Sweet Subterfuge

Chapter 100

Kevan had been accustomed to the filthiness of humanity since he was very young.

He’d never trusted anyone–not even his own parents.

The education he’d received told him that there were only two kinds of people in this world–those who were

useful to him, and those who weren’t.

He’d never had deep interactions with people either, let alone go on to develop feelings for them.

Joy, sorrow, anger, despair–all those emotions were nothing but distractions–luxuries he couldn’t afford.

A man like him. He supposed he was more of a perfect robot than a human. After all, what was he other than

the machine created single–handedly by his family in order to inherit the family business?

He could perfect a great many things, and none of those would be remotely flawed.

Everyone he knew, and everyone else who knew him, had nothing but praise for him.

And he’d never really questioned how wrong his upbringing or his life had been.

That was until he met Larissa.

Larissa was an unexpected presence in his life.

He enjoyed the feeling of controlling everything, but Larissa’s presence was not within his calculations. And yet. he didn’t hate it. Quite the contrary, he rather liked having her in his life.

Because of Larissa, he grew to feel what joy, sorrow, and anger were.

Or, rather, all the joy, sorrow, and anger in his life were solely because of her.

So, he could not understand why Larissa would even grieve over Travis‘ death.

Especially when, in his mind, betrayal was a serious offense.

Everyone who’d betrayed him in the past had ended up with fates crueler than death.

Still, he had to admit that his jealousy had played a considerable role in his outburst earlier as well.

But of course, Larissa had no idea about any of this.

It didn’t stop her from easily forgiving him right there, however.

“I accept your apology,” she’d said.

Larissa supposed those who were good–looking had their advantages after all.

Faced with his forlorn expression riddled with guilt, she was immediately rendered speechless.

Moreover, he’d never had any ill will toward her. He was just trying to stand up for her, albeit his words were rather harsh. Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

Kevan observed her facial expressions carefully.

Only when he was certain that she hadn’t just forgiven him because she felt pressured to, did he finally feel at

ease.

“Are you still sad?” he asked.

Larissa didn’t know how to respond to that so she pressed her lips together and remained silent.

Kevan patted the empty space beside him. “Lie down. I want to show you something.”

Fuck–what a terrible line.

A few inappropriate images flashed through her mind, especially when Kevan later added, “I promise you’ll like it.”

“I refuse.” Larissa wanted to say.

And yet, what came out of her mouth was, “What is it?”

Kevan didn’t answer her question directly. “Just lie down and you’ll see.”

Larissa hesitated before climbing onto the bed and lying as far away from him as possible.

The space between the two of them was so large that they could still fit another person. Kevan glanced at her, but she showed no visible reaction.

He laid flat on his back, his right arm extended to the back. Finding the star–shaped button on the wall behind his bed, he pressed it, and the initially dull stars glowed a soft shade of gold.

At the same time, the other lights in the room were extinguished, the nebulae patterns on the ceiling on top of them gradually fading until they finally disappeared and revealed the vast, never–ending night sky along with countless stars sparkling in its depths.

Larissa couldn’t help but gape at the display.

Never before had she seen such a magnificent and magical view before, and so her first reaction was. “Is this some kind of projection?”

“No.” Kevan pressed another star–shaped button, and the ceiling–or, rather, the two transparent glass panels separated and moved to both sides until they completely disappeared from sight.

The view remained the same, apart from the lack of a roof that separated them from the outside. The chilly mountain breeze suffused the air, the cold so intense that Larissa couldn’t help but shiver.