Chapter 125 - Calm Rage

Winter and Ace failed to notice that the door was open. 

They're nonplussed the moment they found Marcellus standing there before them. He has this ominous, hooded expression on his face that gives way to a foreboding kind of tension. His brows are scrunched tightly together while his mouth is curved down into a scowl.

He appears like he's about to commit an atrocity.

"S-Sir Lexington…?!" Winter exclaimed in surprise, straightening up.

"What are you doing here-"

"Winter…" Marcellus muttered vehemently.

"We're leaving."

He then paces closer to her and grabs her hand before pulling her all the way to the door. 

Seeing him drag her away, Ace finally snaps out of his daze. He seizes hold on her other hand, causing the two of them to halt on their tracks. Flummoxed, they turn around to look at him again.

"A-Ace?" Winter stammered out, baffled.

"Take your hand off of her," Marcellus ordered, glaring at Ace tauntingly.

She went stiff upon hearing his tyrannical tone. He'd never been piqued to this degree before. It even had to take a moment for his icy-cold disposition to settle in. From that point on, silence prevails between the three of them. 

Ace silently gulps before finally glaring back at Marcellus - returning his frigid gaze with a fiery one.

"I like you, Winter."

Then came his confession, completely throwing them to sixes and sevens.

Winter can't help but gape. Her brows rose in astonishment. Unmoving, she only stares back at Ace in dumbfounded silence.

This is absolutely not the time, mood, and setting for a confession. 

Her thoughts begin to turn into a mess at that point. While she already knows that he feels that way for her, she's still not prepared to hear it straight from him. 

Marcellus, on the other hand, didn't utter a single word.

---

Sometime later, Winter found herself in a stifling position.

Without saying anything, Marcellus tightened his hold on her hand and proceeded to take her out of the building. He didn't speak at all. Even after he disrupted Ace's confession by stealing her away before he could talk again, he kept quiet.

Marcellus then took Winter straight to his car.

Now, she's all tensed up as she sits on the passenger's seat beside him. His gaze remains focused on the road ahead of them. As to where they're heading to, she's got no clue.

"Ummm… Sir Lexington…?" she called out to him while he simply hummed in response.

"How did you know where we were?"

"Sir Minerva told me…" he answered a little more calmly than she expected.

"He said he saw you step out of the elevator along with the up-and-coming model from the agency they're currently working together with."

"Sir Minerva was there?!"

"Why wouldn't he be? He owns that place."

"R-Right. Of course."

Marcellus recalls how Jacob informed him about Winter and Ace.   

It happened a little after his meeting with the supervisors of their company's modeling agency. He's supposed to have another discussion with some of the members in the next hour, but after learning from the receptionist that the head of the Lexington Empire came by without any prior notice, he decided to move his schedule for a bit and go to the lobby to greet him. 

From there, Jacob went on to tell Marcellus that Winter was with Ace at that moment. 

Something stood out to him, though. Now that he's remembering what happened, he realized that he couldn't have seen the two of them together if he's in a meeting with their supervisors. The timing of his appearance and the vibes he had at that time were also kind of strange. It's almost similar to Chloe – popping out of nowhere and talking about Winter and Ace right after.

Marcellus had to go back later and have a talk with Jacob once more.

"Sir Lexington, you do know that I'd been planning to meet Ace today, right? I've always wanted to support him as a friend, and it just happened that he needed some help since his stylist couldn't make it," Winter tried to explain. 

"Doesn't look like you're simply helping him. I could see how you're about to get intimate right there. Perhaps, did I ruin the moment?" Marcellus scoffed half-heartedly. 

There goes his rare display of calm rage again. Ironically, it's easier to see how exasperated he is when he's self-possessed like this. That's because she can just tell. From the air he's giving off to the look in his eyes, everything about him at that moment is that of a brewing storm. 

"Why aren't you saying anything, Winter? Did I hit a nerve?" 

Marcellus pulls over the car beside the sidewalk, finally deciding to give his undivided attention to Winter. 

She's surprised to find him wearing a smirk this time, though it only comes out intimidating with his half-lidded, darkened eyes. A dim, grim glint coats his gaze, thinning the layer to this poised front of his. 

He's smirking but far from pleased – coolly staring at her but far from calm within.

Winter no longer knows what to make of this situation. Marcellus is acting collected like usual. 

Still, for some reason, she can sense that he's nowhere like that at all. It kind of reminds her of those times – back when they're still a couple of strangers who just happen to be living under the same roof. He was always this enigmatic and inscrutable before. 

"Still not talking, huh?" 

Marcellus is already at his limits.

He leans forward and slams Winter onto the car window, stretching out his arms on both sides to trap her in between. His lips then crash onto hers with uncontainable ferocity, making her gasp in surprise and blush furiously.

'S-S-Sir Lexington?!' echoed in her head.   

She's knocked out of breath at the abruptness of his movements. Now, he's feasting on her lips, savoring them with so much passion. The raw need on his part is almost palpable. This finally convinced her that what Ace did earlier had affected him more than she could possibly imagine.

She wavered, not sure what to do. Electrifying shivers run all throughout her body for that fraction of time, matching the increasing pace of her heartbeat that kept hammering against her chest. She then suddenly feels somewhat dizzy – almost as if she's intoxicated with his overflowing affection. 

'Warm… So, so warm…' she mused in her daze.

'Just what is this feeling?'

His endeared eyes are slightly open the whole time, watching her get more and more lightheaded by his unrelenting kisses. He himself can't help but blush, especially upon realizing that she's submitting to him. For once, she's being submissive. It drove him even crazier when he heard her let out a soft moan before squeaking in embarassment. 

"I love you, Winter."

As soon as Marcellus said that, Winter finally snapped out of her reverie.

Only then did she find the strength and resolve to push him. He was startled when she did so, though he pulled away nonetheless. She couldn't find it herself to look at him yet, so she stooped her head low and turned to the side. With a few strands of her hair covering the side of her face, she then began to speak in a small yet raspy voice.

"Take me home," Winter ordered sternly, making Marcellus back off at last.   

Silence rules over them from that point on.

--- 

The curtains of the night already fell, and the employees of Minerva Foundation are about to resign for the day.

Ace is now on his way out of the building, walking down a hall that leads to the main lobby. From the start of the photoshoot up until that moment, his mind is filled with thoughts of a certain friend of his.

Confessing to Winter isn't one of his plans for today. Ace is willing to wait longer and win her over even if it's just little by little. But at that time, he suddenly had a feeling that Marcellus was earning scores lately. That led him to do what he ended up doing.

Ace is only getting started.

One of the main reasons why he took up modeling is so that he can catch up to her. He didn't want to stay the way he was, and if it meant standing on the same level as her, he'd make the most of what he could do. Becoming a model just happened to be one of the opportunities he saw.

'That's exactly why I couldn't tell Winter about it yet. It's too embarrassing to tell her the reason,' he thought while he let out a sigh. 

Ace doesn't want to back down even after what happened earlier with Marcellus, though. 

Call it infatuation or endearment – he knows that he's been longing to have Winter all for himself. He wants to be one to monopolize her smiles and laughter. That's why he's not just going to give up so easily.

While having these thoughts, Ace almost failed to notice someone approaching ahead of him. His eyes widen in surprise the moment he recognizes who it is.

"Speaking of the devil."