After spending an entire day watching events unfold, William finally left his study, feeling content. Entering the kitchen, he kissed Jesse, who was preparing dinner.
Jesse smiled and kissed him back. "One more dish to go, then it'll be ready. Why don't you help set the table?"
"Okay," William replied with a smile. "But I hope you've prepared enough food; otherwise, we won't have the energy to work out tonight."
Still not used to William's playful teasing, Jesse waved her wooden spatula at him. "Say one more word, and I'll ban you from my bed."
"Heh, that's fine. The living room sofa is pretty good for working out too."
"Get out!" Jesse pushed William out of the kitchen, blushing furiously as her heart raced. Once he was gone, she quickly finished preparing the last dish, her mind still lingering on his flirtation.
After dinner, as expected, they ended up tangled together until late into the night.
The next morning, at 7 a.m., while William was sound asleep after their late-night antics, Sunday's voice woke him. "Sir, Lady Lena has called to remind you that she is aware of the incident from the night before last."
Still groggy, William's eyes snapped open. Gently releasing Jesse, he threw on a robe and stepped out onto the balcony, phone in hand. From there, he could see the Champs-Élysées below, already swarming with police and soldiers standing guard in preparation for the World War I Armistice Day celebrations set to begin at 10 a.m.
"Ahhh," William yawned loudly into the phone before Lena could speak, pretending to be annoyed. "Mom, didn't we talk yesterday? Why are you calling so early today?"
"Still not fully awake?" Lena asked, her tone equal parts scolding and amused. "Well, it's clear you're fine. To think you experienced a bombing two nights ago, didn't tell me about it, and still had the mood to fool around with a woman! And don't even try to tell me that woman you're with in Paris isn't a pickpocket by trade."
"Oh, come on, Mom. Can we not talk about my private life?" William sighed, rubbing his forehead. "As for Jesse, I can promise you she's a good girl who hasn't even had a boyfriend before. Besides, I have no interest in being a saint. Showing a few flaws to the world isn't necessarily a bad thing."
"Hah! You're always so good at justifying your actions," Lena said, clearly unconvinced. "Fine, as long as you're safe. By the way, Abigail saw the news and drove to Paris. She should be arriving about now. Hahaha, good luck, my dear boy."
Before William could respond, Lena hung up.
Resigned, William returned to the bedroom to get ready. After taking a shower and dressing, Sunday's voice came through again. Stepping out onto the balcony, William watched as a sleek silver Aston Martin DB9 pulled up to the villa's gate.
Without needing instructions, Sunday remotely opened the electronic gate.
Spotting Abigail stepping out of the car, smiling brightly at him, William waved. "Give me a moment, darling," he called out.
Abigail beamed back, showing no signs of discontent or suspicion. Realizing he couldn't avoid the inevitable, William sighed and said to Sunday, "Call a helicopter. We're heading to Château de Chantilly."
"Apologies, sir, but with today's heightened security, there's no way a helicopter will be allowed in this airspace. If you want to leave, you'll have to drive, and in an hour, the Champs-Élysées will be closed to traffic."
William frowned. With the Armistice Day parade set to take place in just three hours, aerial access was indeed impossible. It dawned on him that Abigail had chosen this timing intentionally to ensure she could meet Jesse.
Sighing again, he headed into the master bedroom, where Jesse was pretending to be asleep. Kissing her cheek, he said, "A guest has arrived. Get up quickly and come with me to Château de Chantilly with Abigail."
Realizing she couldn't keep pretending, Jesse sat up. After a moment's hesitation, she asked, "Darling, I heard from Sunday that Abigail oversees Château de Chantilly. If I go, won't she be upset?"
"Don't worry," William reassured her. "I promise Abigail won't be angry. She's smarter than you think and knows what to do. Besides, you're the lady of this house."
Hearing William directly acknowledge her as the mistress of the villa, Jesse couldn't help but smile. But William, ever the opportunist, added, "You'll be staying in Paris with the wine estate in the future, while Abigail manages Château de Chantilly. The two of you will inevitably cross paths often."
Jesse's smile faltered, and she buried her face in her hands. "But I'm nervous about meeting her. Abigail is a double PhD holder and a former head of the National Archives. She's a super genius, and I'm just a high school dropout. What could I possibly talk to her about? How to spot pickpockets? Or how to swipe your wallet?"
William chuckled. "Looks like you've done your homework. Didn't realize you've been researching Abigail." Knowing Jesse was the "latecomer" to his life, William was surprised to see she wasn't as hostile toward Abigail as he'd expected. "You can talk to her about wine. I'm sure your knowledge in that area is far superior to hers."
This brightened Jesse's mood slightly. Finding something she excelled at compared to Abigail gave her a bit of confidence. Seeing her expression shift, William shook his head and said, "Alright, she's already here. Are you really going to avoid meeting her? I'm heading down. You'd better hurry up and join me."
After watching William leave, Jesse vented her frustration by punching her pillow a few times. But deep down, she knew she couldn't leave him. Ever since the previous night, when William had shielded her during the explosion, she realized she was hopelessly attached to him. Grumbling under her breath, she got up to get ready.
When Jesse finally came downstairs, she found William holding Abigail in his arms and silencing her protests with a kiss. Abigail, clearly upset, tried to speak but ended up pinching William's waist instead.
Letting go of the now slightly dazed Abigail, William grinned shamelessly. "I've missed you so much, darling."
Abigail, who had been caught off guard, quickly recovered. Her eyes narrowed, and she punched William's shoulder. "Are you serious this time?"
William knew exactly what she meant. He had been with other women before but had never gone as far as buying a house and living with them as he was now doing with Jesse.
Shrugging, William pretended to be helpless. "I don't know why, but I want both you and Jesse to belong to me alone."
"Asshole," Abigail muttered, but before she could complain further, William kissed her again, leaving her dazed. Taking advantage of her confusion, he said with a smirk, "I've missed your cooking. Make me a double portion for breakfast, sweetheart."
"Dream on," Abigail shot back. "This isn't my place, so why should I cook for you?"
Just then, her phone rang. Seeing the caller ID—Ambrosio—she scowled at William before storming off to the kitchen, muttering, "Fine, I'll cook."
After spending half an hour sweet-talking Ambrosio and convincing her not to come to Paris, William finally hung up the phone.
Turning on the TV, he was greeted by news reports about himself, detailing his "new romance" and the "unfortunate bombing incident." Fortunately, the media didn't speculate that he was the target of the attack.
"Who leaked this story?" William asked Sunday.
"French authorities, sir. Last night, Paris saw widespread unrest. To divert attention and ease public pressure, they released this news while you were asleep."
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