Inside the luxurious villa, a handsome man with peach blossom eyes spoke cheerily over the phone, "Honey, I have to work overtime today so I can't be with you. I'll make it up to you another day... Don't be mad, okay? That piece of jewelry you fancied the day before yesterday, I'll have someone deliver it to your house tonight."
"Philanderer!" another man lounging on the living room couch sneered. His hair stood on end, an air of recklessness and arrogance surrounding him.
"I just need women," the handsome man laughed, his warmth gentle as jade, a seemingly harmless demeanor, "Joseph, how old are you this year?"
"None of your business!" Joseph, with his upright hair and handsomeness that was painfully gorgeous, rolled his eyes at the handsome man. "Oswald, you've just started fooling around, won't you drop dead if you do it less often at night?"
The handsome man walked towards the liquor cabinet, leisurely poured himself a glass of top-shelf red wine, took a small sip and said, "For us five, someone has to start fooling around first. You've always known that I'm quite fearless..."
"Cut the crap!" Joseph wished he could punch away his pretentiousness. Who doesn't know he's a cunning old fox with countless tricks up his sleeve?
The handsome man took another sip of red wine, looked at the four men in the living room, and asked seriously, "I've been fooling around for a month now... Well, I like sexy women, how about you? Ever thought about the 'taste' you would prefer..."
Joseph frowned upon hearing this, thought for a while and said, "I don't know, I reckon I'd like all kinds. As long as they're pretty, it's all good."
"What about you, Gary?"
Leaning back in a single-seater sofa, Gary, a lanky figure with delicately beautiful countenance almost like a woman, spoke in a clear voice, "A more gentle woman, I think I'd prefer that sort."
Joseph took the handsome man's place and turned to another person, "Archer, how about you?"
A man dressed all in black, a scar trailing from the corner of his eyes, emanating a cold yet bewitching aura, spat out two words, "Boring."
Joseph burst out laughing.
The handsome man also laughed gently like a spring breeze, "Let's all guess, what kind of woman would my elder brother like? If you get it right, you get a reward, I will fulfill a wish of the person who guesses it."
The man sitting in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, engrossed in reading a document, seemingly disregarded the conversation happening around him. Towering to the extent of fright, with his robust shoulders and muscles, a face carved with depth, his gaze was as calm as the sea, appearing undisturbed by anything around him.
Despite the chaos in the background, he was left unaffected. A pen sketched across the paper, imprinting the heavy strokes of the three characters, Berton.
"Arlen, we have not sealed the deal on Edward Group's acquisition yet." The man spoke with an assertive tone, his voice authoritative and domineering.
Arlen, with his handsome face, became solemn, "Patrick refuses to sign and is engaging in shadowy maneuvers... Tomorrow, I will visit his home. Everything will be taken care of."
The steady, rock-like man did not speak again.
Joseph gave Arlen a quick wink. Arlen, with his exceptionally high IQ, almost instantly deciphered the hidden message.
"Brother, shall I arrange for a woman to accompany you tonight?" Arlen, showing concern for his elder brother, moved closer to where his brother was working. His brother was only a year or two older than them yet he had never seen him crave a woman's company; this wasn't normal.
Berton remained as steady as a rock. He lowered his eyelashes and stamped his name on another document. Arlen waited for a moment and soon figured out his elder brother had no intention to engage in his conversation.
The man, having gone through the last document, finally made a move. He stood up under Arlen’s anticipatory gaze. In no time, the man’s concealed dominance revealed itself. Even his casual glance made the few people in the living room act more cautiously around him.
"I’m heading to the office." Arlen left the living room and got into the car which the butler had prepared.
"I reckon, brother is a GAY..." Joseph touched his chin, conjecturing brazenly.
"Get lost!" This time, it was Arlen's turn to retort.
In the sweltering summer, the man in the backseat cast his gaze out of the car window. The streets were full of cars and the sidewalks packed with people. At the traffic light, his gaze was unknowingly drawn to a petite figure at the corner.
It was a little girl, facing sideways to him. He could make out her joy from her half-exposed face. Perhaps her captivating joviality stemmed from the ice-cream she held in her hand. Either way, Berton's focus was held on her for a few more seconds.
The girl stood at the side of the road as if waiting for someone. As soon as the light turned green, the driver started the car. As Berton was about to move his gaze away, the little girl twisted her petite body, granting a radiant smile towards his car.
As the black car sped past the girl, Berton looked back, only to see the girl had darted into the arms of an older woman.
On the second day, the sun continued to shine brightly.
Arlen descended from the upper levels of the house, yawning. He greeted the man sitting in the living room, watching the morning news, "Brother, you're up early today."
"Hm," Berton replied.
The butler delivered some invigorating coffee which Arlen drank half of. Just when he was about to speak, someone else beat him to it.
"We must secure the acquisition of the Edward Group."
"Of course," Arlen replied with a smile, "Don't worry, brother. I'll go to the Edward family later, and you can just wait for my good news."
When it was almost time to leave, Berton opened the door to the back seat and got in.
Sitting in the same car, a bemused Arlen asked, "You're coming too?”
"Just thought I'd take a stroll since I have nothing else to do."
Arlen found his excuse weak. Just then, he saw Joseph jogging by and casually called out, "Joseph, are you coming?"
"It's too hot. I'm not going—going to nap after my run!" Joseph called back before running off in the distance.
"Start the car." Suppressing the odd feeling he felt, Arlen ordered the driver to start the car.
At Edward Group Mansion, Patrick had not anticipated Berton coming. He was being very cautious, mulling over every single word he said with the pair of young men in front of him.
Berton listened to his obsequious words, his eyes calm. After casting a glance around the living room, he slowly stood up, "I hope Mr. Edward doesn't mind if I take a look around."
How could Patrick dare say he minded? He smiled and said, "Please, Mr. Giles. Feel free."
Berton stepped out of the living room one step at a time. Watching his retreating figure, Arlen felt more and more that his elder brother's behavior had been somewhat abnormal since he first arrived.
Inside the Edward family's villa, a European-style garden bloomed with gorgeous flowers whose names he couldn’t recall. Towering trees shielded the midday sun. Berton walked steadily on the small path paved with cobblestones.
He was just a man in his early twenties, clad in a clean white shirt, with tousled hair and lightly pursed thin lips. His walk was unhurried, his steady aura seemed to suppress the air around him.
After several circuits of the European garden, Berton calmly thought that perhaps he shouldn't have come today.
Suddenly, a 'thump, thump' sound came from up ahead. He looked up to see a patterned little ball bouncing happily towards him.
Staring at the ball at his feet, the man’s eyes were so deep it was impossible to read his emotions. He looked up again, and sure enough, saw a rosy-cheeked, delicate little girl running from a distance.
Her pink-skirt flew up as she ran, and a couple of ribbon strands were mix in her hair. Berton blinked.
The little girl stopped panting. After catching her breath a bit, she lifted her head to look at the man in front of her. He was tall, that was the first thought that popped into her head. He was also very handsome, that was the second thought that came to her.
A little girl and a grown man looked at each other, one looking down, one looking up. When his deep and steady gaze met her beautiful and bright eyes, an unexpected silence fell between them.
The one who broke this silence was her.
"Uncle..." she called out sweetly, giving him her first smile.
Berton blinked again, slowly squatted down to be at eye level with the smiling girl. Looking into her big eyes up close, she reflected his image in her pupils.
"What's your name?" he asked, his voice deep yet filled with intense emotions she couldn't understand.
"Dana." The little girl thought he looked even more handsome up close, he looked like the foreigners her mother mentioned!
"Dana..." Berton murmured.
The girl flicked her beautiful eyes, playfully retorting, "What's your name then?"
"Remember, it's Berton Giles ." He finished, and suddenly, it was as if a wind had blown past.
The girl unexpectedly found herself locked in a gaze with him again. Her eyes were brimming with innocent laughter. Suddenly, her little hand pointed to the small ball by the man's feet.
"Uncle, that's mine."
Picking up the tiny ball with one hand, Berton returned it to her.
She broke into another dazzling smile, "Goodbye, Uncle…" She didn't finish her sentence before playfully snatching the ball from his hand and running back.
Her smile, in his eyes, was even more resplendent than the summer flowers. Goodbye Dana, we will surely meet again.
