After hearing Raul say that, Starley's face immediately felt hot. Was Starley jealous? Oh, she didn't think she was jealous. Her mood was just ruined, and she was very sure of that. Then, a voice appeared in Starley's head.
'And your mood is permanently ruined when you meet Sabrina.'
Starley pushed Raul's chest because now the distance between them was so close.
"Jealous? What do you mean by jealous?" Starley asked directly.
Even though Starley pushed Raul, his hand was still on her waist. Raul's eyebrows rose, but Starley could see the mischievous gleam in his eyes though his face remained calm.
"If it's not jealousy, then what else would you call it?" Raul asked, intrigued.
"My mood is just off today, that's all," Starley answered. Raul nodded as if he understood Starley's words.
"Alright," Raul replied. Starley sighed in relief when Raul accepted her answer. But suddenly, Raul asked again.
"So, why are you jealous?"
"I told you I'm not jealous! Why would I be jealous?" Starley answered, annoyed.
"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you now," Raul replied. Starley could see the mischievous gleam in his eyes again.
"I'm not jealous, my mood just sucks today."
"Sounds the same to me," Raul said.
"You once said you wouldn't talk about the past anymore," Starley reminded him.
"And I'm not talking about the past, am I? I'm asking about the present."
"And I've answered your question. So, could you let go of me?" Starley exclaimed. Raul's hand was still around Starley's waist. Raul stared at Starley for a moment before replying.
"What if I don't want to?" Raul answered casually.
Starley looked at Raul sharply and said, "If you don't let go of me, I don't want to work with you."
Raul smiled wryly, amused by Starley's behavior, and finally let go of his hand from her waist. This allowed Starley to breathe easier, and she walked away from Raul towards the door.
"Are you trying to run away now, cupcake?" Raul called from behind.
"I'm not running away! I told you, I have work to do."
"And what work is that?" Raul asked. Starley turned to face him.
"Sleep well, it's my nap time," Starley said without elaborating further. Then she left Raul's room, slamming the door behind her. She couldn't possibly be jealous, and she had moved on. Starley was sure of that. But her heart was still racing after leaving Raul's room. Starley took a deep breath.
'Calm down, Starley, calm down,' Starley thought to herself.
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.
.
Raul was still staring at the door to his room for a moment, where Starley had just fled. That woman really did have a high ego, as she always had. Well, except in bed, Starley was lovely and addictive to him. And earlier, Raul couldn't stop himself from teasing Starley.
Since Raul offered to look after Starley, he had decided to do everything professionally, with no intention of rekindling their past relationship.
Because B.I.A truly needed Starley's expertise. Raul had finally let go of his ego, which had always kept him avoiding Starley. He faced her directly for the sake of his company.
But if Starley was as sweet as she had been earlier, Raul wasn't sure how long he would last with his resolve to remain professional. The temptation was vast and dangerous. It was dangerous because Raul had to stay focused. His brain's voice told him that his fundamental life goal was more important than a beautiful and brilliant woman.
What about his heart? Raul wanted to avoid following it. Because throughout his life, he knew it was better to listen to his brain rather than his heart.
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The day had turned dark, and Starley was still with her eyes closed, hugging her pillow. Suddenly, she heard a knock on the door, which woke her up from her nap, but her eyes were still half-closed. Then, she heard the voice of a servant from behind the door.
"Excuse me, Miss Starley, may I ask what time you would like dinner?"
'Hmm, dinner? Is the servant delirious? It's clearly still two in the afternoon.' Starley thought.
Starley didn't reply and closed her eyes again. When Starley didn't respond, the servant spoke again.
"Mrs. Blackwell and Mr. Blackwell will be home later tonight. Would you like dinner brought to your room, or would you prefer to eat with Mr. Raul later?"
When Starley heard Raul's name, her eyes finally opened. She looked around, realizing that this was different from her room at the Bellamy residence. Oh my God, Starley had forgotten she was still staying at Selene and Lucian's mansion. After leaving Raul's room, Starley felt incredibly embarrassed and decided to sleep for just thirty more minutes.
Now, she had to sneak back to the Bellamy office without Raul knowing. Starley got up from her bed and glanced out the window, noticing that it was already dark outside.
Starley blinked for a moment, thinking she had seen it wrong. But when she realized it was indeed already dark outside, she immediately panicked. She searched for her phone, only to find that it was dead because the battery had run out. Then Starley glanced at the wall clock in the room. It was already seven o'clock, five minutes past.
Oh no, she was late. She had yet to read or reply to the mysterious letter Lia had told her about this morning. Starley quickly opened the door of her room, and the servant who had knocked earlier was still there.
"Oh, Miss Starley, sorry to bother you, but would you like to eat in? " Starley interrupted the servant's sentence.
"Where's Raul?" Starley asked directly. She really hoped that the letter earlier was just some kind of prank.
"It seems he's still asleep, Miss. He asked me to wake him at eight if he hadn't come out of his room by then," the servant replied.
At first, Starley wanted to take Raul to the Bellamy Corp office. But if Raul was still asleep, she figured she would go by herself. So, Starley said, "Don't wake Raul now, but if he wakes up, tell him I went to the Bellamy Corp building for a bit," Starley instructed. The servant nodded firmly.
After that, Starley quickly went to the parking lot, got in her car, and drove to the Bellamy Corp office, hoping Lia was still there.
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.
Raul woke up to the sound of his phone ringing on his nightstand. When Raul picked up his phone, the ringing stopped.
Raul looked at the screen to see who was calling him. It was his older brother, Lucian, calling. Raul tried calling Lucian back, but the operator said Lucian's line was busy, which meant he was probably on the phone with someone else. Suddenly, Raul felt a sharp pain in his right shoulder.
He winced and squeezed his eyes shut, realizing he had forgotten to take the painkiller Sabrina had given him earlier. Raul glanced at the clock—it was already 7.55 pm.
'Has Starley woken up yet?' Raul wondered.
Suddenly, his phone rang again. It was Lucian calling once more. Raul immediately answered the call, and before he could even say "hello," Lucian spoke.
"Raul, have you seen the news?" Lucian asked.
"Not yet, I just woke up. What's going on?"
"The Bellamy Corp office building caught fire," Lucian exclaimed.
Upon hearing that, Raul immediately went into alert mode. He stood up from his bed. "When did the fire happen?"
"Just now. I happened to be having dinner with Selene near the Bellamy Corp building, so I overheard people talking about the fire. I think it was just posted on the news."
"Selene tried calling Starley, but she couldn't reach her. So, I'm calling you to make sure Starley is at the mansion, right?" Lucian asked.
"Yes, she's here. She's been sleeping since this afternoon," Raul answered, feeling relieved that Starley hadn't gone to the office earlier.
"Good, that's a relief. Because Selene was really worried. Earlier, Starley sent a message to Selene saying she was going to the Bellamy Corp office," Lucian said.
"Yes, but she didn't go," Raul answered.
"It seems like you should tell Starley, she might not know yet," Lucian said.
"That's what I was going to do. Thanks for the info, Dom," Raul replied. After that, Lucian just said, "Okay," and they ended the call. Raul quickly left his room and headed to Starley's room, which was right next door. He knocked on Starley's door and waited for a response.
But there was no response at all. Raul knocked on Starley's door again, but still no answer. Finally, Raul decided to try opening the door to Starley's room, hoping she had forgotten to lock it. And, indeed, the door wasn't locked.
When Raul opened the door to Starley's room, he searched for Starley, but there was no one there. Shortly after, Raul heard a servant's voice behind him. "Mr. Raul, are you looking for Miss Starley?"
Raul quickly turned around and asked, "Yes, where is Starley?"
"Miss Starley said she was going to the Bellamy Corp office building. She also asked me to tell you when you woke up," the servant answered innocently.
After hearing that, Raul's whole body went weak as he thought about what might be happening to Starley right now. Panic began to rise within him, along with another feeling he thought he didn't have in him: fear. Fear of thinking that Starley could be hurt right now.
…