She sat on the dressing chair, recalling the scene when Luke had just come in.Luke sat on this chair. It was uncomfortable as the height of the table and the chair was not suitable for a man who was almost 190cm tall to sit. Luca noticed that Luke was hunching when he sat on the chair. That was the only way to sit there and work, but such a sitting position was difficult for Luke, who had gotten used to sitting up straight while he was working.It was like correcting a man’s walking and sitting posture when he often did it the wrong way. It would be difficult and painful for him. It was the same for Luke to sit on a dressing chair. It must have been tiring for him…Luca's mind was full of Luke. She could not help but shake her head, trying to stop herself from thinking about him. Luca took her skincare products out. After she put it on her face, she took a notebook and a pen out of the drawer. Then, she sat on the bed with the blanket covering her legs. She placed a pillow
After Luca finished calculating the data and equation, she realized that Luke did not affect her when he was by her side. Instead, his presence made her even more focused on what she was doing. The silhouette that kept on appearing in her mind and affecting her progress never showed up again with Luke by her side. Luca closed her notebook.Luke noticed that and asked, “Done?”“Yeah. I’ve concluded the experimental data for this stage.” Luca placed the notebook on the bedside table. After that, she began to feel overwhelmed again. Luke closed his book, placed it on the bedside table, and said, “Get some rest.” “Mr. Crawford…” Luca was afraid that Luke was dropping her a hint. She quickly said, “It’s the time of the month…”“Just sleep.” Luke’s eyes darkened. He was not planning on verifying whether she was telling the truth or not.He only wanted to cuddle with her in bed.He could do nothing, but he had to cuddle with her. That way, he could have a good night’s sleep.
Only some of the money could be refunded?Matysh was not thinking about getting back some of the money. He was not concerned about the money, but he wanted to get Luca. He wanted them to be efficient.After all, he had no patience.Bill asked him again when Matysh did not give him a reply, “Mr. Matysh, what do you think? If you’re fine with it, I’m going to write a check.”"I'm not short of money. I want her, and I need you to act faster. Money isn't a problem. If you can make me happy, I'll pay more," Matysh said arrogantly. He was a racist, and he thought that people with different color skin tones did not deserve to make friends with him. That was why he had no friends or connections here.He had to pay to get Luca. It was difficult for him to find another crime organization like Bill's here.If he looked for others now, he would still need to find a translator for him. That would mean letting another person know about his plans. There was a risk that his plans would be expo
"Put it back, unless you'd like to sleep in my bedroom," said Luke. He brought the toiletries into the bathroom and placed them together with Luca's. Luca watched him and knew Luke was moving to her room.If Nina saw this...Luke came out of the bathroom and said, "What are you waiting for? Go get your breakfast.""Ah, okay..." Luca walked out of the bedroom and unconsciously glanced in the direction of the guest room. Nina did not walk out of the room.She quickly headed downstairs. Nina and the kids were already sitting at the dining table. Tommy saw her and Luke, who was following behind her. He teased, "Daddy and Ms. Luca are sleepy heads. You're always sleeping in."Luca's face reddened. Although Tommy did not mean that, she felt like she was being teased when she heard that.She was teased by a child.Luca cleared her throat and sat on the chair. Luke sat down beside her. He did not say anything when he heard Tommy say so. He deliberately slept in. It was because
"They've never done anything against the law?" Luke raises his brows. He refused to believe it. "Only seemingly. They're a bunch of smart people. It's not that easy to investigate everything about them in a night. Boss, give me some time. I'll figure it out," said Rain with a smile on her face. She loved digging into the things that people had done behind the scenes and exposing them all.Gale picked up the toothpick as he wanted to grab some fruits for himself, but Rainie stopped him and she said, "These are mine. Go get the fruits yourself if you want some.""You're stingy." Gale put the toothpick down and looked at Luke, "Boss, are you planning to talk to Bill now?""Don't alert them first." Luke decided. Once he looked for Bill, he would alert Matysh too, regardless if they were able to make a deal with Bill.Bill cooperated with the foreigners only because it was easier to make money that way. That also indicated that if Luke paid them money, Bill would turn his back on Maty
A wave of disgust came over him. Luke figured the woman came out of Matysh's suite.The reason why he thought so was simple. It was because this woman looked a little like Luca.Only a pervert like Matysh would do such a thing.Luke retracted his gaze. He looked up to see the floor number going down. His mood was gloomy.The scent of the woman's perfume was so strong that all he wanted was to stay away.The moment Mandy Sanders stepped into the elevator, her eyes were on him. He was handsome, dignified, and very different from other men she had met.Even Matysh, whom she spent the night with, did not have a memorable temperament.Mandy thought that the most important thing when it came to choosing a man was the amount of money they had. However, when she saw Luke, she was more willing to be this man’s sugar mommy.Only the rich would show up at Traders Hotel.After being a socialite in a foreign country for some time, Mandy knew a lot about luxury brands and noticed at a glanc
Right after Jason left the secretary room, the ladies started gossiping.Cheryl could not help herself and said, "Mr. Marcos is so nice. They just entertained them for a few days at the boss' order and he invited them for supper? I wonder where they’ll go?"Secretary A immediately continued talking, "The other party is Mr. Marcos. They must be going to a high-end restaurant. Tina is so beautiful. Maybe he wants to confess to her by using the excuse of supper. Imagine if he showed up with flowers and wine! God, she's so lucky."Cheryl glared at Secretary A. "You’re thinking too much. Who would confess to someone during supper? You’re watching too many drama series."Secretary A was annoyed. ‘Didn't she start it?’She looked at Tina and said, "It's hard to say, after all. Mr. Marcos is a busy man. It’s possible that he would invite Tina for supper to confess to her. Besides, Mr. Marcos has been here for a while. Maybe he doesn’t want to leave any regrets before he has to leave..."
"I have things to do tonight, and so does Luca," replied Luke. Aunt Neile must be tired after working for the whole day. Nina happened to be here. She could look after the kids so that Aunt Neile could get off work on time.Nina narrowed her eyes. She was willing to look after the kids, but she became reluctant once those words came out of Luke's mouth.If Luca was the one who asked her to help, Nina would be happy to do so. After all, the kids were well-behaved, and it would not be difficult to take care of them. “What are you doing tonight?” Nina asked. Luca heard Nina and looked at Luke. Why did she not know that she had something to do tonight? Luke did not look at Nina. Instead, he looked at Luca and explained, “Marcos invited us and Tina for supper tonight.”“Oh, Mr. Marcos invited us…” Luca nodded, but she had no idea about it before that. “Fine,” Nina mumbled in dissatisfaction. Tommy raised his right hand as he would during classes and asked, "Daddy, I'd love to h
Luca walked over to another couch and sat down. “I think I’ll stay here. How about letting Luke come down so that we can all catch up? It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other.”Gordan’s face fell. “Ms. Craw, are you doing this on purpose?”Luca pretended not to know anything. “Doing what on purpose?”Gordan quickly shook his head. “Nothing. Just go upstairs already. Brother Luke’s been waiting for you.”Luca had intended to tease Gordan a little longer, but after not seeing Luke for the past few days, she found herself missing him deeply. Standing up with a smile, she said, “Alright, I won’t tease you anymore. Oh, by the way, Mr. Gale, could you help me pick up a few things? Someone over there asked me to get them, and I couldn’t refuse.”“Sure, no problem. What do you need?” Gale agreed immediately.After handing him the list, Luca turned and headed upstairs.Gale watched Luca leave from behind, nudging Gordan’s arm. “Let’s go. We should leave and give the boss and Ms. Cr
The security guard remained completely unfazed.This was because the village chief was his uncle, and in their tight-knit community, they always stuck together and never favored outsiders.With directions from the people inside the ancestral hall, Hera found the village chief.“You’re the village chief, right?” Hera looked at the man in his fifties in front of her and spoke with an arrogant tone, completely unbothered.“And you are?” The village chief, seeing her attitude, was puzzled. He had no idea whether she was an investor or someone looking to discuss a major partnership to bring development to their quiet village.“It doesn’t matter who I am. I see you have surveillance here, and I need to review your footage,” replied Hera.The village chief was even more confused. “Are you a police officer?”“No.” Hera frowned. She thought reviewing surveillance footage was no big deal. Why was this village chief being so difficult?The village chief gave her a look as if she were a fo
“Wait a little longer. By the way, what kind of ancestral hall is this?” asked Hera.“It's a local family's ancestral hall. I heard it's been designed by the owner of a large company, and now it's also one of the tourist attractions.” The taxi driver was not from around here, so he did not know all the details, but he knew it had become a popular spot. “Now, thanks to the reputation of that boss, many architects come here as one of their reference points.”Hera frowned deeper. What was Luca doing here?The driver suggested, “If you're interested in sightseeing, the attractions inside are pretty good. But for outsiders, they charge an entrance fee. Maintenance costs a lot of money, so they charge tourists from outside.”“I'm not here for sightseeing,” replied Hera, “Don't worry. I'll pay you for however long I stay here. You’ll get your money.”The driver heard that she was paying, and did not press her further and remained quiet.Hera stared at the entrance of the ancestral hall,
Hera let out a cold sneer, feeling that Gerald's apology was not sincere.Hera did not want to press the issue at the moment. She gave him a sharp look. “Come with me.”Gerald knew that Hera was up to something again. If it were a normal order, she would have just said it in the living room. Whenever she called him aside, it meant whatever she had to say could not be overheard by others.Reluctantly, Gerald followed her out.It was midday, and as soon as Hera stepped out of the living room, a wave of heat hit her face.The intense warmth made her feel uncomfortable.Hera got straight to the point, turning to Gerald. “What did Luca say to you just now?”“She just asked me to help keep an eye on the volunteer,” Gerald answered honestly. This was not something that needed to be kept secret.Hera frowned. “Is she going out”Gerald hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to say anything.“I’m talking to you, not the wall. Are you mute?” Hera threatened. “If you lie to me, I’ll te
Gordan was puzzled. At most, it was just brotherly camaraderie. After all, they had been through thick and thin together. Their bond might be stronger than usual, but falling in love? That was a bit of a stretch.Luke said, “The way you acted just now, doesn't really seem 'straight' to me. Also, if you're into women, maybe you should consider finding one. Otherwise, if you're always single, people might start misinterpreting your feelings for me.”“Luke, actually, you're not bad at all. In fact, you're probably better than a lot of women,” Gordan replied with a sly grin.As a man himself, he honestly thought Luke was a great guy. If he were a woman, he would be utterly captivated by him.“Shut up!” Luke knew he was joking, but he still felt a chill run down his spine. He seriously worried that Gordan might do something inappropriate when he turned his back on him.Shivering from the thought, Luke put down his glass and headed upstairs.Gordan let out a deep sigh.The night w
“Anyway, I'm saying it here—I'm not going to Russia because of that ugly woman, Vivian. If I go to Russia, it's for you. I've already divorced her. Besides, I’m already trying to avoid her, how could I possibly go to Russia for her?” Gordan took a sip of red wine, then continued his rant. “And, Ray is still in Russia. I really can't go. His men are all brutal, and I've had enough of being beaten all these years.”“Then why did you buy an apartment in Vivian's neighborhood?” Luke continued to tease him. His sharp eyes glinted with intelligence.Gordan denied it, but whether he believed it or not was his own business.“It was just a coincidence!” Gordan raised his voice, trying to convince Luke.Or maybe himself.“Coincidence?” Luke sipped his wine, every gesture as graceful as a nobleman.“Of course, it’s a coincidence, Brother Luke. You wouldn’t know, but that apartment is in a school district, surrounded by college towns. There are a ton of hotties there, I picked the place just
As Luca listened to his tone that was full of regret, she felt a slight pang in her heart. She recalled when she had a child and continued pursuing her education. If she had given up on herself back then, perhaps she and Luke would not find themselves here today.Luca felt she was much more fortunate than the volunteer. Even though she loved her father, she also understood the importance of education and did not let her father’s illness cause her to give up. She was also fortunate to have a father who supported her education.At the thought of this, Luca could not help but ask, “Do you regret it?”“No, I don’t regret it,” the volunteer smiled. “Actually, I always look at it in a positive light. Back then, several boys in my class liked her. If I hadn’t confessed, she might have become someone else’s girlfriend. If there’s anything I regret over the years, it’s that I was too selfish and it affected her studies.“I never thought that being in a relationship at a young age would
As Luca thought about it, she heard the volunteer exclaim, “With a wife like you, your husband must be so lucky and blessed.”Luca shook her head. To her, being cherished by Luke was a real blessing.“You’ve got it wrong. He’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”Luca had often wondered what her life would have been like without Luke.Perhaps she would have married Jean, only to watch his true nature slowly reveal itself. She would have struggled, eventually unable to endure it, and maybe even ended up divorced.It could be something worse. She might have been taken advantage of, lost all hope, and spiraled downward...Anything was possible.However, Luca knew that no matter what happened, life would not be as good as it was now without Luke.Though she remained under someone else’s control, and life on the Island of Despair was fraught with hardship, with Luke by her side, she felt an unshakable courage.A light laugh from the volunteer interrupted her thoughts.Luca
The volunteer did not mind. As long as it meant he could recover, he was willing to endure any pain. “It's okay. I can handle it.”Luca nodded.The door to the vehicle opened, and a man stepped inside. Due to the lack of sterilization, he did not dare approach the inner part of the vehicle. Instead, he placed several bottles of saline on the outside.“This is the saline that Mr. Shanks prepared. He asked you to inject it when you can,” the man relayed Shanks' message.“Got it.” Luca reached out to take the bottles. After thoroughly disinfecting them, she brought them inside.It was more complicated than being in a hospital.Since the volunteer's body was still weak. They had to maintain as sterile an environment as possible.However, it still fell short of the ICU's standard.Luca stayed with the volunteer until evening. Gerald stood outside the medical vehicle and called, “Ms. Craw, it's time for dinner.”Luca took off her protective gear and stepped outside.“Ms. Craw, di