Taya's brows pulled together as she glanced at the backyard where the others were sitting, "Before that..uh...come inside...I have something to ask you," Taya said as she opened the door and pulled him inside the washroom.

"Ohh, it seems like you still want—"

"Shhh. Enough of the nonsense, and now tell me what really happened and why you are here," Taya asked in a serious tone as she shut the door behind her.

"What do you mean? I searched for you as soon as I knew that guy who was drooling all over you invited you to come to his nice little cottage," Viktor said with narrowed eyes.

"Drooling? What the heck are you talking about?" Taya felt confused and continued, "It's his birthday. Didn't I already say that? We all came to celebrate it and also take a break from our work life. In case you didn't know, it's quite taxing and stressful. And we all have been good friends for more than a decade. If you were here, you would have known."

"Oh, please. I already know enough, and don't tell me you are too dense to know how much that Denys guy is wagging his tail for you. You have to be blind to not see that."

Taya had a look of disbelief, but then she took a deep breath and said, "Okay...Even if he is interested in me or not, I don't see how it all matters. I still don't get why you are getting so worked up. I thought we were done, and we are. You still have a lot of explaining to do for trying to kiss me before them."

Viktor rolled his eyes as he blew through his lips and said, "Fine. We are done. But before, you asked me why my skin was cold, right? Then let me tell you that, while you were busy partying in that big ugly car, more than a dozen armed men were following you. Did you know that? Oh, I am sorry. I guess you were too busy taking a 'break' to know what was right behind you."

"If I didn't kill all those men, I wonder how your 'celebration' would have ended up."

Taya's expression softened as her lips parted and closed multiple times, "W-What...I...I didn't know. I am...sorry. But...who were they, and why would they follow us in the middle of the night?"

Viktor hit the wall in frustration, "Who knows! There can be any number of people in this world who want to hurt you. Their tongues were cut, and I couldn't get any information out of them. Whoever sent them was not doing this for fun, and they wanted somebody in that car dead for sure. They weren't playing around and were fully prepared to assemble all those men."

"Okay, okay. I will call Eva right now and have her check up on those bodies. I mean, they should still be near the road we came through, right?"

"It's of no use. You wouldn't get anything from those bodies. I am sure they all would turn up as unidentified."

Taya sighed as she dropped her head and said, "Okay...but we still are not sure who they were specifically targeting. It could also have been Denys since he is a part of one of the powerful groups. But I will be careful next time."

Viktor took in a deep breath as he gripped Taya's shoulders and said, "Taya, I understand that you are leading a hectic life with your hands full. But never forget that...you live not only for yourself but for those who want you alive and happy as well. So whatever unwanted stress you have...just throw it away since it's not worth it."

Taya's chin dipped as she softly nodded.

He then stepped back as he opened the door, "I will be there."

Taya suddenly raised her head and called out, "Wait! You...uh...must be tired...after taking care of those men without feeding for too long."

She then showed him her wrist as she continued, "So...you can uhm...drink my blood before you go."

Viktor slightly smiled and said, "Later. If we stay here anymore, people might intrude on our privacy, don't you think?"

Taya winced as she felt like smacking her own head for embarrassing herself and turned around to wash her hands to hide her face.

historical

She wondered how she could forget about her friends outside, and even now, they might be suspicious of her staying inside the washroom for too long with Viktor.

Viktor amusedly smiled as he headed out but then as he opened the door, he was welcomed by the faces of two men.

"Oh, Denys and Sean, you guys finished eating so fast? I thought I saw a lot of stuff on your plates," Viktor asked with a slight smile as he closed the door behind him and stood before it, blocking their ways.

Denys smiled, "Yeah, we have been too hungry, hehe. So, if you would uh...kindly, you know.." Denys politely gestured to Viktor to move, but Viktor showed no signs of budging.

"Actually, it's better if you two, you know, go to another washroom. She is currently preoccupied with something private. Haa...it's actually all my fault. I told her we shouldn't at this time, especially with you guys waiting for us. But she insisted, and now she is taking some time to put on some things. You know how women can be meticulous about such things, right? Anyways, you guys know what to do, right?"

Denys' expression became slightly ugly, forming many wild speculations about what happened between Lucien and Taya based on the words he said.

But then he quickly recovered his expression and smiled as he said, "Of course. Sean, let's go to the other one."

Is this his cottage or mine? Denys felt as if today was the worst day of his life and wondered why his birthday had to be today. Otherwise, he would have never come upon this man who seemed to control everything, and he could only watch helplessly.

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