Chapter 45
Alexander didn't answer but asked instead, "Where are you planning to take her to practice driving?"
"Ocean Avenue. There are few cars and people there, perfect for beginners. Why? What's up?"
"I'm warning you, don't say any nonsense to her, and don't use those tricks you use on other women on her."
John sounded rather helpless. "What tricks on other women? I don't know what you're talking about."
"You know exactly what I mean."
"Don't worry, I won't do anything to the little bunny. She's your wife. Don't think of your buddy as such a sleaze."
Alexander chuckled lightly. "So you do know you're a sleaze."
"Hey, no personal attacks."
"Hanging up."
After dropping those two words, Alexander ended the call.
After getting in the elevator, he glanced at the car keys in his hand and pressed the button for the basement level.
He still needed to go check.
In the car, Lila hadn't expected John to put Alexander's call on speaker.
For some reason, hearing Alexander warn John like that, she had this illusion that Alexander was worried about her.
But even if he was worried, it was probably just to avoid getting scolded by Grandma, or because she was his wife in name and it triggered some basic male possessiveness.
Nothing is worth overthinking.
Lila soon arrived at Ocean Avenue.
Ocean Avenue was a newly paved road that not many people knew about yet.
As John said, there was very little traffic here.
She and John each got out of the car and switched positions.
Lila sat in the driver's seat, buckled her seatbelt, and looked at John with some concern. "Mr. Lucas, this car isn't cheap, right?"
"Why?"
"I want to be mentally prepared. If I crash into a roadside planter or something, how much would I have to pay?"
John had dated many girlfriends, but he'd never met anyone who talked about money while being with him.
Seeing Lila like this now, he felt a sense that she was a good girl.
He smiled. "Don't worry, this car is really solid, won't break. Drive with confidence. Grandma told me you have a license, so you should know the basics. This road is so wide, worst case you'll cross some lines. Plus with me, a professional race car driver, watching, I absolutely won't let you crash."
After this reassurance, Lila's doubts were largely dispelled. She thanked him again. "Thank you, Mr. Lucas."
"Alright, that's like the tenth time you've said thanks."
After speaking, he glanced at the gear shift on the center console. "Change from park to neutral, the key is in the sensor position, so don't touch it, warm up the engine then step on the brake, shift to drive, and go. You should know all this, right?"
"Yeah, I know. These are the basics. I mainly just don't have on-road experience and I'm afraid of crashing."
"No problem, just do a couple laps and you'll get familiar with it."
Lila nodded and drove the car out.
She went very slowly. After driving for about a minute, seeing that everything was pretty stable, she sped up a bit. With no one on the road, practicing really did make her bolder.
After two laps, not a single vehicle had appeared on this road.
Lila felt like she was starting to remember everything she'd learned at driving school.
On the third lap, she saw a car coming toward them and instantly panicked. First, she slowed down, then moved the car to the lane closest to the side.
"Don't be nervous, the road is so wide, you won't hit anything," John said.
Just as he finished speaking, he felt something was off. "Why does that car look so familiar? Oh man... your husband is here."