Kenneth and Sabrina were happily chatting near the pergola when they noticed Margaret and Brandon seemingly having an argument. “I wonder what their problem is,” Sabrina furrowed her brow as she asked the man beside her.
“Maybe your mom rejected Brandon,” Kenneth replied, his thoughts briefly interrupted as he considered the possibility of Margaret and Brandon joining forces.
Sabrina smiled upon seeing Kenneth’s reaction while looking at the man who introduced himself as her father, as they both felt the same way. “He deserves it! What right does he have to suddenly appear here and disrupt our lives with Mama?”
“He didn’t intend for this to happen,” he defended Brandon, even though he didn’t want him to become his father-in-law. Just the thought of having him as a future family member gave him chills. With Marcus alone, he was already troubled, and now Brandon would be added. However, it wasn’t right to solely blame the man for everything because, first and foremost, Margaret was also at fault.
“And you’re really defending him? When you chose Scarlet and me not to be a part of your life, weren’t you at fault too?” She didn’t intend to bring up their past again, but it suddenly crossed her mind.
Kenneth was taken aback when Sabrina confronted him again. He wasn’t angry at her, but rather at himself for what he had done. “I’m sorry,” he repeatedly apologized, and yet he would never tire of asking for forgiveness for his mistake.
“Forgive me too because I keep mentioning that thing to you over and over again. It’s just hard to forget,” Sabrina said.
Kenneth nodded after finishing his cup of tea because he understood the woman. If only he could go back to the past, he would do it just to change it. “I thought of something,” he said after a moment.
“What is it?” Sabrina asked, as Kenneth’s mood suddenly shifted.
“Let’s go on vacation,” Kenneth suggested.
“Hmmm, when?” she asked the man because she also wanted to get away, even if just for a while.
“As soon as possible,” Kenneth replied, but his mind was preoccupied with thinking about the possible reasons they couldn’t bring Scarlet along. He wanted to revisit the place where he met Sabrina. He wanted to change her memory of him. He wanted her to completely forget how rude he used to be.
“Right now? Since Mama is here, I can ask her to take care of Scarlet for just a week,” Sabrina said.
If he wasn’t in front of Sabrina, he might have jumped for joy because that was his plan after all. Just the two of them. “Right now? Are you sure?” he asked Sabrina, and when she nodded, he immediately stood up from his seat. “Let’s go,” he said to her.
Sabrina gladly took Kenneth’s hand, and they held hands as they made their way back to the house. “Is Scarlet awake?” she asked Thalia when they encountered her near the stairs.
“Yes, Miss. Ma’am Margaret took her to the beach,” Thalia replied.
“Okay, thanks, Thalia. Hmmm, if you see Mama, please tell her that we need to talk alone,” she said. It’s good that it’s clear now because Brandon Hart might cause another scene.
“Alright, Miss,” Thalia responded before excusing herself to return to her tasks.
“Are you sure we’re leaving now?” Kenneth asked the woman again.
“Yup,” Sabrina replied shortly. “We’ll just pack our things, then we can leave. Wait, where are we going?”
“It’s a secret for now, but I’m sure you’ll like the place,” Kenneth assured her. “Get ready, and I’ll make a call to the office,” he informed her because he needed to arrange their accommodation in Clayland.
Sabrina simply nodded in agreement to what she wanted to do, and she entered their room ahead. She had never experienced a vacation with a boyfriend before because Kenneth was the only man in her life, so she was slightly excited about their trip.
After preparing her backpack, she also organized Kenneth’s belongings and placed them in his backpack. When Kenneth entered, he was ready as well. “Let’s go,” he said.
“You’re unbelievable,” she said with a smile as she saw that everything was prepared. Even his backpack was ready. She couldn’t help but marvel at the woman’s style. It was just right that they reintroduced themselves before venturing into something they couldn’t turn back from.
Sabrina refused to let Kenneth carry her backpack because she wanted to experience the actual journey to the place they were going together.
They wanted to leave right away, but they had to wait for Margaret to return to formally bid her goodbye. When her mother didn’t come back within ten minutes, she instructed one of the household staff to fetch her. However, when Margaret returned, Brandon Hart was still with her, and the old man had a furrowed brow.
“Where are you going?” Brandon asked.
“Kenneth and I are leaving for a while,” she replied.
“McBride, you know very well that Sabrina’s health is not yet okay, why are you leaving? You can go out later when everything is fine,” Brandon suggested.
“Don’t worry, sir. I will take good care of your daughter,” Kenneth promised.
“Please, Daddy?”
“Okay. McBride, I trust your words this time, but this is your last chance to prove yourself worthy!” Brandon warned Kenneth.
Kenneth nodded.
On their way, Kenneth and Sabrina had a light conversation about their lives.
“I want to have fun in Clayland this time,” he said.
“I also want to have some fun because the events in my life have been so harsh, Kenneth,” Sabrina expressed.
“Harsh? What about when I entered your life? Was there any improvement?” Kenneth asked, feeling a bit hurt by the woman’s last statement.
Sabrina’s eyes slightly narrowed at the insinuation in the man’s words. Whatever it was, she wanted to know what he meant. “Hmm, I don’t know. It seems like nothing has changed,” she jokingly replied, and the man suddenly fell silent. “Are you mad at me?” she asked him, noticing that he was looking outside the car.
Kenneth turned to the woman who spoke and smiled at her. “I could never be mad at you, Sabrina. You have a strong hold on me,” Kenneth said.
“Oh, I wish I really did,” Sabrina mimicked the tone of the students she encountered at the market.
Kenneth burst into laughter at the woman’s remark. “Do you know that I missed your paranoid nature?”
“I’m not paranoid,” Sabrina complained.
“Really? You used to play tricks on me all the time,” Kenneth reminded her, and when the woman’s eyes sparkled, he knew that Sabrina also remembered those moments.
“It’s because you never paid attention to me,” Sabrina admitted.
“Oh, so you just wanted attention? Was it because you liked me?” Kenneth teased the woman.
“You think I liked you right away? Can’t it be that I just played tricks on you?” She retaliated against the man. Maybe he thought he was the only one who was good at teasing others.
“Wasn’t I your type back then?” Kenneth confirmed with Sabrina, and when she nodded, he was slightly less impressed with himself.
“Not at first,” Sabrina answered. Her mind was confused at that time, and she just ran away to rebel against her mother’s continued ignorance. She just wanted a new environment back then and had no intention of falling for a handsome guy with well-defined abs.
“Why did your opinion of me change?” he asked Sabrina because he wanted to know why she became interested in him.
Sabrina’s forehead slightly wrinkled as she remembered the days when her perception of Kenneth changed. When was that again? “Hmm, maybe when I saw you cry,” she said.
“I cried?” He was surprised because he didn’t remember crying back then.
“Yup. I think you were drunk,” Sabrina replied.
That was the only time he got drunk, and that was the night something happened between him and Sabrina. “It’s a good thing I cried then,” he said with a smile.
“Yeah, but I hope it doesn’t happen again. You look ugly when you cry,” Sabrina teased the man.
Kenneth laughed at Sabrina’s comment. “Do I? But you were so infatuated with me back then,” he retorted.
“That just happened to be the first guy in my life,” Sabrina said because that was the truth. She was probably just surprised by what happened, so she immediately gave her heart and body to him. Was there anyone more gullible than her? She was probably the worst among all the gullible women.
Kenneth’s teeth clenched as he thought that there might be another man in Sabrina’s life. “You’re mine alone,” he declared.
“I’m already yours. That’s why I’ve been telling you to take care of me as long as we’re together,” she reminded him.
“What do you mean? Do you have plans to replace me?” Kenneth suddenly felt insecure because he didn’t want to lose the woman. In fact, he was willing to do anything just to keep her by his side. There was a time when she disappeared, and he didn’t want that to happen again.
“No, not at all. But if ever you find another woman, I won’t hesitate to let you go. You already deceived me once, so straighten up because I can only give you a second chance,” she warned Kenneth McBride.
“No matter what happens, I’ll be loyal to you,” Kenneth promised.
Sabrina simply nodded in agreement because it was difficult to predict the future. “Don’t make promises, just do it!” she challenged him after a moment.
“Yes, madam,” Kenneth jokingly replied. “Oh, by the way, I’ve been wanting to ask this for a long time, but I never had the chance because of recent events,” Kenneth said, remembering something that had been bothering him for a while.
“What is it?” Sabrina asked Kenneth.
“Why do I need to stock up on firewood in Claybourne when we have gas stoves?”
“Hmmm, I just want to see your abs while working outside,” Sabrina said and burst into laughter. She didn’t know why she thought of chopping wood for the man when they were no longer in ancient times.
He suddenly looked at her while she tried to hold back her laughter. “What’s so special about abs? Why do all women seem to like men with abs?” he asked.
“Well, at least we’re only looking at abs! Men are worse because they stare at boobs,” Sabrina said. “You’re speechless because what I said is true,” she insisted.
“Correction, I don’t look at boobs,” Kenneth replied to counter her teasing because he wasn’t really into boobs. “I prefer women with a plump asses,” he said and playfully slapped Sabrina’s arm.