Confrontation
998 Words
Sensing the searing gaze upon him, Ikun lifted his eyes slightly, meeting Lucian’s displeased stare. A flicker of surprise crossed his face, and the warmth in his doting expression cooled into aloofness. Raising his glass from afar, he offered a silent salute.
Lucian, in turn, withdrew his gaze and courteously returned the gesture with a lift of his own glass.
Annie, engrossed in her meal, remained oblivious to the wordless duel that had transpired between the two men.
“Eat slowly, no need to rush—look, you’ve got something on your lips,” Ikun said tenderly, reaching for a napkin to wipe her mouth with the same cherishing smile, indulging his treasure’s every whimsical antic.
Annie froze, a flush of embarrassment rising. Wasn’t this gesture a touch too intimate?
She brushed it off, offering him a sheepish grin.
Lucian’s eyes narrowed dangerously, his handsome visage exuding a perilous aura.
Men understood the unspoken contest between them all too well. Ikun was staking his claim, declaring unequivocally to Lucian: *This woman is mine!*
Such wars between men blazed with fire and dominion.
Especially between two evenly matched adversaries—rivals in the cutthroat world of business.
Be it a gentle soul or a steely one, every man possessed a distinct way of proclaiming ownership.
Lucian’s gaze turned frigid. As he suspected, they were lovers. That man had shed his veneer of gentleness, revealing a possessive ferocity in his eyes.
“Lucian, what are you staring at?” Yun Ruoxi followed his line of sight, her eyes widening in surprise. “Young Master Yang? Is that his girlfriend?”
Lucian offered no reply, merely lowering his head to eat. Yun Ruoxi continued in her soft, lilting tone, “Lucian, you should take a page from Young Master Yang’s book—not a whisper of scandal about him. Look at you…”
“Are you complaining that I’ve neglected you, Ruoxi? Tonight, I’ll be a blaze of passion,” Lucian teased with a roguish smile.
Yun Ruoxi pouted playfully, her cheeks blooming with a shy blush.
He cared for Ruoxi—over the years, she alone could hold his gaze. Yet an unshakable restlessness gnawed at him, a ceaseless search driving him from one woman to the next. A hollow space lingered in his heart, vast and unfillable.
Ruoxi was beautiful, her lineage impeccable. He liked her, and she him—a pair ostensibly bound by deep affection. So why did he still feel this insatiable void?
As Ikun and Annie rose to leave, Ikun slipped an arm around her waist, whispering into her ear, “Annie, I’ve spotted an acquaintance. Play along, won’t you?”
With that, he drew her close, guiding her out with the air of a devoted lover. Annie acquiesced with an understanding smile, unbothered—helping a friend, after all!
Lucian’s eyes darkened with a sudden, predatory chill. Why did the sight of their intimacy ignite such a tempest of rage within him?
Outside the restaurant, Ikun abruptly asked, “Annie, do you know Lucian?”
“Lucian?” Annie blinked, bewildered. The president of Blackthorne Inc., her future superior—yet, for now, a stranger.
Ikun smiled gently. “Good, it’s better if you don’t.”
Annie, do you truly not know Lucian? he mused. Aurora’s face, a striking seven-tenths likeness to Lucian’s—anyone who saw them would never doubt they were father and child.
Monday.
Aurora rose early, a graceful smile gracing his lips as he tapped lightly on Annie’s door. “Mummy, time to rise—you’ve work today!”
“Understood, understood…” Annie mumbled, still half-lost in slumber.
Aurora chuckled, proceeding to wash up and dress. He glided into the kitchen, rinsing the pan, igniting the stove, and frying eggs with practiced ease. Two nourishing breakfasts emerged—fragrant sandwiches fresh from the oven. He warmed milk, then strode back, his small frame leaping onto the bed to nudge Annie off with a playful kick.
Thud…
“Ouch, that hurts…”
Aurora hopped down with flair, ignoring his mother’s resentful glare. He fetched water, squeezed toothpaste onto her brush, and with a charming smile, gestured invitingly toward the bathroom.
“Mummy, Blackthorne Inc. is strict. If you’re late, the job’s gone, and we’ll be left sipping the northwest wind.”
Annie felt tears welling up, though none fell!
“Aurora, I despise you!” she roared, storming into the bathroom with a grudge to wash and groom.
Meanwhile, Aurora tidied her quilt, selected a sharp suit for her workday, and laid it neatly on the bed.
Emerging dressed and lightly made up, Annie swept her hair into an elegant updo.
By then, Aurora had packed his schoolbag and was savoring breakfast. “Good morning, Mummy. Eat quickly—we’ll leave together.”
Annie bit into her sandwich with a simmering grudge—five-star quality that twisted her heart slightly.
Typically, didn’t mothers tend to their sons in the morning? Why, in her case, did the roles reverse, with her son pampering her?
Her boy was a prodigy, excelling even at chores fit for a maid. Her future seemed secure.
“Aurora, I’ve failed you!”
Aurora nodded solemnly, acknowledging her words, then urged her to eat with refined poise. His dear mother was perfect in all but her penchant for oversleeping and ineptitude at housework. Pity him—barely a child, yet a master of domestic arts, capable of crafting a feast.
“Aurora, promise you’ll never marry. You must care for Mummy forever, understood?”
“Very well!”
Such obedience! Future daughters-in-law could step aside—this exceptional son, painstakingly raised, wouldn’t be surrendered so easily. Annie now grasped why the bond between mother and daughter-in-law was ever so delicate.
The Blackthorne Inc. tower loomed in the city’s bustling heart, piercing the clouds with majestic grandeur and imposing splendor.
Annie exhaled a long, steadying breath.
Come on, Annie!
For the sake of fortune, she rallied herself onward!
- Writer
