The Scent of 152

Chapter 152

The sky was now completely dark, and the mountain air had turned even colder.

After hanging up the call, Beck turned around and walked back to their tent. He saw Celeste and Shanice huddled together, sharing food and conversation. Hence, he went into the tent and returned with two warm coats–one big, one small.

He passed the big coat to Celeste.

She said, “It’s fine, I’m not cold…”

“Just drape it over your shoulder.”

Beck unfolded the coat and casually wrapped it around her, then made sure Shanice was bundled up in the small

one.

Celeste hadn’t really felt cold, but with the coat blocking most of the mountain wind, it was undeniably warmer, so she chose not to refuse.

They went to the bonfire party after dinner,

As they approached, someone blurted out, “Oh my, this little family is almost too good–looking to be real!”

Celeste paused for a brief moment and explained, “We’re not a family.”

The group of people chuckled among themselves. They joked that even though the three weren’t a family yet, it was only a matter of time until they became one.

Then, Shanice wandered off to play with kids her age.

Everyone else was there with their close friends and family, sitting in groups chatting, playing games, building snowmen, and having snowball fights–it was a lively scene.

Celeste wasn’t close with Beck. Hence, they went quiet after Shanice ran off to play with the others.

Well, there wasn’t much to talk about, anyway.

Any talk of family that touched on Trevor and Wynn was a sore spot for Celeste.

Work talk? That might stir up memories of what had happened in InnovaTech.

At last, Beck asked, “Settled in at YodaVision yet?”

Celeste found the conversation dull, but she had no intention of getting too involved with Beck

So, the quiet between them was just the way she liked it.

When Beck asked that question, she was toying with dried grass, shaping it into a butterfly.

“Yes, I have,” she answered in a flat tone.

“Matthias seemed to be looking out quite a lot for you, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“You studied Al in college?”

She gave a quiet hum in response.

“How did you and Matthias meet?”

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Chapter 152

Celeste remained silent.

Beck could tell that Celeste wasn’t keen on chatting with him. She had always maintained this level of distance

with him.

He knew the reason, so he let it be.

In the middle of everything, he answered a few calls at a quieter spot.

By the time he got back, it was already late.

Celeste weaved a few butterflies with the dried leaves. Shanice loved them so much that she carefully kept them all in her pocket.

Her smile froze upon seeing Shanice like that.

Once, Jordyn had been just as enthusiastic as Shanice in everything Celeste did.

But it was all in the past now.

That night, Shanice insisted on sleeping together with Celeste.

Beck turned to Celeste, silently waiting for her take.

She agreed to it.

Thus, Shanice snuggled into her warmth, looking content.

They were technically sleeping together–just under the same tent.

Besides, they slept separately in their own sleeping bags, so there was no way Shanice could get Celeste to cuddle her tonight.

Shanice was prone to sickness. And after a night of strong winds, she woke up the next morning with a cold.

Celeste didn’t sleep well last night, either. She woke up looking drained.

Beck decided to bring Shanice to the hospital. Celeste, on the other hand, wanted to drive back on her own. Then, Shanice clung to Celeste, whining for her to go to the hospital with her. Seeing how sickly Shanice looked, Celeste gave in.

They hopped onto Beck’s car.

Shortly after, they both fell asleep.

Beck’s gaze fell on Celeste’s delicate face. He instinctively wanted to tuck the few strands of hair on her face away. But when her lashes fluttered slightly, he withdrew his hand at the last second.

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