’I wouldn’t have attended the bullsh*t party had I known that this would happen.’Noticing that Brendan could not be stopped, the hotel manager ordered a bodyguard to follow him.Brendan ran into the rain, and his body was drenched in just a moment. The rain did not feel like water droplets anymore but more like blades. The coldness of the rain cut into his skin like sharp blades. He was terrified.“Deirdre! Deirdre! Come out!”He searched for her everywhere and he assumed that he would be able to locate her within half an hour. That was far from what actually happened. He ran a few tens of meters and found the woman that was constantly on his mind standing at the bus station. She was holding an umbrella to shield herself from the rain. Despite the umbrella, her entire body was drenched due to the strong wind. Her hair was stuck to her drenched clothes, and she was curled up in the corner like an abandoned kitten. Brendan felt piercing pain in his heart. He reacted to the s
Brendan could only drive at a slower speed, yet Deirdre had already lost consciousness. Her face went from purplish green to burning hot, and she was chanting Ophelia’s name in her unconscious state. Even when she was at her lowest, the first thing on Deirdre’s mind was still Ophelia. Brendan could not bring himself to feel jealous because Ophelia was everything to Deirdre. He could only clench his teeth and comfort her by saying, “Hold on, Deirdre. You will only meet Ophelia if you’re conscious. It has already been more than a year since you last met her. Don’t you want to live a good life? You have to get through this even if you’re only doing this for her!”However, everything went south from then on. The car engine died. The hailstorm did not cease even after the car died halfway through the journey. Brendan removed his jacket and wrapped it around Deirdre’s body. He got out of the car and carried her in his arms as he ran into the rain without any hesitation. However, B
’She must live.’He would regret it very much if she were to die. He would experience an emotional breakdown and he would be utterly heartbroken. However, perhaps he and Deirdre would have died together that rainy night had the Land Rover not come to their rescue in a timely manner. ‘Why was I so reckless at the time?’After turning off the hot water, Brendan wiped his face and walked out of the shower. He found Deirdre alone in the room, her breathing even. She was still chanting Ophelia’s name even in her dreams. Brendan was planning on leaving when he heard Deirdre say in a weak voice, “Live, Brendan. You must live…”His mind began burning with an image all of a sudden at that moment. The woman was standing with her back facing him and saying through clenched teeth something like this in the blazing hot fire. “Live, Brendan. You must live.”Brendan felt like his body was brought back in time for a brief moment. He furrowed his eyebrows, finding this idea amusing. ‘Wh
Brendan lost track of time but he noticed that the whole corridor was dark when he walked out of the study after completing his work. The only source of light was the gap between the door and Deirdre’s room. He opened the door and found Deirdre sitting on the bed in a daze. He furrowed his sharp eyebrows at the sight of Deirdre still fully dressed. “It’s midnight. Why are you still awake and sitting on the bed?”Deirdre was jolted back to reality. She reached for her clothes and said anxiously, “I was trying to recall what type of clothes my mother likes to see me in. I’m planning on wearing something that she likes when I meet her in the morning but I really can’t remember her preferences.”She felt rejected as she talked. She forced a smile, and her head was lowered. “I’m not a good daughter.”Brendan felt a knot in the pit of his stomach, as if the scene before his eyes had triggered something in him. He was astonished that Deirdre was about to meet the woman in the blink of an
“It’s a pity that you’ll be meeting her tomorrow, as I’m afraid you won’t have enough time to do it today.”Brendan felt himself stop breathing for a moment as he looked at her worried face. An idea occurred to him, and he clutched Deirdre’s wrist abruptly. “Why don’t…”Deirdre raised her gaze in confusion while Brendan said through clenched teeth, “Why don’t you delay the meeting a little?”He was trying to delay it frantically, hoping for time to slow down because Deirdre had given him her all now. If his lie was exposed, he hoped that it would happen later, even if it was just one day later. “Delay the meeting a little?” Deirdre’s gaze was distracted. She reacted to the situation by biting her lower lip and rejecting Brendan’s suggestion. “No.”She took a deep breath and said, “I’ve been waiting for this day to come for way too long. My heart will bleed if I have to wait one more day.”“I understand, but think about the way you look now. I told Ophelia that you’re happy. Do y
It felt as if he was using this frantic action that came from the bottom of his heart to tell her something. Deirdre’s knees buckled, and she leaned her head on the man’s chest. She could not see him but she could feel his heartbeat racing. “Deirdre.” Before she could say anything, the man’s voice turned hoarse and his thin lips were already moving closer to her ear bit by bit. He asked imploringly, “Can I?”The answer to what Brendan was asking was obvious. Deirdre had not expected that Brendan would actually take it upon himself to seek her consent. It was as if he would loosen his grip without the slightest hesitation no matter how aroused he was as soon as she shook her head. Deirdre shut her eyes tightly and did not speak. Brendan’s thin lips curled into a smirk. “I’ll consider it consent if you don’t speak.”…Deirdre’s head was dizzy when it ended. She was carried to the bathroom to take a shower by Brendan. Then, he cuddled her in his arms as though he was protecting p
“Here, eat some eggs. You need protein.”Deirdre stopped moving her spoon slightly. Brendan caught the change instantly. “What is it?”“Nothing.” She cast her eyes down on her food, looking a little hesitant, before drawing the egg close to her lips. Sam snatched the spoon away from her, alarmed. “Miss McKinnon, no! Don’t you remember what the doctor said? No eggs two hours after taking your meds!”“What the…?” Brendan’s eyebrows were furrowed dangerously. Incredulity swirled behind his eyes as he scanned her face. “Why didn’t you say anything?!”Deirdre shrugged. “It was just not important.”“N-Not important?! You mean severe nausea is fine? Gastric pain is fine? Cold sweat and pain are fine?!” Even Sam was growing exasperated. “Or did you forget what happened the last time you ate a teensy bit of egg? Is that why you were gonna stuff yourself that much just now?!”His snippy retort made Deirdre choke on her reply. Brendan’s face, erstwhile pale in shock, turned redder and r
Brendan knew she was only compliant for Ophelia’s sake, but the result alone was satisfactory. He asked for a digestion pill and pushed it into Deirdre’s mouth. He checked the watch on his wrist. It was almost time. “Time to go.” He wrapped Deirdre in a coat and led her outside. Sam was about to follow too, but Brendan stopped him. “You’ll be staying at home today. Deirdre and I have some private business to attend to.”Dr. Ginger waited for the two of them to leave before ambling close to Sam and leaning on the bodyguard’s shoulder. He had a cheeky grin on his face. “Do you ever read the room, lad? Can’t you tell that these two are going on a date?” “A date?” Sam frowned. “No way.”“Why not?” Unlike him, Dr. Ginger knew precious little about the couple's messy history. Still, as he shook the hand towel clean, he pointed out, “Mr. Brighthall and Miss McKinnon’s relationship might be, uh-hem, complicated. But it’s obvious that their hearts are bound to each other. Misunderstandi