Model to Holywood

"An-An, Jamie's catching up!" 

In the car, Lima glanced at the rear window and gave a heads-up.

"Ignore him!" 

Ambrosio waved dismissively, annoyed. "That jerk says he's here to apologize, but he didn't even bring a single flower. With that attitude, I'll never forgive him."

"But he has a sports car. He could take you for a spin." 

Lima laughed lightly from the back seat.

"After being out for a whole month, who even wants to go for a drive? He doesn't understand girls at all."

"Hahaha~" 

Lima, holding a bouquet, couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Luca shrugged. He also didn't quite understand women. Lima once said she didn't like flowers, but here she was, happy with them. Clearly, she liked them. 

He thought about explaining things for Jamie but decided against it. Better Jamie take the fall; as long as Lima was happy, that's what mattered.

"Stop laughing." 

Ambrosio said, displeased. "Lima, you're so smug now. Be careful, or one day Luca might run off with another woman."

"He better not, or I'll break his legs!" 

Lima replied fiercely.

"Oh really?" 

Ambrosio smiled mischievously. "Luca, I heard news recently about you having a late-night date with Rachel. Care to explain that to Lima?"

"No need. Lima's cool like that; she won't believe those rumors." 

Luca responded nonchalantly.

"Lima, you really don't care?" 

Ambrosio asked, puzzled.

Lima shrugged. "Rachel's 35 already. If Luca's really into her, he's welcome to go ahead."

"Haha~ Lima, since when did you get so chill?"

"I've always been this way!" 

Lima flipped her hair proudly.

Luca chuckled. If he hadn't reported everything in advance, Lima would've probably come home today swinging a baseball bat.

"Lima, should I learn from you and forgive Jamie this time?" 

Ambrosio asked.

"Up to you, but don't forgive him so easily. I've got a suggestion. Want to hear it?"

"What is it?" 

Ambrosio asked curiously.

"Break his legs. Every time he cheats, break one leg. If he can handle that, then maybe you can consider forgiving him."

"Uh… Isn't that a bit extreme?"

"Yes, you have to be ruthless with cheaters. Right, Luca?" 

Lima asked casually.

"That makes sense!" 

Luca wiped the sweat from his forehead and sped up the car. No way he was slowing down—not with these two ruthless women plotting. In no time, they reached Tribeca.

"Luca, why are you driving so fast? Haha, no need to explain, take care of yourself~" 

Ambrosio joked as she stepped out of the car.

"An-An~ these are for you!" 

On the street outside the apartment, Jamie saw Ambrosio approaching and, wiping sweat from his face, hurried over with a bouquet of roses.

Ambrosio ignored him and pulled her suitcase toward the apartment.

"An-An, I know I messed up. Please forgive me this one time. I promise, I won't cheat again." 

Jamie chased her to the elevator, pleading for forgiveness.

"You really want me to forgive you?" 

Ambrosio blinked, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Yes, yes, An-An, please give me another chance." 

Jamie nodded vigorously.

"Okay, but only if you agree to one condition." 

Ambrosio said coolly.

"Whatever it is, just say it! Even if it's ten conditions, or a hundred, I'll agree!" 

Jamie slapped his chest.

"Alright, here's my new rule: Every time you cheat, I break one leg. Cheat twice, I break both. As long as you can handle the pain, you can cheat as much as you want. Deal?"

Jamie was stunned. Was this even real?

"An-An, are you joking?"

"No, I'm dead serious."

"An-An, can we change it? Breaking legs is way too painful."

"What's a little pain? Do you know Luca? The last time he cheated, Lima broke his back."

"Luca's back got broken?" 

Jamie froze. He remembered hearing on the news that Luca had broken his back twice. Could Lima have been responsible?

Yikes. 

Lima was brutal.

Luca was even crazier. With such a fierce girlfriend, he still dared to cheat? What a wild guy.

"Think it over. Come back once you've made up your mind." 

Ambrosio smirked and slammed the door in his face.

Jamie stood there holding the flowers, dumbfounded. Should he agree or not? 

"Hey Jack, do you know which orthopedic hospital in New York is the best? What? Mount Sinai Hospital? Dr. Joel?" 

"Ah~ finally home." 

Back at apartment 43, Lima flopped onto the sofa as soon as she got inside, not moving an inch, like a lazy pig.

Luca set down the suitcases and placed a glass of orange juice on the small table.

"Drink something."

"Don't want to. I just want to lie here." 

Lima lazily murmured from the couch.

Luca smiled and started massaging her shoulders. To take good care of Kate, he had gone to Chinatown and learned massage techniques from a master. Now, his skills were pretty good.

"Mmm, that feels amazing. Don't just focus on the shoulders, though—do the back, the legs, everything. This is heavenly." 

Lima groaned with her eyes closed.

"Tough day at work?"

"Yeah, exhausting. We were in Detroit for a car show the last few days, standing for three days straight. My legs nearly gave out." 

Lima lifted her head slightly and nestled into his arms, wrapping her arms around his waist, humming contentedly.

"Lima, maybe you should stop taking such tiring gigs. I've got enough money to take care of you now." 

Luca gently suggested.

"No way. I can make my own money. Sure, it's tiring, but I enjoy it." 

Lima smiled proudly.

Luca shook his head; he didn't like seeing her so worn out.

"Hey, how about switching careers? You love gaming—maybe you could become a game designer. I've got a few ideas I could share with you." 

Luca proposed.

"I couldn't do it. Game design involves too much computer programming. Just looking at code gives me a headache." 

Lima scratched her cheek.

Luca chuckled. He'd skimmed through the books she brought home about programming—he couldn't understand them either. If he couldn't, no way Lima could, having dropped out of high school.

"How about acting? I could find you a few good roles. You know I've made connections with big stars like Tom Cruise, Jennifer Aniston, and a few directors. It'd be easy to get you a role."

"Would acting be easier?"

.....

"Being an actor seems to be more tiring, and it doesn't make much money."

"What about being a screenwriter? I can write a lot of scripts and give you the credit. In the future, I can focus on acting, Kate can be a writer, and you can be the screenwriter."

Smooch!

Before he could finish, Lima sat up and gently kissed him.

"Darling, I know you're worried about me, and that makes me really happy. But I've been a model for five and a half years now. I'm considered an experienced, elite-level model, and I'm very familiar with the industry. If I switch to a different field, I don't feel confident that I'd do well. So right now, changing careers isn't a wise choice."

Luca nodded, understanding her point. Although he, Kate, Lima, Bundchen, and Anan were all supermodels, there was a big difference between them.

The difference wasn't in income but in professional experience. Kate and the others could leave the modeling industry and become modeling coaches, fitness trainers, nutritionists, agents, fashion magazine editors, or fashion designers. But Luca didn't have those options.

"Lima, I didn't think it through. That was my mistake."

Luca said sincerely.

"No, you weren't wrong. You were just worried about me, and I can feel that."

Lima pressed her hand against his chest.

Luca held her hand. "But what's the point of just worrying? Bundchen and Fernanda's boyfriends can provide them with lots of opportunities, but I feel like I can't help you enough right now, and I'm really sorry."

Lima shook her head. "You've done plenty, honey. You know, in the past, flying around for events used to make me feel exhausted and even a little emotionally empty."

"But not anymore. Now, when I get tired, I can just call you and listen to your voice, or maybe yell at you a bit, and it makes me feel happy and energized."

"Before, I knew why I was leaving New York, but I didn't know why I came back. Now I do. It's because you're here, waiting for me at home."

Lima said emotionally, her face lifted toward him.

Luca stared into her eyes, leaned down, and softly kissed her red lips.

After some passionate moments, both of them lay on the carpet, exhausted.

"It used to be six or seven times, but we were short one today. Come on, tell me, did Rachel take that extra round? You jerk!"

Lima teased, biting his ear.

"Haha, don't be ridiculous. We might've done it less, but the quality was better—it lasted half an hour longer than usual."

"Okay, I'll let you off this time!"

Lima smiled and rested her face against his chest, closing her eyes again.

"Don't fall asleep, you little lazybones. You said you were going to discuss the fashion design plans with Kate."

"Mmm... Just let me nap a little longer. It's so comfy sleeping in your arms. I could stay like this forever."

Lima murmured lazily.

Luca smiled gently and kissed her hair.

"Sweetheart, you said we were one short. How about we make up for it?"

"No way, I'm too tired!"

"Haha, come on, don't be shy!"

Luca suddenly pulled the blanket over their heads.

"Ahh! You jerk, stop it!"

After another playful session, they finally left the apartment around five in the afternoon and headed to 76th Street.

"Kate, we're back!"

Luca brought Lima into the apartment.

The Polo clothing design competition was about to begin, and Lima was meeting with Kate to discuss their competition designs. If they did well, Lima could switch careers and become a fashion designer.

Kate came out of the studio, having just returned from work. She was wearing a white shirt and a gray pencil skirt, looking stylish and chic.

"I thought you two wouldn't be up until tomorrow morning."

Kate teased as she looked at them.

"Haha, no way, Luca couldn't handle that."

Lima said casually.

"Luca couldn't handle it?"

Kate raised her eyebrows. "Luca, should we get you a doctor?"

"Don't listen to her nonsense. I'm perfectly fine."

Luca said, his face dark.

"Your back isn't fine. Your back can't handle it. Am I wrong?"

Lima teased, despite feeling tired herself.

Kate chuckled softly and playfully slapped Lima's butt. "Come on, little troublemaker, let's check out our designs."

"Ugh, you're such a tease!"

Lima rubbed her backside and followed Kate into the studio.

"This time, we have four series: the Rainbow Series, Black-and-White Series, Food Series, and the Emoji Series."

Kate pointed to several design sketches on the wall.

"What's the Emoji Series? I haven't heard of that."

Lima asked, puzzled.

"That one was Luca's idea. Check out these cartoon emojis—aren't they fun?"

Kate pulled out a stack of design drafts, showing over eighty different cartoon faces.

Originally, Luca had only drawn thirty-eight, but Kate thought they were amusing and asked him to create more.

Luca insisted that he was out of ideas, but after getting a playful beating, he managed to come up with another forty-eight to complete the emoji collection.

"Wow, these are so fun!"

Lima looked through them and praised, "These emojis look super simple, but they clearly express emotions. Luca, did you come up with all of these? How did you think of so many?"

Luca smirked. "It wasn't much. There are already lots of simple emojis online. I just tweaked them a bit. It wasn't that hard."

"Really? Well, your emojis are much more interesting than the ones online. Honey, you're so smart."

Lima kissed him happily.

Luca smiled, suddenly remembering something.

"Kate, can we apply for copyright for these emojis?"

"Of course! Every design element in fashion represents a designer's intellectual property. When we file the designs, we'll also apply for copyright to prevent anyone from stealing them. I've already applied for the copyright on all four series. We're just waiting for approval."

Kate explained.

Luca nodded, unsure if they'd get it, but figured it was worth a shot. If it worked, it could be another source of income.

"With these four series, I'm confident our designs will be selected. Well, at least one series."

Lima said confidently.

Kate shook her head, her expression gradually growing serious.

"What's wrong?"

Lima asked, confused.

"I got some news today. Apparently, the organizers invited Anna Wintour to be a judge. Our chances just dropped."

"Anna?"

Lima suddenly remembered. There had been rumors that Kate offended Anna during a magazine cover shoot in March, and they hadn't worked together since.

In the past few months, Kate had become a supermodel-turned-author, gracing the covers of ELLE, Rolling Stone, i-D, and other magazines, but VOGUE had been completely silent, not even mentioning her name. It was practically a ban.

Now, with Kate entering this competition, and Anna as a judge, the outcome seemed predictable.

"Lima, I've been thinking, and there's only one solution."

Kate crossed her arms and thoughtfully tapped her chin.

"What's that?"

"This time, you should be the lead designer."

"Kate, there's no need for that. There are more judges than just Anna. Can she really sway everyone?"

Lima tried to reassure her.

Kate shook her head. "Luca, what do you think?"

Luca thought for a moment. "There are three rounds, right? I heard most of the participants are professional designers, so getting to the final round will be tough. Worrying about this now doesn't help. Let's focus on making it to the last round first."

"Luca's right, Kate. Let's focus on doing our best now. If our work is good enough, it won't go unnoticed."

"Alright, let's get through the preliminary round first."

Kate nodded slightly.

In the studio, Kate and Lima got down to work, fully absorbed in their designs.

Luca poured them each a cup of coffee and quietly went up to the bedroom. There were still two chapters of Eclipse left to write, and he had to finish before Monday.

Meeting Polly was about to start filming.

The next day, after finishing the third part of Eclipse, Han Li came over with a new contract. The first Twilight book had become a huge success, and the new contract terms were more favorable than the original one for a newcomer.

"Kate, Twilight has just been fully released in Brazil, and it's doing really well."

Sitting on the couch, Han Li flipped through the manuscript for the second book, New Moon, as she spoke.

"Oh, how many copies have sold?"

Kate asked curiously.

"It's sold 1.68 million copies in two months across the English, Portuguese, and French versions."

"That doesn't sound like much."

Luca remarked, noting that Brazil's sales seemed small compared to a single U.S. state.

"That's already a lot. The market in Brazil just isn't as enthusiastic about books."

Kate smiled lightly.

Han Li nodded. "Even though it's just 1.68 million, it's topped the Brazilian bestseller list."

"That's great! Twilight has never hit number one on The New York Times bestseller list."

At this point, the Twilight hype had

Han Li nodded, "Even though it was only 1.68 million copies, it still topped the bestseller list in Brazil."

"Haha, that's not bad. Twilight never managed to reach number one on the New York Times Bestseller list."

Now that the hype for Twilight has died down, it's barely holding onto a spot in the top twenty of the New York Times Bestseller list.

"Yeah," Han Li smiled. "Kate, are you planning to return to Brazil this year? Maybe hosting a few book signings would boost your sales even more."

Kate thought for a moment. "Luca, do you want to go back to Brazil?"

"I'm fine with whatever you decide!"

"Alright, if we have time, let's go back to Brazil around Christmas," Kate said, patting her knee.

"Kate, are you heading back to Brazil? I'm planning to go back and visit too," Lima said as she came out of the studio.

"Haha, sounds good! Let's go together!"

After finishing Eclipse, Luca had a few days to relax. He joined Kate and Lima at a few fashion shows, cocktail parties, and even went shopping with them a couple of times.

On the third day, he boarded a flight to Los Angeles.

He had already purchased a new villa in Malibu, just north of Los Angeles, not far from Zuma Beach—one of the top ten golden beaches in the area. He wanted to check it out.