Chapter 718
Hearing the rustle of sheets behind him, he instantly turned around. Seeing Serena sitting up, his eyes brightened. He set the laptop aside and crossed the room in two long strides. “Are you hungry p>
Serena threw off the covers. “What time is it p>
“Almost six in the evening,” Nicholas replied.
“I slept that long?” She must have been utterly drained. It had been a very long time since she had slept through an entire day.
“You needed it,” Nicholas said softly, leaning closer. “Want to grab some dinner p>
After sleeping away the entire afternoon, Serena was definitely starving. She nodded and headed for the bathroom to splash some water on her face.
Suddenly, the doorbell chimed.
Nicholas frowned. At this hour, there was only one person irritating enough to show up at her door… He walked over and swung the door open.
Just as he suspected, a sharply dressed Douglas stood in the hallway, wearing a dark gray trench coat.
With one hand casually shoved in his pocket, Douglas smirked the second he saw Nicholas. “Are you too broke to book your own suite, Mr. Blackwood? Squatting in Serena’s room all day? If you’re short on cash, just beg. I might consider fronting you a few bucks p>
“Douglas, Serena and I are practically engaged.” Nicholas blocked the doorway, offering a sickeningly polite smile. “It’s perfectly natural for a fiancé to be in his fiancée’s room. Though I have to ask, what brings you here at this hour p>
“Making sure my niece actually eats dinner. Got a problem with that?” Douglas reached out and shoved Nicholas’s shoulder to move past him.
Nicholas didn’t budge an inch, keeping his flawless smile pinned in place. “There’s no need to trouble yourself. I am more than capable of taking excellent care of her p>
Douglas narrowed his dark, dangerous eyes and let out a cold laugh. “Don’t strain yourself. She’s my family, I’ll look after her p>
Having quickly freshened up, Serena stepped out of the bathroom only to find the two men locked in a standoff at the door. Both were smiling. Yet, the atmosphere between them was… intensely volatile.
“What are you two doing?” she asked, walking over with a slight frown.
The moment she spoke, Nicholas suddenly stumbled, staggering backward as if violently pushed. His shoulder slammed hard into the wooden cabinet behind him. *Thud p>
The heavy vase on top of the cabinet visibly wobbled from the impact.
It was a sickeningly loud crash. It sounded incredibly painful.
Leaning heavily against the cabinet, Nicholas furrowed his brow and clutched his shoulder. He forced a strained, brave smile onto his devastatingly handsome face. It’s
nothing, Serena Douglas wasjustin
a rush to see you. I must have been in his way. He used a bit too much force, but I’m fine p>
Douglas: p>
He literally hadn’t moved a muscle. What the hell had he done p>
Nicholas pushed himself upright, letting out a faint gasp of pain before smiling warmly at Douglas “It’s really alright, Douglas. I’m completely fine, there’s no need to apologize p>
Douglas: p>
He stared at the sheer audacity of Nicholas’s performance, his eye twitching. “Nicholas, do you have no shame? I didn’t even lay a finger on you p>
“It’s my fault. I just lost my balance Nicholas lowered his eyes, adopting the tragic, falsely-accused demeanor of a battered victim. “Don’t blame him, Serena.” Douglas: p>
Douglas: p>
*F*ck!* This manipulative son of a bitch! He was actually pulling this toxic, two-faced victim routine on him p>
Serena was a genius. There was no way she’d fall for such a pathetic, theatrical trick, right?
Serena looked at Nicholas, clutching his shoulder with an unusually pale face. Frowning, she walked over and pulled his collar back slightly to inspect the damage.
The skin was genuinely red and beginning to swell.
She gently massaged the bruised
area, then shot an exasperated look at Douglas “Douglas, I know he looks tough, but he’s actually ingragile. Hecan’t handle your brutal underworld combat tactics. Stop roughing him up p>
II