Love beyond the mask (Whitney)



Before Whitney could utter a word, Ludwik, with a roguish smirk, whispered, "Whitney, can I trouble you with a little something? You tell him." Whitney was slightly taken aback, not quite catching up.

Ludwik's tone was teasing, his gaze soft but provocative as he looked at her. "I mean, it's not like I can do much, maybe just steal a kiss, right?" Whitney was at a loss for words, almost choked by his brazenness!

She had seen shameless, but never someone who wore it like a badge of honor. Was this man for real?

Even Shane was left speechless, a twitch at the corner of his mouth, "Considering you've laid it all out there, I gotta hand it to you, you've got guts. I'll give you a moment to catch up, then."

With that, Shane headed straight for his car.

The parking lot fell silent, under the dim glow of streetlights, leaving Whitney and Ludwik alone.

She looked at him, seemingly back from the dead, her heart racing yet filled with regret. Why did she come back, only to be caught by him again? Ludwik's gaze, however, was drowning in tenderness. Lowering his voice, he said, "Whitney, I saw your eyes, all red and swollen. Were you thinking I was gone, mourning me...?"

"Are you delusional? Seeing you 'gone' brought me tears of joy. After all the torment, the man plaguing me was finally out of the picture. How could I not be thrilled, I almost applauded."

Her words were sharp, cutting through the air.

Ludwik paused for a moment, his heart skipping a beat, but then he couldn't help but laugh, disbelief in his eyes, "Your face can't lie to me."

His gaze sharpened, "Actually, when you rushed into the mansion, I had already made it out. I just didn't show myself. I hid and watched you talk to Shane. You looked so lost, almost in tears, you fool."

Whitney was stunned.

What? This man had been hiding, watching her all along.

Thinking back on her bewildered state, believing him gone, made her blood boil.noveldrama

She flushed with anger, regretting her moment of weakness for such a scoundrel.

"Whitney, you still can't let go of me," Ludwik whispered, moving closer, his breath a gentle caress, his hand finding hers.

In the bustling parking lot, Whitney quickly withdrew her hand.

"Ouch." Ludwik winced, his face paling, his arm hanging limply in the air.

Whitney then remembered, Elodie mentioning his arm was injured while saving her.

Her voice turned cold, anger bubbling up, "Ludwik, playing games with everyone, do you find it amusing? While everyone thought you were gone, with firefighters and paramedics worried sick, there you were, hiding, watching everyone fret over you?

Aren't you a bit too heartless, too above it all?"

"I'm not above it all," Ludwik replied softly, trying to explain, "By the time you came back, I had been struggling in the fire, helping a woman avoid explosions, climbing with her on my back. Look at my arms..."

He lifted his soiled shirt sleeve, revealing his fingers smeared with blood, not to mention the cuts and bruises on his arm...

Whitney gasped.

Seeing her reaction, Ludwik unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a large bruise on his chest.

Her eyes narrowed, not expecting his injuries to be so severe.

Yes, surviving an explosion like that, one had to be skilled and strong.

But Whitney's words were cold, "Ludwik, always the hero, aren't you? Trading these wounds for Ronan's daughter's life, was it worth it?"

She didn't realize the bitterness in her tone.

Ludwik caught on, "Jealous, Whitney?"

"Get lost."

Whitney couldn't help but curse, her frustration boiling over, "And you say Bryce is scheming. I think you're the mastermind, saving Ronan's daughter to win favor. Maybe now you'll marry into wealth, Ludwik, climbing back up, the ultimate strategist."

Ludwik's eyes dimmed, a shadow crossing his face.

In her eyes, was he just a manipulative man, using women for his gain?

He chuckled bitterly, his lips dry, "Regardless of how you see me, I stand by my actions.

Whitney...

If I had escaped alone, leaving Elodie behind, Ronan wouldn't have spared me.

To people like him, their own flesh and blood are everything. Not saving their daughter would have been my death sentence.

In essence, saving her was my only choice."

His serious tone left Whitney speechless, perhaps even admiring his foresight.

Indeed, for someone like Ronan, the higher the rank, the more self-centered.

Maybe she had been too harsh.

Whitney blinked, her eyes softening.

As Ludwik held her shoulders, his gaze deep and filled with emotion, he said, "I don't blame you for doubting me. In fact, I'm grateful.

You know, at the moment of the explosion, I had no time to think of anything else, not even Danny or Sammy.

All I could think of was you... I couldn't bear the thought of leaving this world without making things right between us. You mean more to me than my own life.

It was the thought of you that gave me the strength to escape.

After I got out, I hid to see who would show their true colors, who would be relieved at my demise."

"Besides, I wanted to see how you'd react. If you didn't care, then I would've truly given up. I would've walked away and never bothered you again. But you... you were upset. And I gotta say, in that moment, I was over the moon..."

"Please, don't say another word...!"

Whitney's emotions were a tangled mess, and she tried to cut him off, his unguarded confession making her heart flutter in confusion.

She blinked away the unease pooling in her eyes, baffled by her own sadness from moments before.

Ludwik watched her frustration with a hint of amusement, his smile growing wider. The more she resisted, the more it proved to him she cared, that he held a place in her heart, however begrudgingly. To him, it meant he wasn't invisible to her, that the thought of losing him was something she couldn't bear.