Chapter 57 He Wanted To Tease Her
He held Calista awkwardly around her waist. Her hair was still soaking wet. After some time, she managed to stop choking and glared at Lucian.
“What are you doing here?”
Her eyes were red from the hot spring water, and water droplets clung to her curled eyelashes, making her look alluring and tempting. Lucian pursed his lips. He only thought of teasing her.
Her eyes stung from the water, and her voice was still choked up. She wanted to relax in the hot spring but almost drowned.
She was very annoyed as she snapped, “How did you get in?”
She remembered locking the door. Lucian didn’t speak; he just looked at her scornfully, mocking her foolishness, but he managed to tone down his attitude. Calista grew even impatient at his silence.
“You’re such a pervert! Barging into a woman’s private hot spring.”
She didn’t want to stay in the pool any longer and turned around to walk out. But just as she took a few steps, Lucian grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.
“Pervert?”
Lucian leaned in; his lips were inches away, and his calloused hand brushed her skin.
His voice was hoarse as he whispered, “We’re a married couple. Why would I be considered a pervert for soaking in the pool with my wife?”
Calista’s face turned red, and her body stiffened against his embrace. They were so close and dressed thinly.
They were bound to brush against each other, making them both aware of the change in atmosphere.
Lucian felt her waist tighten. He looked down and saw Calista’s cheeks were tinted red. She looked delicate and alluring amidst the mist, stirring his desires.
His deep eyes became darker, fixed on her rosy lips. He closed his eyes and swallowed hard. After a while, he managed to control the surge of impulse.
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Calista didn’t want to provoke him further in this situation. He had to be either a great gentleman or physically inept to maintain self–control under these circumstances. Lucian was neither.
She returned to her senses and asked, “Why are you here?”
“To bathe.”
He was a damn liar! Calista cursed silently inside and exposed his lame lie.
“There’s a private hot spring in your room.”
Lucian smirked playfully.
“I like public pools. They’re more lively.”
“Then go to the next room. It’s crowded with people. It’s as lively as lively gets.”
Seizing the opportunity, Calista pushed Lucian away, walked a few steps to the pool’s edge, grabbed a towel from the nearby rack, and wrapped herself tightly before exiting the pool.
She went to the changing room, and Lucian’s gaze stayed on her until she disappeared behind the doors. Only then did he withdraw his gaze and sucked in a deep breath.
Calista exited the changing from after a change of clothes. She ignored Lucian and left without a word. Back on her floor, she saw David waiting in front of her room from a distance.
“Miss Calista, Mr. Northwood informed me to bring down your luggage.”
“Thank you.”
Calista took the suitcase and ignored David as he continued to mumble on. She brushed past him,
opened the door, and entered.
The next morning, she was awoken by a persistent knocking on her door early in the morning.
She wanted to ignore it, but the person outside was relentless.
Annoyed, she got out of bed in a fit and opened the door. Lucian was outside the door, dressed
meticulously in a crisp and elegant black shirt and perfectly ironed suit pants.
Calista propped the door open, showing no intention of letting him in. Her hair was a mess, and
she looked grumpy from being woken up.
“What’s the matter?”
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“Let’s have breakfast together.”
She blinked, wondering if she was still half asleep and imagining things.
“I will orde: room service.”
She was about to close the door when Lucian simply pushed open the door and walked inside. He strode in impatiently, clearly infuriated.
“Mr. Packard and the others are waiting. You have ten minutes to get ready.”
Calista instantly realized that he needed her to put on a show. He wasn’t inviting her out for a meal.
Though she didn’t feel like going as she was worn out, the thought of the hundred thousand dollars motivated her to grab some clothes and head to the bathroom.-
Ten minutes was a short time. She applied a layer of sunscreen and didn’t bother with makeup. When they arrived at the restaurant, both Marcus and Eva were already there.
After a night, the bruise on Marcus’s nose had become more prominent. The purplish swelling became the center of attention. Lucian was taken aback.
“Mr. Packard, what happened to your nose?”
Marcus touched his nose awkwardly and retracted his hand at the pang of pain.
“I slipped in the bathroom last night, accidentally hitting the bathtub’s edge.”
He couldn’t hide the sharp undertone in his voice as he spoke. He wouldn’t have laid a hand on
Calista if he wasn’t intoxicated when he ran into her in the elevator last night.
But due to the incident, he couldn’t shake off a certain unease. He had his assistant investigate,
and it was confirmed that Calista and Lucian did have separate rooms and weren’t on the same
floor.
It wasn’t the usual arrangement for a married couple.
There was no news about Lucian being married, and even the rumors had only emerged recently.
But those talking about it couldn’t provide substantial evidence, so it wasn’t certain whether they
were married or not.
This conclusion gave Marcus a bit more confidence. His gaze on Calista was even bolder than
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“Mr. Packard, you should be more careful. That bruise on your face looks quite serious. Have you seen a doctor?”
Marcus chuckled embarrassedly. A rush of air hit his injury, making him wince in pain.
“I have. It’s not a big deal. It’ll heal with some rest.”
Calista watched the scene unfold and leisurely enjoyed her breakfast. Afterward, they decided to go play golf.
The golf course wasn’t far away, and since they had just finished breakfast, they didn’t want to join any strenuous exercise immediately. They opted to walk there to work off their breakfast.
Calista didn’t want to entertain them. She was determined to lay low. She truly despised that sleazy man and found even speaking to him nauseating!
She deliberately slowed down, falling behind not long after, maintaining an appropriate distance while trying to blend in. She focused on the trees lining the path, lost in thought, not noticing someone approach her.