Aunty Smith walked Estrella to her room. As the door opened, Estrella was welcomed by a luxurious sea of blue.
The furniture, the curtains, the bedding—everything in the room was ocean blue.
Aunty Smith asked with an enthusiastic smile, "Do you like it?"
Estrella wanted to say no, but she ended up nodding after seeing the anticipation in Aunty Smith's eyes.
She would have preferred black and gold, or plain white.
But what could she say? Aunty Smith was just too enthusiastic.
Aunty Smith's eyes shone with pride. "I prepared it myself," she boasted.
"You did a great job. Thank you," Estrella said with a smile.
Looking at her pure eyes and innocent smile, Aunty Smith smiled dotingly.
"I'll leave you to explore your room," she said.
Estrella nodded.
Aunty Smith turned to leave but stopped midway.
"If you need anything, call me."
"Okay," Estrella replied.
As soon as she left, Estrella walked further into the room.
She looked around and was dumbfounded.
At first, she thought the room was just girly, but she quickly realized it was… childish.
The bedspread had kitten patterns. The entire room was decorated with a kitten theme.
Does Aunty Smith think I'm a child?
Estrella sighed and could only resign herself to fate.
It was just scenery. She would manage.
She noticed another door and pushed it open.
It was a walk-in closet.
She stepped inside.
Gosh… it looked more like a high-end mall than a closet.
It was filled with clothes, bags, and shoes—all limited editions.
She glanced around and wondered if she could even finish wearing all of this in a year.
After exploring the luxurious room, she finally decided to rest.
She took a shower and lay on the bed.
She pushed the large teddy bear off the bed.
Who hugs a teddy bear at twenty-two?
As she lay there, she looked around the room again.
Everything was made of high-end materials.
She wondered just how rich Luciano really was.
She picked up her phone and made a mental note to visit the pharmacy and get her medications.
Resting her head on the pillow, she drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, Luciano was in his study, attending a video conference meeting.
It was the monthly report meeting. It was supposed to take place in the afternoon, but he postponed it until night.
After all, he had spent the entire day with Estrella for the marriage registration.
But who schedules a meeting past midnight?
Only Luciano.
The employees were visibly sleepy but kept their mouths shut.
Who dared to complain?
No one.
"Report from the finance department," Luciano ordered calmly.
But there was no response.
The finance director had already fallen asleep.
The other employees felt a wave of fear.
He had just made the worst mistake—falling asleep before the boss.
One of the employees called out, "Finance Director!"
The man jolted awake. "What is it?"
He noticed all eyes were on him—especially Luciano's cold gaze, which sent chills down his spine.
"Get your termination letter from HR tomorrow," Luciano said calmly.
The finance director shot up in panic. "Sir, what have I done? I worked so hard to get to this position, please—"
"Terminate his connection," Luciano cut in.
The man became agitated. "My life will be ruined if I lose this job!"
But the next moment, his screen went dark.
His pleas didn't move Luciano in the slightest.
He was called Lucifer for a reason.
Ruthless. Emotionless.
The remaining employees immediately became fully alert.
No one wanted to lose their job.
The meeting ended in the early hours of the morning.
Luciano didn't bother to sleep. He went straight for his morning run.
By the time he returned, it was already early morning.
He took a bath and headed downstairs for breakfast.
As he walked in, the maids greeted him, but he didn't respond.
By the time he reached the dining hall, Aunty Smith was already there.
"Good morning, Mr. Banks," she greeted with a smile.
"Morning," he replied briefly as he took his seat.
He paused before eating, a slight unease settling in his stomach.
Aunty Smith misunderstood his hesitation.
"Are you waiting for your wife?" she asked.
Wife? Luciano thought.
He had actually forgotten he had one.
"I already called her down for breakfast," Aunty Smith added with a knowing smile.
He ignored the implication and began eating.
Just then, the maids greeted, "Good morning, Mrs. Banks."
Estrella couldn't help but feel strange being called that.
But what could she do?
She walked into the dining hall.
Both Aunty Smith and Luciano were dumbfounded.
Her hair was tangled like a bird's nest, she wore a loose robe, and mismatched slippers.
Gosh… what was the young mistress doing?
Estrella scanned the table.
Toast and tea.
Typical rich-people breakfast.
She greeted Aunty Smith, "Good morning."
"Good morning," Aunty Smith replied, amusement evident in her voice.
Estrella didn't bother greeting Luciano.
If he wanted distance, she was fine with it.
Luciano retracted his gaze and continued eating.
His thoughts were unreadable.
After a long silence, Luciano finally spoke.
"We are visiting grandfather today."
He expected a response.
But none came.
He looked up.
Estrella had fallen asleep—while holding a piece of toast near her mouth.
And somehow… she had managed to make him speechless again.
Her head tilted forward, about to hit the table.
Out of reflex, Luciano stood up.
Just before her head could hit the table—
He caught her.
Aunty Smith watched in disbelief.
Wasn't this the same man who hated being ignored?