Chapter 645

Ella rubbed her hands together nervously as she entered Lorenzo’s room. According to Stephanie, Ella had been avoiding Lorenzo for the past few days. She couldn’t help it, though. Every time she was around him, she seemed to mess things up. It wasn’t just messing up; it was making a fool of herself. But after what had just happened, and after hearing what Cecil had said, Ella knew she had to control herself.

“Mr. Moretti, are you okay?” Ella asked cautiously, standing by the bed.

Lorenzo glanced at her. “Do I look okay?”

Ella stammered, “Well…” He didn’t look okay. He was injured, and if she had hurt him any worse with her little stunt, he might have ended up six feet under. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.” She had been saying that a lot lately. Ella had apologized more times around Lorenzo than she had in her entire life.

Lorenzo said, “Get me a glass of water.”

Ella fell silent again.

“What? You don’t want to? Want to continue being lazy and doing nothing?”

“No, no. I’ll go right away, right now. Just wait a moment.” She couldn’t dare say such a thing at that moment. She had caused such a big incident. If she dared to say something irresponsible, it would be very dangerous.

Ella quickly turned around to pour Lorenzo a glass of water. In less than five minutes, the water was delivered to Lorenzo. “Mr. Moretti, your water.” At that moment, Ella’s tone couldn’t be more obedient.

Lorenzo looked at her, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes. “Peel me an apple.”

“Okay!” Ella hurried to peel the apple.

In short, no matter how lazy she was when she was with Stephanie before, she was now that diligent in front of Lorenzo. Whatever Lorenzo said, she didn’t dare to neglect him. In a few minutes, the apple was neatly placed in front of Lorenzo, and she thoughtfully forked a piece and handed it to him. “Please, have a bite.”

Lorenzo took the apple from her, impressed by her obedience and diligence, and took a bite. Sweet juice filled his mouth.

“Is it good?” Ella asked.

Lorenzo nodded. “Ella,” he began.

“Yes,” Ella said.

“Are you getting used to being around me?” he inquired.

Ella was speechless. She thought, ‘Used to it? To these terrifying days? Honestly, wasn’t it always nerve-wracking around Lorenzo? How can I ever get used to this?’

Thinking about her experiences with Lorenzo, especially the two shootouts, Ella took a deep breath. “I’m trying my best to adapt,” she replied. Ever since she found out her mother was the former leader of the Dark Portal, Ella had been trying to adapt to this kind of life. Getting used to it was impossible, but adapting was a must. Because there was no other way. Her life would probably be like this from now on.

“It’s good that you’re trying to overcome it,” Lorenzo said, nodding at her words.

Ella lowered her head, unsure how to respond. Wait, she still needed to ask Lorenzo what kind of reward he wanted. With that in mind, Ella raised her head. “Well, what reward do you want?”

Ella thought, ‘Well… When I was on the phone with Stephanie earlier, I thought it might be awkward to ask directly. But then I couldn’t think of a better way!’

As she asked the question, Ella’s mind flashed back to her conversation with Stephanie. Without waiting for Lorenzo to speak, Ella spoke again, asking even more directly, “Before, when I said I wanted to take responsibility for you, you didn’t say anything. Did you not want to get married?”

Lorenzo raised an eyebrow at her words but remained silent, his gaze fixed on her. Ella tried to muster her courage and meet his gaze, but his eyes were too intense. She couldn’t help but swallow. “Then… do you want my body?” The words hung in the air, leaving the room in complete silence.

Lorenzo’s eyes, already deep and unreadable, seemed to grow even more profound as he continued to stare at her.

Ella stammered, “Well…” But she had no other choice. She had thought about it for a long time but couldn’t figure out how to ask, so she just cut to the chase. “Well, you see…” Ella trailed off, unsure what to say next. Especially since Lorenzo was just staring at her intensely without saying a word, the pressure was immense. At the same time, she desperately wanted to see her mother.

Time ticked by, and five minutes passed with Lorenzo still silent. Under his gaze, Ella felt sweat trickling down her back. She cleared her throat. “Well, how many times?”

Lorenzo’s eyes narrowed. “How many times?” he echoed. Clearly, he wasn’t keeping up with Ella’s abrupt shift in the topic—or, rather, no one could be expected to.

Ella pressed on. “How many times will it take to see my mom?”

“Your body?”

Ella nodded, her entire body feeling like it was on fire. She didn’t need a mirror to know how flushed her face must be. She was truly going all out.

Lorenzo was speechless, and silence fell once more. What scared Ella the most was his current silence. His deep, unreadable gaze made it impossible to decipher his thoughts. But she desperately wanted to escape her current predicament and reunite with her mother.

Besides, she had tarnished Lorenzo’s reputation. Offering herself as compensation wasn’t entirely accurate; it was more like taking responsibility for her actions. She had already agreed to marry Lorenzo, and yet he remained silent. She thought, ‘Does this mean he only desired her body and had no intention of entering a lifelong commitment with her?’

However, despite her straightforward proposal, his continued silence puzzled her. She thought, ‘Could I have misconstrued his intentions? If so, it would be incredibly embarrassing.’

As these thoughts swirled in Ella’s mind, her wrist was suddenly grasped by a large, warm hand. She cried out in surprise, dropping the plate of apple slices with a loud crash. Apple pieces scattered across the floor. By the time Ella could react, she found herself on the bed, enveloped in Lorenzo’s embrace. Their faces were inches apart, their breaths mingling in the space between.

Ella’s body felt like it was on fire. Gazing into his deep-set eyes from such close proximity, she couldn’t help but swallow nervously. “Mr. Moretti…” Before she could finish, she lost her balance and tumbled out of Lorenzo’s arms and onto the bed. Ella gasped for air, instinctively trying to scramble away. But Lorenzo caught her arm, pulling her back as he leaned in.