Chapter 78: Chapter 77
But today, Simon Lockwood had actually put up with it.
Sean Grant saw his confusion and gave a sly chuckle. "Can’t figure it out, can you? This is the VIP treatment you get from Cupid~~"
His voice trailed off with a triumphant little flourish. Jack Warren’s mouth twitched.
’What the hell? Now he’s bringing Cupid into this.’
Due to the demanding filming schedule, Joanna Kennedy had asked Simon Lockwood for leave several more times. All told, once she was free, she would have to stay at the villa for at least a week.
Back at the hotel after leaving the set, night had already fallen. After eating and showering, Joanna Kennedy lay on the soft, large bed and suddenly thought of Simon Lockwood.
She wondered if the wound on his back was any better. The last time she went back, she had helped Simon Lockwood apply medicine to it again.
’A man as cold as Simon Lockwood probably wouldn’t let anyone else help him,’ she thought.
The more Joanna thought about it, the more anxious and unsettled she felt. She finally sat up, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and opened her phone to compose a message. Just as she was about to send it, she hesitated for a moment but still tapped "send."
Downstairs, in the hazy night, a black Maybach was parked quietly in the shadows of a corner.
From this angle, one could see the lights on the ninth floor. The curtains blocked the view inside, revealing only a slender silhouette projected upon them.
In the quiet, dim interior of the car, a phone rang without warning, shattering the silence.
The man acted as if he hadn’t heard it, his dark eyes still fixed intently on the slender silhouette high above.
Half an hour later, the lights in the room went out, plunging everything into darkness. Simon Lockwood slowly moved his sore eyes and lowered his gaze.
The next morning, Joanna Kennedy rushed to the set for the final shoot.
As the director yelled "Cut!", Joanna Kennedy’s first role as a major supporting actress had officially run its course.
"Congratulations, congratulations! That was a really great performance. You completely won me over!" The newcomer’s tone was casual and loose.
Joanna Kennedy’s head started to ache just from hearing that voice.
After so many days, just when she had almost forgotten about him, Thomas Warren had shown up again.
His outfit today was as distinctive as ever. His top was a clean white shirt, but his pants were covered in ragged rips and tears.
Calling them ripped jeans would be an understatement; it was more like pants growing on a collection of holes.
Only someone with his flamboyant temperament could pull off such an outfit.
He was holding a huge, dazzling bouquet of roses, guaranteed to turn heads.
"Miss Kennedy, happy wrap party~" Thomas Warren said with a grin, holding the huge bouquet of roses out to her.
Joanna Kennedy could feel the gazes of everyone around them. She took a deep breath and said, "Do you not know my name?"
’Always "Miss Kennedy, Miss Kennedy." Who is he trying to be passive-aggressive with?’
"Of course I do." Thomas Warren said, then smiled and explained, "Calling you by your name feels so distant."
’And calling me "Miss Kennedy" doesn’t? Does this guy have some weird cosplay fetish?’
"Don’t you like roses?" Seeing she had no intention of taking them, Thomas Warren acted as if he’d had a sudden realization. "Then I’ll buy other flowers next time. Sunflowers, balloon flowers... How about I just buy one of everything? Whatever you like..."
Joanna Kennedy couldn’t listen anymore. She snatched the roses from his hand, turned, and shoved them into the hands of the director, who was watching the gossip unfold nearby. She announced loudly, "Director Miller, these are flowers from Mr. Warren for our cast and crew! He wishes for our show to be as fiery and successful as these roses."
Director Miller and the other staff members: "..."
Thomas Warren: "..."
’Was... Was that what happened?!’ Director Miller, a veteran of the entertainment industry after all, quickly recovered from his stupor. Seizing the opportunity without missing a beat, he said, "Thank you, Mr. Warren, for thinking so highly of our show! I wonder if we might have the honor of inviting you to shoot some promotional photos for our main cast?"
Thomas Warren: "..."
While the director was busy pestering Thomas Warren, Joanna Kennedy quickly slipped away. Spotting a crestfallen Shirley Shepherd nearby, she swiftly grabbed her and pulled her along.
Once they were in the lounge, she locked the door behind her, let out a sigh of relief, and plopped down onto a chair.
Seeing Shirley Shepherd still standing there in a daze, Joanna Kennedy sighed. "He treats you like that, yet you still like him. Why?"
That night at the crew dinner, behind the rockery in the garden, Thomas Warren’s hands had shown no mercy as he’d grabbed her by the neck.
Shirley Shepherd bit her lower lip, her voice very soft. "He saved me. Without him, there would be no Shirley Shepherd today."
In her second year after debuting, a 22-year-old Shirley Shepherd was abroad for a red carpet event. She got lost on the streets and was nearly dragged into a car by a few rioters when a 19-year-old Thomas Warren saved her.
Amidst a dense flurry of snow, he was like a scorching sun, suddenly appearing in Shirley Shepherd’s world of ice and snow, melting it all away.
It was a very cliché story of a hero saving a damsel in distress.
But throughout history, many have still fallen for it, one after another, willing to devote their lives to their saviors.
"...Then why does he..."
Joanna Kennedy didn’t finish, but Shirley Shepherd knew what she was going to ask. She gave a bitter smile. "He finds me clingy. He said if he’d known it would be like this, he wouldn’t have bothered saving me back then..."
Joanna Kennedy fell silent. She didn’t know how to comfort her.
There was a knock on the lounge door. Unexpectedly, it was Todd Crowe’s voice. His apologetic tone was clear even through the door. "Miss Kennedy, sorry to bother you. I didn’t expect him to show up again either. I’ll take him away right now."
"..."
After he spoke, Todd Crowe left, presumably to go catch Thomas Warren.
Joanna Kennedy waited a while longer before coming out. She looked left and right; Thomas Warren was indeed nowhere to be seen.
"I’m going to head out then. See you at the press conference," Joanna Kennedy said to Shirley Shepherd.
Shirley Shepherd’s eyes were still red. She nodded. "See you at the press conference."
Joanna Kennedy went back to her apartment first. The first thing she did was charge her phone. When she turned it on, she saw that the message she’d sent last night still had no reply. She felt a little disappointed, but just a little.
She scrolled through her phone for a bit and saw an ad, only then realizing that today was the Qixi Festival.
No wonder Thomas Warren was carrying such a huge bouquet of roses.
An image of a cold, handsome face popped into Joanna Kennedy’s mind without warning. ’Someone with his personality probably wouldn’t send flowers... especially not something as straightforward and passionate as roses.’
She hadn’t been in the apartment for a long time. After resting for a bit, Joanna Kennedy started cleaning. She tidied up a bag of trash, and, still in her loungewear, went downstairs to throw it out.
It was an early autumn night. The light breeze carried a hint of coolness that felt pleasant on her skin.
Not far away, a black Maybach was parked. Jack Warren pulled his gaze back from the window and looked in the rearview mirror at the cold, focused eyes of the man in the back seat.
He sighed. "Why don’t you just go to her?"
"Why should I?" Simon Lockwood didn’t even spare him a glance.
’Then why are you here spying on her?!’
Jack Warren had never been in a relationship; he truly didn’t understand the minds of the love-struck.
He said earnestly, "Today is the Qixi Festival. If you appear before Miss Kennedy right now, she will definitely be moved, and it will deepen her feelings for you."
Simon Lockwood stared at the girl’s hair fluttering in the night, his dark eyes calm. After a long moment, he spoke: "She won’t."
