Shopping with Maurice 2

Lara was later woken up by Sara at 2.00, and by then she was feeling much better. A hot bath lessened the ache in her body muscles, and she felt more relaxed.

After the bath, Lara carefully applied her makeup, something she hadn't done since she reincarnated, but since she was changing her entire look, she decided to start with the make up. She wasn't surprised to find a makeup box inside her closet because from her memories, the previous Lara was shy and timid, but she would do certain things in her room when she thought no one was looking, one of them being applying makeup.

For her shopping spree with Maurice, Lara picked brown cargo pants and a white tank top. Pretty basic, but so fashionable when worn by someone like her who had the body and face of a model.

When she went downstairs, she found Maurice, James and Sara inside the kitchen. Sara and James were chatting freely, while Maurice seemed busy with his phone.

No one seemed to notice her at first and Lara was quite nervous, so she decided to take in deep breaths, until Sara noticed her presence and called out to her.

"Oh, miss."

Everyone else turned to look at her, making Lara even more nervous. Maurice had a neutral expression–his usual emotionless face just stoic, but there was a hint of a smile at the corners of his lips as he eyed Lara, whereas James had a frown on his face, his eyes narrowing at Lara. He tilted his head to the side, but Lara was sure he didn't recognise her because his expression would have been different.

The outfit she currently wore was so much different from what she had the previous night, and even if James had a hunch, it would probably be overshadowed by doubt.

"Ahem…" Lara noisily cleared her throat to break the awkward silence, then she smiled sweetly at everyone. "Hello."

"Ah, miss, I prepared a sandwich for you," said Sara as she opened the fridge.

Lara gingerly walked to the kitchen island and took a seat opposite James and Maurice, just to ensure there wouldn't be any unnecessary physical proximity.

"I know you said you would eat when you wake up but Maurice said you would eat outside so I just prepared a sandwich," Sara added handing Lara the sandwich.

James excused himself for some business, but even as he did so, Lara could feel his curious eyes on her, which she tried to ignore by eating with her head lowered. Once he was out of the room, Lara raised her head and found Maurice's attention back on his screen, but it was like he felt her gaze on his face because he lifted his head and their eyes met.

Lara's breath hitched and her pulse quickened, feeling like time had stopped. Maurice's gaze was deep and piercing, causing Lara's hands to become clammy as she found herself unable to look away.

*Cling*

"Oops."

The sound of Sara dropping something then exclaiming was what brought her mind back to the present and she quickly looked away, her eyes darting around as she gulped.

One corner of Maurice's lips curled upwards as he stared at Lara in amusement, everything they did in the garden just floating around his mind.

Afterwards, Lara and Maurice walked outside where the car was already packed and Maurice–like a gentleman–opened the door for her. Lara was surprised and hesitated for a while because unlike other times when Maurice drove her around, this time he opened the front door and not the back door.

"Th–thank you," she uttered as she climbed in. Maurice responded with a slight nod, then walked around the car to the driver's seat and started the engine.

The Kent residence was located somewhere remote, and it was a long drive to town since there weren't any shops close by. Somehow, Lara was both thankful and regretful for the long distance. Thankful because she needed to clear her mind, and regretful because being in a closed space alone with Maurice was making her body react.

They had barely droven out of the private tarmac when Maurice suddenly pulled over and stopped the car by the roadside.

Lara turned to look at him quizzically, but while her face showed confusion, her body was already turning hot, her mind trying to come up with reasons for the sudden stop. Was he going to fuck her in the car, or maybe tell her to give him a blowjob?

Unaware of her dirty thoughts, Maurice leaned forward and Lara forgot how to breathe for a moment. Their bodies were close, so close that she could smell his cologne and she instinctively closed her eyes, inhaling the manly scent.

Maurice reached across her seat without looking at her and clasped her seatbelt, letting his fingers trace her waist as he did so, then reclined back to his seat. He stared at Lara's face with a slight smirk, and Lara's face instantly turned red from embarrassment. Even though she knew he didn't know what she was thinking, Maurice's expression made her think otherwise and feel embarrassed.

"Ahem… thanks," she said, dodging eye contact.

Maurice's smile widened before he started the engine again and resumed his focus to the road.

After a couple of minutes, Lara cleared her throat once again. Maurice gave her an amused look with one brow raised and she scratched the back of her neck, clutching her purse tightly on her lap.

"Erm… Maurice… about last night—"

"What about it?" Maurice asked, his lips curling upwards though his eyes stayed on the road.

"Well… I…" her words trailed off, her thoughts stumbling over what to say.

"Well, I do hope you enjoyed it like I did," Maurice casually replied, earning a bewildered look from Lara. "We should do it again, don't you think?"

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