Billionaire Lawyer's Secretary - Chapter 161: Chapter 161

Adrian's hand was shaken away, and he realized Elara had run out. Without a word, he chased after her.
Elara rushed into the elevator and quickly pressed the close button. Through the narrowing gap of the doors, Adrian caught a glimpse of Elara, utterly devastated and streaked with tears.
Adrian frantically pressed the elevator buttons, but the elevator had already gone down, and the other one was stuck on the fifth floor. In a panic, he pushed open the stairwell door and dashed down the stairs.
As soon as he pushed open the door to the underground garage, he saw the black Bugatti speed past right in front of him.
Adrian hurried to his McLaren, pulled out his keys, unlocked the car, and jumped in. Almost immediately, the shadow of a black car, Adrian's Mclaren, shot out of the underground garage of Flowery Apartments.
Elara stopped at the red light, tears pouring from the corners of her eyes. Right next to her, the black McLaren pulled up, and Adrian leaned on the horn.
Elara saw Adrian motioning for her to pick up her phone. She didn't answer. The moment the light turned green, she floored the gas and shot past the white line. Adrian stayed right on her tail.
Her phone wouldn't stop buzzing in the car. Elara's eyes were so blurred with tears that she almost rear-ended the car in front of her. She wiped her tears away with her sleeve, then slammed on the gas and shot past the car ahead.
The white car she overtook honked furiously, the driver rolling down his window to yell, "Cutting me off? Just because you're in a supercar, you think you own the road!"
But Elara didn't hear a word of it. She'd already left him eating her dust.
The car headed toward the winding mountain road where Adrian and Elara had raced before. Adrian recognized the route and quickly called the racing club, instructing them to clear the roadblocks and set up safety measures.
Soon, Elara entered the mountain road. Not long after she did, a blinding flash of lightning split the sky, followed by a series of thunderclaps.
A massive dark cloud rolled over the mountaintop, casting an eerie gloom over everything, a clear sign that a storm was on its way.
The black Bugatti shot into the storm-lit ridge, like a phantom one could never catch, vanishing at every turn, only to reappear again in the next flash of lightning.
The black McLaren drifted through turn after turn, glued to the Bugatti's bumper, never letting it pull away for even a second.
The dark clouds kept pressing in, and by late afternoon, around four, it was getting hard to see in the mountains. Adrian saw the car ahead flick on its headlights, so he flicked his own on too.
Thunder rolled again and again, and soon, rain came pouring down in sheets. The winding mountain road demanded constant turns, and Adrian could feel the pavement getting slick beneath his tires.
Adrian should've eased off the gas by now, but the woman ahead wasn't slowing down at all. Instead, she just kept slamming her foot down, pushing the car even faster.
Adrian knew things were getting dangerous. He needed to get ahead and block her before something happened.
He pressed the McLaren's accelerator all the way down, slowly closing the distance between him and the Bugatti. When he finally pulled up alongside Elara, he flicked on his hazard lights, signaling for her to stop.
But Elara didn't pay him any attention. She just stepped on the gas, determined to overtake Adrian. But he wasn't about to let her. He pulled off a sharp drift, cutting right in front of her and forcing her behind him.
From then on, Adrian didn't give Elara a single chance to pass. He kept her speed in check, blocking her path every time she tried to get ahead, so Elara had no choice but to keep slamming on the gas and then the brakes.
In the pouring rain, the windshield wipers were working at full speed, but even through the rearview mirror, Adrian could see Elara's car right on his tail. He stepped hard on the accelerator, trying to pull ahead and put some distance between them.
Finally, the black McLaren braked hard and swerved sideways, coming to a stop across the narrowest stretch of the track, blocking the entire road. Elara had no choice but to stop.
She slammed on the brakes, her body lurching forward and crashing into the steering wheel, pain shooting through her chest.
Through the rain, she saw Adrian get out of the McLaren, a fierce, stormy look on his face as he strode toward her. He yanked her car door and pulled her out.
October rain poured down on Elara, chilling her to the bone. She sucked in a breath of icy air, the cold seeping into her heart and numbing her emotions.
Adrian yanked her into his arms. "Do you have a death wish? The road's slick as hell in this storm. Did you forget I almost died here that year?"
Rain clung to Elara's lashes, her face pressed against Adrian's cold, soaked suit. Her heavy eyelids fluttered as she stared blankly at the road ahead.
It really was the same stretch of road from that year's race. This was where Adrian had his accident at the big turn ahead. All of a sudden, Elara wanted to go take a look. "Adrian, I want to go see it," she said quietly.
Adrian took her hand, and the two of them braved the downpour, walking just a short distance ahead. Soon, she spotted the very slope where he had once gone over the edge.
She pointed down the hillside. "This is where you crashed off the road back then, Adrian."
Elara replied, "Damn right."
The road below had been landscaped with greenery now, nothing like the wild, muddy slope it used to be. Back then, heavy rain would turn it into a treacherous mess.
She stood there for a while, gazing out, then whispered, "If only we could go back to the beginning."
Back then, Alex hadn't confessed to her yet. She hadn't left for another country, and everything was just like she'd always hoped for. But at that moment, it all just seemed so gray and hopeless.
"If I could turn back time, I'd never let you go," Adrian said. His voice was blurred by the sound of the rain, but Elara still heard him clearly.
He continued, "If I could go back, I would have started loving you from the moment you turned eighteen. I would have protected you, made sure you always knew you deserved to be loved.
"If I could do it all over again, I never would've let you waste all those years with Alex. I would've fought for you, done everything I could to steal you away and keep you by my side.
"If I could turn back time..." Adrian gently turned her to face him, locking eyes with her. "Elara, it's not too late. Elara, I love you. The only difference is that I love you even more than I ever did before.
"Elara, I love you. Elara, I..." All of a sudden, Adrian felt his neck yanked down as a pair of icy arms wrapped tightly around him, pulling him closer.
Elara's cold lips crashed onto his, the kiss desperate and burning with passion. Her tongue hungrily tangled with his, and he immediately pulled her into his arms, holding her waist tight.
The freezing rain poured down on them, but it couldn't wash away the fire blazing between their hearts.
After what felt like forever, Elara finally let him go, her mood clearly much better. Her face was pale from the cold. "Let's get back in the car. It's freezing."
Adrian let out an exasperated laugh. "I thought you were trying to get yourself killed today, and now you're scared of a little cold?"
Elara frowned. "Freezing to death would be kind of embarrassing."
Adrian couldn't help but laugh, then scooped her up bridal style and carried her straight to the McLaren.
He set her down in the passenger seat, closed the door, then hurried back to the driver's side, started the car, and cranked up the heat.
They were both soaked to the bone. Adrian shrugged off his suit jacket and tossed it aside. His white shirt clung to his skin, outlining his muscles. He looked absolutely irresistible.
Elara, clearly in a playful mood, grinned and said, "Adrian, take off your shirt."
Adrian didn't think much of it. The shirt was sticking to him uncomfortably, so he unbuttoned it one by one, then tossed it on top of his suit jacket. His chiseled muscles were right there in front of her, on full display.
While Adrian was distracted, Elara slid halfway over the center console and wrapped her arms around his neck.
Adrian raised an eyebrow. "What are you up to?"
"Keep going. It's freezing outside, but now the heat's on, so..." Before she could finish, Adrian caught her lips with a kiss.
But that wasn't enough for him. He pulled her in, his strong arms circling her waist, and with a gentle lift, Elara swung her legs over and straddled his lap.
Elara leaned back against the steering wheel, her lips still locked with his. Between kisses, she whispered, "Adrian, my shirt's all soaked. Can you help me get it off?"
Adrian's breathing grew heavy. He shifted back a little, making space as his hands moved to unbutton her shirt. His fingers worked their way down, unbuttoning each one from top to bottom. Bit by bit, Elara's bra was revealed in his gaze.
Once the last button was undone, she shrugged out of her shirt and tossed it on top of his. The two shirts, one his, one hers, were piled together, one atop the other, and for some reason, it felt strangely intimate.
Elara's skin was already fair, but with the chill in the air, she looked even paler.
Adrian's gaze lingered on her for a few seconds before he looked away. Their eyes met, but he didn't say a word.
Elara grinned. "Why are you acting all shy now, Adrian? It's not like this is your first time seeing me like this."
The rain drummed loudly on the car roof, filling the air with its wild rhythm. Inside, the temperature kept climbing, and the atmosphere was thick with anticipation and desire.
Elara's smile was all charm and seduction, while Adrian was barely holding himself back.
Elara leaned in and kissed him again, her fingers toying with his earlobe, teasing him on and off.
Her softness melted against his chest, sending shivers through him. Adrian was totally undone, his mind a mess, but his body stayed frozen, unable to move.
Out of nowhere, Elara's hand slid down to his belt, her fingers giving it a mischievous poke. "Adrian, I want you. Can we do it? Please?"