Chapter 17: To Be So... Just Because I Touched an Intimate Garment

Clara lowered her eyes and brushed it off with a few vague words. "I don’t really understand these things; I’m just wearing it for fun."

She took the opportunity to call Chloe over and introduce her. "But I’ve invited someone who actually knows—Chloe, the CEO of Aetheris. You know her."

The second son nodded to Chloe. "It’s a pleasure."

Once Clara had successfully connected the two of them, Chloe began tending to business, and Clara made an excuse to slip away. She sat down in a quiet lounge area, right next to a floor-to-ceiling glass curtain wall.

She stared at the reflection of the pink diamond necklace in the glass for a while. Then, she took out her phone to search for auction information on the gem. Very quickly, she found the auction photos of the "Rosette Nebula" from five months ago. It wasn't just a resemblance; they were identical.

Clara felt a flicker of unease.

A symbol of love?

She absentmindedly toyed with the tassels on the sofa chair.

Meanwhile, the two women who had been making snide remarks earlier had moved away from the crowd. "It’s all your fault. Why did you have to bring up Clara?"

"Chloe was being quite nice to us, but now we’ve gone and offended her."

"We didn't say anything that bad, did we?" One of the girls pulled at the other. "Why is it that every time we cross paths with Clara, we have bad luck? It was the same at the cafe last time."

"Wendy was supposed to come tonight, but her father is tied up in a lawsuit because of Clara’s situation, and he won't even let her leave the island."

Mid-sentence, the two fell silent together. It seemed they both realized the hidden implications and shut their mouths.

Almost simultaneously, someone who had overheard their conversation stopped not far away and greeted them. "Were you just talking about... Clara?"

Recognizing the man, both girls' eyes widened. "Mr... Mr. Gu."

Anyone who watched movies or TV would recognize the name Silas Gu. The scion of a Hong Kong entertainment mogul, he possessed a face that could dominate the industry, yet he chose to be its youngest behind-the-scenes boss.

They hurried to greet him.

Silas gave a simple nod. "Are you two also friends of Clara?"

The corners of their mouths twitched stiffly. They could only manage a dry laugh. "Not exactly, but we respect Sister Clara very much."

Silas understood. "I’m an old classmate of hers, but we haven't met in a long time. Could I trouble you two to introduce me? Thank you."

They? Introducing a TVB mogul? To Clara? It took them quite a while to process the request.

A short while later.

Clara was sitting peacefully when two young women arrived out of nowhere to apologize to her. Honestly, she was bewildered. After listening for a while, she finally remembered who they were. They were the "sisters" who had leaked the truth about her birth and mocked her in the group chat along with Wendy. She had also seen them at the cafe.

It seemed someone had scared them, and now they were apologizing and saying someone over there wanted to see her.

Clara looked around. Perhaps it was Chloe, or perhaps it was her second brother who had just arrived. But both of them seemed to be surrounded by various CEOs at the party.

She didn't pay it much mind. Just as she was about to look away, she caught sight of another figure in a daze. Clara’s gaze froze.

Silas Gu walked up to her, his glass lightly clinking against hers. "Long time no see."

"When I saw the guest list from the organizers, I almost thought I’d misread it."

As Silas sat down in front of her, Clara wanted to recognize him but didn't quite dare. She asked tentatively, "I'm sorry, you are...?"

Silas: "..."

He let out a light laugh and introduced himself. "Silas. I’m Silas Gu."

Clara’s thoughts were tugged back into the past. A name long-lost and unfamiliar echoed in her ear. It really was him.

For a moment, Clara felt as if she were back in high school when Chloe came to pick her up. She had seen that much-admired yet humble and polite youth from afar in the crowd. Chloe had told her then, "Him? Silas Gu."

"His father is a movie mogul, a former TVB Best Actor who has moved behind the scenes. Silas is a celebrity at school."

Clara met him again later in the History and Museology club. He was the president and took great care of her. She heard he held many positions, and it seemed she ran into him everywhere. Gradually, it turned into an innocent, budding affection for Clara. A vague beginning, followed by a vague ending.

His voice rose, sounding like the clear tone of a younger man. "Your old phone number was disconnected; I haven't been able to reach you."

"The organizers said you had arrived in Paris and would be at the party tonight," his voice softened slightly, "so I came."

Clara said apologetically, "I’m sorry. It’s been so long since I saw you. I thought it looked like you just now, but..."

Silas gestured. "Have I changed that much?"

Clara’s eyes curved into a smile. "A little."

But a boy used to a school uniform and a man used to a suit naturally gave off a different feeling.

Silas looked down. "So have you."

He felt Clara had changed because she had grown up; she was no longer the sixteen-year-old girl from back then. Because of this, he still wasn't quite used to looking her in the face; he preferred looking at the hem of her dress, the sparkle of her heels peeking out, or her shadow.

Clara remembered the last time she saw him was the night she received her admission notice to the University of Beijing’s gifted youth program. They had talked vaguely about where they wanted to go.

Silas had asked her, "Do you have to go to the capital?"

Clara had replied, "Besides the capital, there is nowhere in the world better suited for me to study Museology."

She asked him in return, "What about you? Do you have to go abroad?"

Silas smiled. "To study film, I definitely have to go abroad."

Their conversation had been light, except for the fact that he never broke the tension between them, which had left Clara a bit disappointed. Before she left, she had asked him, "Don't you have anything to say to me?"

Silas looked at her and remained silent for a long time. "You’re too young."

Clara was sixteen when she was admitted to the gifted youth program; Silas was eighteen. At first, Clara naively thought that if he spoke up, they could try a long-distance relationship. But he didn't, so she let it go. It was probably right not to start.

Her feelings for Silas were actually quite shallow. If she had loved him deeply, they wouldn't have slowly lost contact. It was just that the first person you liked but didn't end up with is always special. So much so that later, Clara would compare every suitor to him, feeling they had to be better than him to be worthy of her.

Unfortunately, none of them had measured up.

Elliot was held up not far away by a group of talking CEOs. In a gap between conversations, he spotted Clara chatting happily with another man. And that man, he recognized.

Silas Gu.

The three brothers knew all about Silas and Clara. When Clara was in school, she couldn't go three sentences in a conversation without mentioning "Brother Silas." She even said she wanted to introduce them. At that time, the brothers were only unhappy because she had found a "new brother" outside.

Now, things were different. They all knew that their sister, who usually hadn't "awakened" emotionally, had once had a man on her mind during her youth. Even if it was a simple crush, it was enough to give them a sense of crisis.

So, when Silas ran into him by chance two years ago and asked for Clara’s contact information, Elliot had given him a fake number. Now, it seemed he couldn't stop them from reconnecting.

After the party, Elliot and Clara returned to the hotel together. Clara sat in the car scrolling through Silas’s social media feed. There wasn't much there besides work—movie releases or promotions for friends.

As she watched, a message notification popped up at the top of the chat. It was from Chloe: 【Pity you were busy tonight.】

Before Clara could reply, Chloe added: 【Actually, not a pity. I heard Silas basically never comes to these events. He only came today because he saw your name on the list.】

Clara didn't know what to say.

Chloe continued: 【I did some digging; he’s stayed single.】

【Also, he just won a gold award for film production last year. Have you seen that movie?】

Clara hesitated: 【Which movie?】

Chloe played coy: 【You’ll know when you see it.】 She then sent a link.

Before Clara could open it, she felt a shadow fall over her. She instinctively flipped her phone face down and looked up into Elliot’s slightly dark, almond-shaped eyes. "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing," Elliot said lazily. His gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips, then to her slender neck and the necklace.

Clara saw him holding a tie clip and reaching his hand toward her. She tried to dodge, but Elliot used the tie clip to lift the necklace hanging between her collarbones. "Why are you hiding?"

Her collarbone felt a chill. Elliot’s voice carried the heaviness of post-drinking dullness. "Let me see your new necklace."

He was a bit too close. But he really was just looking at the necklace.

Elliot asked huskily, "A gift from Silas?"

Clara pushed his hand away. "No."

the pink diamond dropped back from his tie clip, swaying gently against her beautiful collarbone line, clashing against her snow-white skin.

"Then who gave it to you?"

Clara couldn't say it. This diamond was a wedding gift from Quentin. She didn't even dare think about the deeper meaning of the diamond. She turned to look at the street outside. "I heard you only arrived this morning. Why didn't you tell me?"

Elliot could tell she was clearly changing the subject. His voice grew even huskier. "Jet lag." He continued, "When did you two get back in touch?"

"We only met tonight; we haven't been in touch before." Clara counted on her fingers. "Haven't I told you everything about what happened between us before?"

It was true. Clara had told him the most about her and Silas. Likely because she always thought he was the best person to listen to her teenage thoughts. She had no secrets from him. When she was pursued in university, she would tell him and ask him to help vet them. He deserved part of the credit for Clara being single until now.

But now, she was actually keeping secrets from him. "Has anyone been pursuing you lately?"

Clara flatly denied it. "No."

Little liar.

Elliot’s gaze swept over the Rosette Nebula. "Then, what do you think of Silas?"

Clara pursed her lips. "He’s alright. We haven't seen each other in too long."

"He’s more mature than before, but he was always quite attentive and thoughtful."

Elliot made it direct. "Then do you like the old him better, or the current him?"

Clara was caught off guard by such a blunt question. "Have you had too much to drink?"

Elliot withdrew his gaze. "Perhaps."

Clara stopped him from asking further. "From now on, neither of us is allowed to speak. Go to bed early once we get to the hotel."

The car soon stopped in the hotel’s underground parking lot. Cherry took Clara back to her room first. Elliot sat alone in the car, unresponsive for a long time. His assistant waited by the car for a while before speaking. "Sir?"

Leaning back in the dark, quiet car, Elliot signaled hoarsely, "Go find out who the buyer of that Rosette Nebula was."

"Yes, sir."

Just as the assistant was about to leave, Elliot stopped him. "And..."

"Send me information on Silas Gu’s situation over these past few years."

"Understood."

Clara was still in a good mood tonight. She stepped into the suite in her heels, shed her complex gown, and prepared for a bath. However, she still dazed out when she saw the necklace in the mirror. Even looking at it made her feel guilty.

She took the necklace off and placed it in its jewelry box, trying not to think about it.

The bathtub was filled with rose petals, with toiletries, fruit, and sparkling water placed nearby. Clara removed her towel and stepped into the water, causing ripples on the surface. The water rose past her well-proportioned legs. As she sat down, it created a surge that hit the edges and then rushed back to embrace her, submerging her white porcelain-like skin. She was soaked and soft.

Clara hummed a little tune and leaned back. Thinking of her precious kitten at home, she followed her daily routine and took her phone to check the monitor. Usually, she checked on Cookie during the day, but today she had been busy with the party. She wondered how he was doing.

She tapped the screen to open the monitor. The screen brightened from black to reveal a small cat's face. Seeing the red light turn on, the round face began to paw at the screen incessantly. The audio filled with the rustling sound of paw pads rubbing against the lens.

The rubbing tickled Clara’s heart. She said coquettishly, "What is it, baby?"

Just as she asked, a furry paw gave a light push, and the image flipped. After a moment of chaos, the video was now pointed directly at a man who had just come out of the bathroom and was changing into a robe!

Clara was met with the high-impact sight of broad shoulders, shoulder blades, and powerful, bulging muscle lines. She let out a startled cry, and her phone fell outside the bathtub.

Quentin hadn't put his robe on yet; it was draped over his arms, radiating the masculine hormones of a mixed-race physique. He heard the chaotic sound and turned his head slightly toward the camera. Drops of water fell from his damp hair.

Cookie was still pawing at the little device.

Clara realized as soon as she cried out that the other side could hear her. She covered her mouth and froze for two seconds before frantically scrambling to pick up the phone. Just as she was about to turn off the monitor, she saw Quentin walking toward her in the distance.

The man leaned down and reached out. His well-defined fingers were magnified infinitely in the video frame as he gripped the device with direct and clear intent.

Quentin took her away. "What are you trying to see?"

The monitor image was somewhat dark, and coupled with his dark robe, it created a sense of unidentifiable unease. The robe had a deep V-neck, revealing his smooth collarbone and the water droplets sliding down his neck and Adam's apple into the depths of his garment.

Clara had the illusion that he could see her through the screen. She sneakily placed the phone on a nearby stand and shrank her whole body beneath the rose petals, whispering into the microphone, "I wasn't trying to see anything."

"I was just looking at Cookie."

After she finished, Quentin placed the robot down, pointing the camera at the cat bed nearby. He wasn't in the frame, but if Clara guessed correctly, he had placed the robot on their nightstand. She even saw a copy of

Game Theory

used as a stand for the robot in a corner of the frame.

Quentin’s voice sounded off-screen, but from a very close distance. "In Paris?"

"Yes."

Quentin appraised her behavior. "You left very suddenly."

Clara fabricated an explanation. "A friend in Paris suddenly called me over that day. I... I didn't have time to tell you."

There was no response from Quentin for a long time. Instead, Cookie approached from his bed, meowing to rub against her. As a male cat, Cookie was more clingy with Clara at home.

However, a man’s hand soon appeared in the frame, stopping the kitten from rubbing against the robot and pinching its chin. The veins on his arm were visible with the movement of his fingers. It was both a gesture of control and comfort.

Quentin’s low voice sounded again, exposing her motive directly: "To be so aggrieved... just because I touched an intimate garment?"