The way Viktor said it confidently sounded so true that it left no room for Taya to refute nor others to suspect whether it was a lie.

Taya wanted to say something, but she didn't, thinking it was best to let Viktor win this one. However, she gave him yet another subtle glare seeing his smug smile.

Viktor didn't hesitate to claim himself to be her brother-in-law since he knew that no one knew the name of her husband or his whereabouts, including him, and at the same time, there was possibly enough room for a romantic encounter with his 'sister-in-law'.

After all, he had already read too many stories in his pastime where the estranged or divorced sister-in-law falls for the hot and charming brother-in-law who happens to be in the vicinity and gets rid of her loneliness.

And precisely because of this, Denys felt threatened in Lucien's presence even though he was older than him.

But at the same time, he learned that Taya's husband's last name should be Vlad as well.

And at the same time, he couldn't help but wonder where her husband was and why her brother-in-law seemed to pop up out of nowhere and also seemed to be quite close with her.

A speculation popped up in his mind, but he still did not dare to believe it.

He awkwardly smiled as he returned Lucien's handshake and said, "Aha, I see. I am Denys Mai. I am Taya's close friend and her colleague as well. We have been together, I mean working together for ten years. It's quite a pleasure to meet you."

'I know what you did there, chump. But you tried, heh', Viktor inwardly scoffed, seeing Denys' vain attempt at remarking his "closeness" with Taya and also trying to create some misunderstanding through his words.

But it seemed so silly and amateurish for someone like Viktor and didn't feel the least bothered at all. Even Taya was too distracted to take note of it.

However, her friends Jessie and Mary couldn't help but look at Taya with a complicated expression, indirectly asking her for an explanation and how her hot brother-in-law magically popped out of nowhere.

They felt a bit upset that Taya hadn't told them that her brother-in-law was such a handsome and charming young man who was absolutely a visual treat to just look at.

They believed that not even the top models they knew could even remotely compare to this man's looks.

Even Sarah couldn't help but keep staring at Lucien from the side as if she couldn't get enough of his handsomeness.

The more she looked at him, the more fatally bewitching he seemed to appear.

"Nice. It's good that Taya has such a qualified and talented assistant," Viktor replied with a genuine smile as he continued to shake Denys' hand.

Denys' eyes twitched for a second, and he felt that he was approaching the limit where he could no longer put up a smiling face.

The way Viktor put his words made it sound like he was complimenting him but at the same time showing that he was beneath Taya and someone who was way out of her league.

Denys was the one who understood this the most but hearing Lucien's sincere tone, he couldn't make out whether he innocently said it or if he purposefully made a jab at him.

Taya wanted to correct Viktor, but then seeing the sly glint in his eyes, she knew he was purposefully trying to roast Denys and inwardly facepalmed, wondering why he was simply picking on this poor man.

Jessie and Mary felt embarrassed for Denys but didn't bother to correct Lucien thinking that they might make it even more embarrassing for Denys.

"So, Taya, care to introduce these three beautiful ladies?" Viktor asked with a smoldering smile which, like magic, dazzled all three women, and even Denys and Sean were distracted by his smile.

Taya saw the stars sparkling in her three friends and felt like giving a pinch on Viktor's thick skin.

But she could only introduce her friends with a forced smile, and as she introduced them, the three women eagerly exchanged greetings with him.

"So, Lucien, are you modeling for a living?" Jessie asked excitedly.

"Yes, yes. You must be modeling for some hotshot brand, right?" Mary asked with pure curiosity.

For once, Sarah agreed with the questions of these two and added with the best smile possible, "He must be. Look at how handsome and hot he is. I bet all the sports companies must be running after you to model for them."

Denys never thought that he would be feeling so irritated by other women fawning over some other man before him since that was something that never happened in his life before.

But now he felt otherwise and saw Sean giving him a comforting smile which was the only thing he could do for poor Denys, considering how Lucien was stealing all the limelight. Even Sarah, who usually gave excessive attention to Denys now, didn't even seem to glance in his direction.

It was as if Lucien was exuding a fatal aura that could lure beauties and ensnare them with his dazzling smile.

Viktor acted overwhelmed by their comments and laughed as he waved his hand, "No, no. You guys flatter me, haha. I am actually unemployed and just living in the present, trying to seek the meaning behind my existence. After all, what's the point in doing anything else if we do not understand ourselves first?"

Viktor spoke with a confident air without any signs of shame for being jobless and instead made the others feel as if he had more profound thinking than them.

This only made the three women impressed with him, not at all asking him why he was finding it hard to land a job.

Even Sarah felt like she gained some enlightenment hearing his words when she thought about herself.

However, only Taya knew that despite how casually Viktor put his words, she knew that he was speaking what he was feeling in his heart, about the last part of his sentence.

However, Viktor continued as he put his arm around Taya's shoulder, "But I promised my beautiful sister-in-law here to take up some part-time jobs at least and not make her worry, haha. That's why after a long time, I decided to stay close to her and give her the support my dumb brother couldn't."

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A/N: We got almost 440 powerstones this week...just a tad short of 500 :# but nevertheless more than before :D Will we make it to 500 nxt week? :3

150 votes = 1 Bonus Chap

200 votes = 2 Bonus Chaps

300 votes = 3 Bonus Chaps

500 votes = 4 Bonus Chaps

750 votes = 5 Bonus Chaps

historical

1k+ = 14ch/week ;)