For the next few days, Selena stayed at the hotel while Lucian went to the company.
That evening, Lucian's phone rang. He looked at the screen and saw Mr. Marcus's name.
He answered the call.
"Hello, Mr. Marcus."
"Lucian, are you busy tonight?"
"Not really. Why?"
"I'm having a small party tonight to celebrate the project. I'd like you to come."
Lucian paused for a moment. "A party?"
"Yes" Mr. Marcus answerd
Lucian smiled. "What time?"
"Eight o'clock."
"Alright. I'll be there."
"Good. I'll see you tonight."
The call ended.
After leaving work early, Lucian returned to the hotel to inform Selena about the party.
Lucian entered the room and found Selena in the bathroom taking a shower.
He sat down and waited for her.
When Selena, came out of the bathroom
She stopped so fast the towel nearly slipped. He was back already. That was so early, she thought to herself.
Her clothes were still inside, and now she was stuck standing there, damp, barefoot, holding the towel tight like it was doing more than it actually was.
Lucian didn't move. Didn't even pretend he hadn't seen her.
His eyes stayed on her, too focused.
Selena's cheeks burned.
Part of her wanted to disappear back into the bathroom, but her feet wouldn't cooperate.
The towel suddenly felt flimsy, useless, especially with her legs and shoulder still showing.
he looked like he'd forgotten how to breathe.
"What are you looking at?" she snapped, but the words came out tight. She looked embarrassed. Lucian blinked, like he'd just woken up in the middle of a mistake.
"I—" he started, then stopped.
"Um, why aren't you putting on something?" Lucian asked.
"I didn't know you were going to come back early," Selena replied.
"Go get dressed. I have something to tell you."
Selena quickly left, her face already red. Lucian also tried to calm himself down.
When Selena came out, she looked at him. "So, what do you want to talk about?"
"Since the collaboration that brought me here was successful, Mr. Marcus invited me to a party to celebrate. I want you to come with me. Also, we'll be leaving tomorrow."
Selena's face lit up when she heard they would be leaving tomorrow.
"About the party, what time is it?"
"It's tonight. We'll be leaving by eight, so get prepared."
Selena was confused. Why did she need to get so prepared just for a party?
Not long after, a group of people arrived to help them get ready.
When they finally arrived at the party, there were lots of paparazzi and reporters outside. They asked all sorts of questions, but Lucian ignored them. He held Selena's hand as they walked inside, and the photographers quickly took pictures of them.
Some people became curious about who Selena was.
When they finally entered, Selena was surprised by the number of people inside. The place was crowded, noisy, and filled with people talking.
Then she realized why Lucian had told her to be prepared.
A group of men soon came over to greet Lucian.
One of them offered Selena a drink.
"You followed Mr. Lucian here, so won't you have something to drink?" the man asked.
Selena politely shook her head. "No, thank you."
Lucian frowned slightly.
"I don't drink," Selena said.
The men looked at each other and laughed.
"Who doesn't know how to drink?" one of them asked.
"Enough," Lucian said. He took the drink from the man and drank it. Everyone was taken aback, including Selena.
The men became quiet.
Then one of them looked at Selena curiously. "So, who is this girl anyway? I've never seen her before."
"She's my assistant," Lucian replied.
"She said she doesn't drink. Do you have a problem with that?"
"No, no," the man quickly replied.
After the men left, Selena and Lucian went to sit down.
Selena didn't feel comfortable with the place. When Lucian noticed, he looked at her.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes." Selena forced a small smile.
Just then, a girl around Selena's age walked over and sat beside Lucian.
"It's been a while," she said, smiling sweetly at him.
Lucian didn't even bother to look at her.
The girl turned to Selena. "Hi."
"Hi," Selena replied before looking away.
something stirred in Selena's heart.
He must have had a lot of women in his past, so why should I care? she thought.
Ella said something to Lucian, but Selena couldn't hear her because she was sitting opposite them.
"I'm not interested," Lucian replied.
Ella tried to touch his arm, but Lucian moved her hand away.
"Get out," he said.
Ella looked embarrassed, especially when she noticed Selena looking at them.
"I said get out," Lucian repeated, this time louder.
Selena was surprised.
After Ella left, Lucian looked at Selena.
"Come here."
Selena quickly stood up and sat beside him.
Lucian leaned closer and said, "Don't always sit far away from me next time."
Then Mr. Marcus got on the stage, and everyone went quiet.
"If you guys don't know why I hosted this party, it's because I just successfully closed a deal with Westbridge Corporation."
Everyone clapped.
"So, Mr. Lucian, can you please come on stage?"
Everyone turned their heads toward Lucian as he stood up and walked toward the stage confidently.
When he got on the stage, Mr. Marcus shook his hand.
"I knew I could trust you," he said before handing him the microphone.
Lucian took the microphone and looked at everyone.
"I would also like to thank Mr. Marcus for agreeing to continue the project because I unexpectedly had to take over. I'm glad everything turned out successfully."
Everyone applauded again.
He smiled at Mr. Marcus, and Mr. Marcus nodded. Lucian handed the mic back before going back to his seat.
"Let the party begin," Mr. Marcus announced.
Soon, several investors started coming over to greet Lucian.
Other company owners also approached him, hoping to gain his favor.
Some of them were curious about Selena and tried to find out who she was.
Lucian simply told them she was his assistant. He didn't want to reveal anything about their relationship yet.