Meanwhile, in Estrella's room, she prepared her work clothes along with her backpack.
As she set them down, she paused to think.
I'll finally return to work tomorrow.
The last few days had been a roller coaster of emotions.
From stomach cancer… to a contract marriage.
But tomorrow, she would return to her normal life.
She knew her life wouldn't be the same as before—at least not for now.
She was still entangled with Luciano for a few more days.
Thinking about Luciano, she remembered the promise she had made to Chairman Banks.
From the very beginning of the contract marriage, Estrella had only intended to get close to Luciano when necessary.
She wasn't interested in paying him any special attention.
But now, that seemed impossible, since she had already promised Chairman Banks to make Luciano happy.
She didn't consider herself a good person, but she never broke her promises.
But how am I supposed to make that cold devil happy?
Estrella facepalmed.
Why had she made that promise in the first place?
Gosh, she could feel a headache coming.
Just then, her phone rang. It was Stella calling.
She picked up. "Hey, Stels."
"Where is your home address?" Stella asked.
"Why?" Estrella frowned in confusion.
"I'm coming to deal with you."
Estrella immediately understood.
A dramatic shout came from the other end. "So if I don't call you, you won't call me?"
Estrella squinted her eyes. Stels must have been a parrot in her past life—how could she be so loud?
"Don't worry, I'll deal with you tomorrow."
"Why tomorrow?"
"Because I'll be back in Milan tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? Are you joking?"
"What do you think?"
The corners of Estrella's lips lifted. "I'll come and pick you up."
"That would be perfect. I'll deal with you at the airport."
"It would be an honor dying in your hands, Miss Potter."
"So cheesy."
Both of them burst into laughter.
As the laughter subsided, Stella asked,
"So… how is your husband treating you?"
"Not bad."
"Is he handsome?"
That question made Estrella pause.
Luciano's face appeared in her mind, and she studied it for a moment.
"He is…"
Stella's tone turned teasing. "He is? So, do you have a crush on him?"
"That proud jerk?" Estrella scoffed, shaking her head. "Guess again."
Stella sighed in disappointment. "That's sad to hear."
"I told you already—it's a contract marriage. No feelings involved," Estrella said.
Downstairs, Butler Neil was directing the maids to throw away the flowers in the sitting room.
"Yes, and that too," he said, pointing to a flower vase near the window.
The maids were quite familiar with him. They knew he was from the old house, so they followed his instructions.
Aunty Smith came out of the kitchen to call Estrella and Luciano for breakfast, only to witness the scene.
She stared in shock. "What is going on here?"
Butler Neil turned to her with a smile. "I asked the maids to dispose of the flowers."
"I can see that," she replied sharply.
"And who gave you the right to do that? Do you think you can just come here and tell people what to do?"
The maids were shocked by Aunty Smith's outburst. They had never seen her like that.
Butler Neil was about to explain himself when they heard footsteps coming from the stairs.
They looked up to see Luciano descending.
"Mr. Banks."
"Young Master."
Luciano walked toward the dining room.
Aunty Smith glared at Butler Neil before following behind Luciano.
Luciano sat down to eat but was interrupted by Butler Neil.
"Why don't you call the young mistress to join you?"
Luciano paused and looked up at him.
"She will come and eat if she is hungry," he said coldly.
Butler Neil nodded. "Then I will inform the Chairman."
Luciano's gaze sharpened. "Are you threatening me?"
Butler Neil only smiled in return, not a hint of wavering in his expression.
Luciano had no choice but to go and call Estrella. He had a lot on his plate and didn't want to deal with the old man for now.
He stood up and turned to Aunty Smith. "Where is her room?"
Aunty Smith was in disbelief. Was Mr. Banks really going to call Estrella?
Still, she gave him directions.
Soon, Luciano arrived at Estrella's room.
He pushed the door open without bothering to knock.
Inside, Estrella had switched to a video call with Stella and was currently showing her the room.
"Wow, this is beautiful," Stella said in awe. "Your husband must be so rich."
"It's too childish for my liking," Estrella replied.
"You think this is childish? Some people would die for a room like this. It looks like something out of a fairy tale."
Estrella heard the door open and stood up.
She turned to see Luciano walking in.
"You really have a talent for barging into people's rooms," she said.
Luciano ignored her sarcasm. "Let's go and eat."
Estrella scoffed. Why would he come to call her to eat? Didn't he say they were supposed to keep their distance in private?
The brief silence was suddenly broken by a petrifying scream.
"What the—?!"
Both of them turned to look at Estrella's phone.
Stella was covering her mouth, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"Luciano Banks is your contract husband?!"