Chapter 42 Falling Asleep
Actually, the moment those words left my mouth, I regretted them a bit, but what's said can't be taken back.
Seeing him driving so fast, I could only keep a straight face and grip the door handle tightly, afraid that Atlas might throw me out of the car in his anger.
The car sped along and soon arrived at the airport. Roy Wright, the production manager, had been waiting for a while. The moment he saw me, he hurried over. "Ms. Lockwood, you're here."
He was clearly stunned when he saw Atlas.
"Mr. Lancaster, you're here too."
"Mr. Lancaster is coming on this business trip with us."
After hearing what I said, Roy understood immediately. "Absolutely, welcome."
He quickly reached out his hand and shook hands with Atlas. "Mr. Lancaster, please, right this way."
Once we boarded the plane, I deliberately chose to sit with Roy and began discussing the companies we'd selected.
"Ms. Lockwood, after we land, let's visit this company first."
Roy pointed to the materials for Vertex Industrial Group. "I did some research beforehand. This company is pretty big and has produced what we need before. We should give them a try."
"Okay, let's go to that company then."
"Are you done? If so, Helena, come here for a minute."
Just as I finished speaking, Atlas's voice came over. Roy froze, and the way he looked at me changed.
It was already strange enough that a client was coming on a business trip with us, and now he was calling me so intimately. No wonder Roy was surprised.
"Mr. Lancaster, do you need something?"
I walked over to Atlas, suppressing the urge to curse at him. He patted the seat next to him. "Sit down."
I glared at him, but, afraid that Atlas might cause a scene, I reluctantly sat down.
Seeing me looking defiant but helpless against him, Atlas just laughed.
"Mr. Lancaster, we're not that close. Please continue to address me as Ms. Lockwood."
After hearing this, Atlas laughed again.
His fingers casually played with a strand of my hair, twirling it around his finger.
"I don't know—which part does Ms. Lockwood mean when she says we're not that close?"
My face instantly turned red. This shameless man!
I could already sense Roy with his ears perked up, listening.
I glared at him fiercely and said in a low voice, "Atlas, that's enough!"
"Not enough!"
Atlas suddenly leaned close to me. "Helena, have you missed me these past few days?"
"I—"
Before I could speak, he pressed his finger against my lips, rubbing it a few times. Just as I was about to get angry, he pulled his finger back.
I caught a glimpse of him taking the finger that had just been on my lips and kissing it deeply. My face instantly flushed.
"But I've missed you, missed you so much I'm going crazy!"
His deep voice carried an irresistible magic as it sounded in my ear.
"Helena, please don't torture me like this anymore, okay?"
I frowned at him, about to speak, when he gave a wicked smile. "Helena, I love it when you look like this. It's so much fun."
He then rubbed my face hard.
"What are you doing!"
I forcefully pushed his hand away. He looked at me mournfully. "Helena, after we get back, you and that Knox will start the wedding. These few days, I'm begging you, let me stay by your side, okay?"
"Don't push me away, don't reject me. My heart will hurt."
If he hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten about my wedding with Knox.
The wedding date was indeed getting closer—only about a week left. Time really flies.
Thinking about what would happen at the wedding, I felt inexplicably excited.
The Pemberton family cares about their reputation, right? Perfect. I'll ruin them completely.
And Natasha, who always likes to compete with me for everything—this time I'll let you have it all. You'd better bind yourself completely to Knox.
"Helena, are you looking forward to the wedding?"
Atlas's mournful voice came to my ear. I snapped back to attention and quickly said, "No, not at all."
Are you kidding? My anticipation is different from other people's anticipation.
But Atlas clearly didn't believe me.
"These few days when you're with me, don't think about other men, or else I don't know what crazy things I might do."
I looked up at him and frowned. "What do you want to do?"
"Don't ask, just do as I say."
Seeing his dangerous look, I immediately wanted to escape, but he was quick and pressed me back into the seat.
"Don't go. Helena, I'm not feeling well. Can you sit down and keep me company?"
Only then did I notice that Atlas's face was indeed a bit pale. "Are you okay?"
Atlas forcefully intertwined his fingers with mine before speaking. "I'm fine as long as you're here."
I really didn't know what to do with Atlas, but fortunately, it was only an hour-long flight. I could endure it a bit longer.
I hadn't slept well last night, and in the gentle turbulence of the plane, I actually started feeling sleepy.
In my drowsiness, I closed my eyes, but soon I seemed to be in a warm bed. I nuzzled around to find a comfortable position before falling asleep.
In my sleep, I didn't notice at all that I was actually lying on Atlas's lap.
When I woke up, the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was Atlas's hand tightly holding mine, while his other hand was firmly cradling my head to keep it from moving around.
Just as I was about to lift my head, I realized I was lying on his lap, with my cheek pressed tightly against his lower abdomen.
The warmth against my face made me blush. I had just moved slightly when Atlas noticed.
He looked down, and a wave of masculine scent instantly surrounded me.
"You're awake?"
I nodded. Just as I was about to lift my head, I suddenly noticed something wasn't quite right. Soon realizing what it was, my face turned bright red. I quickly sat up straight and looked away, not daring to look toward his lap again.
"Why didn't you wake me up?"
Atlas glanced at me casually before unhurriedly straightening his clothes. "You were sleeping so soundly, how could I bear to wake you?"
"Alright, get yourself together. Time to get off the plane."
"Okay."
I said I'd get myself together, but I hadn't brought anything with me, so there was nothing to organize.
After the plane stopped, the car Roy had arranged quickly picked us up, and we set off for Vertex Industrial Group.