Chapter 1656
Chapter 1656
Jepherson pointed out, "In fact, men have obsessions as well."
Raeleigh rested her hand on her face and said after a long time pondering, "It's all in the past now; don't bring it up anymore."
"But I'm afraid you'll forget if I don't." Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.
"It's not about forgetting or not. There are some things meant for us not to remember."
They fell silent.
After a long while, Raeleigh mustered the courage to ask, "When are you going to let Cynthia go?"
"Will you hate me if I say I won't?"
"I... "
Raeleigh didn't think Jepherson was drifting into sleep, but she could feel his arms relaxing when she was about to speak.
Without saying a word, Raeleigh moved his hands away, trying to see if he had indeed fallen asleep.
Raeleigh got out of bed as Jepherson continued to sleep. Turning around, she squatted on the ground and stared at Jepherson before lifting her hand to caress his face; she was then certain he had fallen asleep. Nevertheless, Raeleigh didn't
take the phone but continued to fix her eyes on him. She wanted to know when he would wake up.
To her surprise, Jepherson never rose. Catching a glimpse of her phone on the bedside table, she reached for it and dialed Xanthus's number.
"Raeleigh..."
Raeleigh sat across from Jepherson; she didn't know why she did so as he had never forbidden her from contacting Xanthus after all.
But it was better to keep some things from him.
"Xanthus, I'm fine. I'm just worried about you all. Also... Jepherson told me Cynthia will be alright, but he did not agree to let her go."
Xanthus fell silent at her reply.
Later, he said he was still searching for her, but his attempts were futile.
Gazing at Jepherson's sleeping face, Raeleigh had an increasing hunch that he wasn't asleep; he just wouldn't rise.
After ending the call, Raeleigh placed the phone aside and went to the bathroom, emerging from it to find Jepherson sitting upright on the bed. She knew it.
As she slid into bed, Jepherson's eyes fell on her. "Tell me whenever you make a call."
Raeleigh said nothing in response. Every so often, she didn't know what to say, so she might as well stay silent rather than strike up a conversation.
"I won't let Cynthia go, unless you promise to stay with me."
It wasn't the first time Jepherson had spoken so bluntly, so Raeleigh did even bat an eyelash. She landed her eyes on Jepherson as though she had heard nothing. Staring into his eyes, she gradually closed hers.
Jepherson gazed at her shortly before turning to look straight up ahead, talking to thin air, "Compared to your younger self, you're more difficult to deal with now."
As Jepherson spoke, Raeleigh turned around and remarked, "Comparing the one who is difficult to deal with and the one who simply can't be dealt with, I wonder who's the more annoying one."
Jepherson laughed, hearing her response, leading Raeleigh to hide her head in the covers.
She spent the night restless.
It wasn't until dawn broke that she managed to drift off to sleep.
It was already three in the afternoon by the time she stirred. Raeleigh checked the time and thought Jepherson had long gone to the company. It was, however, only after she sobered up that she found out it was a weekend when Jepherson could have a break.
"Looking for me?" Raeleigh was turning the TV on when she heard Jepherson's voice. Looking over, she saw him wearing a basketball jersey. Recalling the experience, she fretted; she was so naive back then. Who would've thought Jepherson still kept the shirt.
Standing still, Raeleigh fixed her eyes on him and questioned, "You went out for basketball as soon as you woke up in the morning?"
Jepherson quirked his eyebrow and glanced at his watch, retorting, "You call three o'clock 'morning'?"
Raeleigh immediately checked the time and found that the hour hand was indeed pointing at three.
"Why didn't you wake me up?"
"How do you know I didn't try?"
Raeleigh fell silent. It wouldn't bring her any benefit if she were to continue the bicker.
Seeing Raeleigh silent, Jepherson took off his jacket and disappeared into the bathroom fora shower.
Raeleigh had been waiting outside for Jepherson but saw no signs of him despite him having been in the bathroom for more than an hour.
After checking the time a few times, she knocked on the bathroom door, but no response came from within, even after a few knocks. She gave the door a push and found that it wasn't locked. Raeleigh paused for a bit; he had deliberately left it so, didn't he?
Pushing it open, Raeleigh entered the bathroom to see Jepherson soaking in the bath with his eyes closed.
Raeleigh wasn't convinced he was truly asleep. His shoulders that were protruded from the water looked muscular compared to the gentleness hidden under his clothes. She made her way inside and saw the slippers at the door. Glancing at the clean floor, she didn't approach Jepherson right away but instead stood at the door and gazed at him. She called out to him, but he didn't answer.
Raeleigh wanted to leave, seeing if he was genuinely sleeping or trying to trick her into coming in close to him.
But for some reason, she couldn't move as if her feet were glued to the floor.
Jepherson remained still even after a while. Only then did Raeleigh take her shoes off and walk toward him.
Arriving at his front, Raeleigh bent over and called out to him, "Jepherson."
Jepherson didn't respond, alerting Raeleigh to extend her finger to feel his breathing under his nose. All of a sudden, he opened his mouth and bit it, rendering her in shock. The next second, he stood up and turned to face her with a loud splash. The height of the water was lower than his thin waist, and the water refracting the light shone onto his straw-colored skin. Raeleigh could see all that was above and under the water.
Jepherson asked Raeleigh, "Did you stumble into this place, or did you enter the bathroom on purpose?"
Stunned, Raeleigh retorted helplessly, "This is another trick, isn't it?"
"Not every cry wolf is fake, Raeleigh. There will be a day when I actually leave; all I hope is that you won't only shed tears when that day comes!"
Jepherson washed his body as he moved closer to Raeleigh. Frightened, she fled out the door. Outside, her heart raced as her face flushed. Jepherson emerged from the bath, wrapped a bath towel around his waist, and made his way toward the door. Before leaving, he grabbed another towel, wiping himself as he exited.
However, Raeleigh was gone. After he was sure she was no longer in the room, he called Stuart, "Has Raeleigh left the building?" "Madam Raeleigh said she was hungry; she's ordering food downstairs. I'm with her." Stuart reported.
Jepherson announced that he would go over in a bit.
After getting dressed, Jepherson went to meet Raeleigh, who was, right then, listening to the waiter's introduction of the dishes. She didn't stop him because she knew that every occupation had professional etiquette the employees were required to practice, including unacceptable rules, giving the employees a sense of pressure at all times.
The reason why Raeleigh listened wasn't that she intended to try any new dishes but wanted to give them a chance instead. Only when they received an opportunity could they be appreciated, and their task would be accomplished.