Billionaire Lawyer's Secretary - Chapter 82: Chapter 82

At 10 a.m., Elara woke up. She slowly opened her sleep-blurred eyes as Adrian's handsome face gradually sharpened into focus.
'This isn't right,' she thought. She squeezed her eyes shut, then slowly opened them again. She fought desperately to hold back a scream, her eyes opening and closing in a frantic rhythm.
'This isn't a dream,' Elara thought, panic rising. 'What's Adrian doing in my bed?'
Instinctively, she peeked under the covers to check her nightgown—thank God, it was still the same one from last night, neatly in place. And her hands were clean, too.
Elara let out a sigh of relief, finally calming down. She studied Adrian sleeping soundly before her—his breathing steady, his bare chest rising and falling rhythmically, the prominent Adam's apple accentuating his masculine appeal. Even in sleep, his brows remained tightly knit together.
'So he didn't go to be with Josie last night,' Elara realized, an unexpected warmth blooming in her chest. Her heart raced—this was the first time she'd ever woken up next to a man.
Adrian's face was undeniably heart-stopping, but his appeal was completely different from Alex's. Alex had relatively softer features and a warm, approachable smile—his good looks never made people feel distant.
As for Adrian, at first glance, he exuded a wild, untamed aura. His expression always carried a hint of coldness, his good looks tinged with an undeniable sense of distance.
His features—those deep-set eyes, straight prominent nose, and sharply defined jawline—were breathtakingly perfect. The only flaw anywhere was the tiny crease between her own brows.
'What kind of nightmare is he having?' Elara thought, raising her hand to gently brush the crease between Adrian's brows in hopes of soothing him. But to her shock, Ahe jolted awake so violently that she instantly regretted reaching out.
Adrian jolted awake with a dangerous edge, instinctively seizing Elara's wrist in a vice-like grip.
Elara winced but kept her cool. In a gentle voice, she asked, "Did I startle you?"
The second Elara's voice hit his ears, Adrian's spinning head slowed. He lifted his gaze and found her there—face soft, eyes wide with real worry.
"Are you okay?" Elara asked. "Sorry, I forgot about your touch aversion. I thought—mmph..."
Driven by urgent restlessness, Adrian rolled and pinned her under his weight. The nightmare still clung to his skin, but she was the only cure. Voice rough, he breathed against her lips, "Babe."
Elara knew things were serious—Adrian's "babe" should have her hands ready.
By the time they finished, it was well past noon. Elara sighed wearily and moved to get up to wash her hands, only to be scooped up by Adrian.
He carried her to the bathroom sink and set her down. Once she had steadied herself, he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
He reached for the soap dispenser, enveloped her delicate hands in his larger ones, and meticulously worked the soap into a lather between their palms.
Elara shot him a disgruntled look and chided, "Adrian, I told you last time not to cross the line. Why are you pushing it even further now?"
Adrian replied nonchalantly, "That's the fifth time I owe you. Seriously, you're gonna become a nun over your ex?"
That was Adrian's signature move. Whenever he didn't want to answer, he'd just deflect with a better question to shut others up. And sure enough, Elara was left speechless.
A moment later, Elara suddenly remembered something and asked, "Your fiancée went to the party in Marisiton yesterday, didn't she? Why didn't you stay there with her? What made you come back here instead?"
Elara leaned back against Adrian's chest, feeling the rumble of his low chuckle.
He teased, "Even with me right here, you're calling me a jerk in your dreams. If I hadn't shown up, you'd probably have stormed off in a huff, right?"
Elara pouted, "Aren't you worried Josie might run off?"
Adrian chuckled, "Would be better if she did run. But she won't." His words carried layers of meaning, making it impossible to discern what he was really thinking.
Elara gave him a probing look, her tone deceptively light. "She's just not that into you, huh? You go off with other women and she won't even bat an eye. Are you using me to make her jealous? Am I just some convenient pawn in your little game?"
Adrian raised his hand and dabbed a bit of foam on her nose. "Where do you get all these wild ideas from? Aren't you hungry?"
Elara shook her head. "Nope."
"I'm hungry," Adrian said as he gently rinsed the suds off Elara's hands and turned off the faucet.
Elara pouted in dissatisfaction. "Only twice? You need to wash them a few more times."
Adrian let out an exasperated laugh. "Quite the little taskmaster, aren't you? You think I'm that dirty?"
'What nonsense!' Elara huffed. "Fine, I'll wash them myself." With that, she reached for the soap dispenser.
Adrian stopped her. He squeezed some hand soap into his palm, worked it into a lather, then gently rubbed the foam onto Elara's hands—washing them for her a third time.
Elara looked at him and asked, "Last time when Sarah mentioned you and Josie, why didn't you let her finish?"
The other day at the restaurant, Sarah had brought up Adrian getting married at thirty. But before she could finish, Adrian smashed his glass on the spot. It was the first time Elara had ever seen him show such open displeasure.
Without mincing words, Adrian had snapped at Sarah, "Instead of meddling in my business, why don't you figure out how to get Yann to care about you and get that marriage license?"
Sarah had stormed off with her bag. Later, Adrian had drunk with Yann until he was completely wasted—clearly in an awful state.
Elara couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer. She asked, "Did you and Josie make some kind of marriage pact for when you turn thirty? Are you really that into her?"
"Ms. Langton, don't cross the line. Understood?" Adrian warned.
"Oh, so when you need me, I'm 'babe,' and when you don't, I'm 'Ms. Langton,' is that it?" Elara angrily snatched her hand away from Adrian, turned on the faucet herself, and said coldly, "Fine. Then please, Mr. Hartley, don't cross the line either."
Elara washed off the soap, brushed past Adrian, and changed in the walk-in closet. When she came out, Adrian had changed too.
The temperature in Hachester was much warmer than in Veritasiton. In September's crisp autumn air, Elara wore just a white slip dress, her long hair flowing down—exactly the way Adrian liked her best.
He took a few steps closer to her. "A friend of mine just opened a new restaurant. How about I take you to try some authentic Hachester cuisine?"
Elara responded coolly with just one word. "Okay."
Adrian took her hand and gave her wrist a gentle squeeze. "You mad?"
Elara yanked her hand out of his grasp and said coldly, "I'm just your personal assistant. Please keep your distance."
'So you want boundaries? Fine. I've got plenty of ways to give them to you,' she thought.