Faux Vows, True Desires

Owen shook off Ruby's hand and spoke in a flat tone: "Ruby, do you know how people become disappointed? It starts with little things, accumulating over time."

Then he turned around and left.

Ruby followed him to the door, but when she saw Owen getting into his car, she gave up.

Owen loved her deeply; even if he was angry, it was only temporary. He would cool down soon.

Tomorrow, she'd invite him for a meal and give him some gifts. As long as she cheered him up, he would forgive her.

Through the rearview mirror, Owen saw Ruby stop at the front porch and didn't chase after him. His face became even gloomier.

He gripped the steering wheel tighter.

The truth was, if Ruby had chased after him, he wouldn't have stayed angry.

She loved Stefan, and he was not blind to that.

But she didn't chase after him.

It felt like Owen's heart was being cut open with a knife.

He brought this on himself.

His enemies had warned him.

Owen left the Scott family and went to a bar. He drank himself into a stupor and didn't tell his bodyguard to pick him up. Wobbling out of the bar, he staggered to his car. Because he was drunk, his vision was blurry. He came to a car he thought was his. He fumbled for a long time to find his car keys but failed to unlock the car.

"Damn car!"

Frustrated at not being able to unlock the car, he kicked it a few times.

He gave up on driving home and started walking aimlessly under the moonlight.

Late at night, the streets were pretty much deserted, with very few vehicles.

He wandered aimlessly, not knowing where he was. When he got tired, he collapsed and fell asleep in an alley.

In the early morning, a heavy rain washed over the earth and cooled down the high temperatures. People finally felt the coolness.

Stefan's biological clock was very precise. He woke up naturally at half past six every morning.

He opened his eyes to see the woman in his arms.

The air conditioning in the room was too cold. Lucinda, who had kicked off her blanket last night, instinctively sought warmth and burrowed into Stefan's embrace. Stefan, of course, wouldn't push her away. He hugged her tightly.

So they lay in each other's arms until morning.

He kissed her forehead.

Carefully, he placed Lucinda on one side, freeing himself to get up.

"Who are you?"

Lucinda suddenly shouted.

Stefan quickly turned his head, but there was no one else in the room.

Lucinda's eyes were still closed.

Stefan laughed, realizing she must be asking someone in her dream.

"Don't go; who are you?"

Lucinda shouted, flailing her arms as if trying to grasp something.

Then she suddenly opened her eyes, sat up in bed, and stared blankly.

"Lucy, what's wrong? Having a nightmare?"

Stefan sat back down on the edge of the bed and asked her with concern.

Seeing the sweat all over her forehead, he quickly grabbed a tissue to wipe it off, carefully wiping away her cold sweat.

What kind of dream had scared her so much?

"Lucy?"

"Stefan."

Lucinda came back to her senses. Looking at the handsome face close to hers, she breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It was just a dream, but it scared me." "What did you dream about?"

"Actually, it wasn't really a nightmare, just a strange dream. I dreamed of a woman with disheveled hair chasing me around, calling me her baby, and saying I was her baby. I asked her who she was, but she didn't answer."

"I'm twenty-four years old, and she still treats me like a baby and wants to hold me. In the dream, when I saw her, my heart hurt like crazy. It's strange because I can definitely say I've never seen her in real life."

Stefan listened to her explanation and comforted her, saying, "It's just a dream; don't worry about it."

"Stefan, my dream was very vivid, as if it really happened. I can see clearly what she looks like. She looked crazy, but her clothes were neat. It was just very strange."

Stefan smiled and hugged her. "Could it be your past life?"

Lucinda: "I may have written about rebirth stories, but do you really believe in reincarnation? If reincarnation is real, then everyone can be reborn after death; wouldn't that cause chaos in the world?" Novels were fictional; of course, they can't be taken seriously.

In her novels, she wrote the male lead as a very good man who only had eyes for the female lead. Readers always said good men only existed in novels.

She knew in her heart that it's just a novel.

So she never fantasized about being Cinderella and marrying a prince.

"Then just ignore it. Everyone has dreams. If you don't dwell on it, it won't affect you."

"Stefan, do you think it could be a premonition?"

Stefan asked her back, "A premonition of what? That woman called you her baby. If it really is a premonition, then it's a premonition that you're not the daughter of the Moore family. Do you believe that?" Lucinda paused. "I'm my mom's biological child. The midwife who helped deliver me still remembers that I was born feet first, causing a difficult birth for my mom."

"Why are you still thinking about the dream?"

What a strange dream!

"It's still early; go back to sleep."

"I can't sleep once I wake up."

Lying in his arms, Lucinda felt comfortable and secure, which made her feel dependent on him.

In just a few days, she had developed a sense of dependence on him.

Thinking of the photo album she saw before going to sleep last night, Lucinda looked up at him, and he happened to be looking down at her; their eyes met.

"Lucy, if you keep looking at me like that, I might want to do something."

Stefan's voice became husky, and then he kissed her lips.

Lucinda tried to push him away. When she realized she couldn't, she gave up.

His kiss was very gentle.

Lucinda couldn't resist his allure and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, tentatively responding to him.

Then her actions ignited his passion.

He forcefully pushed her back onto the bed.

After their intimate moment, Lucinda felt shy and wanted to push the man next to her off the bed.

But Stefan moved away on his own.

He filled the bathtub with water and then came back to carry her into it.

Ten minutes later, Lucinda lay lazily on the bed, while Stefan had already changed into sportswear.

"Lucy, are you sure you don't want to go for a morning jog with me?"

"My legs are weak; I can't run."

Stefan chuckled, gazing at her with affection for a moment before gently saying, "Then you just get some good rest, alright? I'll join you for breakfast when I get back from my morning run." Lucinda nodded, watching him as he headed out.

This was so freaking unfair.

He was the one who had been giving it his all.

But she was the one who felt exhausted.

He could still head out for a morning run full of energy, while all she wanted to do was crash in bed for a good sleep.

As Lucinda was about to drift off, that weird dream popped into her mind again.