Lucian was on top of her, kissing her gently across her cheeks. He traced his kisses slowly under her jaw, down her neck, and finally paused to nip at her collarbone. "Um..." Calista couldn't help but let out a moan. Her hands were wrapped around his neck. Her fingers clenched tightly. Her knuckles turned white from the pressure, and even her toes curled together. Unconsciously, she tilted her head back, her fair neck drawing an elegant line due to this movement.This brought them closer, closing up the remaining distance between them, and she almost delivered herself to Lucian's lips. Lucian rolled over and lay beside her, one arm around her waist and the other holding her shoulder. He effortlessly lifted Calista and placed her on his abdomen. She had a slim waist that he could almost encompass it with his hands. Calista sat upright for barely two seconds before she lost all her strength and collapsed onto him. Her cheek pressed against his chest, and she could hear the r
Lucian didn't know who was there, but the bodyguards outside hadn't stopped anyone, and they could unlock the fingerprint lock downstairs. It was either his parents or Cade and Paul. But either way, he didn’t want any of them to witness this scene. He lowered his gaze to look at Calista. Her clothes were a bit messy, but she was still dressed. In comparison, he looked worse, with his clothes half-off and bound to the bed. As he tried to break free from the handcuffs and listened carefully to the sounds outside, the carpet muffled the footsteps, making them barely audible. The phone continued to ring incessantly, and after listening for a while, he didn't hear anything. Then he realized that he had been scammed by Hector. The handcuffs that could have been easily broken that day now seemed unbreakable, no matter how much effort he put into it.This was a real pain in the ass. "Damn you, Hector!" He couldn't help but swear, but before he could finish, Cade's voice came fro
The woman in the painting appeared to be in her thirties. She had a classic oval face, gracefully arched eyebrows, and plump lips that seemed to carry a perpetual, enigmatic smile.But lurking in her eyes was an unmistakable air of ambition, making her appear somewhat unapproachable.Calista's artwork was exceptionally lifelike. It captured every detail, including the faint freckles beside the woman's nose bridge. Hugo furrowed his brows as he examined the woman in the painting."That's how she looked over a decade ago. She should be in her fifties now. Her looks hadn't changed much, but she's gathered a few more wrinkles over the years," Calista remarked.The last time they had been in Apthon, she only managed to glimpse Julia's profile.Worried that her portrayal might not be accurate and could mislead others, Calista had opted to depict Julia in her younger days.Hugo carefully stowed away the painting and replied, "I can't put a name to her face."He was confident this woman
Calista glanced at the document provided by the staff and discovered that the family member on record was Charlene Blake.She was registered as the deceased's sister, and her phone number was recorded.There wasn't much additional information in the records, so Calista snapped a photo of the document and left the office with Hugo.Calista couldn't confirm whether Charlene and Julia were the same person until June 16, the day she intended to pay her respects.Until then, she had to be careful and avoid revealing their investigation too soon. Hugo and Calista returned to their car respectively."I'll look into this woman named Julia that you mentioned. If you're not keen on going abroad, avoid traveling until we've identified the mastermind behind all this," Hugo advised.Calista agreed, "Alright, I appreciate your help."Hugo didn't head straight home but instead went to Jean's house. It was a suburban villa in a relatively new development area constructed over the past few years
Throughout the journey, Calista couldn't shake the thoughts of the tombstone. She pondered whether it was a case of mistaken identity or, indeed, her mother's resting place.If it was the latter, she wondered who had placed it and what purpose it served. Calista unlocked her phone and stared at the numbers while approaching a red traffic light."Charlene ..." she muttered.Suddenly, Lucian's call came through."Hello," Calista answered."Where are you?" Lucian spoke in a deep, indifferent voice."I'm ..."Suddenly, Yara's voice interrupted her urgently, "Calista, you're in trouble. This guy ..."Midway through her sentence, Lucian, on the other end of the line, raised his hand, and Yara fell silent. She had forgotten that Lucian had paid her for changing her mind.Yara started to regret her decision and reluctantly corrected herself through clenched teeth."Mr. Northwood deceived me."Yara's face was contorted by a fierce, seething hatred, as though she longed to rip Lucian
Calista scanned her memory but couldn't recall any significant event associated with June 13th."Is it Father's Day? But isn't that on the third Sunday of June?" she replied.Lucian grumbled, "It's the day we got married."Calista blurted out, "Haven't we already divorced ..."Mid-sentence, Calista realized her reply might not be the most romantic thing to say in this dreamy and romantic setting. Memories of her past came flooding back.Calista was burdened with debts and confined to her home due to online harassment when she married Lucian.She couldn't even remember the exact date of their wedding since getting married had been a spontaneous decision."You remembered," Calista said.She was surprised. Calista's remark wasn't intended to be sarcastic nor to resurface old grievances.She was genuinely surprised as Lucian had never celebrated their anniversary during their three years of marriage."Of course, I remember. It's you who forgets," Lucian snorted, looking somewhat
Lucian was not one to utter sweet nothings, even though he was exceptionally considerate and attentive to Calista now. His rare confessions made them all the more powerful.Calista turned her head, avoiding his gaze that disrupted her thought, and pulled her hand away. However, Lucian didn't loosen his grip. Instead, he held on tighter."After knowing I've had feelings for you all these years, you've got nothing to say?"Lucian appeared calm, but deep down, he was filled with nerves and anxiety as he posed his question. He had waited years for her response.Calista bit her lip, intending to put on a stern face to tease him, but she burst into laughter before continuing her act."You fool. How could you confess to the wrong person?" she commented.Lucian explained, "I saw you there before approaching, but I didn't expect ..."He didn't expect things to turn out that way.Calista rolled her eyes and added sarcastically, "I suppose it's destiny playing tricks on us. That's why we'
Lucian shot Calista a slightly exasperated glance."I'm nothing like the unfaithful guy in the movie. Lily and I never kissed, never slept together, I never made any promises, and we never even got to the stage of considering getting married."Calista remained silent."I was kind to her, not only because of her dad. I wanted to see if it would make you jealous," Lucian explained.However, Lucian observed that Calista showed no signs of jealousy. He was infuriated, feeling like he had made a big mistake.Calista stood up and whispered, "I was jealous.""What?" Lucian asked."How could you be so clueless ..."Suddenly, Lucian abruptly stood up and drew Calista into his embrace from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder before she could finish her sentence."Callie, I heard you," he whispered."So, why did you ask?" Calista retorted."I just wanted to hear it again, you know. You've never spoken any tender words or shown any affection toward me, not even when we were married