Chapter 80:

Carlos’s Point of View

I adjusted the grip of my cane in my hand and slowly pushed my chair back as I stood up to my full height,

then said in a tone filled with satisfaction:

"Well, Robert... I will return in the evening to enjoy my night with Luna."

A calm smile formed on Robert’s lips as he tilted his head slightly, replying:

"Yes, I will send word now to have everything ready for you."

I exited the office with confident steps, the sound of my shoes on the marble echoing with a regularity that reflected my composure.

As I was crossing the corridor, I spotted Julie coming from a distance; she looked distracted, as if her features were hiding a storm that hadn’t yet subsided.

I stopped completely when we met, passing my gaze over her face in deliberate contemplation.

Then, I leaned my body toward her slightly and asked in a low, calm voice:

"You didn’t say anything to me about the gift..."

I paused for a second, then added in a whisper carrying a mysterious tone while watching the pupils of her eyes:

"Did you like it?"

She tilted her head slightly, blinking her eyes as if gathering her scattered self, then answered in a tone she tried to keep calm:

"Oh, you mean the desk and the bookshelf."

She paused for a second, and I saw her thoughts translated in the movement of her lips before she continued:

"Very beautiful... I liked it, you even brought the notebooks and pens."

A small, faint smile appeared on her face, and she said softly:

"Thank you very much."

I relaxed my facial features and replied with confident coldness:

"Don’t thank me; I’m glad it met your approval."

I gave her a quick wink with my right eye, then slowly extended my hand and raised my fingers to brush away a rebellious strand of hair that was covering the corner of her eye.

At that moment, her gaze froze and turned as sharp as a blade, as if my hand had violated a forbidden zone. She took a step back and asked in a disapproving tone:

"What is this?"

I maintained my calm, lowering my hand slowly, saying:

"It was just over your eye."

She raised her eyebrows, and words rushed from between her lips with a sting of anger:

"My eye, not yours, so mind your own business!"

Her words only made the smile on my face widen, and I said while scrutinizing her burning features:

"Why are you always so irritable?"

She lifted her head with a false loftiness, straightening her posture as she averted her gaze from me, saying:

"I am not."

I leaned my body toward her, approaching to a degree that allowed me to see the glint of defiance in her eyes, and said in a low voice:

"Yes... you are irritable."

She exhaled in frustration and fended off my attack with a sharp tone, saying:

"Perhaps because I am in this place by force."

Suddenly, her green eyes widened as if an idea flashed in her head, and she followed up while piercing my eyes with her gaze:

"Haven’t you asked yourself this question?"

I didn’t flinch; instead, I slowly raised my golden cane while contemplating its shine under the light, then nodded my head in complete calm and said:

"A convincing reason."

The tension in her shoulders relaxed slightly, and she raised her eyebrows, saying triumphantly:

"See?"

I said in a calm tone that settled in the space between us:

"I see..."

I couldn’t stop my eyes from sliding toward her full lips; they were moving with a provocative rhythm, while her face, devoid of any makeup,

radiated a breathtaking natural beauty that made me contemplate its details with a focus I hadn’t planned on.

She cut the thread of my contemplation when she suddenly asked:

"Are you leaving now?"

I don’t know why a wave of hidden happiness swept over me at that moment, as if her passing question gave me a weight or importance I hadn’t expected.

I tilted my head slightly and whispered in a voice carrying a seductive questioning tone:

"Do you want me to stay?"

I noticed the tension invading her features immediately;

she blinked rapidly before freezing her expression into that cold mask she always wears, and said sharply, trying to pull herself together:

"No... why would I want you to stay? I’m just asking."

My smile widened with mischief, and I said while watching the slight reddening of her cheeks:

"I don’t know... maybe you’ll miss me."

The moment I uttered the word, she furrowed her brows deeply, clenching her teeth until her small jaw muscles bulged, then exploded:

"Who are you for me to miss?"

She paused for a second to catch her agitated breath, then added in a mocking tone as she turned her face away:

"You’re starting to lose your mind, Mr. Carlos."

I said as I took an additional step, closing the distance between us until my chest almost touched her shoulder,

and in a voice that dropped to a husky whisper:

"No one would keep their mind after seeing you, Julie."

At that moment, all words vanished from her tongue, and shock was clearly etched on her face;

her green eyes widened and her breath froze in her chest as if she were trying to process the impact of what I had said.

Before she could gather herself or have the chance to respond in her shock, a familiar voice, sharp as a blade, pierced the silence of the corridor.

"I thought you were leaving, Carlos."

I turned slowly, maintaining my coolness, to find Robert standing in a stiff posture,

his eyes eyeing me with a look devoid of friendliness, as if he were setting invisible boundaries for the area where I was standing.

Robert approached us with slow steps that carried a weight of silent threat. I raised my eyebrow coldly and asked him in a tone cloaked in mockery:

"Are you worried about the time of my departure, Robert?"

Robert stopped just a step away, thrusting his hand into his trouser pocket in a posture that seemed relaxed,

but the strained veins in his neck betrayed his tension.

He replied rigidly:

"I am only wondering, Carlos."

I averted my gaze from him slowly, as if I were deliberately marginalizing his presence, and fixed my eyes on Julie, who was standing between us like a bewildered bird.

I said in an audible voice while scrutinizing her confused features:

"We were exchanging conversation... Julie and I."

She quickly shifted her eyes away from me, as if my gaze were burning her, so I continued my speech while turning my sight back to Robert,

a meaningful smile forming on my lips: 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Talking to her makes you forget what you actually intended to do... doesn’t it, Robert?"