Though it was referred to as an observation deck, it was an open space of roughly 1000 square feet paved by cement.They arrived early, but the deck was already occupied by people who were also there to see the total lunar eclipse. They were here with full sets of equipment and bags piled high.In contrast, the empty-handed Lucian and Calista being around made it seem like they were being disrespectful to this rare astronomical spectacle.After an hour of hiking up the mountain, Calista had lost her initial excitement and was exhausted. She paid Lucian little attention. She instead found a relatively clean spot to sit and rest.However, even though the place had been vacant for a while, it wasn't entirely clean. The sun's rays could barely reach the ground.Chills would seep in if she sat like that, making her vulnerable to getting sick. Lucian took off his coat and gave it to her."Use this as a cushion. It's cold in the mountains."Calista was covered in sweat as they had just
The path was narrow, to begin with. With the crowd, it quickly got packed. Lucian hurriedly led Calista down the mountain with the flashlight of the person in front to guide their way.They couldn't use their phones for light unless necessary. If the battery ran out, they wouldn't be able to call for help even if something went wrong.Everyone else shared the sentiment. They had been there all afternoon. Their phone batteries were running low.Suddenly, Calista felt someone roughly hitting her on her right shoulder. It was a person behind who couldn't wait to rush forward.The mountain path was treacherous to begin with. Every step was taken with caution. Someone bumping into her had her stumbling into the nearby woods.Fortunately, Lucian had a firm grip on her. Despite the sudden turn of events, the man tightened his hold on her the moment she fell by the wayside.She didn't fall, but she twisted her ankle. Pain shot through her every time she moved. The delay had the group of
There was no sound behind him, leading Lucian to believe that Calista might have been upset by his words.He continued after pausing for a few seconds, "So, you're better off giving up on trying to get away from me."He heard nothing from her despite waiting for a long time. He frowned, found a steady position, and hefted the person on his back."Callie! Calista! Calista Everhart!"Despite his calls, the person on his back remained unresponsive.Lucian panicked and hurriedly set Calista down. He was usually a fussy rich man with clear standards for where the wrinkles should sit when ironing his clothes.But now, he was sitting on the muddy mountain path and cradling her in his arms.The woman's face was blue from the cold. Her disheveled hair clung to her face and her eyes were tightly shut. Rather than being upset at him, she seemed to have fainted from the cold.Lucian patted her face; his hands were already quite cold but Calista's face was even colder."Wake up, Callie. Ca
Calista felt them coming, but she couldn't muster the strength to look. On the other hand, Lucian's eyes remained sharp. He narrowed his eyes at the person who was traveling up the mountain path.It wasn't Cade. The person was alone and well-equipped with hiking equipment. He wore a specialized raincoat that was highly effective against blocking out the rain.His black military boots firmly gripped the slippery mountain trail as if it were a flat surface."Calista …"Seeing the half-conscious Calista held tightly in Lucian's arms, the man rushed to their side. It was Hector. Lucian's tense body finally relaxed.He asked, "Why are you alone?"Hector bent down to check on Calista and sneered when he heard Lucian's words."I'm here to see if you've kicked the bucket yet. If you're not dead, allow me to kick you down the mountain."Lucian said nothing. Hector fastened the flashlight to the buckle on his waist and reached out to take Calista out of Lucian's arms.Lucian instinctive
Cade was simply offering Lucian a solution. And now the latter decided to direct the problem back to him."What the fuck? This is a company phone. I run a film company. What's wrong with me having interviews with female artists?"Now, Cade wanted nothing more than to smash the phone into Lucian's face. Forget introducing him to someone. It'd be more appropriate to acquaint him with Bigfoot.It was already late at night by the time Lucian got to the hospital. The nurse helped look into Calista's ward number."It's past visiting hours, sir. Please come back tomorrow morning if you want to visit the patient. Otherwise, you would be disturbing the other patients in the ward."Just as she finished, he noticed someone leaving the ward. It was Hector fetching some water with a thermos in hand. Lucian frowned and pointed at the man."What is he doing here then?"The nurse, intimidated by his imposing presence, craned her neck in the direction he pointed at."He's a family member acting
There was a stormy look in Lucian's eyes as he stared at the pair."Keep your filthy paws to yourself."Hector retracted his hand from Calista's forehead and turned it over several times."You mean this?"He raised a brow at Lucian and stuck his hand back to her forehead in a provocative manner again. He also stroked her head.Calista didn't think a man soon to turn thirty would still be this childish. Before she could stop him, he had stroked her hair so vigorously that it resembled a nest."Do you know what a proper ex-husband should be doing? He should act dead. You, on the other hand, keep returning like a corpse that refuses to die while dragging others down with you."Just as Lucian was about to lift his covers and get out of bed, the nurse returned with a tray and handed him a thermometer."Take your temperature."Then, she turned to Paul, who was still seated on the stool, and said softly, "I'm sorry, sir. It's getting late. This hospital has a rule that states that fa
Lucian turned to look at Calista. But the woman only rolled her eyes and laid back down with her back to him.Lily was already sitting in the chair and waiting for him to ask her what was wrong. She was ready to put on the waterworks.However, the man never once looked her way. Forget her exhaustion badly masked by makeup. He likely wouldn't have noticed even if she walked in naked."Lucian."She couldn't help but raise her voice. In the past, she would've walked away and waited for the man to coddle her.But when Lily thought about everything that had happened between them, she realized the only time Lucian would cajole her was when Calista was around.Even then, it barely qualified as him cajoling her. He was simply responding to a request. And all she could ask for was money to satisfy her needs.Now, her only regret was leaving abroad to test the man to see if he had any semblance of affection for her and force a marriageWhen she thought about her purpose for coming today,
Calista turned to Lucian with a raised brow and smiled."Yes. I want a harem. But I'm not interested in men like you.""Like me? Elaborate."She began to count off her fingers."Sharp-tongued, arrogant, holds everyone in contempt, and has no respect for others. You think you're the best thing to grace the earth. You blame everything on everyone but yourself. You have no emotional intelligence to speak of. Every word that comes out of your mouth is unpleasant. You always act like you're owed billions. You're scum who won't shut up. Most importantly, you're like an unlucky charm …"Lucian wanted to see the lunar eclipse. But, it started to rain. While everyone made it down the mountain, they were the only ones trapped.The more Calista went on, the darker his face became. He didn't think Calista saw him in such a terrible light."Do I not have any good qualities?""You do," she admitted frankly. "You're handsome and well-built. You're rich too. But none of that offsets your short