Chapter 9

Lila's voice was faint and cold like a bucket of cold water poured over Dorian's heart. His eyes turned icy again. Even without knowing about her wish for love, he thought he just needed to wait a couple of days for Lila to figure things out and return to his side, just like before. He felt sorry for her when he saw her looking aggrieved. Now that he knew about the sandalwood bracelet, he had been suppressing his anger over her complaining him to Taylor. He planned to talk it out, but his sympathy for her crumbled instantly upon hearing her unreasonable, frosty attitude. His voice turned cold. "You went to complain to Mr. Foster today, didn't you? You wanted him to make things difficult for me, right?" Lila felt bewildered. "No!" He scoffed. "Really? Lila, have you really become this hypocritical? You dare to act but can't take responsibility?" Her fingers trembled slightly as she held the phone. She moved it away from her ear and glanced at the contact name. Dorian's tone was so foreign that she thought she had picked up the wrong call. After five years together, she began to doubt whether she really understood him. He didn't hear her response and assumed she was feeling guilty. Another cold laugh escaped him. "Why aren't you speaking? What did you tell Mr. Foster? Did you say we had a fight and that he should lecture and threaten me to coax you?" "I didn't say anything, and I don't need you to coax me," Lila said, lowering her gaze and staring blankly at her toes. "Lila, show that you care if you still want to be with me. After all these years, you should know how I treat you. "I still love you, but that doesn't mean I can tolerate your bad temper. If you still want that film project, come to the office now." Lila frowned. "I can't go now." It was only then that he remembered she wasn't home and had few friends. The only friend he had seen her with was Noah Morgan, a spoiled, wealthy young man. Noah was her unreliable second brother. When Lila was in school, he often picked her up and dropped her off at home. Dorian had met him a few times. She didn't want to be seen relying on the Morgan family, so she told others they were just friends. Dorian didn't like her having too much contact with other men, so she rarely let her family come to visit. Later, Noah went abroad, and the two hardly saw each other. But whenever he caught her messaging Noah, he felt jealous. Lila comforted him countless times about this. Dorian's face turned pale. Had she already found another man so quickly? "Where are you? I'll come find you." She shifted her gaze from the talisman to the distant mountains. With a sarcastic smile, she said, "Mount Shasta. Do you want to come?" He paused. Mount Shasta? That was the place where people prayed for love and where the sandalwood bracelet was obtained. She had gone back to pray for love again. He inexplicably felt relieved, and his tone softened unconsciously. "Come to my office tomorrow morning; we still have things to discuss about the project." She furrowed her brows. "Are you done? If you are, I'm hanging up." She asked but didn't allow Dorian to respond before hanging up the call. Her gaze fell back on the broken talisman and the ruined red cloth. There was no need to waste energy on damaged or broken things. Lila turned to leave, lighting a candle before descending the mountain. Dorian, meanwhile, was seething with anger, kicking the door in frustration. He knew that Lila had always dreamed of becoming a great director like Taylor, and she had negotiated this movie project herself. When the contract was first signed, she was so happy that she bounced around him like a child who had just received candy. He couldn't help but feel happy for her. Given how close they had been for so many years, he genuinely couldn't understand why she was fussing over a worthless bracelet. When Monica called, Dorian was about to send her another message to reprimand Lila. "Dorian, there's a problem with that film project." His heart sank. He had skyrocketed to fame in five years, relying on luck and hard work. However, filming had many restrictions—age, script, energy, etc. Being in front of the camera wasn't enough to have a long-term career in the entertainment industry. For the past two years, he had been trying to branch out into behind-the-scenes work. But it hadn't been going smoothly. The project Lila had taken on was a significant opportunity. So, when the project was secured, he was happy for Lila and his career. How could there be a problem when the contract was already signed? "What happened?" Monica hesitated. "The person in charge discovered that Lila wouldn't be in charge of the project. He immediately changed his tone and said that we had nothing to discuss if she wasn't responsible for it." Dorian gritted his teeth. "The contract has been signed; does he really think he can breach it?" "He... he said..." "What did he say?" She was sweating profusely. "He said Lila signed the contract, and she is responsible." He was speechless. He swore under his breath, "That bastard!" "Dorian, how should we respond?" He took a deep breath. "You hold down the situation on your end. I'll talk to Lila." He knew Lila would be reluctant to give up on the project and would come to the office tomorrow. They would discuss everything tomorrow, and he wanted to see just how stubborn she could be. Lila didn't want to be involved with Dorian anymore, but after considering it, she knew she had followed through on the project from start to finish. Aside from wanting to do it, she also wanted to be responsible to the investors. It wouldn't bode well for her future development if she lost credibility over this. The next day, she drove straight to the company. However, she didn't expect to encounter another person she didn't want to see in Dorian's office—Darcy. She was dressed as extravagantly as ever, with dramatic eyeliner, the longest false eyelashes, and heavy glitter eyeshadow. Her nose was contoured to look sharp as if it could poke a hole in someone. Lila couldn't help but frown slightly. At that moment, Dorian wasn't there, and Ethan was dutifully attending to Darcy. "Dorian, you're back..." Hearing the door open, she turned around immediately. Her smile faded when she saw Lila. "What are you doing here?" Today, Lila wore a light blue knitted jacket over a soft white dress, looking gentle and refined. Darcy pouted, feeling that Lila was trying to imitate Zara and was shamelessly trying to cling to Dorian. Lila's expression remained calm as she looked at her. "Since you're here, why can't I be here?" "Lila, I'm here because Dorian is my brother. What right do you have to come here? Do you really think I don't know you broke up with him? "Why don't you measure your own worth? Do you think you have the right to break up with him? "Actually, it's evident that you know your place. You know you don't match him, so you took the initiative to break up. You're saving yourself from embarrassment. "You've known for a long time that he and Zara are childhood sweethearts. She's back now, and you're still shamelessly hanging around him for two years. I'm embarrassed for you." Lila looked at Darcy, who spoke loudly and urgently. Her expression was so twisted that Lila feared her makeup would fall off. Her gaze shifted to Darcy's outfit. Darcy wore a new Chanel summer dress that Lila had bought for her a while ago. She was wearing clothes Lila had purchased while trying to lecture her. Lila chuckled. "Take off your clothes before you come here to act tough."