The next morning, Valentina woke up very early, sent a video to Luca, got dressed, ate a quick breakfast at the hotel, and stood outside to catch the shuttle.

As she stood there, many people dressed in regular clothes and staff shirts stood along with her, and since she didn’t recognize them, she assumed they were the film crew for ‘My Fair Lady.’

Saying a quick hello to everyone and chatting lightly, she waited for several minutes until a large coach bus arrived. She quickly entered and sat in the front, putting her headphones in. She stared out the window and began zoning out as people entered the bus.

Thud!

Flinching, she turned to see Jonathan Starling staring at her with deep bags under his eyes.

Looking between the backpack on her seat and his face, she calmly picked up his bag and carelessly threw it in the seat behind her.

There were so many empty seats on this large bus, and he chose to come sit with her with that unpleasant look on his face? He could dream on and go bother somebody else!

Jonathan stared at her for a moment before throwing himself down in the seat right by her.

“You….” He started to speak before hesitating as his expression softened.

“Good morning, Valentina. How are you, Valentina? Can I sit next to you, Valentina? No, you can’t, Jonathan. Please sit elsewhere.” Valentina parroted at him, completely annoyed with the Grayson family men. She had slept fitfully last night due to Kaiser’s shenanigans/apology and wasn’t in the mood to deal with his nephew or cousin or whatever the relationship was.

“Oh. Morning, I guess. Thanks for letting me sit here, Val. I can call you Val, right? Anyways, you….what did you do to my uncle?” As Jonathan shamelessly replied and made himself comfortable beside her, she gave him a look.

“Who’s your uncle, and what does he have to do with me?”

Seeing her pretend that she didn’t know what he was talking about, Jonathan was temporarily speechless.

Since the last time he had seen her at the opening ceremony getting cozy with Kaiser, he had immediately harassed Roman to find out more details about who she was since several crazy things had happened at the ceremony.

Naturally, he chose Roman because Kaiser was too scary to bother freely, even with his personality that didn’t care much for authority. After being blown off by Roman, he tried to do some investigation on his own but was blocked at every corner by Kaiser’s cease-and-desist to the entire family.

The most information he had gotten was from the director assuring him that the film was still on as both her and Aaliyah’s injuries were fine. Apart from that. Radio silence. Even when he tried messaging her through social media, she had totally ignored it which irked him.

That had all changed two days ago. First, Roman had dragged him into the office and made him swear not to hit on Valentina, to behave himself while filming, and to take care of her when set; otherwise, he would die without knowing how or why. While delivering the message, Roman looked scared for his life, but figuring he had just pissed his Kaiser off, he didn’t bother taking it seriously. He was used to doing what he wanted anyway and as there was no ring on her finger, she was free game. It wasn’t that he was particularly interested, but didn’t believe in letting other men block his chances of finding love.

After carelessly agreeing, when he had arrived at the hotel yesterday, his surprise punishment from the demon lord had begun. Looking as if he wanted to murder him, Kaiser had made him kneel down all night while threatening him with physical, financial, and mental harm if anything happened to Valentina, if he attempted to romance her, or if the filming schedule was disrupted because of his poor behavior.

He had expected his manager to at least come to save him, but apparently, Roman had given him the evening off. He was completely on his own.

After barely being released from torture a couple of hours ago, he now had to drag his body for an intensive day of filming.

Staring at the culprit who glared at him in return, Jonathan took another good look at Valentina: a glamorous face with striking yet delicate features, brilliant green eyes framed by shapely arched brows and shielded by thick, featherlike lashes, and a lush pink mouth pouting angrily. To put it simply, a beauty with ridiculously high specs. Even if she wasn’t the type he usually went for, he had to admit that pretty was pretty.

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Her clothing was simple: an oversized black sweater, black leggings, and a baseball cap, while her thick hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail. Even though she was dressed simply, she made it look like a professionally curated lounge outfit that showed off her beauty.

To be honest, she was one of the most gorgeous people he had seen throughout his years in the entertainment industry. In the three times he had seen her in person, she had given him three different yet looks that highlighted her beauty in different ways yet all seemed to fit; An androgynous arrogant beauty, a gorgeous yet in charge beauty, and now a beauty that was cozy and relaxed. Even though she was tall for a woman, something about her screamed frailty and made him want to protect her.

And…although he had taken this role to prove he could portray a serious romance on screeen, he was looking forward to acting with her more than Aaliyah.

Her lack of interest or respect toward him just made him want to know her more, especially since she had apparently impressed those unscrupulous uncles of his. It made him want to dig in and understand her. More importantly, he felt a sense of challenge after being warned off.

“Did you know Uncle Roman lectured me, and Uncle Kaiser made me kneel all night long? If it wasn’t because I had to film, he would take me to the gym and beat me up,” he asked Valentina as he rubbed his bruised knees. Jonathan was trying his tried and true tactic of trying to gain sympathy that always worked with women.

“Oh, sounds rough,” Valentina responded lightly before placing her head on the window, hoping he got the hint.

I don’t care, so leave.

If your uncle punished you, go complain to him. What am I supposed to do about it?

Leave!

Leave!

Take the hint and leave!

Go and sit somewhere else, and don’t bother me!

Unfortunately, it seemed that he would not.

Jonathan spent the next ten minutes chattering away, and Valentina became well acquainted with the scenery as she vaguely deflected his questions.

The filming location was in a smaller town by the sea. The architecture of the buildings was older yet had a charm that modern cities didn’t have, and she was excited to explore when she had free time. There was lots of greenery and old-style mansions where wealthy individuals came to holiday. One of the mansions and another next door along with their entire estate was reserved for the film.

The bus drove through an ornate gate, and she took in the estate’s greenery. A large garden and what looked like a maze spread out to one side, while a man-made lake and a gazebo were on the other.

The manor itself was exquisite, with a brick front and delicate carvings in the trim surrounding the window panes and roof. There were columns, large stairs, and even ivy creeping off to the side.

As the bus stopped and she stepped out, Jonathan seemed like he would be glued to her side, so she could only smile politely while staring at him. Unfortunately, she didn’t actually know where to go, so she followed him.

“Shall we go? Why don’t you lead the way Mr. Male Lead.”

Johnathan glanced at her before rolling his eyes, “Why do I feel like you don’t know where to go? I know you’ve been ignoring me, but if you’re nice to me, I’ll show you.”

She didn’t know where to go, but she would never admit it. Turning to a crew member, she gave a random man a bright smile before asking, “Hi. Jason, was it? Would you happen to know where the director is?”

The burly man looked embarrassed and starstruck as she saw the beautiful girl smile at him before speaking softly to him.

“I-I can take you!”

“I don’t want to cause you trouble or make you late. If you just direct me, I can find my way.” Valentina replied politely.

“It’s no tr-”

“No need. I’ll take her.” Jonathan interrupted before giving her a knowing look, “Let’s go.”

Shrugging, she waved at the crew member before following behind Jonathan, glancing around everything curiously.

They quickly arrived in a large room with tables in a line and little microphones with speakers against the wall. There was a coffee/tea station to one side, and they saw the director chatting with a couple of assistants. When Director Loewe saw them, his face lit up, and he quickly walked over.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t my male lead and second female lead. Valentina, you’re looking better. How are you feeling since the last incident? I do apologize, and I’ve instructed Aaliyah to do the same. Hopefully, bygones can be bygones, and we can create a great film as one team. I don’t want to see any trouble happen between the two of you. Promise me.”

“Of course. I’m fine and hope the filming goes smoothly as well. I’ll keep it civil on my part as long as the other person does the same.” Valentina politely replied.

“Great. Jonathan, I’m surprised to see you here this early. “ Director Loewe remarked while Jonathan scowled before he began protesting.

“Hey! What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly as I said. You should know your own reputation better than I do. Think about all the suffering you put me through just to cast for this drama.” Director Loewe shamelessly doubled down. “Surprisingly, you’re both the first to arrive, so grab the final script, a drink, and a seat while we wait for everyone to trickle in.”

Feeling the unusual sternness coming from the director, Valentina nodded before making herself some coffee, greeting the other producers and assistants before taking a seat.

Jonathan slid into the seat beside her before slamming his feet on the table, causing the microphone to give off feedback that caused everyone to look in their direction.

“Whoops. My bad.”

Giving him an appalled look, she scooted away and put her head down to wait for everyone else to arrive.

She just hoped the day would go smoothly.