CHAPTER 18: CHAPTER 18: WHERE DID THE RED MARKS ON YOUR NECK COME FROM

Renee Perry furrowed her brows and retrieved her beloved cat from the pile of suits.

The pampered lady even started helping out personally.

Knowing he would wear it soon, she had the servants re-iron his uniform.

In the bathroom, the shower poured down.

Annelise Winter had already been put down by Elias Warner.

She leaned weakly against the sink, dizzy but also understanding why he had taken the extra step to hide in the bathroom.

The door wasn’t closed, the walk-in closet was semi-open; there was no way to hide in the chaos.

Moreover, Renee’s sharp eyes were all focused on Elias Warner; it was hard to escape her notice.

A clean towel fell over Annelise’s head, wrapping her completely.

Her vision turned pitch black again.

The man’s cold, sharp voice lowered beside her ear.

"I’m about to shower now, turn your back, and don’t open your eyes."

Annelise’s fingers clutched the marble on the sink, incredulous.

"Shower? Ms. Warner is just outside; why are you showering now... shouldn’t you..."

What was he thinking?

Shouldn’t he first send Ms. Warner away?

Moreover, with her in the same room and his mother outside, how could he calmly undress in front of her!

Just thinking about it made her break down.

Elias Warner’s dark eyes were deep, hovering over her head, his sexy, sharp Adam’s apple rolling, "How do I send her off without being wet? Do you think she’d leave the room without seeing me?"

His expression was calm, "Or do you want her to see the way you and I are right now!"

"I don’t want that!" Annelise bit her lip, her lips nearly breaking from her bite, "Don’t let her see me here. Then you shower, I’ll wait."

Afraid he wouldn’t believe her, she decisively turned away, even closing her eyes tightly under the towel like hiding her ears to steal a bell.

"I promise I won’t look, not even a glance. Just pretend I don’t exist."

How to pretend she doesn’t exist?!

Her breathing, her light fragrance, Elias Warner found it hard to ignore.

His jaw tightened, his rolling Adam’s apple tensed, his cold gaze on her as if to devour her!

His five fingers hung by his side curled and clenched into a fist.

"Best be so. Annelise, you should know if it weren’t for your repeated entanglements, I wouldn’t want to see you. I, more than you, don’t want to be misunderstood."

His cold, thin lips pressed into a harsh line, "Hope after this, you can keep your promise and pay the debt quickly, so we won’t have to meet again."

Steam filled the air, quickly fogging the mirror.

Only the outline of a lean, tall figure under the shower could be distinguished.

His bathroom was bigger than the apartment she currently lived in.

So Annelise leaned weakly against the sink, feeling dizzy as her fevered head spun, while the sound of water seemed to surge toward her from all around, more and more expansive.

With the towel covering her, he wouldn’t see the cold sweat on her face, the unnatural flush.

She felt awful; the time with him was always brief, yet this time felt torturous, the minutes dragging endlessly.

The sound of water became like a visual lens in her ears.

His face, his lips, his chest, his thighs...

She couldn’t help but recall five years ago, when they moved from the bed outside to the bathroom.

That night, it wasn’t just him under the shower spray.

It was both of them.

The tiles were cold, but his chest was burning hot.

Her thoughts muddled, yet she still saw the dark gaze from the layers of fog fall on her back.

When Elias Warner came out of the bathroom, he brought with him a damp air.

He didn’t look at Annelise again, his face somber.

His short hair, soaked, was casually slicked back with his fingers into a swept-back style.

His handsome features became more pronounced; the black silk bathrobe accentuated his chiselled features, making his form seem even taller.

The man showered quite quickly, and at the noise, Renee emerged from the walk-in closet, "Cici got mischievous and accidentally messed up your closet; the clothes should be washed."

Elias Warner slowly furrowed his brows lightly, "Mom, why are you here?"

As if perturbed by having his personal space invaded, Renee maintained her good temper.

"It’s out of concern for you; Mama Carter made you some tonic soup, and I need to make sure you drink it before I’m relieved."

She said, bringing the tonic soup to Elias Warner.

Elias didn’t refuse and drank it in one gulp, "Enough, Mom. You can leave now, I need to change."

"You’re my son; are you afraid I’ll see?" Renee feigned annoyance, shifting her eyes and inadvertently spotting the red mark on her son’s nape.

"Oh, what happened here?"

Renee reached out to touch it.

Elias Warner disliked intimacy, especially in his current foul mood, and didn’t want to be touched.

So he unobtrusively put distance between them.

But Renee caught sight of the marks left by a woman’s fingernails.

Recalling seeing Annelise disheveled when getting out of her son’s car last night, Renee’s face darkened.

Her heart skipped a beat, "Did you stay the night at your girlfriend’s place?"

Elias Warner kept his cool, taking out his pilot’s uniform.

In that short time, the uniform had been re-ironed, stiff and straight without a crease.

Elias’s indifferent gaze swept over the bathroom door nonchalantly.

"Mom."

"Hmm?"

"I know what I’m doing with my relationships."

Renee felt uneasy, "When will you bring your girlfriend over? Your relationship is so close now, there’s no need to drag things out, right? You’re not young anymore, already twenty-eight."

"Plus, your grandmother is getting old and frequently ends up in the hospital..."

Before she could finish, Elias interrupted, checking his watch, "When the time is right, all the necessary steps will be followed. But Mom..."

Renee looked at her son.

"Could you knock before you enter next time?"

Renee felt wronged and guilty, not understanding why her once adorable son changed so much after being away for five years, becoming colder than before.

She thought about what he had gone through and knew who was to blame.

Her heart filled with resentment; Renee felt anguished, "I knocked, didn’t you hear? You were in the shower!"

"Then wait until I’m done showering. I’m no longer a child; if I get married, too much meddling will be inconvenient. You wouldn’t want a strained relationship with your daughter-in-law, right?"

Renee had been hesitant, not anticipating such hard words from her son.

After facing peril overseas for five years, he developed a harder character that exerted a great presence even while standing in a robe at home.

Her son was already possessing the qualities needed to become the head of the family clan.

Yet he preferred to fly back and forth, each intercontinental flight taking seven to eight days.

He refused domestic routes, opting for faraway places.

But hearing him speak about marriage, she relaxed slightly, thinking her son genuinely planned to marry his girlfriend?

Then what was with Annelise looking disheveled getting out of his car yesterday?

Could it be Annelise undressed herself?

Moments ago, she had been far too polite to Annelise!

Suppressing her anger, Renee compromised, "Alright, alright, it’s Mom’s fault for overstepping. You’re grown up now, and as your mother, I indeed should keep my distance. Mom will leave now."

Just as Renee was about to leave, suddenly, a phone rang from the bathroom.

The sweet, melodious voice of a child’s folk song played, which wasn’t Elias Warner’s style.

It sounded familiar from somewhere.

Renee’s steps halted abruptly, suspiciously looking toward the bathroom, her heart skipping a beat.

"Is there someone in the bathroom?"