Chapter 145
145 A Little Vacation
Against Ronan’s expectation, Lucien did not choose to return to Blue Hill City. He instead wanted to go to South Bedford City.
Worried, Alice pulled her son aside for a talk.
“Lucien, Landon is now back with you. Should you not abandon your life among human beings? Come back and live in the pack,” she begged him.
Lucien shook his head gently and hugged his mother.
“Mom, I still have some unfinished business in South Bedford City. I will come back soon.”
He said he would come back, but he said nothing about relocating to the pack house for good.
Since Ronan was also present, Alice decided not to push the matter further and let them go.
“What are you planning to do now?” Ronan asked once they were out of earshot.
“I am thinking of taking a little vacation while reorganizing my life,” Lucien replied. “You said that you wanted to accompany me, right? Then just come with me.”
.....
Ronan shrugged.
They walked toward Ronan’s black Porsche. Noah was already waiting inside. Instead of getting into the car, Ronan knocked at his window instead.
The window rolled down and revealed Noah’s confused face.
“Yes, Alpha?”
“Noah, go home with Jake,” Ronan told his driver while fixing his cufflinks. “I will take the car.”
“Very well, Alpha.”
Noah got out of the driver’s seat and bowed deeply before he went in the direction of the Eternal Sleep Lake to find the Beta.
Ronan slipped into the driver’s seat and Lucien climbed into the front seat.
“I didn’t know that you can drive,” he pointed out. “You have been chauffered since you were a child. When did you learn how to drive?”
Ronan broke into laughter.
“I started wrecking my father’s cars when I was ten. By the time we met, I was able to drive pretty well.”
“Have you ever gotten into an accident?”
“A few, yeah. In case you are wondering, no one has ever been heavily injured or killed. It was mostly me crashing against some inanimate objects. Trees, street poles, walls...”
Walls.
Lucien stared at Ronan.
“How did you not see that there was a wall in front of you?”
“I was in a hurry.”
“... No need to hurry when driving today.”
Ronan flashed Lucien a grin. “Where does Mr. Clearwater want to go precisely?”
“My house,” Lucien answered. “I haven’t been there for a while. I want to know if everything is alright.”
It did not come off as a surprise to see that Lucien’s house was in a dilapidated condition.
During the months that Lucien was not at home, the area became victim to occasional storms that turned the garden into complete chaos. Pots were upturned, the larger plants lay pitifully across the unmanicured lawn.
The wind was so strong that it managed to unhinge the front door from its frame.
Wind and rain crept into the house through the door crack, turning the walls moldy and ruining the furniture.
The paintings on the wall were lying on the floor in a heap of wet mess. Lucien squatted and tried to salvage them but they quickly crumbled into shreds.
“...”
Ronan pulled a grimace when he looked at the moldy walls.
“We can’t stay here. Come on, let’s go. I will ask people to come and fix your house.”
“It’s fine,” Lucien said. “I don’t plan on going back here anyway.”
Ah.
So Lucien did not intend to resume his life in South Bedford City.
Lucien rose to his feet. Ronan expected to leave the wrecked house in the next second, but Lucien went into what remained of his bedroom instead.
“Lulu, what are you doing?”
“I need to pick something up,” Lucien mumbled.
He reached into various drawers and cupboards, stuffing random things hastily into his pockets.
Ronan raised an eyebrow.
“Looks like you are not attached to too many items in here.”
Lucien laughed.
“How can I be attached? They are all destroyed and turned to pulp.”
Once Lucien was done taking whatever small items he could salvage from his house, Ronan grabbed him by his waist and led him outside.
It was already the end of October. The strong gust of wind that blew through the area carried the strong scent of winter.
Although both werewolves wore coats and shawls, they unwittingly shivered from the blowing wind.
They quickly stepped into the car. Both of them sighed when their numb frozen fingers slowly turned warm and they could feel blood circulating through their bodies again.
“Let’s go to Carlton Bay, alright?”
“Sure.”
During the car trip, Lucien was eerily silent. He was busy with his phone, only replying with unfocused “Hmm” and “Yes” to whatever Ronan said.
Whenever the Alpha tried to take a peek at what Lucien was doing, he was shot down by the latter’s annoyed expression.
“Stop peeking and drive properly!” He chastised the Alpha.
Afterward, Ronan did not peek anymore.
They arrived at Carlton Bay Hotel soon after. As soon as an attendant saw who it was who graced their hotel with his presence, he quickly greeted, “Welcome, Alpha Ronan.”
He shot Lucien a curious look, not sure how to address him.
The hotel manager was more knowledgeable.
“Good day, Alpha Ronan and Mr. Clearwater,” he said with a polite smile. “The suite is ready for use. This way, please.”
Lucien gave Ronan a look.
“Do you have your own suite in every Carlton Bay Hotel?”
“More or less. Used to be my father’s.”
“Ah.”
When they got to the room, Lucien went to sit on the couch and busied himself with his phone again. He looked like a little boy who was immersed in the newest gadget and Ronan the parent who wanted to cut off his screen time.
“Lulu,” Ronan pulled Lucien into his arms and kissed the side of his neck.
“You are cold all over. Let’s take a bath together.”
The Alpha’s magnetic voice was alluring and tugged at Lucien’s heartstrings.
Ronan took the phone from Lucien’s hands and tossed it on the bed.
Before Lucien knew it, his coat and his clothes were swiftly taken off his body and left to pool around his feet.