Chapter 18

Lucian pouted, clearly upset.

“Oh?” Adrian’s lips curled into something between a smile and a smirk.

“Uncle Adrian, what brings you to the rooms? Here to see someone?” Damien asked, looking up at Adrian with curiosity in his eyes.

Adrian hummed in response and gestured toward the elevator, his tone neutral. “The elevator’s here. You should get Lucian home soon.”

“Okay, Uncle Adrian. We’ll talk later.”

“Goodbye, Great-Uncle Adrian.”

Adrian gave a brief nod and remained silent. Only when the elevator doors closed did he turn and walk away, his steps light as he made his way to Celeste’s ward.

Celeste had been rushed into the emergency room after an accident at the company’s project site. He had left to handle the situation and had only just finished taking care of it. She had risked her life to save the children from the orphanage, so by any reasonable standard, or even basic human decency, he owed her a visit.

At the moment, Annie had gone out to get food for Celeste, leaving her alone in the ward. When the knock came at the door, she assumed Damien had returned with Lucian.

Celeste froze when she saw the tall figure in the doorway. Adrian showed up in a black suit, holding an elegantly arranged fruit basket. Her fingers tightened around the bedsheet before she even realized it.

“Mr. Wrenford, what are you doing here?”

“Ms. Gardner was planning to visit tonight, but something urgent came up. So I’m here on behalf of the orphanage to check on you.”

Adrian set the fruit basket on the bedside table and took the chair next to the bed.

“Thank you, Mr. Wrenford.”

“Where’s your friend?”

Adrian glanced around the room, but Annie was nowhere in sight.

“She went to get me dinner. She’ll be back soon.” He didn’t respond, and the room fell into silence.

Celeste tightened her jaw before finally speaking, “Mr. Wrenford, thank you for saving me.”

"You were unconscious. How do you know it was me?"

Adrian leaned forward slightly, a glint of steel in his eyes.

Celeste kept her voice low. “I saw you run in right before the blackout. You pulled me away from the fallen lamp.”

Being dragged to safety beneath that pendant lamp was the last thing she remembered. She had no memory of the CPR or the rescue breathing that came after.

“I admire your courage, Ms. Morin. You were the only one who ran inside out of all the women there.”

Adrian leaned back in his chair, draping one arm over the backrest. His legs crossed as he watched her with a calm, detached expression.

The unexpected praise sent a jolt through Celeste’s chest. Damien’s earlier words—questioning whether she even knew her own limits—echoed in her mind. The timing felt ironic, especially after Adrian’s comment about her courage. She hadn’t fully realized how bad it was until she saw what it could have been.

“Maybe it’s a mother’s instinct,” Celeste said, her smile growing. “When a mother sees a child in danger, she doesn’t think. She just acts. And I wasn’t the only one who was brave. The security guard helped, too. And you, Mr. Wrenford.”

Adrian lifted his dark, piercing eyes. When their gazes locked, his lashes flickered slightly. A moment passed before he finally asked, “Do you have any idea how close you came to dying in front of me?”

Chapter 19