view. “Allegra!? Isn’t this Allegra? I want to see Charlotte’s photo. Why would you show me Allegra’s photo instead?”“So you know Allegra too. Well, of course you know her. Who does not know this name? If she was still alive, she would be a superstar with unmatched popularity by now. If she was still alive, how nice it would be…” Zenios’s Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat, and tears began to well his eyes. “I didn’t get you the wrong photo. Allegra is Charlotte. They are the same perso
Just then, a custom Rolls-Royce in a color as black as night drove in through the gates of Blue Water Bay. Recognizing Zachary’s car, the security guard opened the car door and gave a deep bow. “Mr. Connor, you’re here to see your nephew again! He’s at home. I’ll inform him of your arrival at once!”“No need.” Zachary, whose face was as cold as a glacier, spoke in an indifferent voice. “I’ll give him a surprise.”The security guard nodded and bowed. “Alright, I understand. He’ll be very happy to see you, Mr. Connor. Go on and give him a surprise.”Sotiria, who was sitting on the bed, calmed down for a while before returning to reality.She released a long sigh and scratched her fluffy hair, then helped herself off the bed.However, after searching around, she realized that the side of the bed and the space underneath it were empty. There wasn’t even a pair of shoes. Her shoes were currently being hung outside the balcony on a drying rack, swaying along with the wind.She had no
Zachary walked into the bedroom and saw the scene before him. “Sorry to disturb you,” he said indifferently, then turned around and left. However, when he had a clear view of Sotiria’s face, his cold, hard heart suddenly felt as if a large, cruel hand had strangled it. A long, forgotten sense of jealousy rose within him like an uncontrollable flood, overflowing throughout his entire body.Just then, Sotiria saw him too.She wondered if she was hallucinating!Thus, she forcefully blinked her eyes, and he was still standing there…Zachary was the only person in the world who had this chiseled face and elegant, regal aura. Zenios, who sensed that something was off, turned around and looked toward the door. His handsome, devilish face was a mixture of surprise and happiness. “Second Uncle, is it really you? Second Uncle!”‘What?’Sotiria was even more confused.‘Zachary is Zenios’s Second Uncle? Can there really be such a coincidence in this world?’However, after some careful th
“Ah? What’s with you today, Second Uncle? What on earth are you trying to say? Who’s a wh*re? Who has AIDS?”He turned around and looked at Sotiria, who was lying on his bed. Zenios’s handsome, devilish face was clearly twisted.Zachary raised his brow secretively. “Your eyes tell me that you understand what I’m saying.”Zenios shivered.Sotiria’s mind was buzzing. A bad feeling rose from within her like a cold current.“That’s right. She’s the wh*re I’m referring to.” He looked at the barely-clad Sotiria once again. Zachary’s icy eyes showed no signs of warmth. His tone only held disdain.“Zenios, you’ve never recovered from Carlie’s death. Aside from your occasional drag racing, you kept yourself confined in your home for at least 350 days a year. You need to go out and see the world so you won’t end up like this, unable to even identify what kind of woman you’ve slept with.”Sotiria curled her lips unhappily.‘See! It’s no wonder Zachary’s being so cold to me. He’s complet
The corners of Zenios’s lips twitched. However, he did not say another word. Only the disappointment in his blue eyes lay suffocatingly thick.Four years ago, when Charlotte had left, it was as if she had taken his soul along with her. From that moment on, he seemed to have turned into a hollow shell. Earthly pleasures, sorrow, joy, or anger were nothing more than smoke and mirrors to him. They no longer affected him at all.He could no longer dive into a role and continue acting.He had no choice but to announce his retirement from the entertainment industry during the peak of his career.He thought of Charlotte every moment of every day. He couldn’t even be bothered to care about his looks. He allowed a beard to grow wildly on his face. He held onto her picture every day, gazing at the autographed book she had once given him, and shut himself in his villa, using it as his prison…The weather had been terrible today, so it had made his spirits decline even more. So, he had taken