"Don't you have anything to ask me, Juju?"

Julie paused for a moment. What should she ask?

Should she ask him why he broke the promise of waiting until she became an adult? 

Should she ask him why he had to leave the country?

Should she ask him why he had gotten married?

Should she ask him why he had lied to her?

But the courageous and lively girl she had once been had long been wiped away by the years.

Julie struggled against his grip. "L-Let go of me."

When Lucian saw how strongly she was resisting him, he couldn't help but sigh. He was the one rushing things. He released Julie's wrist and shifted his gaze to the finger that was bandaged.

"Does your finger still hurt?"

Julie lowered her gaze and looked at her finger. The bandage had a cartoon design. He obviously carried this around for a little kid.

Instantly, Julie felt asphyxiated again. She wanted to ignore him. 

"Juju.

Julie spent the next two days looking for an apartment. Once she found a suitable place, she planned to leave the university's dorm.

Suddenly, her phone rang from inside her purse. She smiled at the housing agent briefly and went to the side to answer the call.

"Hello," she said.

A familiar chuckle came through the phone.

"Do you still remember me, Julie?"

Julie's grip on the phone tightened. How could she have forgotten? Amaya had told her previously.

"Of course, Zachary."

Zachary laughed and said in a nonchalant tone, "I thought you had forgotten about me, old friend."

Shaking her head, Julie replied, "No, why would I?"

"Let's meet tomorrow. We haven't seen each other for the past two to three years," he suggested, but Julie rejected the idea.

"I'm sorry. I'm occupied for the next few days."

Zachary and Zayn were childhood friends, and neither of them was any good. Plus, the

Julie stiffened and pretended not to hear Lucian.

Patricia stretched her hand out to give Julie a nudge. She even winked at Julie playfully as if hinting at her. "It's been years since you last met Lucian. Why don't you go over and have a chat with him? You could also help him out with cooking."

Julie knew very well what Patricia was thinking and could no longer feign ignorance. She bit the bullet and walked over to the kitchen.

"D-Do you need help with anything?" Julie stuttered a little. When she spoke, she did not dare to look Lucian in the eyes.

Lucian let out a deep chuckle and said nothing.

She looked up at him, and their eyes met. "What are you laughing at?"

Lucian shook his head. Then, he walked over until he was standing in front of her. The next moment, a cool minty scent lingered in her nostrils. She unwittingly took a step backward. 

He asked, "You're so scared of me, huh?"

She shook her head, feeling rather embarrassed. She was not afraid. It was just that she had not figured out how she was going to face Lucian.

Lucian stretched his arms out. "Please help me with my sleeves."

She complied, albeit with some constraint. She extended her hands and slowly helped Lucian roll his sleeves up.

Julie had grown taller, now reaching his chest. Lucian lowered his gaze and looked at her.

Her cheeks were flushed, and her curled eyelashes were thick and long. Her skin was fair, with the absence of any blemishes. With the overhead light casting down on them, he could see her peach fuzz clearly.

Lucian's deep eyes were glinting. His Adam's apple rolled up and down, as if he was trying hard to restrain himself.

"Done."

Finally, Julie spoke. Then, she took a step back.

Lucian seemed to have regained his composure. His lip curled up as he said, "Thank you."

She said softly, "No problem. Do you need help with anything?"

Lucian pointed at the tomatoes on the chopping board. "Could you help chop these up into cubes?"

She nodded. After she washed her hands in the sink, she picked the knife up and began chopping the tomatoes. Curious, she asked, "What are we making tonight?"

"Sirloin. Your favorite."

The hand Julie was using to hold the knife came to a halt as her vision became blurry. The next second, she felt a sharp pain on her fingertips. Julie yelped softly. 

"Don't move."

Lucian threw the spatula aside, walked over to Julie, grabbed her injured finger, and put it into his mouth. 

Julie suddenly felt a buzz from the soles of her feet going straight to the top of her head. Her face was flushed. "W-Wha…"

Julie tried to pull her hand back.

Lucian refused to release her finger from his mouth. With every breath he took, the hot air he released crawled from the back of her hand down her entire body. It felt like she was in a sea of fire. It was extremely hot.

"Does it hurt?" Lucian asked.

She shook her head.

When he saw that her finger was no longer bleeding, he took a bandage out and wrapped it around her finger.

Julie felt a little surprised. "Why do you carry this around with you?"

Lucian laughed. "There's a kid who's always getting injured, so I made it a habit to carry this around with me."

When Julie heard the word "kid", her expression froze.

Lucian had not only gotten married, but he was also a father.

The ripples that had originally surged in her heart disappeared in an instant.

She just muttered a response softly and pulled her hand back. "Thanks. Um, I don't think I can help you anymore. Sorry."

Lucian smirked. "That's fine. Just go have a chat with my grandma. The food will be ready soon."

As Lucian said this, he reached over, wanting to give her a pat on the head.

Julie subconsciously took a step back, avoiding his touch. She did not even bother to look at his face and just turned around to walk out of the kitchen. 

Lucian's hand froze in mid-air as he let out a bitter laugh.

He thought to himself, "It's a real challenge trying to make this kid happy."

...

Night fell.

By the time Julie left Patricia's house, the sky had already become dark.

Patricia was a little bit worried for her safety. She offered to have Lucian give her a ride home once he was done playing chess with Kenneth Fuller.

Julie declined her offer. She grabbed her bag and walked toward the entrance of the villa. She still did not really know how to handle being alone with Lucian.

The sky had completely become pitch-black. It was not easy to get a cab as she was in an affluent neighborhood. She would have to walk for a few miles to get to the nearest bus stop.

Julie took her phone out to look at the time. It was already 9:00 pm. One hour had already passed, and she still had not reached the stop yet.

Suddenly, a car came from the opposite direction with its headlights directly shining at her. Julie raised her hand to cover her eyes as she squinted at the car. The headlights were too bright, and she could not really see who was in the car.

The car looked familiar, but she could not remember where she had seen it.

Before Julie even had a chance to recall, the car had already crawled to a stop next to her. She was finally able to see who it was in the car when the person rolled down the window.

The moment her eyes met with the person's, Julie's heart dropped a little. 

"Get in." Lucian was the first one to speak.

Julie snapped out of her daze. She tried to keep a distance between them and said, "It's okay. I'm about to reach the stop soon."

"There are no buses in this area. Get in. I'll give you a ride home."

Julie could tell that Lucian was not going to leave if she did not get in. She relented and softly said, "Thank you, Mr. Fuller."

Then, she went over to the front passenger side and reached for the handle.  

The driver immediately called out to her from the driver's seat, "Ms. Somers, you can sit at the back with Mr. Fuller." 

Julie retracted her hand and opened the back door. She got into the car and sat next to Lucian. 

Lucian looked sideways at her and asked, "Where are you heading to?"

"The campus. Harbor University."

After Lucian gave the location details to the driver, he started doing his work in the car. 

The entire journey was a silent one. Julie turned her head to look at the night scene passing them by outside the window. 

"Any idea on what line of work you'd like to get into?" Lucian asked all of a sudden.

Julie recalled what she said to her mother before about going to Nordenburgh. She kept this information to herself, though.

"No."

"Have you ever given it a thought?"

"No."

When Lucian noticed how disinterested Julia was, he stopped pressing her for an answer and just focused on his work on his laptop. The sound of him typing on his keyboard could be heard from time to time.

Julie quietly observed the man next to her from the corner of her eyes. Lucian's fingers danced on the keyboard with a methodical rhythm.

His fingers were long and full of vigor. Every time he tapped on the keyboard, Julie could feel it in her core.

For some reason, the scene of what happened back in Patricia's kitchen suddenly replayed in Julie's mind. Lucian held her hand and put her injured finger into his mouth. A wave of blush crept up her cheeks.

"Is it hot?" Lucian's voice could be heard saying.

He was not even looking at her, but he seemed to have a pair of eyes on the side of his head.

Feeling a little embarrassed, Julie clenched tightly onto the purse she had placed on her lap. Softly, she said, "No."

Lucian looked up and took a glimpse at her. "Why is your face so flushed?"

Julie was even more embarrassed when she heard him say this. Sheepishly, she said, "It's a little warm."

Lucian said to his assistant in the driver's seat, "Jeff, crank the AC down a little lower."

"Yes, Mr. Fuller."

Only when they reached her campus did Julie open her mouth to speak. "Thank you for sending me all the way here, Mr. Fuller."

Lucian felt a little vexed when he heard how distant and polite Julie was being.

"Jules, you used to call me Luce. Do you not remember?"

Julie lowered her eyes and said, "I was young and ignorant back then. I've grown up now…"

She reached for the door handle as she said these words. Suddenly, Lucian's hand reached out and grabbed her fair and slender wrist.

"Don't you have anything to ask me, Juju?"

Julie paused for a moment. What should she ask?

Should she ask him why he broke the promise of waiting until she became an adult? 

Should she ask him why he had to leave the country?

Should she ask him why he had gotten married?

Should she ask him why he had lied to her?

But the courageous and lively girl she had once been had long been wiped away by the years.

Julie struggled against his grip. "L-Let go of me."

When Lucian saw how strongly she was resisting him, he couldn't help but sigh. He was the one rushing things. He released Julie's wrist and shifted his gaze to the finger that was bandaged.

"Does your finger still hurt?"

Julie lowered her gaze and looked at her finger. The bandage had a cartoon design. He obviously carried this around for a little kid.

Instantly, Julie felt asphyxiated again. She wanted to ignore him. 

"Juju." Lucian reached out and rubbed her on the head, giving it a tousle. Sounding rather helpless, he sa

Chapter 14