The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era



"WHY are you really accompanying me to this party?" Casey finally couldn't help but ask.

Earlier in the evening, before he left his house, he received an unexpected guest. It was the duke.

The other suddenly declared that he would accompany him to the launch party of EMMA's new perfume line. Before he could say any words of rejection, the other had already gone ahead and rode his own car. Acting like he's the owner, waiting for his driver. Which in this scenario would be Casey.

Casey was too stunned and shocked to even put up a fight. So, at the end, he could only ride his car and bring the other to the party. They rode in silence, not saying anything to each other. It was only when they arrived at the hotel venue and the camera flashes of reporters and paparazzi bombarded them outside that he came back to his senses.

He couldn't complain immediately because of the surrounding people. Even if they weren't exactly on good terms, he didn't want the dirty laundry of their family to be aired out in the open. So, he only had the chance to ask what he's been itching to ask when they walked inside the elevator.

"I want to meet the young man who saved our Nikki," the duke said in his usual emotionless tone. But if one listened closely, they would hear the warmth in his voice the moment he said Nikki's name.

Casey was momentarily surprised when he heard that. Then he scoffed. "If that's the case, you could have just invited him, as well as his brother, to the duke's mansion. Nikki would be much happier with that as well. Your presence here would just make it awkward for the kid."

Anthony glanced at his youngest, who was obviously not happy with him being here. He had also considered what Cassius had just said, about inviting the twin brothers to the duke's mansion. He was actually already planning to do that. But when he heard about this launch party, he changed his mind.

Because this was a good excuse to spend time with Cassius. If the other heard about this reasoning, he might just explode in anger. Which wasn't surprising, considering the current state of their relationship. Or the lack thereof.

After his youngest found out about the truth that surrounded Emmaline's 'death', he almost denounced the Grimaldi name. He knew that the only reason he didn't was because of EMMA. He told him that he would give him EMMA, which was a company that was supposed to be inherited by Emmaline.

Being the only thing that could be a point of connection to him and his sister, Cassius swallowed his anger and accepted it. But it didn't mean that his relationship with his family got better. No, it only got worse.

Cassius moved out of the mansion and cut contact with them. Because of how clumsy Anthony was when it came to emotions, he couldn't properly apologize and ask the other for them to be a proper family. For one, what right did he have to even ask such a thing? And second, he could tell that his youngest would never accept an apology from him. He could already imagine what he would have said if he did.

That he's not the one that should receive an apology. That the person he should give that apology to was no longer here.

And he would be right.

That's why Anthony could only watch as Cassius drifted farther and farther away from his family. Things had only turned slightly better when Nikki was born. Because of the appearance of a new family member, Cassius was willing to reconnect with them. But only when it concerned Nikki. When it didn't concern his nephew, then Anthony and Thomas were still strangers in his eyes.

Thomas was treated slightly better since he's Nikki's father. Cassius would at least talk to him. Which was a far cry from how he's treating Anthony. As evidence, this was the first time in two years that the other took the initiative to speak to him.

But Anthony didn't have the right to complain. This was his karma for the things that he did to Emmaline.

He sighed and responded to Cassius, "I just wanted to meet the young man in person. Don't worry, I'll try not to make it awkward for him."

"And how would you do that? Just your mere presence alone was enough to trouble Astrid. In case you forgot, you're a duke, and he's a rookie actor. What if some gossip surfaced about you sponsoring the kid and that's why he became EMMA's ambassador? It will ruin his career!"

Anthony furrowed his brows, not fully understanding what Cassius meant. "Is it bad to become a sponsor?"

Casey slapped his forehead when he heard such an 'innocent' question. Then, he remembered that the other had an almost negligible knowledge about the entertainment industry.

He gave the duke a sideway glance. "Being a sponsor meant that you're his sugar daddy."

A few seconds had passed before realization kicked the duke in the face, as evidence of his darkened expression. "That's preposterous!"

"I agree. That's why you shouldn't have come with me."

Anthony narrowed his eyes at his youngest. "But wouldn't the same thing applied to you? No, isn't it more likely for you to be suspected as the young man's sponsor than me? What do you call it, a 'sugar daddy'?"

Casey suddenly had no immediate reply to that. But he quickly thought of something and said, "I could hardly be considered his sugar daddy. I'm not that old yet. Unlike you."

Anthony felt the corner of his eye twitched when he heard such an unreasonable explanation, if one could even call it that. "That's hardly the point, isn't it?"

Before Casey could say anything back, the door to the elevator had already opened. Some people in the sky lounge had already seen them. Casey had no choice but to plaster a smile on his face and walked out. The duke following behind him.