Braelyn’s POV
The city where we were heading coincidentally was the sa area Gregory ntioned in his will. It felt like a good idea and maybe it was also fate
I wanted to see my parents’ old holiday villa. Things were quickly organised for the trip and we left as soon as we could. To get away from the chaos at Volkov Apex group.
After what happened with Alia’s project I was more curious to et Killian Orlov.
The sky was dark long past midnight when the flight arrived at the airport terminal. I felt a soft caress on my cheeks.
My eyes fluttered open to et a pair of soft hazel eyes staring intently at . A blanket was draped over , making cosy.
I blinked slowly trying not to be dazed by his soft smile. "The flight just landed sleepyhead." He flickered my forehead lightly. I glanced at the window to confirm the bright row of lights.
I could not believe we were really here. I felt secretly excited not just because of the chance of eting Killian Orlov but also the thought of visiting my parents’ old holiday villa
Gregor described this city as the place they fell in love with. "It’s almost dawn," I muttered.
We checked in through the appropriate authority, and a couple of minutes later, we were already heading out of the air. Lucien seed a bit excited about the trip, and it turned out he had stayed a couple of years in the country.
"Did you do your dical internship here?" I could not help but ask out of curiosity. We were outside the airport waiting for our ride.
"Yeah, I also attended university here." He admitted with a calm voice his gaze flickered with distant mories.
I tilted my head trying to figure out sothing. "Why did you travel so far?" I could not help but ask. He didn’t choose another city but travelled all the way to another country. Did he hate his family that much?
It was rare for Lucien to speak about his past, and I couldn’t let this opportunity pass. The weather was a bit chilly since winter was drawing closer. Lucien was wearing a long coat that made him seem a bit more domineering for his image.
The cold autumn breeze blew through my hair and across my skin giving goosebumps. The ride was taking a bit longer than expected and my eyes were still drowsy with sleep
"I had a lot of reasons, " he admitted. My head bobbed up. I wasn’t expecting he would actually answer. Lucien didn’t glance at . His gaze still has that distant look. I reached for his hand, which felt warm to touch, and I squeezed it softly. He was spacing out once again.
"I needed space, but I think another reason was that I wanted to be closer to her." I blinked wondering if it was his old fla he was talking about. He chuckled after sothing flickered across his face.
It looked like grief. It left dazzled, for a mont I was reminded of the lone figure standing by his father’s grave under the rain.
Sothing curled in my stomach, it felt like curiosity and maybe sothing deeper. My voice was soft. I asked him softly. "Who was she?"
His body stiffened for a mont, the silence made my skin tingle. His lips parted and he ntioned soone I didn’t expect
"My mother. I was searching for clues about her ." He said, leaving stunned. His mother. A look of understanding appeared on my face. Just like he had grown up without his biological mother
Lucien’s mother passed on when he was an infant. He barely knew her. "Sorry," I muttered. He froze, then blinked at , his forehead creased with confusion. I didn’t know why I said sorry but the thought of him coming over here to study as a ans to connect with a mother he didn’t know felt loneso
Lucien laughed before pulling my cheeks. "Stop carrying that sad expression. I am fine and there is no way to say sorry." He chid
A car pulled over by our side and the driver rolled down the window. "Braelyn Volkova." The driver called out my na. I quickly checked my phone to confirm it was the ride I booked..
I confird with the driver before we got into the car. The car imdiately pulled onto the road and rode en route to the old villa. Lucien sat silently beside .
His gaze was locked on the window as he watched the city blur past. It was a beautiful city without a doubt, unfortunately, I couldn’t enjoy the view because I was secretly nervous the entire way.
My finger was tapping my thighs the entire ti, unable to sit still. The silence stretched leaving just the sound of the humming ac unit. "There are a lot of fun hotels here, you know." Lucien’s voice made jolt.
"Huh," I blurted
He dragged his gaze from the window to stare at . "If you aren’t ready, we can always stay at a hotel, after all, it would be more fun than staying in a haunted villa ", he joked.
A soft laugh slipped from my lips. "It isn’t a haunted villa." I laughed, shaking my head. "This is sothing I want to do. I will understand if you choose to stay at a hotel. Instead, you don’t have to co with ."
When I ntioned my intention of visiting the holiday villa, Lucien opposed the idea at first because the villa wasn’t close to the city and felt a bit desolate. After failing to change my mind he reluctantly agreed on the condition that he was going to stay with
Honestly, I was secretly happy he insisted on coming along.
Lucien scoffed. "You must have lost your mind if you think I would agree to let you stay there alone." He grumpily said.
"Although I still prefer a hotel." He added with a bitter expression. The night sky was slowly turning into an orange hue as the stars faded.
By the ti we arrived at the old gates, it was already dawn, and soft chirping sounds echoed. I nervously stood in front of the gates, unsure if I should go in at all.
Since there wasn’t any resident in the villa, there wasn’t a permanent staff so the driver had to drop us at the locked gate. From the property docunt, it ntioned there was a maintenance fee for cleaning and gardening staff who were in charge of maintaining the property.
"Are you going in, or are we just going to stare at the gate?" Lucian grumpily said, "You know it isn’t too late to change your mind."
I clicked my tongue. "Why do you hate it here so badly? It’s not like you have been here before." I hissed at him.
Lucien pursed his lips. "Because it looks like those haunted buildings in movies." He admitted and maybe he was right. It felt like I was visiting the ghost of my parents’ past
Reviews
All reviews (0)