King of Hollywood
Chapter 314 - Chapter 314 Chapter 41 Wow

Chapter 314: Chapter 41 Wow Chapter 314: Chapter 41 Wow “First, my period was delayed by two weeks, and then I used a pregnancy test, which showed a very obvious color change…”

“Wow.”

“Then I went to the hospital, where the doctor confirmed my suspicion, and it had already been about three weeks…”

“Wow.”

“I’ve been by your side for more than a year, so the father of the child… can only be you…”

“Wow.”

“…” Kate stared at Adrian blankly, then suddenly stood up and yelled at him angrily, “Is ‘wow’ really all you have to say?!”

Adrian leaned back, looked around, and then spread his hands innocently, “What… am I supposed to say? Dance and sing my way out of here, or perhaps get ‘Los Angeles Times’ to print on the front page that I’m going to be a father?”

As he spoke, he suddenly pinched his chin, showing a serious, thoughtful expression, “That’s actually a cool idea, unconventional. If you really want to go for that, I completely agree, but…”

Kate, somewhat dumbstruck by Adrian’s endless talking, didn’t know what to say for a while, and finally stammered, “Wait… wait, Ed, what… what are you talking about?”

“What am I talking about?” Adrian looked at her with a puzzled expression, “Aren’t we talking about your pregnancy?”

“No… not… Yes, it’s about that, but…” Kate, her thoughts in turmoil, couldn’t form a coherent sentence and waved her hand irritably, “I mean… I mean… shouldn’t you… you…”

“What are you trying to say, Kate?” Adrian sat up straight, looking at her with a half-smile, “Are you saying I should deny this child? Do you really see me as that irresponsible?”

“Yes.” The words escaped Kate’s lips almost instantly.

“That really hurts me, Kate.” Adrian immediately sighed deeply, showing a “heartbroken” expression as he looked away.

“Not… I meant to say… I meant to say…” Realizing she had been too rash, Kate tried to clarify but got caught up in her previous confusion and finally sighed deeply and sat down again.

“I’m just… because this news is so… overwhelming and worrisome… I never thought about… getting pregnant so soon… I’m scared…” she mumbled, covering her face.

A pair of arms then reached out, wrapping around Kate’s shoulders and pulling her into a solid embrace.

“There, my dear, I was just joking, don’t worry so much, okay?” Adrian kissed the top of her head softly and said, “It’s common for every woman to feel uneasy during their first pregnancy, it’s just a natural fear of the unknown. But you really don’t need to be scared, I’m right here, none of your fears will come true.”

“My fears?” Kate murmured as she held Adrian tighter.

“Of course, don’t tell me you came over here all of a sudden yelling at me just to prepare for a new role,” Adrian half-joked, then kissed her head again, gently caressing her abdomen, “This is good news, Kate, although it might be a bit early for you, I’m happy we’re having a child.”

Kate nibbled her lips, unsure of what to say, but her body automatically snuggled closer into Adrian’s embrace.

“I’ve lost my composure, Ed,” she sighed softly, “I don’t know what to do, what will our families think? I’m still in school, am I supposed to attend the graduation ceremony next year with a big belly? And… I don’t know what you would think, what you would do, I’m scared you might…”

“Now you don’t have to worry anymore,” Adrian said, holding her comfortingly, “This is my child, I will never deny it. I may be a jerk, but I’m a responsible jerk. As for the graduation ceremony, it doesn’t matter if you don’t attend, besides, you’re already a fairly well-known actress, so there’s no question of not graduating.”

Kate leaned into his embrace and sighed softly again, whispering after a while, “I’m sorry, Ed.”

“It’s okay,” Adrian squeezed her arm, “If anyone should be saying sorry, it should be me.”

“It should be you?” Kate looked up, surprised, but she quickly understood and her lips twitched into a self-deprecating smile, “There’s no need, seeing how many women you have around, it’s impossible. But it’s no big deal, I don’t hope for much, compared to the worst scenario I initially imagined, this is much better now.”

“I’m sorry, Kate.” Adrian patted her back softly and said again.

“If it’s a child out of wedlock, then so be it, it’s really not such a big deal.” Although Kate said this, the bitter smile on her face was still faint, and her voice carried a hint of resignation and reluctance.

Adrian, however, didn’t take it to heart; it was like a person whose expectations had been lowered to the lowest, but the outcome was unexpectedly high, even if it hadn’t reached the ideal level, it was enough to satisfy.

“All right, Kate, the first thing you need to do now is to move into my villa, and hire a few more servants to take care of you, just take it easy and take care of your body,” Adrian arranged.

“It’s only been three weeks, I’m not that fragile,” Kate shook her head, refusing his suggestion, “And I don’t want to move into your villa, you know why, Ed.”

“Kate!” Adrian’s tone intensified, but Kate met his gaze without backing down.

“Alright, how about a suggestion, not my villa, how about the one I gave you?” After a while, Adrian spoke again, then raised his hand before Kate could respond, “I’ve made a compromise, you should too, right?”

Looking at his slightly smug smile, Kate knew she had fallen into his trap. Although she ground her teeth a bit unwillingly, there was not a hint of anger in her heart, instead, there was a vague sense of joy that she couldn’t quite express.

“Alright, it seems I don’t have much of a choice,” Kate finally sighed.

“Do you remember what I told you before? Rejecting me is useless.” Adrian then laughed heartily.

Kate, though she gave him a jab with her elbow, didn’t say much more.

Adrian’s moments of gifting his woman weren’t frequent, but each occasion was just perfect. Even someone like Kate, who initially refused for various reasons, inevitably ended up accepting them. Giving gifts to make a woman happy is a tactic all men understand, but it’s not as simple as it seems: What to gift, when to gift it, and what to say while giving it are crucial factors. Like the earrings he bought for Julia at the charity auction, or the Ford he gifted Sarah; a slight mishap could have led to completely different results.

Of course, if it’s just casual, or if it’s a very ordinary woman, then there’s no need to overthink.

“I’ll arrange everything as soon as possible. Move in sooner and don’t make me worry, okay?” Adrian said as he saw Kate out of his office.

“I understand,” Kate replied with a mix of annoyance and amusement. She glanced at Charlize, who sat at her desk, pretending to have seen nothing, hugged Adrian and kissed him before leaving.

Touching his lips and then watching Kate’s retreating back, Adrian turned with a smile toward Charlize, who was always absorbed in her sketches.

“Hey, Charli, have your periods been regular lately?” he asked with a light tone, as if the word “period” meant nothing unusual.

“Have you turned into an idiot or are you contemplating a shift towards being gay, Ed?” Charlize looked at him and asked slowly, never minding her words when they were alone.

“I care about you,” Adrian shrugged, “Kate is pregnant, and I calculated the timing; the most likely scenario was that threesome, so I wanted to know if there was a possibility for you too.”

“You… what did you say?” Charlize looked at him incredulously, “Kate is… pregnant?!”

“Of course, or what else do you think would be so important?” Adrian’s smile grew mischievous, enjoying whenever Charlize was thrown off balance.

“I… I think… I think this is none of my business. I haven’t felt unwell at all, or do you think every woman’s cycle is the same?” Charlize quickly regained her composure and retorted.

“That makes me much more relieved,” Adrian said nonchalantly, changing the subject, “I’m arranging for Kate to stay in the villa, the one south of the track, and hiring some proper maids; remind me about it.”

“I got it.” Charlize nodded resignedly, watching Adrian re-enter his office before she somberly flipped through her files. Although he didn’t say much, as his secretary, she knew schedules had to be rearranged.

“Just sent off a pregnant Kate, and now he’s back to teasing me, truly an asshole.” Charlize muttered to herself but then raised an eyebrow as a thought struck her: well, at least it seemed he wasn’t denying anything.

After draining two glasses of water on the coffee table, Adrian walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, stretched lazily in the winter sunlight streaming through. To be honest, the news of Kate’s pregnancy had initially scared him, but he quickly recovered, reckoning that with his reckless actions, it was only a matter of time before a “life” was created.

“It seems I need to be more cautious,” Adrian murmured to himself.

He wasn’t concerned about the baby per se. The moment Kate told him she was pregnant, he had contemplated certain thoughts–having a child does make many things harder, and many situations more complicated. However, those thoughts only circled his mind briefly before being dismissed. What a joke, that was his own child! Although he had used all sorts of tactics in business and with women, it didn’t mean he would ever deny his own child!

Initially, he even mocked Jobs for not daring to acknowledge his own illegitimate daughter, yet now, was he becoming the person he once ridiculed? If he could not even take this consequence and responsibility, how could he strive to control Hollywood? Jokingly speaking, Jobs being ousted by Apple might well be the retribution for not acknowledging his illegitimate daughter.

It was just a bit troublesome, nothing more. Adrian thought to himself, seeing it as a challenge. Besides, if he ended up getting other women pregnant, it wouldn’t be an unexciting thing to sow his seeds widely–how could he just consider such things without acting? Besides, having children…

Of course, it’s not possible right now. Sarah and Liv are still young girls, and if they got pregnant too early, it would inevitably lead to a lot of criticism, potentially affecting their careers; Blanchett and Gwyneth would be possible, but only after he had given them enough incentives; Monica and Julia wouldn’t be a problem either, but Adrian had plans for them already, and if they got pregnant midway, Julia might be able to adjust, but it would be troublesome for Monica. European actresses find it hard to reach the level of local actresses in Hollywood, and in a previous life, Monica, who had not connected with a person like Adrian, had to return to Europe after two or three years.

“So moderation is necessary, but it’s okay, eventually…” Adrian chuckled lightly as he looked out at the street scene, then gracefully walked back to his desk from the floor-to-ceiling window and sat down.

Okay, the shock and excitement of suddenly learning he was about to welcome his first child and become a father had passed. Although he still had to soothe Kate and there was much more to do, he needed to finish the tasks at hand first.

First up was the project prepared for Sarah, similar to the “Scream” series, “I Know What You Did Last Summer” had to be scheduled. Adrian planned to hand it over to New Line for production; originally, “Scream” should have been theirs, but now because of him, it had gone to someone else, so this would be their compensation.

In Adrian’s memory, Sarah had already played a role in “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” but only as the first supporting actress; now she was naturally the preferred choice for the protagonist. Although her acting might still be slightly lacking, her youthful and beautiful appearance was enough to cover for that. This was the common problem with female roles in horror films, where in the movies they only needed to do two things: scream when in danger then die–even in a distinctive horror film like “Scream.”

However, after thinking it over, Adrian really didn’t have a better movie suitable for Sarah. He had previously told Kirsten during the preview of “Little Women” that for child stars–especially well-known child stars–ages fifteen and sixteen were the most awkward, playing either too “young” or too “old” roles tended to attract criticism for being contrived, so they normally played supporting roles appropriate for their age.

Because of Adrian, Sarah, who had a decent performance in “Casper,” was considered somewhat famous as a child star. Although she was now past that awkward age, her acting couldn’t compare with outstanding girls like Kirsten and Natalie, so the best choice was still a teenage idol movie.

Adrian had initially planned to take her out for dinner that evening and then have a good talk about the movie, but he had to cancel due to Kate’s situation, and he wouldn’t have much time afterward, so it would have to wait a few more days.

Sometimes, it’s so interesting. He had previously told Sarah that the script for “I Know What You Did Last Summer” had already been written by the company’s scriptwriters, and he was right. In his memory, this youth school horror film was launched after the great success of “Scream,” and now it was the same; some things’ inertia was really not easy to change.

Of course, the script written by that scriptwriter initially only had a 50% similarity to the movie “I Know What You Did Last Summer” that Adrian remembered, but with him around, was he worried about any deviations?

And while there was inertia, there were changes too, like the movie for Kirsten, “Jumanji,” which should have been started by now. However, after “Interview with the Vampire” was released, when Adrian thought about this movie and had people inquire about it, he discovered that neither any film company had such a filming plan nor were there any similar scripts–well, there were two, but they were too far from the “Jumanji” story.

Therefore, Adrian naturally wouldn’t let it go and immediately had the scriptwriters start writing the story, then followed a lot of complaints–the scriptwriters under contract with Bossworth Film Company virtually always had work because their boss would suddenly come up with some ideas, then ask them to produce a complete script in the shortest time.

However, complaints aside, they still worked very hard–the conditions Bossworth Film Company offered the scriptwriters were always the best in the industry.

As for the roles, the male protagonist certainly wouldn’t be anyone but Robin Williams, an actor with a unique sense of humor in comedy films who was undoubtedly the perfect choice. Kirsten was naturally still that mischievous girl, and for that little boy, Adrian already had someone in mind to give the kid a try.

He planned to hand this movie over to Miramax for production; Bossworth Film Company was about to have two movies released during the Christmas season, and these two movies would bring significant influence. What’s more, next year, there would be two other very substantial projects to be produced–the almost-prepared “Braveheart” and… the third part of the romantic five-part series created for Julia: “My Best Friend’s Wedding”!

Bossworth Film Company had already achieved dazzling success this year thanks to these films. If it continued like this next year, it would inevitably become a target, so distributing good movies to two other companies for production was very necessary, just like the previous “Independence Day” and “The Rock.”

Though everyone knew these three film companies were under the same corporate umbrella, at least on the surface, it didn’t seem so surprising, naturally making it less likely to attract envy, so even if the profits were reduced, it was okay. (To be continued, for further information, please visit www.NovelFire.net, more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)