My Dreamy Old Husband

Nobody would have expected that those two girls were courageous to attack Flynn in front of the Staffords. Just as the men from the Staffords moved to defend the fallen boy, the security team from Audistin rushed out onto the streets and effectively blocked their way. The head of security was looking extremely displeased with them.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to start a fight outside Audistin?” he barked.

Audistin had a formidable reputation. The Winstons and Fletchers ran the place and the Michels were rumored to have shares in the business as well. The clubhouse was backed up by crime organizations and the military; word had it that the security team was made up of soldiers who retired from the special forces, former secret agents, and bloodthirsty mercenaries. As such, one would naturally avoid causing a scene anywhere near the club.

Panicking over the safety of her fiancé, Kimberly pointed an accusatory finger toward Carmen and Poppy—both of whom were still throwing punches at Flynn—before shouting, “They're the ones who started the fight!”

Those were the same security personnel from the club earlier—they did not dare to leave their posts until Carmen and Poppy safely made it home.

They had been watching from inside the club when the fight started, but they immediately rushed out when they saw that Staffords’ men were about to attack the girls.

“It's hardly a big deal if it's between minors,” the head of security countered coldly, acting as if he could not see the nearby fight that was going on.

Upon hearing that, Kimberly's eyes widened in shock. She was now certain that the security had been dispatched by none other than their opponents and it seemed as if they were intent on watching Flynn being beaten to death.

As the security held them back, the men who worked for Stafford Group could only watch from the sidelines as he continued to brace himself against Carmen's abuse.

However, just as she gained momentum in the fight, her eye caught a startling flicker of green from the car parked by the side of the road

A pair of green eyes stared in her direction from within the shadows. The green was so captivatingly familiar that it drew her gaze toward the car and distracted her from the fight.

The pair of green eyes also looked at her and in that moment, Flynn's cries of pain as well as Poppy's string of profanities melted into the background. The longer the owner of the green eyes and Carmen stared at each other, the more she felt as though time and space no longer existed. There was an unspoken conversation that seemed to hang in the air between them, as if their souls tried to convey every single thought and emotion to one another.

She recognized those piercing green eyes as well as that car—the vehicle was the brainchild of the first-ever collaboration between Michel Group and Ronney Group. Michel Group's extensive experience in arms-manufacturing and advanced technology combined with Ronney Group's prowess in aesthetics culminated in the final design for the car. The model was essentially refined armor—elegant on the outside and tough within.

The concept of the car was a sensation after it made its debut, which piqued the interests of many of the world’s richest men. The limited edition model was sold out before it could even hit the market, resulting in a huge triumph for the collaborating parties; the way in which they had combined both art with advanced defence technology was an iconic breakthrough for their respective industries.

Sophia was the one to suggest the initial concept so that she could include it in one of the collections of her “Premium High-Tech’ project.

Over the course of a decade, she and her brother, Linus, had worked together to realize all of her designs. Premium High-Tech was now renowned as a pioneer in the industry and paved a bright future for luxury goods and technology alike.

At the current moment, the car that was idling by the side of the road was a premium collector's edition, which was launched to commemorate Premium High-Tech's tenth anniversary. There were only twelve of those in the world and the cars were so exclusive that only those who knew a higher- up in the company could get their hands on them. In fact, the owners of those twelve cars had maintained extremely close relations to the manufacturer.

Carmen was more than familiar with the profiles of those twelve clients and there was only one person among them with green eyes—Bailey Adams.

She did not think that she would see him outside the club.

Now that she thought about it, they had not seen each other for a decade. In fact, the last time she saw him was before Michael's cryopreservation.

After that, Carmen had left for her studies abroad and did not meet Bailey ever since.

He mostly kept a low profile and not even the media could get any pictures of him; she wondered what he looked like after all those years.

She was still staring in his direction when Flynn snarled, “What the hell do you think you're doing, Carmen?”

Snapping out of her reverie, Carmen remembered that she was supposed to be beating him up. She attacked him with a deadly kick to the face—a move which was passed down through the generations in the Fletcher family—and sent him flying while bringing a satisfying end to the battle. Greg came out at that moment and he was shocked by the scene before him. The security guards immediately confronted the men from Stafford Group, causing a ruckus as they shouted abuse at one another. Within minutes, both parties were on the verge of a brawl. Seizing upon the diversion, Carmen and Poppy fled the scene with the dog.

With the dog in tow, the girls walked past the aforesaid luxury car. The curious dog then jumped up and stood on its hind legs before resting its paws against the edge of the car window. It looked as though it was getting ready to leap into the vehicle.

The mysterious passenger reached out with a pale, slender hand, and his long fingers fell upon the dog's head to stroke its fur.

As he did so, the bracelet he wore slid down his wrist, revealing the three apricot kernels that adorned it.

"Come on, you stupid dog!” Poppy grunted as she pulled on the leash, forcing the dog to abandon its efforts to clamber into the car. As they left the scene, Carmen found herself turning to look at the car a couple more times until she finally lost sight of it, but the person in the car never made an appearance.

The ground was wet after the spring shower and both girls were treading carefully as they made their way home. The dog walked alongside them on its leash. There was a faint scent of spring that lingered in the otherwise dank and shabby alleyway.

She was silent throughout the journey home. All she could think about were those green eyes and its owner.

It was such a pity that she did not manage to catch a glimpse of his face.

Poppy, on the other hand, was reliving their triumph from earlier. “That was more like it! You might have been cheated on, but good for you for standing up to him!” she said with fierce approval. “I've been wanting to beat that b*stard up for the longest time! He's nothing but a disgusting creep! He can't even begin to compete with my godfather!”

It was late at night by the time both girls returned to their respective homes. Carmen braced herself as she opened the front door. She then sighed in her heart upon seeing her family members waiting up for her in the brightly-lit living room.

The robot whirred as it hurried over to pick up the dog and bring it for a bath. Meanwhile, she gripped onto the strap of her backpack as she entered the living room. “Mom, Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle,” she greeted dutifully. “I'm home.”

Her mother, Sophia, walked toward her in haste. “Darling, where have you been? Your grandpa told me that you went out with Poppy after school.”

Carmen's chest tightened. She did not respond while walking toward the staircase and she rolled her eyes in frustration when Sophia pestered her for an answer. Why bother asking if you already know?

The reason why she wanted to head abroad in the first place was because she could not stand being watched by her family 24/7. She finally found respite after staying abroad for a few years, but when she came home a year ago, it was as if her old life picked up right from where she'd left it off.

It was a never-ending story—one that constantly imported the heavy use of spy drones and pinhole cameras.

When it came to spying methods, the creative brains behind Michel Technology did not have an imagination that was as limited as Carmen's. The high-tech 360° panoramic spy-cam was custom- made for her. It seemed as if her entire family would not be content until they knew her every move. She highly suspected that any waste matter she expelled into her toilet bowl would be subject to their scrutiny as well—she would not be surprised if they decided to run lab tests on it.

Carmen eyed her mom with a solemn look again and she announced defiantly, “Mom, I'm a grown- up. I use tampons now and I might even start using condoms in a couple of months’ time. Can you please just give me some personal space?”

Upon hearing that, Sophia froze in shock.

In fact, everyone in the family was taken aback by Carmen's words.

Carmen, on the other hand, was worn out after today’s events. She went upstairs to her bedroom and made her way into the shower.

She had only just exited the bathroom when she suddenly remembered the photo album. She rummaged through her things and pulled out the thick album that was filled with pictures of her. After that, she flipped through it and finally found the one she was looking for.

The picture was taken when she was a little girl. In it, Sophia and Michael were going through their wedding rehearsal on the island whereas she was the flower girl. Bailey was also there and it was Cooper who took the photo.

Carmen wistfully stared at the photograph—they were two innocent kids on an island and their smiles were as radiant as the flowers that were in full bloom behind them as they stood hand in hand with each other.

She wondered what he looked like after all those years.