Chapter 428
Chosen Mate of the Beastmen Empire by Lewis Reed
Chapter 428 Everyone froze, glaring at Nyx. Nyx stayed calm and nodded.
597 Zachary chuckled dryly to himself in his head. Fooled once was enoughâfall for it again, and heâd be an idiot. His nose was sharpâthey smelled the same, not some generic soap scent eitherâprobably living together, and still denying it. Watching Nyx climb into Seafarionâs car only cemented his hunch.
After long days out working, the house stayed spotless thanks to Gavin popping by to clean. Nyx dropped her bags, texted Gavin some praise, then knocked next door. âDinner together tonight?â
No plans set, but Seafarion was readyâhad a chef whip up a full spread at home to welcome Nyx back.
They ate, Nyx tried on the new clothes heâd bought her, twirling around for him, then borrowed his bathroom for a shower and crashed there like old times.
She acted like nothing had happenedâmood steady, no talk of romance. Seafarion watched her bright smile, words catching in his throat.
When no one called it out, he could dodge it, not think too hard. But Zacharyâs offhand question slammed him into reality -Nyx wasnât his wife; they shouldnât be this close. She was young, cluelessâhe was older, shouldnât have taken advantage of that, tricked her into staying by his side.
âNyx,â he said, lips tight, stopping her as she headed for the guest room, âYour place is next doorâsleep there.â
Even a guest room wasnât rightâunmarried, living under one roof longâterm, it didnât add up.
Nyx paused, looked back at him for a moment, then nodded. âOkay.â
She wasnât about to push. With a stubborn partner like him, she had plenty of patienceâlet him cool off and think it over alone.
Nyx didnât hesitateâsaid sheâd go and went. No fussâshe pushed the door open in her pajamas and slippers, leaving everything behind, even the new clothes sheâd tried on.
The lock clicked shut, and the big house fell dead quiet. Seafarion stared at the door, lost, feeling a hole in his chest. The withdrawal hit harder than last time.
Nyxâs traces were everywhereâbig stuff like the bed sheâd slept in, small stuff like the lotion sheâd left in the bathroom.
He couldnât step into the guest room, but her memory still swallowed himâevery glimpse of her things brought a sour ache crashing over him. Pentâup frustration had nowhere to goâhe dumped it all on Terry.
By monthâs end, Breaking Chains dropped a trailerâhuge buzz. Nyx picked up fans, and ad deals started rolling in. Marilyn sifted through them carefully, landing her a gig promoting a niche local luxury jewelry brandâs fall line.
On the way there, Nyx heard Helly chatteringâword was, JoyTVâs other execs caught wind and teamed up to shove Terry out to save the company. Betrayed by his own, Terry tankedâseemed like his head wasnât right anymore, paranoid about traps everywhere.
âA few days back, he swore someone was watching him, hunting himâran up to JoyTVâs roof like a nutcase, almost jumped,â
Helly said, shaking her head, âSomeone grabbed him quick, pulled him back, but they say his hands got messed up- dislocates all the time now,â said Helly.
âAnd Joanna,â she mumbled, âafter wrapâup, Zachary said her scenes sucked, cut the role entirely, and swore heâd never work with her again.â
Nyx listened, then went quiet, thinking, âLittle mermaidâs got a mean streak.
1/4 12:35 Tue, 18 Mar Chapter 428 Seafarion was one of her milder partnersâguess heâd been in a fool mood lately âMarilyn, Nyx asked, âHas Seafarion checked in about me lately?
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She was so blunt. Marilynâs face went awkward. âUh, yeah, heâs got me reporting your schedule and whereabouts daily. Iâm not spying on you, I âI know, itâs fine.â Nyx soothed her, nodding thoughtfully.
In fact, she could very well be the hunter and Seafarion was the prey. Seafarion peeked at her from the shadowsâshe was just biding her time, waiting for the catch. As long as the line held, the fish stayed in her pondâcouldnât swim away.
âAnd meâ Gavin raised a timid hand. âSorry, bossâIâve been telling Seafarion about your meals every day. He didnât want to play spy, but the big guy paid way too well.
âWhatâs with you all?â Helly yelped, grabbing Nyxâs hand. âBoss! Trust me! Iâm the only one who hasnât done it! Iâd never stab you in the back!â
Nyx laughed, patting her head. âAlright, alright, youâre the best.â
It wasnât really betrayalâSeafarion wasnât an outsider, and heâd set up the studio, paid their wages. She didnât mind him knowing these things; there was no need to hide it.
At the shoot, Nyx realized it wasnât solo- A hot new actor was there for the menâs line, and theyâd do a duo shot together.
âWhy didnât you mention this?â Marilyn frowned, âMy artist doesnât do closeâcontact shoots with guys.â
The brand was baffled. âItâs standard stuffânot that intimate, right?â
The two had no historyâthe brand wasnât pairing them up, just wanted some flirty vibes for the jewelry theme. Hand- holding, a hug, no big deal. Actors did kiss scenes all the timeâthere was no need to be so uptight.
Marilyn still wavered. The brand was rightâit wasnât over the top. Her old clients wouldâve shot it no problem. But with Nyx, she had Seafarion to answer to.
Nyx checked the plan, got the gist of the moves, and murmured to her agent, âItâs okay, Marilyn, Iâll do it. Just tell Seafarion the truth.â
Nyx had the final sayâonce she greenlit it, the shoot went smooth as silk. Solo parts flowed, duo parts clickedâthe young guy was a gentleman, kept it professional, no extra moves, saving tons of hassle and time.
Last shot: Nyx stood at a mirror, lifting her hair a bit; the guy stood behind, fastening a necklace, his fingers brushing her pale skin like the photographer wanted.
Faintly, Nyx felt a hot stare from nearby. She played it cool, focused on the shoot, locking eyes with the guy in the mirror- her gaze soft and warm.
âGreat! Thatâs the vibe!â the photographer cheered, thrilledâbrand reps nodded approval.
Shoot wrapped, Nyx and the guy hit it off, swapped contacts. She waved him off, heading to her agent and assistants. âTime to head homeâdinner out together?â
A guy whoâd been holding back finally snapped, pulling off his hat, âNyx.â
Nyx acted like sheâd just noticed him, gasping, âYouâre here?â
Hat off, Seafarionâs signature hair and face poppedâeveryone else was genuinely floored. Nyx faked her shock, but they were legit stunned.
2/4 Chapter 428 The brand rep belatedly got why Marilyn had balked at the close shotsâheart pounding. They wondered if they could still use the duo pics.
âBeen a whileâwork keeping you busy? Whyâd you drop by?â Nyx said, voice light, âWhenâd you get here? Howâd I do?â
She waved again, introducing the guy to Seafarion. âFirst ad shootâSergio carried me through it.â
Sergio stiffened, bowing to Seafarion. Seafarion didnât crack a smile but forced a nod.
Just workâthe guy was decent, didnât overstep with Nyx. For that, he offered Sergio a spot at Cosmic Entertainment. Cosmic Entertainment was midâpurgeâTerryâs cronies got axed if they were dirty, dragging some artists down, too.
Sergio joining now meant steady good gigsâsecondâtier at least, maybe firstâtier with hustle.
Sergio clutched Seafarionâs card, dazed. As a fellow guy, heâd felt the jealousy and edgeâyet Seafarion held it in, even tossed him an offer for Nyxâs sake.
Crowd cleared, Seafarion faced Nyxâmet her eyes, then flinched, looking down. âNyx, thereâs a banquet tonight. Come with me?â
Big entertainment names would be thereâheâd introduce her, so next time he wasnât around, no idiot would dare touch her.
Nyx wouldnât say no to that. âSure.â
Seafarion taking her out in public threw her a bit, though. From how heâd acted, he hadnât cleared that mental hurdle yet. She couldnât figure itâshe shrugged, deciding to wing it.
Hours till the banquet, Nyx hopped in his carâhe took her for styling, a gown, then off to the venue. Spotting a license plate stacked with eights, the doorman knew a VIP was comingâflashing a perfect warm smile.
Someone opened the car door with grace, hand shielding the top, welcoming Seafarionâthen nearly lost it seeing the woman beside him. âWhoâwho is this? Riding with Seafarion!â he thought.
Inside, the hall glowedâglasses clinked, guests mingled, sipping and chatting, laughter weaving through the air. Seafarion stepped in and instantly owned the roomâevery head turned, jaws dropping. The place hushed, just the tinkle of glasses ringing out.
âSeafarion brought a date? People were shocked. Heâd never shown up with a womanânot even for show. First time ever:
Eyes drilled into themâSeafarion frowned, glanced at Nyx, worried sheâd feel off at her first gig like this. Surpriseâshe handled it fine. She tilted her head at him, smiling soft as always.
Back when she first hit Beastmen Empire, Nyx had been timidâbut years later, sheâd grown used to crowds and stares, no fear left.
Then a burning gaze landed on herâtoo strong to ignore. She snapped her head up, locking onto familiar green beast eyes. Nyx faltered, her steps stalling for a second.
âNyx, this is Mr. Jason Jackman, head of Broskelâs Entertainment Association,â Seafarion said, missing her glitch, leading her to meet peopleâshe pulled her eyes back and followed. That stare stuck to her like glue, never letting up.
âThis is your girlfriend?â someone finally blurted, too curious to hold back.
âNo-â Seafarion flinched, denying it hard. âNyx is my sister.â
Nyx bit her lip, fighting a laugh. No wonder heâd dared bring her outâheâd cooked up this story.
Folks around traded subtle looks. Seafarion was an only childâhe couldnât have a sister. Heâd never paraded any distant cousins either.
3/4 12:35 Tue, 18 Mär Chapter 428 âMore like sweethearts, probably, people thought. They thought it but didnât say itâjust flattered them, saying they looked good together, easy to mistake.
Seeing Seafarionâs eyes light up despite himself, they knew theyâd nailed itâNyx was his woman.
In a corner, some rich kids tagging along with their parents drank and gabbedâone was sloshed, staring at Nyx, flushed, clearly smitten. His buddies yanked him back, stopping a mess.
âCut it out, stop gawking!â
âSheâs Seafarionâs!â
45 Hearing that name, the rich kid shivered, sobering up fast. Grumbling, he looked away, drowning his sorrows. It was rare to find a girl that hotâand she was taken. Anyone else, fineâbut Seafarion. No one dared to cross him.
One glass down, reaching for another, he caught a tall figure heading Nyxâs way, his eyes widening slowly.
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