The police and the Ambulance arrived simultaneously with the fire truck, and once the stunt man was on his way to the hospital, the police began to take everyone"s statements. When it was Kylie"s turn to talk, she explained how her sword had been tampered with and that the fall had been intended for her. She told them about the props director and why she suspected that he had been the perpetrator.The police called Miller in, and after hearing the story, he said, "I don"t understand what is going on. We don"t have a props manager. That position is divided up by the stage manager, hair and make-up team, and the producers."
One of the officers looked at Kylie and said, "Can you describe who you saw?"
Kylie did, but Miller didn"t think her description sounded like anybody that he"d seen on the set. "We will be canceling our shooting schedule for today," he told the officers, "so that you can continue your investigation."
Dinah was waiting for Kylie when she left the room. She had a can of c.o.ke for Kylie, and she was drinking one of her own. "Thank G.o.d you"re safe," Dinah sighed as they walked into the actor"s lounge and sat down. "I wonder what will happen now, though. Will Ethan allow you to continue to act? Will he fire me? Who knows? Who knew that our lives could have been turned around so quickly – and yet it could have been much worse; you could be dead…"
"If you are let go," Kylie laughed, "look at the bright side: at least you"ll have more time to chase after Stephen."
Dinah rolled her eyes and smiled. Kylie could find a silver lining in any situation.
Lucas slowed down as they pa.s.sed the last house before Kylie"s. Dinah looked out the window, and then she turned to Kylie and said, "I see that you have a new neighbor. They moved in quickly, didn"t they? I didn"t see them when I was out running yesterday!"
Kylie shrugged and motioned for Lucas to keep going.
The car stopped at the entrance to Garbo Palace. Kylie and Dinah got out, and Lucas parked the car.
When Lucy saw them arrive, she came out to welcome Kylie. "Mrs. Parker," she laughed nervously, "you"re finally home. We heard about what happened at the studio and have been anxious to ensure that you are safe."
"Everything is fine," Kylie said. "I am safe, but where is Pupu? Why isn"t he here to welcome me home?"
"Pupu has been hiding in his room," Lucy explained. "I don"t know why, but he refuses to come out!"
"Where"s Lord Ethan?" Kylie asked as she walked directly to Pupu"s room.
"Lord Ethan"s is with the dog," Lucy replied.
Kylie pushed the door open, and the first thing she saw was Pupu, lying on the floor, with his snout on his paws. Pupu looked sad. Ethan was sitting beside him, on a beanbag chair and silently petting the dog, a man, and his best friend.
"What"s wrong with Pupu?"Kylie wondered. "Does it have anything to do with his vaccine?"
"I don"t think so," Ethan replied. Kylie walked towards them, and Pupu"s eyes seemed to come to life. "I think it is because you didn"t say goodbye to the hospital before you left. It was awfully selfish of you…"
Kylie kissed Ethan"s nose, pet Pupu, and said, "I"m sorry. That was thoughtless of me."
Pupu licked Kylie"s hand as if to say, "I forgive you."
Kylie looked Ethan in the eyes and said, "I will give you a ma.s.sage tonight to make it up to you, and if you"d like, I will allow you to punish me. After all, I have been a very bad girl!"
"I think that is a very good idea," Ethan replied. "We should go to a walkthrough. After everything you have put Pupu through, I think that you owe it to him."
Hearing the word "walk", Pupu jumped up, and his tail stood straight up – and his tongue began to swing back and forth outside of his mouth, throwing spittle all over the place.
Kylie and Ethan had barely begun to walk when Kylie looked at Ethan and said, "Laurence has moved into the Merlin Villa. I wasn"t sure if you remembered that I"d invited him to stay, so I thought that I should remind you."
Ethan rubbed Pupu"s hair gently. He had come to love the animal, which had come as a surprise to him. He"d never been an animal-loving person. He took a piece of turkey jerky out of his pocket and held it up over Pupu. The dog jumped for a few minutes until, finally, Ethan dropped it into his mouth. "Good dog," he laughed.
Ethan turned to Kylie and said, "I haven"t forgotten about your father, but I don"t want to think much about him either. You aren"t even his biological daughter, but I can still see why you feel compelled to help him. Even if you find your biological father, this connection you have with Laurence will never go away.
"In fact," Ethan continued, "even if you find your biological father and he is a good person, your connection with him will never be as strong as your connection to Laurence is. The bonds that are bound in childhood are the ones that stick. I could help you find your biological father, though, if you"d like… In fact, I would do anything for you."
"Would you break off all of your relations with Vivian?" she wondered.
When Ethan didn"t say anything for a while, Kylie said, "Never mind. I have come to accept the fact that Vivian has some hold on you that, much as you might like to, you cannot break. Perhaps it is something like the bond that Laurence has over me. If I wanted to turn him away, who can say whether or not I would be able to?"
Ethan looked thoughtfully up into the sky, and after a moment, he said, "Honey, I can do this if you want me to."
Kylie shivered suddenly, and Ethan took off his coat and placed it over her shoulder. He smiled at her and said, "You should know by now that I love you very much. You are the only one I want. Compared to the love I feel for you, my past relationship was nothing but a childish crush."
Kylie raised her head, and she kissed Ethan"s soft lips. He kissed her back, and after all the foreplay, it was like no other kiss they"d ever shared between them – and he wanted more, and she wanted more. Very quickly, Ethan"s heart rate began to race. He held her by the waist, and they held each other. Neither knew whether, if they separated, they would be able to stand on their own.
Suddenly, Pupu began to pull at the hem of Ethan"s pants, and the couple came apart. Kylie sat down on the gra.s.s while he swayed on his feet above her. "What was that" she wondered.
"I don"t know," Ethan replied, "but I want to shout it from the mountain tops. Let"s announce our marriage at Old Mr. Parker"s birthday!"
Kylie wrapped her arms around his legs and said, "From your lips to G.o.d"s ears."
Suddenly Pupu started to bark at Ethan excitedly again, and he pulled out some more Turkey Jerky for him.
Once the dog was gone, Kylie looked at Ethan and said, "Even though I love you deeply, I would still like you to get down on one knee with a ring and ask me to marry you formally. I have dreamed of these moments since I was a child, and I don"t want to give up on them."
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