"Then, are you not worried that he will seek revenge by looking for you later?" Nicolae asked again. "I don't want you to be bothered in any way. You have to keep an eye on JM."

"It's okay, I just need to call Petra to help me. He lives in Paris," Marion replied with a laugh. She then moved to look for a camera on the rooftop. After she found it she immediately mouthed something to the camera.

'Marie, it's over now. You don't need to worry.' Marion winked at the camera and then walked toward the door to get down from the roof.

Nic realized that Marie was still watching them through the camera on the rooftop. He waved at the camera and blew a kiss. Mischa just rolled his eyes at Nicolae's actions. He walked after Nicolae and Marion, who had gone down toward the elevator with their hands in their pockets.

KNOCK

KNOCK

Marie, who heard the door to the penthouse was knocked, immediately opened the door. When she saw Nicolae standing in the doorway, the girl rushed up and jumped into his arms. Nicolae quickly caught Marie and laughed. He was pleased to see Marie's enthusiasm.

"Hey, I told you I would be okay, didn't I?" Nicolae said with a chuckle. He stroked Marie's hair and slowly lowered her body. "Oh, by the way ... this is Mischa. You've met Marion."

Marie hurriedly reached out her hand and shook Mischa's hand. "Thank you for your help. Sorry for the trouble."

"Not at all, I happen to be free," said Mischa, nodding.

Marie then hugged Marion enthusiastically. "Ahh ... Marion, you're amazing! I'm impressed by you. What did you give Larkin?"

Marion just chuckled. "I gave him a poison that would kill his p.e.n.i.s. After he makes up for what he had done to you, I will give him the antidote."

"Oh .. did you force him to remove the post this morning?" Marie asked. "Will he do it?"

Marion glanced at the two men nearby while answering. "I don't know ... what do you think? Are there any men willing to lose their manhood for petty stuff?"

They all knew the answer.

"Ahh .. I understand," Marie nodded. "Then, we'll wait how Larkin will correct his mistake earlier. Actually, I can still deny that the person in the photo is Goose. Besides, I'm not using my real identity now. I can easily create a new identity. But I don't know about Nic."

Nicolae shrugged. "I can deny it too. But I want to see that Larkin really wants to make amends."

"Uhm ... okay. Can we not discuss him again? I really don't want to think about that person. I'll talk to Sanna after we arrive in Italy so that she can talk to Julian," Marie finally said.

"We can immediately get ready. Our plane will leave at 3 pm to Rome," Nicolae said.

"I'm leaving soon. See you later," he said.

"Me too. JM will be back soon from the photoshoot. I still have to prepare study materials for her. You know, homeschooling is not easy ... hahaha," Marion said.

"Thank you very much. I'll send you both the wedding invitation later," Nicolae nodded and let the two guests leave.

After closing the door, he took Marie's waist and invited her to pack. He usually only carried a small backpack for traveling. However, because this time he would bring Marie and Summer, he had bought a small suitcase to contain the girls' stuff. The suitcase would arrive together with clothes and more items for the two girls that he had ordered.

At 12, the shipment finally arrived. He quickly packed his few belongings into the suitcase, while Marie examined the clothes that Nicolae had bought her this morning.

"Gosh ... you know me so well," the girl murmured in an awed voice. "I really like all the clothes you chose for me."

Nicolae just smiled at Marie's words. He knew Marie would like his choices because he felt they had the same tastes in clothing.

"I'm glad you like it," the young man answered. "Well, I'm done packing all of my things. There are only a few. Please put everything you want to carry in the suitcase, and I'll carry the bag later."

Marie looked at Nicolae's few items in the suitcase and clicked her tongue. "You're very practical. I thought I was the most practical person in the world, but you have even fewer things than me."

Nicolae smiled and shook his head. "You should have seen my father. When we traveled, he never brought anything with him. He only travels with the shirt on his back. He prefers to buy clothes at his destination."

"Wahhh ... I think you and your father are so alike," Marie commented.

"You will like my father, he is very impressive," Nicolae replied proudly. He loved his father very much and clearly really admired the man.

They got ready, and after lunch, they decided to go to the airport.

***

Vega frowned. She did not understand why Daddy Nic had not given any news. Wasn't he supposed to arrive in Bordeaux yesterday afternoon? Vega thought Nicolae had arrived in the city and would contact them in the morning, but he did not give word even until lunchtime.

When Vega tried to contact his number, Nicolae's cellphone was off. She became worried that something bad had happened with Nicolae. She finally decided to contact her father to find out what had happened.

"Hello, Honey," Alaric's warm voice was heard on the other end of the phone. "How is Bordeaux? Do you learn anything there?"

"We're staying at a chateau, Father. It's fascinating here," Vega said excitedly. "The place is beautiful, and we took a walk to the vineyard."

"Wow ... that seems fun. So you learn about wineries and vineyard?" Alaric asked again.

"Yes, the city is also quite interesting," Vega said again. "Tomorrow, we will go to the cheese factory. There is so much to learn. The people here all think I'm from Paris because I speak perfect French."

"Ahaha ... you really have a gift for languages," Alaric commented. His tone sounded proud of his daughter.

"Father ... do you know what happened to Daddy Nic? He hasn't contacted us. He was supposed to arrive in Bordeaux yesterday afternoon," Vega asked her father. "I'm afraid something happened to him."

"Hmmm ... maybe Nicolae is busy. Something really big happened in Paris yesterday," Alaric said.

He decided to let Nicolae tell Altair and Vega about what happened. He intentionally held back from sharing about Marie and Summer to Vega. He did not want to ruin Nicolae's surprise. Let Nic share it ...