When the plane arrived in City N, it was already 3 a. m.
Everything was quiet.
Lillian, completely drained, was carried off the plane by Conrad.
The car was already waiting on the tarmac.
Conrad looked down at the woman who had her eyes closed, not wanting to look at him.
He tightened his arms around her, holding her even closer.
Ford was waiting by the car.
During the time Conrad was absent, Ford had handled all the engagement matters with the White Family Group on his behalf.
Seeing Conrad return with Lillian in his arms, Ford’s expression tightened. He chose to ignore it and opened the car door.
“Mr. Conrad, where to?”
“It’s too much trouble. Find a nearby hotel.”
“Understood, I’ll arrange it now.”
Hillside Villa was at least a 40-minute drive from the airport, and by the time they got back, Lillian would likely be asleep. It wouldn’t make sense to drag her out of bed then.
Lillian was in a foul mood when she woke up and wasn’t willing to give him a pleasant face.
Conrad, meanwhile, was thinking about a lot of things, considering many factors.
It seemed the balance of their relationship had shifted, though he hadn’t yet realized it.
The car headed toward the city, and Ford selected a hotel near the Brown Family Group’s business district.
It was the penthouse suite. Conrad had sometimes stayed there when he returned from a business trip too tired to go home.
But since Lillian had come into the picture, no matter how far away, he always had to go home.
It seemed that holding her at night was the only way he felt comfortable.
In time, he had gotten used to this life.
Lillian was carried into the hotel, and the staff dared not look too much. From their build, it was clear that this wasn’t Miss Daisy.
Lillian, listening to the sound of the elevator going up, felt herself held tightly by the man. She found it strange-this guy didn’t seem to get tired.
He had held her since the plane, wouldn’t let go in the car, and now he wanted to carry her into the room.
Lillian found it hard to breathe, but she could hear the vibrations in his chest, as if he was pleased that she was sneaking in some sleep.
She thought he was sick-really sick.
She continued pretending to be asleep, and Conrad didn’t rush to reveal that he knew.
The hotel room door opened.
He carried her inside and gently placed her on the bed, then sat across from her, just watching her.
At first, Lillian could still sleep a little, but the feeling of being watched never went away.
Finally, she couldn’t stand it anymore and opened her eyes.
As expected, Conrad was still watching her.
“Are you out of your mind? Why are you staring at me in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? You’re like some kind of ghost.”
It sent chills down her spine.
Conrad curled his lips into a smile. “Does it upset you that I’m watching you?”
“How could I possibly be okay with you staring at me in the dead of night? Let me sleep, will you?”
“Go ahead and sleep. I’m not bothering you,” Conrad leaned back, not smoking, just twirling a lighter between his fingers out of habit. “Remember this? It was the first thing you ever gave me. It broke a few years ago-cheap quality-but I had it repaired.”
“I didn’t have much money back then. If you think it’s junk, just toss it.”
“Give it to me again.”
Conrad’s voice was unexpectedly calm, stripped of its usual arrogance, just a simple plea.
Though he said, “Give it to me again,” what he truly meant was, “Love me again, Lillian.”
But Lillian scoffed. “I remember when I gave it to you, you called it some cheap junk and told me to get you something better. Now you’re used to that worthless thing, can’t let go of it? I heard the White family’s daughter’s dowry isn’t small, I’ve even heard a bit about it in H City. I’m sure they’d have no trouble affording a lighter.”
Conrad leaned in. “You don’t want me to get engaged, do you?”
“No, whether you get engaged or married tomorrow has nothing to do with me. It doesn’t matter, I don’t care, I don’t mind.”
“Just say the word, and I can cancel it.”
“Oh, no need. Mr. Conrad, just stay away from me. I have no interest in breaking up other people’s engagements.”
But even as she said these harsh words to provoke him, Conrad remained quietly by her side, not speaking, always present like a shadow.
His presence alone, though, was enough to make him impossible to ignore.
Lillian turned away, not wanting to face him, but she heard him speak softly, “It’ll all be over soon.”
She didn’t understand what he meant. All she knew was that she had already ended it long ago, on her own.
That hopeless love, the love that went unanswered.
Lillian had decided long ago, much earlier, that she would stop loving Conrad.
Conrad reached out, his hand brushing against her cold hair.
Maybe it was better this way. She was still by his side.
One day, Lillian would understand.
******
The next morning, Lillian was dragged out of bed by Conrad.
Reluctantly, she was forced downstairs.
As soon as they reached the hotel lobby, a swarm of cameras targeted them, and countless flashes went off, capturing their hands intertwined.
“Mr. Conrad, with Miss Daisy’s wedding approaching, were you spending the night with Miss Lillian?”
“Mr. Conrad, does this mean your engagement with Miss Daisy is called off?”
Lillian squinted, blinded by the relentless lights. In the next moment, Conrad’s suit covered her, his arm around her shoulder as they walked forward.
Conrad didn’t need to respond.
“Miss Lillian, are you planning to continue being Mr. Conrad’s mistress after the marriage?”
“Are you planning on an affair?”
“Mr. Conrad, do you plan to cancel the engagement?”
The reporters bombarded them with one question after another.
Lillian, her expression blank, was shoved into the car, and then Conrad joined her. He seemed unbothered, as though he didn’t care about the little incident just now.
That was inevitable, because this was City N. Those reporters would fall silent.
The reports wouldn’t be released.
But could they really silence the rumors and gossip?
Could they suppress the established facts?
A publicly acknowledged mistress-how laughable.
And a man with power and influence could openly embrace both sides.
Why hadn’t she noticed before how pathetic and repulsive this relationship was?
“These things won’t make it to the streets,” Conrad seemed to be reassuring her.
“Does it really matter whether they report it or not? What difference would it make?” Lillian laughed at him, thinking he was trying to cover it up.
She laughed at Daisy for being so magnanimous, knowing her man had another woman and still agreeing to marry him.
“What’s so funny?” Conrad watched her smile slowly, and asked, “What are you laughing at?”
“I’m laughing at this world-it’s rotten to the core.”
Conrad gripped her hand. “I know you’re unhappy. What I’m doing right now, I can’t explain to you, but one day, you’ll understand.”
“I don’t want to understand. I told you, no matter what you do now, I don’t care.” Lillian felt that talking to him was more tiring than playing music to a cow.
She couldn’t break through to his world, and her feelings didn’t matter.