89 – Cypress Mosaic
He was dressed for the chilly weather, wearing a coat and a short scarf wrapped around his neck. His bright blonde hair fluttered softly in the breeze, fully revealing his face. His expression wasn’t particularly bright; rather, he looked like someone burdened with deep worry. Even that dark aura only served to add a sense of melancholy to his atmosphere.
Girls in the park pointed at him and fussed, while several men blatantly turned their bodies to follow the direction he was moving.
Joshua snorted at them.
Why are they staring? What are they going to do about it? They should know their place.
Taking one last bite of his apple, he tossed the remaining core into a nearby thicket. However, just as Joshua was about to rise from the bench, he was forcibly pressed back down by a sudden force.
“What the hell?”
Two burly men appeared from nowhere, sitting on either side of Joshua and linking arms with him. To be more precise, it wasn’t so much linking arms as it was a professional restraint, twisting his arms back unauthorized copyto keep him from moving. Unfortunately, Joshua had no hobby of rubbing shoulders with men of such massive stature.
“Who the hell are you? Do you have a death wish?”
“Our apologies, Mr. Joshua.”
The giant on the right spoke while staring straight ahead.
Much like Margaret had recently, this giant’s tone sounded not sorry at all.
“If you’re sorry, let go and get lost, will you?”
“We are simply trying to avoid causing a scene.”
The two men weren’t just large; they were perfectly trained professionals. They controlled Joshua efficiently using minimal force.
“You’re the ones causing the scene. What the hell are you doing, suddenly approaching [Read on Read BL Novels]a law-abiding citizen resting in a park? visit our siteWho do you work for? What do you want?”
“Please just stay like this for a moment.”
This time, the giant on the left spoke. That man also didn’t even look toward Joshua, staring only straight ahead. Both were dressed in inconspicuous athletic wear and sunglasses.
“Are you interested in me? Too bad. Muscle-heads like you aren’t my type.”
Joshua struggled to shake them off.
Joshua himself possessed a considerable build and was a black belt who had mastered various martial arts and fighting styles for self-defense and as a hobby. However, because he had been subdued by two professionals while off-guard, counterattacking was not easy.
“Fuck, this is about to get really unfun, so let go, okay? Do you think you can handle me when I’m truly pissed off?”
“There are three or four paparazzi diagonally opposite us. If you cause a scene, an article will be out immediately.”
“Is it a new thing for articles about me to get released?”
“It is a sensitive time regarding the succession issue. I trust you wouldn’t want to anger Ms. Evelyn.”
Meanwhile, Elian’s bicycle had already passed in front of Joshua’s bench and was speeding toward the exit. Joshua could only watch that retreating figure in vain. Letting out deep sighs to suppress his anger and biting his lower lip, Joshua’s voice sank darkly.
“…It’s Lorenz Lockhart, isn’t it?”
“……”
“That insidious pervert sent you, didn’t he?”
“It is not a difficult request, Mr. Joshua. Please just cooperate until Mr. Belloti returns home safely.”
Pedaling away and sliding out of sight, Elian looked like a small, nimble, and free bird. A sudden old memory surfaced, and Joshua let out a bitter snort.
A long time ago, there was a bird that Lorenz Lockhart [unauthorized copy]brought [stolen content]from somewhere and cared for with utmost devotion. I’m remembering all sorts of old things. That bird… what happened to it in the end?
Glaring toward the gate where Elian had completely vanished, Joshua gnashed his teeth and warned.
“You’ll have to research a new method next time. Surely you don’t think I’ll fall for the same trick twice?”
“And if you don’t fall for it twice… what do you intend to do?”
Crunch, crunch. The sound of someone stepping on fallen leaves approached from behind, followed by a familiar voice.
It was Lorenz.
Walking up to the bench, he looked down at Joshua with a gaze laced with contempt.
“Just sitting here and waiting in a place like this. Is this all Joshua Lockhart is capable of?”
With his hands thrust into the pockets of a thin, long black coat, Lorenz looked paler than usual. The contrast between his skin, through which veins [stolen content]seemed almost visible, and the pitch-black coat was stark. He truly looked the part of Count Dracula.
“What are you talking about? Who do you think is responsible for this?”
Joshua growled as if he would pounce on Lorenz at any moment. However, in his restricted state, like a chained beast, he could not rush forward.
“Blaming others is a bad habit.”
“It is because of you! You even banned me from the mansion. Is this all Lorenz Lockhart is capable of?”
Lorenz’s face was devoid of all expression, existing only as a set of ideal features. He looked like the work of a painter who could draw beautifully but could not breathe a soul into the painting. That expressionless face, the one most familiar to Joshua, looked down at him indifferently, almost bored.
“Rather, it is something I can do precisely because it is me. Did you think there would be no consequences after causing such rudeness and commotion in my house?”
“It’s still Father’s house. It’s not your property.”
“Even if it is temporary, it is currently under my responsibility, and I can do as I please.”
As infuriating as it was, it was the truth.
Joshua chose to sneer again, bringing up Elian’s name.
“Are you that scared of Elian running into me? Are you that nervous that he might fall for me?”
“……”
Green eyes, a lighter shade than his own, stared back silently.
Same, yet different.
With that faint color and unwavering inorganic quality, it was never clear what he was thinking. That was what made Joshua anxious, irritated, and rebellious. Consistently since childhood. Even until this very moment.
He wanted to create a crack in that perfection. [Read on Read BL Novels]He wanted to [unauthorized copy]see a face distorted by humiliation and [Read on Read BL Novels]frustration. Just as he had been forced to.
“Or did the great Lorenz Lockhart actually get rejected? Did Rian say no when you asked to do it once?”
“No matter how you try to provoke me in that manner, you will not get what you want.”
“Just stop doing these cowardly things. If you just step aside, Rian and I are planning to go back to LA and live happily together.”
“There is nothing more hideous than a delusion that grows too deep.”
“A man driven mad by love isn’t hideous.”
Lorenz snorted. It was the first expression Joshua had managed to draw from his face today.
“Love? Is there even a dollar’s worth of value in the word ‘love’ when it comes from your mouth?”
“You’re talking nonsense. Do you know how much the people I love get paid?”
On the surface, Lorenz maintained a calm demeanor, but internally, he had to struggle to control the violent emotions surging within.
The countless lovers who must have pocketed hundreds of thousands of dollars while hearing those words of love from Joshua. The way he treated Elian as an equal to them made Lorenz feel beyond displeasure; it was reaching the point of nausea.
“Even without begging for your charity, he is sufficiently compensated for his professionalism.”
“That’s just money he’s getting from you in the end. My money is charity, so how is the money you give any different?”
“He is simply being paid a fair amount determined by his ability and working environment.”
Joshua’s red, sensual lips twisted mercilessly.
“Ah, really? And here I thought he was getting an extra ‘fucking pretty allowance’ from you.”
Finally, a crack appeared in Lorenz’s face.
“Please shut your mouth. The stench is becoming unbearable.”
Joshua snorted.
“You think you’re so fragrant? Monitoring and controlling people from behind like this, while pretending to be noble in front of him? That’s even filthier.”
“I never tried to control him. I am simply protecting him.”
Ptu. Joshua spat on the ground.
“Protecting, my ass.”
“Because I knew you would approach him in this manner. And indeed, you moved exactly as I expected.”
When Lorenz signaled the two bodyguards restraining Joshua, they released their target and stood up. Rotating his shoulders to loosen his stiff muscles, Joshua stood up, grabbed the arm of one of them, spun him around, and slapped him across the [unauthorized copy]Read on Read BL Novelsface. It was a blow powerful enough to make the man’s head snap back and blood splatter.
“Be grateful it wasn’t a punch.”
Looking at Joshua, who still retained the habits of his ice hockey player days, Lorenz sighed. The scandals of Joshua Lockhart that Damon Lockhart’s secretary’s office had to suppress were not limited to his love life. Not all of them could be stopped.
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