Chapter 288 Plausible Suspect
Lucian’s hand rested on the towel, seemingly about to put on a show for her. Calista quickly averted her gaze as if the sight burnt her. She walked past Lucian and pushed him out of the bedroom.
“Almost time’s up, just a few more minutes. Remember, lock the door when you leave, and take the towel with you,” Calista commanded.
Calista closed the bedroom door behind her and stepped into the bathroom.
The steam filled the air, carrying the familiar aroma of her shower gel and a subtle trace of Lucian’s cologne, the one he typically wore. It left her with an indescribable sense of mixed feelings
In theory, this should have been a completely routine situation after three years of marriage. However, for
Calista, it felt like an entirely new experience.
Back at Everglade Manor, each room had a private bathroom and communal facilities. Lucian often stayed out late, so when he did come home, it was typically well past the usual hours.
Consequently, they had never encountered a scenario where one had just finished showering while the other was preparing to start. Calista pushed down the unusual emotions swirling within her.
She suspected she might be overanalyzing the situation, perhaps due to Lucian’s recent behavior, which
had resurfaced memories from the past.
She switched on the bathroom exhaust fan, took a brisk shower, and then settled onto the chaise lounge
beside the balcony sliding doors with her laptop.
She launched her web browser and entered “Apthon Jacquez family‘ into the search bar.
As Calista scrolled through the search results, she perused background details and profiles regarding the
Jacquez family.
Only then did she grasp why Liam and Lucian had referred to the Jacquez family without specifying a
particular member.
Calista looked at the densely woven web of relationships she had compiled and couldn’t help but marvel.
This family sure knew how to populate!
The old man alone had ten siblings, each with two to five kids. And when Callsta dug even deeper, there
were a ton of grandkids
nt that was only the tip of the iceberg. There were also illegitimate offspring with more than a dozen
to light. Who knew how many remained hidden? They seemed to enjoy being a big family
In any case, every family branch had a substantial number of members. If the entire Jacquez family were to assemble for a holiday feast, they’d likely require a five–star restaurant banquet hall,
Yet, even then, it might not be enough to accommodate everyone.
Identifying someone who might harm Calista from this vast crowd was like searching for a needle in a haystack. After only briefly studying the information, Calista’s head began to throb.
The faces of Jacquez’s family members crowded her thoughts, and each one appeared as a plausible
Suspect
Frustrated, she tossed the laptop aside, lay down, closed her eyes, and pretended to sleep. She rested her head on the chaise lounge, facing the heater, which blew warm air onto her wet hair.
Calista was so comfortable that she quickly drifted off to sleep. On the other hand, Lucian stared at Hector’s phone number that David had sent him and dialed it without hesitation.
The call was answered quickly, and a crisp voice echoed on the other end, “Who’s this?”
“Lucian.”
Hector paused for two seconds before instantly reverting to his usual laid–back tone.
“Mr. Northwood, another rejection, huh? Calling your romantic rival for some tips, are you?” Hector
quipped.
“Advice on arranging a surprise visit from your mother to put some pressure on the woman you’re keen on, and had it all schemed by your secret admirer? Nah, I’m good,” Lucian countered.
He continued, “Well, it’s no easy feat, especially when Callie was always pampered and treated like royalty when she was with me. Nobody dared to raise their voice at her, let alone issue such a blunt and
embarrassing warning.” Lucian retorted.
Lucian’s lengthy statement left Hector baffled. He mentally reviewed Lucian’s words to grasp their intent.
Hector furrowed his brow and inquired, “Did Ava take my mom to bother Calista?”
Lucian sneered, “Your mum is genuinely fond of women who talk, especially those who can’t keep their mouths shut. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of causing any trouble for Callie. I mean, seriously, who
gets married again and picks such a troublesome family?”
Hector finally grasped the situation. Lucian called Hector to handle Ava and mockingly discouraged him
from pursuing Calls
fector retorted “Well, most folks wouldn’t go through a divorce if their marriage didn’t go well, whether
backtrack and attempt to reconcile?”
When Calista woke up the next day, she was lying in bed, covered with a blanket. She furrowed her brows and tried to recall what had happened last night.
She remembered falling asleep on the chaise longue but didn’t remember how she ended up in bed.
Did Lucian not leave last night? The thought crossed her mind but was quickly dismissed as she realized she was running late for work.
After freshening up, Calista glanced at the couch as she walked through the living room.
It was neat and showed no signs of being slept on. She felt like the air was filled with Lucian’s crisp scent, but she wasn’t sure whether it was a figment of her imagination,
When Calista arrived at the museum, she learned that the prestigious family who owned the crown relic had also dropped by and was inspecting the progress of the crown’s restoration.
A colleague commented, “Seriously, it’s only been two weeks, and we’ve pretty much spent our time in seminars. How much progress do they think we can make?”
“You remember the incident that happened earlier, right? I heard Augustus kicked the foreign talent out. He was upset and went to the relic owner and talked trash about us, saying we’re not pros and we might
mess up that relic.”
“That’s why she’s insistent on checking out the restoration work herself. She didn’t have much faith in our skills, and now, I’m worried the donation might just go up in smoke,” another colleague commented.
Calista had assumed that the relic owner, who was so passionately patriotic and deeply interested in antiques and affluent, would probably be an elderly man.
However, much to her surprise, Calista realized that the owner was a young woman.
She was dressed in elegant professional attire and appeared to be close in age to Calista. Despite her youthful appearance, her demeanor radiated an impressive level of maturity.
“You gotta be Callie from the internet, right? You’re way more gorgeous in real life than on TV.
Calista politely shook the hand extended toward her and replied, “Thank you.
The women appeared overjoyed and quickly transformed Into a thrilled fan
introduced herself, Tin Teresa, the current caretaker of the crown relic, and I’m a huge fan of yours. 1
a doubts about whether the team here could handle the restoration properly, but after meeting you, I’m
Mident your museum is the right place for if I be finalizing the donation agreement with Mr
it:
They stood in the workshop, surrounded by colleagues. Amidst her colleagues, Calista felt comparatively young and inexperienced in their field.
When Teresa praised her, it didn’t evoke the anticipated joy. Instead, Calista yearned to shrink into the ground out of embarrassment, hoping she could vanish into the thin air.
Calista wondered whether Teresa’s apparent innocence stemmed from her personality, leaving her unfamiliar with the ins and outs of workplace dynamics, or if there was a deliberate attempt to keep her
out by her seniors.
Calista chuckled and mocked herself, “You’re singling me out ‘cause I’m the one who’s been on TV, right? If all our experienced colleagues here were as in the spotlight as me, I’d probably be left with nothing but
scraps.”
Teresa fixed her with a deep, enigmatic ga
