Ch. 261..265: Fatal Kiss Of The Vampire Chapter 261-265
Chapter 261: Flutter Away
Stephen was packing his things when someone knocked on the door. He looked at it and, even though he knew that there was no one in the house, he would want to see, he sighed and said, “Come in please.”
When Dinah walked in, he cursed himself for being such a fucking fool. “What do you want?” he asked her, not unkindly.
Dinah lowered her head and said, “Stephen, please don’t be mad at me. I promise I won’t mention the camping trip again, or your lover.”
Stephen looked at her skeptically and said, “I hope you can keep your promise. You may not know it, but you are playing with fire.”
Now that that was done, Dinah suddenly realized what Stephen was doing. “Stephen,” she worried. “What are you doing, and where are you going?”
“It is nothing to worry about,” Stephen replied. “I am moving back to my house. The renovations are finally complete.”
“What about me?” Dinah whispered nervously.
Stephen shrugged and continued packing.
“I could move with you,” Dinah suggested.
“This is your job,” Stephen replied. “You are being paid to live here and watch over Kylie.”
“I shouldn’t have to protect her 24/7,” she whined. “She has Lord Ethan when he’s home. Why can’t I be with you in the evenings?”
Stephen packed his laptop into his suitcase, and then he began to retrieve his medical books from the shelves. Finally, he turned back to her and said, “I don’t need you. You are more trouble than you’re worth. Is there something about that that you don’t understand?”
“Alright,” Dinah sighed. “You don’t need to leave at midnight, though. Why don’t you stay in the morning?”
Stephen shrugged and continued packing.
“You know,” he said absently, “I moved in here with a single suitcase. After only a few weeks, though, look at all that I’ve accumulated. It’s pretty crazy if I do say so myself.
“You know what, Dinah?” Stephen continued. “I am not suitable for you. Nor are you suitable for me. As much as we might want it to work out between us, it never could…”
“Why?” Dinah cried. “You are a man, and I am a woman. We are both unmarried. Why not at least give it a try?”
Stephen didn’t know how to answer the question, so he said nothing. He packed up the last of his things and picked up one suitcase in each hand. He tried to walk past Dinah, but she grabbed one of his suitcases and held it tight to her chest. She was not strong, though, and Stephen pulled her along until she accepted defeat and let him go.
Finally, she walked Stephen to the gate of Garbo Palace. When they got there, a diamond blue Lamborghini came into sight. It pulled up to the curb, and a Middle-aged housekeeper stepped out from the car. He opened the trunk and said, “Please allow me, Lord Stephen.”
As Stephen’s luggage was loaded for him, he turned to Dinah and surprised her with a hug. “I don’t hate you,” he said. “I just can’t ever be with you. I am sorry. If you ever need me, though, you know my number.”
Dinah nodded slowly, and she let him go.
***
As the car turned the corner to exit from the driveway and onto the road, Stephen was surprised to see Matthew Parker on his way in. It was curious, so once he was out of sight, he had his driver pull over so that he could sneak back and see what was up – and what he saw nearly knocked his socks off.
It appeared as though Khloe and Alicewere moving in.
Stephen walked slowly back to the car and, when he got in, his driver asked him if he wanted to be taken home.
“No,” Stephen sighed. “Take me to a hotel. My house is still under renovations.”
The car ran directly to the most luxurious hotel, Empire Hotel, and on the way, the housekeeper said, “Lord Stephen, Mr. Cecil wants you to come back and take over the company.”
“What?” Stephen grumbled. “Did my father send you to try and persuade me?”
“You speak the truth,” the driver replied. “I cannot lie.”
Stephen cracked his knuckles and said, “Please tell my father that I’ll be back when I’ve finished my own business and am ready to return.”
“As you wish,” the driver said.
Before long, the car arrived at the Empire Hotel. Stephen looked at the housekeeper through the rearview mirror and said, “Give me the car key.”
“Lord Stephen,” the housekeeper begged, “please allow me to remain at your side. I can take care of you.”
“No need,” Stephen laughed as he stepped out of the car. Once outside, he tossed the car key to the doorman and said, “Park the car, please.”
As soon as he was out of sight, the housekeeper drew his phone out and reported to Mr. Cecil. “Mr. Cecil,” he said, “Lord Stephen is staying at the Empire Hotel.”
The housekeeper listened carefully to his new instructions and put the phone away.
Inside, Stephen was checking in at the reception desk, when a loud noise caught his attention. He turned quickly and saw that there was some commotion coming from the elevator; he was surprised to see a drunken man being dragged out. “I warn you,” one of the security men hissed. “If you dare to come in again, I’ll call the police!”
“Fuck you!” the drunk replied. “Do you know who I am?! I am rich. I could buy your damn hotel, and you would all be jobless!”
Everybody laughed at that, and some people even made fun of him. The drunken man screamed as they pulled his arms. “You’re hurting me,” he screamed.
One of the security guards kicked him in the ribs.
Seeing this spectacle, Stephen felt nothing but disgust for the security guards. Wanting to help somehow, Stephen took a few steps forward – and only then did he realize that the drunken man was Aiden Parker!
Stephen glared at the guards and demanded, “What the fuck are you doing to this, man?”
One guard looked at Stephen and said, “This man checked in for a three-day stay, but after three days, he refused to leave. He hasn’t paid more money either, and this is what we do to freeloaders!”
“He is also full of shit,” another guard scoffed. “He told us that he was the second-largest shareholder of the Century Group, the eldest son of the Parker Family. What a joke, right?”
“Wrong,” Stephen sighed. “For better or worse, this is Aiden Parker. You have my credit card on file. I will pay his way. As for what I have seen today, each of you can expect a visit from the police. As far as I know, Assault & Battery is still a criminal offense. Now flutter away birdies. Flutter away…”
Terrified, the guards looked at each other and took off in different directions.
Once they were gone, Stephen helped Aiden back to his room and put him to bed. Before leaving, though, he went into the washroom to take a piss. Of course, he assumed that it would be empty, so he nearly jumped out of his skin when he found someone waiting for him!
Chapter 262: Please Don’t Blame Her
Stephen nearly pissed his pants when he opened the door to Aiden’s washroom and found Ken inside, waiting for him!
“Come in,” Ken laughed. “There is enough room for both of us. I promise.”
Stephen looked Ken in the eyes and scowled. He had come to this hotel for a little relaxation. So far, his visit had been anything but pure leisure.
With a leather coat, ripped jeans, and a cigarette dangling from his mouth, Ken looked like a proper hoodlum. Ken looked up, met Stephen’s eyes, and said, “What are you doing here? Why did you move to?”
“It’s none of your business,” Stephen hissed. “What about the thing that I asked you to do? That is your business, and yet it has been too long since I last received an update from you!”
Ken walked past Stephen, took a seat on the sofa, and said, “You asked me to find out who Emily Garcia’s friends are. Well, it turns out that Emily Garcia is so arrogant that she doesn’t have any real friends; she hasn’t contacted anyone since she ran away.”
Stephen squinted his eyes, and a mysterious smile appeared on his face. Without bothering to close the door, he walked over to the toilet, lifted the seat, and emptied his bladder. He washed his hands, dried them, and said, “It seems strange that you broke into this room for such a simple matter. You could have just picked up the phone…”
“I suppose,” Ken replied, “but I am a simple man with a simple brain – do you want me to find Kylie’s biological father?”
“Please do,” Stephen replied. “Her happiness means a lot to me. Stay away from her, though. You report only to me.”
***
When Kylie woke up, she wasn’t surprised to see that Ethan was already up. The man had a very strict daily routine. No matter what he’d done the night before or how late he’d stayed up, Ethan would get up at 5 am every morning, full of energy.
Kylie was free today, so she went directly to the gym in search of Ethan. When she passed by Stephen’s room, though, she was surprised by what she saw. The room was mostly empty, and Lucy was cleaning up what mess remained.
Kylie stuck her head inside and asked Lucy what was going on. Stephen was a little OCD, and he seldom let people into his room without him. Once, he had freaked out on her for simply borrowing a pen from his desk without asking.
Lucy looked at her curiously and said, “Stephen moved out last night. I am surprised that he didn’t tell you…”
“Gone?!?!?!?” Kylie cried. “He was still here last night at supper, and he didn’t say anything about moving?!?!?!”
Lucy shrugged, and she said, “He left last night just after midnight…”
Kylie smoothed her hair, nodded, and continued on her way to the gym where Ethan was working out.
Ethan’s muscles were shiny with sweat, but he wasn’t tired at all. His daily regimen was so regular, and he pushed himself so hard that it took a lot to get him into the zone. Dinah, though, who was on the treadmill, looked as if she were about to collapse.
When Kylie walked through the door, Dinah waved at her. As she let one hand go through, her other hand slipped, and she stumbled. Luckily, her instincts were fast, and she was able to right herself quickly. Regardless, the slip was still good for a laugh, and Kylie took it.
As Dinah turned the machine off, Kylie approached her and said, “I’m sorry for laughing. I would have felt terrible if you’d gotten hurt. You should have the safety cord attached to your collar. That way, if you slip like you just did, the machine will turn off automatically.”
Dinah lowered her head, and she said, “You are right. I need to be more careful.”
Kylie left Dinah so that she could continue her workout on the treadmill. Kylie preferred the elliptical machine. Ethan often reminded her that it wasn’t the best machine for building body mass, which always made her laugh. She had no desire to look like Cory Everson or Nikki Fuller. She wanted a full-body workout consisting primarily of cardio, which she got with the elliptical machine. She wanted to be healthy, not jacked.
Every once in a while, she glanced over at Dinah and Ethan and found him glaring at her. Kylie didn’t understand why Ethan was mad at Dinah, so she asked him straightaway, “Ethan, what’s going on? Are you mad at Dinah?”
“Indeed I am,” Ethan hissed. “You were nearly killed yesterday, and if you had been, it would have been her fault. This workout is her punishment, and it won’t be over until I say so.”
Kylie frowned, and she said, “It wasn’t Dinah’s fault. Please don’t blame her.”
“If anything bad happens to you,” Ethan replied. “It is her fault. She’s your safety guard. Part of her job is to ensure that the gear you are strapped to is safe.”
Kylie heard Dinah groan as her machine stopped. Dinah was huffing and puffing. She had stumbled again, and the only reason she hadn’t fallen again was that she’d taken the security precautions that Kylie had suggested. She was completely finished but, without even looking at the girl, Ethan snarled, “Keep going!”
Ethan was on the floor doing push-ups, and Kylie came to lay beside him. In order to see her better, Ethan turned into a side plank. “What’s up?” he wondered.
Kylie leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. He was only wearing a pair of shorts, and she ran her fingers down his chest. “You are so sexy,” she said. “With your muscles jacked up and your body drenched with sweat, you’ve filled the room with your pheromones. I cannot resist you. I want your hands on my body and your cock inside me!”
Ethan nodded his head in Dinah’s direction and said, “What about her?”
“Let her go,” Kylie said, “She has paid for her sins.”
Ethan nodded and turned to face Dinah. He looked at her sternly and said, “You may go. If this happens again, though, you will not get away so easily.”
By the time Kylie and Ethan left the room, she was exhausted. As ever though, Ethan seemed to be still full of energy. Kylie was starting to get used to it, but it never ceased to be infuriating. Once they were in the bedroom, Ethan turned to her and asked her if she had any plans for the day.
“I want to visit Laurence at Merlin Villa,” she replied. “Faith bought him some furniture yesterday, and I would like to see what she found for him.”
“Do you want me to go with you?” Ethan wondered.
“No,” she laughed. “I am a big girl. I can do it and, besides, I know that you have work of your own to do. It would be nice to know why Stephen moved out, though.”
Ethan scowled, and he said, “What does it matter to you? Do you miss him?”
“Absolutely not,” Kylie replied. “It is curious, though – you must admit that it happened rather abruptly…”
“His renovations are complete,” Ethan replied. “It seems strange that he moved out, but he didn’t tell me in advance either.”
Dinah was waiting for Ethan and Kylie when they came downstairs. Ethan looked at her and said, “Kylie’s going to the Merlin Villa today. Take better care of her today than you did yesterday.”
Dinah swallowed hard, and she said, “I will, sir. I do have a question for you, though…”
Ethan sighed and said, “Go ahead – speak!”
“Lord Ethan,” Dinah wondered, “can I protect Kylie during the days and stay at Stephen’s house during the night?”
Ethan looked at her and said, “Ask me in a few days. I am leaving on a business trip today. I will be gone for at least a couple of days.”
Chapter 263: Help Me Find Out What Happened
To speak with Laurence in private, Kylie insisted that Dinah wait for her in the car until she was ready for her. At that point, she would contact her guard by cell phone. She hadn’t expected it when she walked through the doors to find Ken sweeping the floors.
“What are you doing here?!” Kylie wondered.
Ken lifted his broom and said, “My love, isn’t it clear? I’m doing housework.”
Kylie rolled her eyes and asked him who had asked him to do the housework.
“I did,” Laurence chuckled as he walked out from the bedroom that he’d been in. “Is it a problem?”
There was a kindness in Laurence’s eyes that she wasn’t used to, and it made her nervous. She looked around, and when she noticed that there wasn’t any furniture, she said, “Where is the furniture? Faith was supposed to have it delivered yesterday…”
“Oh, that,” Laurence replied. “Faith said that she was busy yesterday, and someone would bring it by as soon as possible.”
“Faith has an ugly soul,” Ken scoffed. “Could you send someone else?”
Kylie laughed at that, and she said, “Beggars can’t be choosers.”
“Whatever!” Ken shouted. “I’ll quit the minute I see her!”
“Oh, boo-hoo,” Kylie chuckled. “You’d better take off now. Faith is on her way as we speak. I don’t like having you around anyways.”
“I don’t believe it,” Ken smirked. “Everybody loves me. Come. Let me give you a massage.”
Kylie looked at Laurence then and said, “Can you give us some privacy. I want to put Ken in his place, but I have no desire to humiliate him.”
Laurence looked at her carefully, and once she’d nodded to say that this is what she truly wanted, he slipped into the next room.
Once Ken and Kylie were alone, Kylie said, “I saw you were with Tom Thomas; what is your connection to him?”
Ken asked, “Who?”
Unhappy with his answer, Kylie pounded her fist down on his fingers. There was a satisfying snap, and Kylie said, “Maybe that will jog your memory. The last time your fingers were broken, it had been by Tom Thomas. Perhaps the pain will jog your memory.”
It took a while for Ken to recover from the pain but, once he was recovered, he still denied having heard the name previously. “I know that their leader’s family name is Thomas,” he said, “but the man who hurt me was not called Tom.”
Hearing this, Kylie was puzzled. “Do you think your assailant might have a twin?”
“Anything is possible,” Ken replied, “but it is a bit of a stretch, don’t you think…?”
Kylie said, “What is their leader’s occupation?”
Ken replied, “I’ve heard he is some kind of a director or something.”
Kylie frowned, and she said, “You know more than you are saying. I can see it in your eyes. Who are you protecting? What hold do they have against you? Fess up, and I can assure you your safety and a prosperous future!”
“Kylie,” Ken laughed, “are you flirting with me?”
Kylie scowled, but before she could answer, Faith’s voice interrupted her. “Laurence!” she called. “Kylie! I am here with the moving company. If you don’t want all of this unloaded on the living room floor, you had better come out and direct them!”
“Let’s go help them,” Ken said.
“Yes,” Kylie replied, “but don’t think this conversation is over. It is not!”
Ken looked around the bedroom and the living room in search of Faith. When he didn’t see her, he let out a sigh of relief and said, “I am so glad that Faith is gone.”
He hadn’t seen Faith since she’d lost weight, and he didn’t realize that the sexy little number that was directing the movers was her. “Hey, beautiful,” he called out.
“What is a babe doing in a place like this?” he added. “Are you free tonight? If so, we should go on a date!”
Faith looked at Kylie nervously and said, “What kind of a joke is he trying to play on me?”
Kylie looked at Ken curiously and said, “I don’t know. Normally, he only has eyes for me…”
Ken turned back to Kylie and said, “Don’t be jealous. There is enough of me for both of you!”
Laurence, who was watching everything, was completely confused. Only a moment ago, Ken had been talking trash about Faith, and now he was trying to get into her pants… It made no sense to him. Before he could say a word, though, Kylie called his name. “Laurence,” she said, “You can direct the movers with Faith. Ken and I need to finish our conversation.”
Laurence nodded. “Have your talk,” he said, “We’ve got this under control.”
Once they were alone, Kylie grabbed Ken’s collar and said, “You once told me that you knew why Laurence married my mother. It is time to squeal.”
Ken pushed Kylie away, took a cigarette out of his pocket, lit it, and took a drag. “First off, he said, “I did not tell you that I knew why Laurence married your mother. What I said is that I might know why Laurence married your mother. Do you see the difference? What I have heard may or may not be true…”
“I don’t care,” Kylie hissed. “Just tell me what you’ve heard!”
Ken didn’t say anything until he’d finished his cigarette. Once it was done, he flicked the butt to the ground and said, “I heard that your mom fell in love with a hoodlum. She wanted him to find legit work, but he thought that he couldn’t. In the end, they fought, and then they split up.
“I suppose that your mother didn’t want you to know that your father was a hoodlum,” Ken continued, “so she married Laurence to protect you. The story may or not be true, but it sounds legitimate.”
Kylie turned her back to Ken and fixed her eyes on nearby bushes. After everything he’d told her, she felt like crying, but she didn’t want him to see her cry. “What was my father like?” she wondered. “Was he a terrible man?”
“I have no idea,” Ken replied, “Who cares? It is not as if you were going to seek him out, right?”
Kylie sighed as she thought about how much she intended to tell Ken. She didn’t want to tell him anything, but she sometimes had to give some to get some.
Ken said, “I heard that, when your biological father heard about you, your mother ran away with you to protect you. If that were true, I don’t understand why she returned. If everything I’ve said so far is true, it suggests that he might be dead…”
Kylie stared at Ken and said, “You have given me a lot to think about. Please help me find out what happened to my mother.”
Ken nodded and said, “I will do what I can.”
Chapter 264: Can I Tell You Something?
By the time Ken and Kylie had returned to the living room, Faith was gone, and all of the furniture had been brought in. Seeing that there was nothing else to do, she took off as well. When she got into the car, though, she found Faith sitting in the car’s back seat, and she was crying.
Kylie knew immediately that the only reason she would be crying would have something to do with Ken so, the first thing she said when she climbed in, “Never mind Ken. He is a psycho. Sometimes he can be cruel…”
Faith cleared her eyes with her sleeve, looked at Kylie, and said, “Can I tell you something?”
Kylie nodded, and Faith continued, “I was pregnant once before. Back then, I was very serious about exercise, and it meant a lot to me to be at the optimal weight for the baby. If I hadn’t been through that though, I wouldn’t have known how to lose all that weight recently…
“I don’t know how the one thing connects to the other,” Faith cried, “but I hate Ken so much that I want to kill him – and I know just how to do it. He used to hate me, but now that he wants to fuck me, I can seduce him.”
“Don’t do that,” Kylie replied, “There are many ways to get revenge on a man without seducing him. If you seduce him, you will be pleasuring him while torturing yourself. Your plan makes no sense to me.”
“I will win his heart,” Faith said, “and then I will break it!”
Kylie looked at her skeptically and said, “It won’t work. Ken does not even have a heart! He is a loser, a playboy, and a cad. If you want to see him get hurt, I can find someone to beat him half to death.”
“Ken hurt me deeply,” Faith cried. “I need to hurt him in the same way. As shallow as he may be, I must believe that he has a heart and that it can be broken.”
Hearing this, Kylie was speechless. She understood her friend because she had hated Laurence as much as Faith hated Ken. “Do you think that your successful life could be revenge in and of itself?” she wondered. “When Ken sees you and recognizes you, he will regret everything he said about you!”
Faith thought about it for a moment and finally said, “I suppose it could…”
Dinah looked back at Faith and asked her if she’d be alright.
“I suppose that I will be,” Faith replied. “It occurs to me now that Kylie may have prevented me from making a very big mistake.”
There was a sudden knock at Faith’s window, and everyone jumped. They turned quickly and were surprised to see Ken’s smiling face. Faith rolled her window down, and Ken said, “Hey, beauty. Why are you crying?”
“Never mind that,” Kylie hissed. “What do you want, Ken?”
“Oh, nothing,” Ken laughed. “I forgot. Have a good day…”
Once Ken was gone, Kylie looked at Dinah and said, “Please take us away before anything else happens. We have had enough craziness for one day!”
Dinah looked at her phone and said, “My appointment isn’t for an hour, but there are no reasons not to show up early…”
It had been determined that the “accident” where Sally’s double had been injured as a result of sabotage and, in order to keep everyone safe, the police had ordered all fighting scenes not to be shot until everything had been figured out – which meant that Kylie had a lot more free time than she had expected. Half of her scenes involved fighting!
“What happened to your baby,” Kylie wondered as they sat down in the waiting room.
Faith looked at her sadly and said, “I wish that I hadn’t done it, but I had an abortion. I regretted it right away, and, to make matters worse, the abortion had been botched, so they had to go back in and scoop out any remaining baby bits.
“There have been other hard moments in my life,” Faith continued, “and I have never had anyone in my corner, so I hope you know how much our friendship means to me…”
There wasn’t a lot of traffic in the gynecology department, so when two people passed the window, it was only natural to turn their heads. It wasn’t officially starting until they recognized the ladies as Aliceand Khloe. Alice was carrying a book in her hands and, even though they were walking quickly, Dinah was still able to read the cover before they disappeared around the corner.
The book was called Early Pregnancy.
Kylie accompanied Faith in the examination room and, by the time they were done, it was nearly dinner time. As soon as they got in the car, Faith turned on her phone and notifications popped up like machine gunfire. They all had a good laugh at that.
“Looks like I’m pretty popular,” Faith chuckled.
“Seems so,” Dinah agreed.
Kylie turned to look at Faith and asked her if she wanted to come for dinner, and she happily accepted the offer.
Faith was still texting when they arrived at Kylie’s home, and Dinah was beginning to feel worried about her. “Who are you talking with?” she wondered.
“It’s just a friend,” Faith explained. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
Once they were inside, all three ladies went into the living room to watch TV, but Faith didn’t watch it at all. She was too busy with her phone.
After a little while, Faith went to the washroom, but she left her phone on the table. Faith had only been gone for a second when her phone rang. Kylie was always nosey, so she picked it up to see what it said – and when she saw what it said, her eyes went wide. The screen said: “I love you” “Well, well, well,” Kylie wondered as she opened the phone to see who the text was from.
“Who’s it from?” Dinah wondered.
“I don’t know,” Kylie replied. “Unknown name. Whoever it is, though, he is very sweet. Every sentence is like a love poem.”
Chapter 265: I’ll Drive You Home
Faith went straight from the bathroom to the kitchen and, when she saw that everything was done, she called everyone to the table. Dinah came in first, and Kylie scurried in behind her. She had Faith’s phone in her hand, and she looked and Faith. “Who’s the man you’re chatting with?” she wondered.
Faith scowled and grabbed her phone from Kylie’s hand. “How dare you read my personal messages?” she shouted.
Seeing how angry Faith was, Kylie felt very bad. “I am sorry,” she said. “Now that the cat is out of the bag, will you tell us everything?”
“I don’t want to talk about this,” Faith snapped. “This is personal. If I wanted to share it with you, I already would have!”
Kylie didn’t know what to say to that. She knew that she’d crossed a line, but she didn’t know how to get back on the other side of that line.
The whole time they’d known each other, the dinner table was never as quiet as it was that night. As soon as the meal was done, Faith called herself a cab. Of course, Kylie and Dinah offered to drive her, but she just said, “No, thank you.”
Later that night, Dinah and Kylie sat on the porch together. They had been trying to figure out a way to mend their relationship with Faith, but nothing came to mind.
They were just about to go inside when a luxury car pulled into the driveway. “Who’s that?” Dinah wondered.
“I am not sure,” Kylie replied, “but I think it belongs to Khloe…”
The bottle that had been in Kylie’s hand slipped her grip and fell to the ground without breaking or opening. She had a hard time processing what she’d just heard. She had a number of responses bouncing around in her head, but she had a hard time figuring out where to get started.
Stephen stooped to pick up the bottle. He carefully wiped the bottle’s neck clean. Then he opened it and handed it to Kylie. “Do you think I’m poor?” he wondered.
In Kylie’s eyes, she saw Stephen as a young talented artist. Not only was he a good artist, but he was also good at cooking. Knowing this about him, Kylie could tell that he hadn’t come from poverty. That being said, he kept his hand close to his chest, which made it hard for her to fully trust him or learn anything about him that truly mattered…
When she found out exactly how rich he was, though, she was completely caught off guard. Now that she knew that he was the owner of The Empire Hotel, there was no doubt in her mind that he was at least as rich as Ethan. Once she’d given it some thought, it wasn’t as surprising as she’d thought it was. She knew that there had been a time when Ethan and Stephen had taken care of William and his mother. If he hadn’t been rich, he would never have been able to take care of them or talk to her in the manner that he had.
Kylie turned back to Stephen, took a sip of her water, and said, “You guys are really mysterious.”
Dinah was sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed, and she was playing with an unopened bottle of beer. “Kylie,” she laughed. “You don’t know my true identity yet, do you? I’m actually a princess!”
“Really?” Kylie wondered. “Of which country?”
“Ignore her,” Stephen snapped. “She’s not a princess. She just suffers from princess syndrome. It is very annoying!”
Dinah stood up and shook her bottle in his direction. “You know nothing!” she hissed. “Don’t you know that every woman is both a princess and a goddess?”
Stephen sighed, and he said, “Oh Dinah, can’t you give it a rest. We all love you, but don’t get carried away. You are not a princess or a goddess.”
Stephen smiled and wanted to annoy her, “I thought every woman was a slut or a whore!”
Dinah’s mouth nearly hit the floor when she heard his response.
Kylie covered her mouth and laughed. It seemed that every time Stephen and Dinah got together, they quarreled. “If you two get married,” she said, “you’ll probably quarrel about everything, from what to eat for breakfast to what to watch on Netflix.”
When Kylie looked up, she found Dinah and Stephen scowling at her. Apparently, they didn’t appreciate her assessment of their relationship or her light teasing. In order to change the subject, she said, “Dinah, show the medical appraisal to Stephen.”
Dinah pulled out a document that she’d been sitting on and dumped it on the table. Stephen glared at her, and then he picked it up. He sat back and began to read the document, and the longer he read through it, the more serious his expression became. Eventually, he looked at Kylie and said, “This is the worst-case scenario that I’d feared.”
Kylie frowned, and she asked him if he was serious.
“It’s a difficult situation,” Stephen said, “and any further surgeries could lead to a lawsuit. Her body is rejecting the treatments I have already tried. If I operated on her face again, she could end up with a nasty scar. If that were to happen, she would be worse off than when we began!”
“What if you treated her more conservatively?” Kylie wondered.
“I couldn’t say one way or the other with any certainty,” he replied. “As of yet, I don’t even know if the growths are benign or not. It is my professional opinion that, at this point, no treatment is the best treatment option available to her. Why are you so helpful, anyway? Sally isn’t even your friend. She probably wouldn’t have appreciated what you’d done anyways…”
Kylie smiled and said, “I look up to her. As a strong and independent woman, she has always inspired me. She is such a great actress – I would hate to see her career ruined by some disfigurement. If I could’ve helped her, it would’ve meant a lot to me!
“Anyways,” Kylie concluded, “it is getting late. I should get going. Don’t worry about me, and I can get home by myself.”
“It’s too late,” Stephen interjected. “You’re a public figure. You can’t go home alone. I have my car here. “I’ll drive you home.”
Kylie made eye contact with Dinah, and Dinah nodded. Stephen would be back, which was good enough for her.
At the sight of Stephen’s Lamborghini, Kylie couldn’t contain her excitement. She sprawled across the hood and said, “This is my dream car!”
As Kylie spoke, she embraced the car, kissed it, and said, “I love you, car.”
When Stephen saw what she was doing, he laughed and said, “I quite envy my car right now.”
Stephen was just about to climb into the car when Kylie stopped him. “Can I drive?” she wondered.
Kylie was obsessed with cars and seeing such a great car, and she couldn’t contain her desire to drive. She was not sure though if Stephen was brave enough to allow her to drive. She wouldn’t be surprised if he told her that he loved the vehicle more than anything. Thus, if he said no, she would have understood.
To her surprise, though, Stephen threw the keys in her direction without hesitation and took a shotgun. “Fasten your seatbelt,” he laughed as she climbed in beside him. Once she was in, she adjusted her seat and the mirrors. Then, with her hands clutching the wheel, she started the car.
***
The Lamborghini handled like nothing Kylie had ever driven before. Going two hundred kilometers an hour down the highway, she passed other cars so quickly that she barely saw them before they disappeared in her rearview mirror, and the ride was so smooth that she felt as though she were floating on clouds.
She looked over and noticed that Stephen’s face had gone white. He looked scared. His right hand clung tightly to the handle over his head. “Don’t worry,” she laughed. “I’ve driven Ethan’s Knight XV, and nothing bad has ever happened. He looks exactly like you do though, when I’m driving his car.”
Kylie laughed and, once they’d driven for some time, she gradually slowed down so that she could pay more attention to Stephen. He did not look well at all. His handsome face was still extremely pale and, even though she’d slowed down, he seemed unable to release his grip on the handrail. She called his name a few times, but he didn’t answer.
Not knowing what else to do, Kylie pulled over into the next rest stop, and as soon as she brought the car to a stop, Stephen scrambled out of the car and vomited all over the ground. Seeing this, Kylie suddenly realized that she’d gone too far.
By the time Kylie got out of the car, Stephen had lit and was smoking a cigarette.
Kylie frowned, and she said, “I’m sorry.”
Kylie stood in front of Stephen, pursed her lips, and reluctantly handed him the keys to the car. He looked at her and said, “This isn’t NASCAR. We are on a highway. If we’d been stopped by the police, they would have taken my car away from me. We could have gotten into an accident and died. I trusted you, but you really let me down…”
Stephen stood akimbo as he waited to hear how Kylie would reply. He waited for a while, and then he waited a little longer. When it became apparent that she had nothing to say in her defense, he sighed and said, “Let me finish my cigarette, and then I will drive you home.”