Chapter 303: Safety First
Emily swallowed hard, her expression a mix of hesitation and desperate pleading. "I know this is hard to ask. I don’t want you to get mad, and I don’t want you to say no either, but... April, please."
April tilted her head, analyzing her sister’s body language. Normally, Emily wouldn’t plead or put herself out there like this; she preferred to keep her feelings tucked away and quietly investigate things on her own. For her to act this openly meant whatever she wanted was extremely important to her.
"It’s fine. Just tell me what you want," April said calmly, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.
Emily breathed out, a deep blush instantly rushing up her neck and staining her cheeks. "I want to go out with Philippe tonight."
April’s dark eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Philippe? You want to go out with him? Like... on a date?"
"Maybe not a date!" Emily stammered quickly, her blush deepening as she waved her hands. "We wouldn’t call it a date... but we are trying to get to know each other better!"
April stared at her sister, her mind immediately forecasting the consequences. This situation with Philippe is escalating much faster than I anticipated.
April understood Emily’s blossoming feelings, but her logical brain couldn’t ignore the massive, life-or-death reality hanging over their heads. Emily was thinking purely with her heart, completely blind to the bigger picture.
If Philippe didn’t win the entire competition at the end of the event, he wouldn’t earn a spot in Xavier’s secure underground bunker. And when the apocalyptic began, Philippe would be left out in the open to struggle and would likely perish.
If Emily falls for him now, April thought, her gaze hardening slightly with protective concern, what is she going to do when the end comes?
"If you really want to go, fine. I won’t stop you," April said, her voice even yet firm. "But I’ll have a guard tail you."
Emily blinked, her enthusiastic expression faltering slightly. "A guard? Why?"
"Emily, I know you wouldn’t like it if I went with you, so please, take a guard with you," April explained, her eyes searching her sister’s face with deep sincerity. "He’ll trail you from a distance so he doesn’t ruin the atmosphere. And don’t even think about losing him, not even by accident—that’s the only condition I have for you. If anything happens to you, I don’t think I’d be able to forgive myself."
Emily let out a small sigh, rolling her eyes affectionately. She didn’t particularly care for the idea of a shadow on her night out, but she couldn’t argue with April’s earnest concern.
"Safety first, after all," Emily murmured, offering a small smile. "Alright, I’ll take the guard with me."
"Alright. I’ll go get a trustworthy one from Xavier," April told her, suggesting they head back to the estate first so Emily could prepare.
On the drive back, April’s phone buzzed repeatedly in her palm with a flurry of incoming messages.
The first was from Nat, spamming her with texts about how he was losing his mind, asking if her cramps were gone, and blabbering passionately about wanting to keep her all to himself. She swiped it away without responding.
Next was Alexander, who sent a dramatic crying emoji, complaining that his grandfather was working him to the bone today and preventing him from seeing her face. Take heart, April typed back briskly.
Finally, there was Oliver, politely asking if he could procure a small sample of her blood and a few strands of her hair for ’analytical purposes.’ A total creep, she thought, immediately ignoring it.
She might harbor a soft spot for them, but there was no turning a blind eye to their overbearing intensity and occasional stupidity. It was best to leave them on read and deal with the aftermath later.
When they arrived at the estate, Emily immediately bounced upstairs, announcing she needed to find something nice to wear. April watched her go, mentally wondering what on earth was wrong with the clothes she was already wearing. She couldn’t wrap her head around the unnecessary hassle.
Shrugging off the thought, April walked down the corridor toward Xavier’s study, where the maids mentioned he had shut himself in after returning early.
She raised her hand and knocked firmly on the wooden door.
"Xavier?" she called out.
Instead of a spoken reply, the sharp sound of a heavy crash echoed from inside the room, followed by the clatter of objects tumbling onto the floor.
April immediately opened the door, stepping into the study to find Xavier frantically trying to tidy up the mess on the floor.
"Oh, April... you’re here," he said quickly, his voice tight. He kept his head lowered, picking up scattered papers without once lifting his eyes to meet her gaze. "What can I help you with?"
"I need a trustworthy guard," April replied smoothly, watching his fidgety movements with sharp interest. "Someone good at tailing. I need them for Emily since she’s going out on a date with someone."
"A date?" Even Xavier looked up in brief surprise at that, but he quickly shook his head, brushing it off as not his business. "I’ll assign Leo to do it. He’s very discreet. He’ll be waiting outside for her shortly."
He pulled out his phone, tapping rapidly on the screen to send the order.
"Thank you," April said, but she didn’t turn to leave. She had already noticed the deliberate, unnatural way he was avoiding her eyes. "Xavier," she called softly.
"Yes?"
"Look at me."
Before he could process it, she had already closed the distance between them, stepping right into his personal space.
Xavier immediately panicked, his posture going rigid. He kept his gaze darting everywhere but her face. "What’s... what’s wrong, April? Is there something else?"
"You’ve been avoiding my eyes this entire time," April noted, her tone calm, analytical, and completely direct. "In fact, you’ve been dodging me since this morning. It’s almost like you don’t want to see me."
Xavier’s head snapped back, his hands waving in front of him as a deep flush instantly rushed up his throat. "No, no! How could that be? Of course I want to see you!"
April tilted her head slightly at his defensive reaction. "If that’s true, why are you stepping back?"
As she took another step forward, Xavier instinctively backed up until he bumped against the edge of his mahogany desk. But April didn’t stop. She closed the gap entirely, pressing her body right up against his.
Xavier practically strained his back, leaning as far back over the desk as he could just to create a few inches of distance from her overwhelming proximity.
A subtle, knowing smirk touched April’s lips.
"Are you shy?" she asked, her dark eyes glittering with quiet amusement. "Is this because of what happened last night? When you..." she leaned in a little bit more and whispered, "Sucked my breasts?"
Xavier choked on his breath, his eyes widening. "What? No! I—what? I’m not—" He was literally stammering, the refined, composed tycoon completely reduced to a blushing mess.
April raised her hands, resting her palms flat against his broad chest. "Xavier, I didn’t think you were the shy type. Of course, you pegged yourself as boring, but never shy. To think you would have a reaction like this..."
"No, I don’t... I don’t know what you’re talking about," Xavier managed to rasped out, his heart hammering violently beneath her palms.
Underneath his shirt, his chest felt solid, firm, and heavily built. He didn’t have the wild, unbridled bulk of a fighter like Nat, but beneath his gentlemanly exterior lay a strong, incredibly fit frame from years of rigorous workouts and disciplined training.
And right now, every muscle in his body was coiled tight as a spring.