Chapter 143: Chapter 143

"Anna, why do you think President Sterling came here?"

Mary liked how confident and assertive Anna Thornton was. She knew Conrad Sterling wasn’t there to settle scores with her, which put her at ease.

"Do you want to go over and say hi to him?"

"No, if I ask him, he’ll definitely find an excuse not to admit it!"

Doesn’t Anna Thornton know Conrad Sterling well by now? That man is stubborn; getting him to admit he has feelings for her is more difficult than reaching the sky.

Knowing his hypocritical nature, Anna Thornton decided not to embarrass herself.

Especially now, with plenty of people around Conrad Sterling vying for his attention.

Kevin Jacobs personally moved a chair to let Conrad Sterling sit with Florian Hollis: "President Sterling, did you come by any special instruction? Do you want to chat with our leading man?"

Whenever Florian wasn’t working, he reverted to his lazy state, leaning back in the chair and pulling out his phone to play games.

At least in terms of attitude towards Conrad Sterling, he was considerate enough to glance at the person beside him during the one-minute game loading time and addressed him as ’President Sterling,’ which was as courteous as it got.

Kevin Jacobs felt a pang of anxiety seeing this; Florian was young and had risen to fame, so his usual bit of arrogance was tolerable, but how could he be so rude in front of the big boss?

Especially when Kevin Jacobs had heard that this President Sterling was notoriously bad-tempered.

Fortunately, there was him, an agent who knew how to handle things, Kevin Jacobs quickly laughed to smooth things over: "President Sterling, sorry, this kid is just tired! It’s quite hot today, and this room doesn’t have air conditioning. Look at the sweat on his forehead... it’s really tough!"

After all, the treatment stars receive is different from ordinary people, and high-profile idols are even more precious.

In such hot weather, coming to shoot an MV themselves, if a picture of them drenched in sweat got out, it would be enough to make their fans shed tears of sympathy.

Conrad Sterling wasn’t paying attention to Florian; he glanced at Anna Thornton and noticed it was quite hot today.

Because Anna Thornton wasn’t familiar with the dance content, she needed more time to find a better state, each movement being danced twice more than Florian.

Equally sweaty, Anna Thornton sat on the other side, and Mary immediately unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and handed it to her.

As Anna Thornton tilted her head to drink, glistening beads of sweat slid down her temples and along her smooth, fair neck, eventually settling in her delicate collarbone that could almost host goldfish... Alongside her hearty drinking posture, her simple tight vest and shorts became incredibly sexy.

Anna Thornton finished drinking and wasn’t surprised to find Conrad Sterling’s gaze fixed on her; she even winked at him flirtatiously.

Conrad Sterling: "..."

This cough was from Kevin Jacobs, intended to remind Anna Thornton to behave.

He also noticed Anna Thornton flirting with President Sterling. Kevin Jacobs prided himself on being seasoned in the entertainment industry, having seen all sorts of temptresses, and any playful flirting moves couldn’t escape the eyes of this cunning fox.

There had been talk previously that Anna Thornton promoted scandals tying her to President Sterling; she seemed fearless enough to provoke the big boss himself, no wonder she faced oppression and exclusion within Dynasty.

What was she thinking, that President Sterling was so easily swayed?

If she instead angered President Sterling and delayed Florian’s MV shoot, she would be accountable.

"Anna, Florian, have you rested well? We still need to shoot the final segment today."

Hearing the director cue the process, Florian didn’t even finish his game, quickly putting down his phone and standing up.

The final segment scene involved an intimate close dance and his most anticipated kissing scene.

Yes, there was a kissing scene in the MV, not just one, but several requested by Florian himself.

Anna Thornton had said that as long as the plot was logically coherent, any necessary intimate scenes were something she wouldn’t refuse as a professional actor.

Apparently, just of age boys are enthusiastic, eager to explore areas that were previously off-limits.

Filming the MV was quite challenging, unlike movies or TV series with the continuity of plot and supporting characters, building a full protagonist portrayal.

In this MV, the only characters appearing were those played by Florian and Anna Thornton.

Apart from the dance parts interspersed within, their storyline interactions were fragmented and jumpy.

Moreover, the director had given Anna Thornton a vague character role defined as ’embodiment of temptation.’

With just those five words, it was up to Anna Thornton herself to understand and showcase.

The lights in the ’classroom’ dimmed, and a beam spotlighted Anna Thornton, instantly putting her in character.

Playful and flirtatious towards Conrad Sterling a second ago, able to joke with Mary, her gaze turned serious and beguiling the next. In that instant, Anna Thornton seemed truly transformed into a nocturnal sprite capable of enchanting all beings, each twist of her waist sultry down to the bone, leaving the men on-site with racing blood pressure...

Of course, excluding Kevin Jacobs!

Kevin Jacobs noticed President Sterling’s expression seemed off, especially once Anna Thornton began performing, Conrad Sterling’s demeanor rapidly darkened.

He immediately called out to stop: "Hold on!"

There, Florian had just walked into the spotlight area, not yet reaching to touch Anna Thornton when his agent interrupted.

The person who was supposed to be entering his embrace for an intimate dance now sidestepped away.

"President Sterling, do you have any comments? Are you dissatisfied with the female lead’s performance just now?" Kevin Jacobs asked.

Florian hadn’t started yet, so he figured Conrad Sterling must be displeased with Anna Thornton.

See, that’s what you get for flirting just now.

If President Sterling personally asked for a change in the female lead, Kevin Jacobs would be thrilled, and Florian wouldn’t have anything to say.

"What are you trying to convey with this shoot?"

When Conrad Sterling asked that, Kevin Jacobs thought hard before answering, "Uh... mainly we’re expressing a young boy’s feelings."

Upon hearing this, Conrad Sterling let out a cold laugh.

Young boy’s feelings? You’re making it sound quite artistic.

But in truth... any man who has been through that phase understands.

Earlier, when Anna said she was going to shoot an MV, Conrad Sterling took a moment to look up some information about Florian Hollis.

"Isn’t he a teenager? Can content even be shot?" Conrad Sterling asked.

Before Kevin Jacobs could respond, Florian himself hastily stressed, "I’m an adult now!"

"And what about your fans?" Conrad Sterling retorted, "When I came in just now, I saw your fans waiting outside, some even carrying school bags. Is this what you’re showing them?"

Kevin Jacobs felt like President Sterling had voiced his own concerns perfectly!

Florian had been a child star and always gave fans and the public an impression of being a good boy.

His previous songs were also more positive and sunny, full of positive energy.

This new song is a big breakthrough, but it also comes with bigger risks.

Kevin Jacobs worries that the fans might not accept it!

But Florian himself is eager to break away from the misconceptions his looks give people, to shed his past ’good boy’ image, so now that he’s just turned adult, he wants to date and even shoot kissing scenes... Kevin Jacobs, as his manager, simply can’t talk him out of it.

Now that President Sterling has raised objections, Kevin Jacobs instantly felt empowered: "President Sterling, I think what you said makes sense; actually, this MV doesn’t really need a female lead."

Anna suddenly became a scapegoat: "???"

"The presence of the female lead is the soul of this song," the director couldn’t help but speak up for Anna.

"But President Sterling is right," Kevin Jacobs countered, using Conrad Sterling as a shield, "Florian has just become an adult, it’s not appropriate for him to get too close to a female on camera."

"What if the mood could be conveyed without the two having physical contact?" Anna voluntarily proposed.

Upon hearing this, Conrad Sterling looked at her, and Anna continued: "President Sterling, perhaps you haven’t yet grasped the meaning of this song; I will make you feel it deeply."

This woman, was she provoking him?

Conrad Sterling was curious to see what method she had to back up her confidence.

Therefore, he did not reject her suggestion.

Then Anna walked toward Florian; the two discussed something and brought over a chair.

"Director, let me try it again."

As Anna finished speaking, a spotlight shone down from above her head.

Within the one-meter-diameter light circle, it was her stage alone.

Anna took off her shoes and began to dance, integrating the previous dance moves with the chair element. Even when performing slightly powerful movements, her bare feet made her look more graceful and enchanting, as if she could be held in someone’s palm.

Florian was also dancing, but he stayed outside the light circle, never approaching Anna.

The two of them, one inside the circle, the other outside, seemed to be in two different worlds.

It also seemed like Anna was trapped in an invisible cage.

Everyone present couldn’t help but hold their breath, afraid of disturbing the silent communication of these two worlds.

However, at the last move, Anna changed to hugging her knees on the chair, breathing softly, taking a sip of water.

Then she tilted her head back, pouring the remaining water from the bottle over her head. The water flowed down her hair, mixing with sweat, following the rise and fall of her breath, as if her body curves were composing a beautiful melody...

If just now, everyone instinctively held their breath during her dance, then now, everyone collectively gasped.

Anna’s eyes seemed to shimmer with water, her expression towards the camera was blurred and longing, even the droplets of water falling from her hair became ’the embodiment of temptation’!

At this moment, Florian outside the circle stopped dancing, gazing at her in a daze...

Anna really achieved it; without any physical contact, she managed to portray beauty and desire.

Beauty to the extreme, indescribable, yet unreachable, this kind of longing in a teenage heart is the ultimate weapon.

Not just teenagers, even mature men, who could resist?

The director was absolutely thrilled to capture this image, excitedly standing up and clapping fiercely: "Anna, you did well!" Updates are released by novel⁂fire.net

"President Sterling, was it okay?" Anna deliberately asked Conrad Sterling after the performance ended.

Conrad Sterling had to thank the sound of the director’s clapping, which jolted him back to his senses.

Avoiding Anna’s gaze, President Sterling forcibly maintained his haughty and proud demeanor as the domineering CEO, without admitting out loud that it was good.

But from the way the other men present looked at Anna with fiery eyes after the performance, it was clear she indeed was a natural-born actress!