Chapter 73

Elise was still staring at Mu when he walked over to the room with the desk. He stopped in the doorway and beckoned to her.

“Come here.”

She followed, unsure what he wanted. Mu hung his jacket on the coat rack with practiced ease, then sank onto the couch and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He looked tired.

Pei Yi had told him that afternoon that he had run into Elise. Mu had wanted to come over then, but work had kept him away. By the time he arrived, she was skating. He had stood watching for quite a while: the push of her foot, the jump, the clean landing.

Somehow, the weariness had left him.

He lowered his hand and looked at her. “I come here occasionally. You don't mind, do you?”

Elise took in the desk and bookcase. The room had clearly been prepared for him. She was using his space to skate; how could she object to the owner coming in?

There was one problem, though. A broad pane of clear glass faced the park. If he sat in here while she skated, he would be able to see everything.

She quickly waved a hand. “I'm the one who should be worried about bothering you.”

She made an excuse and slipped back outside. So Mu was the friend Pei had mentioned? But if the place had been abandoned, why did Mu come here now and then? Then again, maybe that was precisely why he came. No one else would be around.

After turning it over for a while without reaching an answer, she shook her head and went back to skating.

Through the glass she saw Mu take a laptop from his bag, set it on the desk and sit down to work.

By the time Elise was pleasantly exhausted and sweating, he had finished. He came out of the office and sat by the bar, watching the girls skate. When Elise stopped to rest at the edge of the floor, Jade and Nora joined her.

Mu hadn't even taken out his phone. He poured himself a glass of wine and sipped it now and then, so quiet he might almost have disappeared.

Elise felt a little guilty. They were playing in his park, yet they had left him sitting alone, with no one even talking to him.

After a moment, she walked over.

“You want to teach me to skateboard?” Mu raised his eyebrows.

“Yes.”

Jade and Nora had been listening closely. Both nearly sprayed out the water they had just drunk.

They had asked Elise about Mu earlier and learned that he came from a wealthy family and held real power. In his immaculate suit, he looked too slender for anything strenuous. Surely someone who spent his days behind a desk didn't get much exercise. What did a man like that have to do with skateboarding?

The two girls shook their heads and pressed hands to their foreheads. Elise was generous with her friends, but sometimes she could be a little too enthusiastic.

Elise met Mu's eyes. They were friends; it was natural to share something she enjoyed. Besides, it didn't seem right for the three of them to have fun while he watched by himself.

Something flashed in his gaze. He looked at her long enough that she grew self-conscious.

“Is there something on my face?”

Mu laughed softly. He stood, pulled off his tie and undid two buttons at his collar. “Let's go. Weren't you going to teach me?”

Jade and Nora stared at him. He had actually agreed?

Learning to skate wasn't easy. Beginners usually learned by falling. If a CEO landed on the floor in front of them, wouldn't he be mortified?

Mu rolled his sleeves to his elbows, revealing the lines of muscle in his arms. He walked over to Elise's board. “May I borrow it?”

If he could, he wanted to try everything she liked.

Elise watched him for a moment too long. He looked lean in a suit, but his arms and the glimpse of his chest at his open collar suggested he took exercise seriously. Without the formal jacket, he seemed entirely different: strong, with an energy that made her lose her train of thought.

“Sure,” she said.

Mu had watched them long enough to pick up a few things. He put one foot on the board and pushed off lightly. At first he wobbled, looking close to falling, but soon found his balance.

“Not bad!” Jade came over with Nora. “You've got a knack for it, and you're not afraid of falling.”

A lot of beginners were too nervous to try, but Mu had stepped onto the board without a moment's hesitation.

Elise had been worried when he first swayed. Now she breathed easier. Remembering that she had offered to teach him, she hurried alongside and gave him pointers.

He learned quickly, but after a while he leaned back a little too far. The board shot forward. His brow tightened and he instinctively planted one foot, but momentum carried the other forward. He fell face-first to the floor.

There were startled cries behind him. Elise rushed to his side.

A sharp pain ran through his knee. Mu rolled up his pant leg without a word and found a small bruise on his shin. He was about to say it was nothing when he met Elise's worried, guilty eyes. He swallowed the words.

“It hurts,” he said, with the faintest trace of grievance.

Panic showed plainly on her face. If Mu said it hurt, it must be serious.

She laid a hand on his lower leg, careful not to touch the bruise. “Does it hurt a lot? Wait here. I'll find something for it.”

Mu barely heard her. The moment her soft hand touched his skin, warmth seemed to spread from that small point. He stared at her fingers, suddenly thirsty.

This was torture.

Elise ran to the lounge. A skate park had to keep first-aid supplies somewhere. She searched several cabinets before finding a kit, then hurried back to him.

She was the one who had offered to teach him. He had fallen because of her, and she felt awful.

Jade and Nora watched Elise's anxious rush and the way Mu's eyes followed her everywhere. After a moment's hesitation, they stayed where they were.

Elise helped him to the couch, pulled up a small stool and rested his injured leg on her lap. Head bowed, she carefully spread ointment over the injury with a cotton swab. Her brow was drawn so tight that she looked more troubled by it than he did.

A strand of hair slipped over her shoulder and brushed his shin.

“Does it still hurt?” she asked.

Mu held back a reaction to the tickle. “It does,” he said, his voice rough. Afraid she might not believe him, he added, “A lot.”

The injury itself barely hurt now. The tickling was another matter; he could hardly think straight.

Elise sighed. “I shouldn't have taught you. It's my fault you fell.”

She fell sometimes too; anyone who skated did. But Mu was different. He had so much work to do, and so many people watched him. If he were injured, who knew what rumors would follow?

Her anxious face and the care with which she applied the ointment told him one thing: she was being this gentle because she felt guilty.

When she finished, Mu said nothing. He seemed lost in thought.

Elise put the kit away, and Jade and Nora finally approached her.

“Is he okay?”

“He's fine. There's a bruise.” Though, from the way he had complained, perhaps it really did hurt badly.

Jade looked unimpressed. “When I fell like that, I just brushed myself off and got back up. How can a CEO be so fragile?”

Nora looked worried. “You said he's powerful. Now that we've seen him embarrass himself, he won't have us killed to keep us quiet, will he?”

Elise laughed. “Don't worry. He isn't like that.”

Mu lowered his pant leg and tried stretching his leg. Elise went back over to him. “How is it? Can you walk?”

He paused. “Yes,” he admitted reluctantly. “Walking's fine.”

Such a small injury only hurt for a short time, and he was in good shape. He could hardly feel it now.

What a shame.

Elise studied his face. Why did he look disappointed?

Mu's eyes settled on the board that had caused his fall. “It doesn't hurt anymore. I'll try again.”

“Wait, what?”

Before she could stop him, he was already on his way across the floor. Hadn't he just said he was in pain? He was even more eager than she had been when she first learned.

Elise frowned. If he fell again, she would feel worse.

Jade, meanwhile, was impressed. “That's the spirit! It's just a little bruise. Nothing to be scared of.”

“I was always too afraid to fall,” Nora said regretfully. “That's why I still haven't learned properly. If I'd been like him, I'd have got it ages ago.”

“I bet he'll get the hang of it soon,” Jade said. “He'll hardly ever fall, just like me.”

Nora gave a skeptical hum.

A thud interrupted them. A few minutes after stepping back on the board, Mu had fallen again, in exactly the same position as before.

Jade stared. She had barely finished praising him.

Elise let out a long sigh and ran over. She was angry, but before she could say anything, Mu looked up at her. He was sweating and slightly out of breath, both hands braced on the floor, his left leg bent.

“It hurts,” he said.

Honestly, what had she done?

As her anger gave way to guilt and concern, a sly curve appeared at the corners of Mu's eyes. He ignored the pain in his leg and let out an almost blissful sigh.

Building this park had been an excellent idea.

Elise, Jade and Nora made the skate park their secret base, visiting at least twice a week. Mu came by occasionally too, sometimes watching and sometimes joining them.

Julian had been a little strange lately. He spoke less than usual and seemed downcast. Elise couldn't think why. His relationship with Miles had improved, and Miles no longer picked fights with him; meals at home had become much more peaceful. She assumed Julian was preoccupied with work and didn't dwell on it.

A blue Lamborghini pulled up outside a restaurant. Elise stepped out, and Julian got out on the other side. He often took her out to eat on weekends when she was free, so she thought nothing of it as they went inside together.

In their private dining room, Mu rose unhurriedly. His eyes passed over Elise before he extended a hand to Julian.

“I've heard a great deal about you, Mr. Whitmore.”

Julian's expression didn't change. Ignoring the offered hand, he walked straight past him. “There's no need for formality.”

As if he had expected that, Mu withdrew his hand and sat down gracefully.

Elise looked between them. Hadn't her brother brought her out for dinner? Why was Mu here too?

Julian pulled out a chair for her. Once she was seated, he explained gently, “I heard you've become friends with Mu, and that he's been very good to you. I wanted to invite him to dinner and thank him for looking after you.”