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CHAPTER 71 – Beauty and Champagne
Last Updated:
2025-10-24 06:52:16
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Runway Matrix CHAPTER 71 – Beauty and Champagne
“Careful, you’re gonna spill that on me, sunshine!” Jake teased, grinning. “Then don’t move so much!” she shot back, smirking, her waist swaying in time to the music. Sue, stretched out beside him in a tiny red bikini and oversized sunglasses, tossed her blonde hair and laughed. “God, Aurelia, you’re too hot to be domestic. Let the man spill it!” Aurelia rolled her eyes, laughing. “Behave!” Eloise, sitting nearby in a mellow yellow bikini, smiled over the rim of her coconut drink. The sun loved her — her skin glowed, her eyes relaxed, her laughter soft. Max, in his bright blue trunks, sat next to her, grinning like a schoolboy. “Don’t look now, but I think someone’s smitten,” Sue whispered loud enough for Aurelia to hear, nodding toward Eloise and Max. Aurelia giggled, pouring herself a small drink. “Let her live a little.” Not far off, little Kyle was by the railing, his red-and-white button-up fluttering in the sea breeze, white shorts gleaming against his tanned legs. He wa
Runway Matrix CHAPTER 70 – The Solstice
They sat for a while after that, not speaking much. Aurelia’s story—hung between them like the fragile glass of a chandelier: easy to shatter, but breathtaking while it held. When she finally rose to go to the bathroom, Lucas stood and came with her, watching as she moved with a care he admired. She paused in the doorway, looked back at him, and said, almost to herself, “I don’t want to run anymore.” “They will do the running this time,” he answered without hesitation. It was not a grand declaration filled with fireworks—just two quiet people in a large room with a promise hard-earned and unlikely to be broken. ----- The hum of the jet was steady, a deep, gentle vibration that felt almost like a lullaby. Through the small oval windows, clouds stretched endlessly, soft and golden under the morning sun. The world below was a watercolor blur — distant and quiet. They were heading to Santorini, to Lucas’s private island just off the coast — a piece of paradise that most people didn’
Runway Matrix CHAPTER 69 – The Past II
Her hands clenched in her lap. “He was married. I didn’t know that for a while. He lied. He told me he loved me in ways that made me feel like a person again. I was foolish. I wanted him to see me. We met in motels. It was messy and secret and dangerous because I thought—if I had him, maybe I was not the girl who ate dinner in her bed and brushed off insults from her stepmother.” Lucas’s face was unreadable, the lines around his mouth taut with the effort of containing himself. Aurelia didn’t look at him; she looked at the space where the shadows pooled in the corner. “Eloise found out.” The word landed like a stone. “She saw him at a café with his wife. She followed him and saw him go home with her. She came home and told me. I… I went to confront him. I was furious, humiliated. He didn’t deny it. He looked at me like I was a foolish child and then—then his wife followed. She was not the quiet type. She burst into the motel we were meeting, and everything was chaos. She beat me. Sh
Runway Matrix CHAPTER 68 – The Past
Lucas’s bedroom was quiet save for the low hum of the heaters and the city noise muffled by thick drapes. He sat on the edge of the king-size bed—shirt sleeves rolled, trousers neat—looking every part the composed man the world expected. Aurelia paced in front of him, he poured her a drink. “Thank you,” she said, taking the glass with hands that still shook. She set it down on the bedside table and inhaled. "I have not told this story like this. But I'll try." Lucas watched her with the patience of a man who’d learned to wait for the real words. “Tell me when you’re ready,” he said softly. She sat on the arm of a chair, then on the floor and started, voice low and steady at first, then gathering strength as she moved through the years. “I don’t really remember my parents,” she said. “Not the way other people remember—there was my mother's picture, only one. The first clear memories I have are of these crowded foster home. I learned very fast that being small didn’t mean you got n
Runway Matrix CHAPTER 67 – Let's communicate
She got to the door, her knuckles white around the handle. She didn’t knock. She pushed the door open. Lucas sat behind his desk, papers scattered before him, his phone pressed to his ear. His sleeves were rolled up, his tie loosened, and there was a tension in his posture that hadn’t left since he returned. The sound of the door made him glance up immediately. When he saw her — hair slightly disheveled, chest rising and falling with barely contained emotion — he muttered a quick “I’ll call you back,” and dropped the phone onto the desk. “Are you okay?” he said quietly, his tone guarded. Aurelia stepped inside, shutting the door behind her. The click of the latch sounded louder than it should have. “What did you ask Eloise?” she demanded, her voice trembling but sharp. Lucas frowned, taken aback. “I asked her what’s been bothering you. You’ve been distant since the press conference when...I thought—” “You thought interrogating my sister was the way to find out?” she cut in, he
Runway Matrix CHAPTER 66 – When the past comes haunting
She took Kyle by the hand and led him upstairs to change for dinner. The boy was bubbling with energy, talking about how he couldn’t wait to show his mom the dolphin pendant and how Lucas promised to teach him “real sea swimming” when they got to the island. Eloise smiled softly as she helped him into his tiny navy dinner shirt, one of the things they’d bought that afternoon. “Do you think he’ll like it?” Kyle asked, spinning a little to show off his outfit. Eloise bent down, straightened his collar, and smiled. “He’ll love it. You look like a little prince.” Downstairs, the dining room glowed under the soft golden lights of the chandelier. The table was already set — silver cutlery glinting, crystal glasses catching the warm light, and the scent of roasted chicken, truffle butter, and fresh herbs drifting through the air. Kyle climbed into his new custom-made chair — dark oak with little engraved initials “K.” on the back — his feet dangling as he tried to sit up straight like Lu
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