“You must be responsible to me,” Florence added, glaring at him.
Ernest gaped. He looked at the reddish-eyed Florence in disbelief. For the first time, he wondered if he had misheard anything.
In a hoarse voice, he asked, “What did you say, Florence? Come again?”
Florence approached him closer, grabbed his collar, and said fiercely, “Why? Do you want to deny it? After raping me, you just ran away. You’ve been hiding the truth from and you lied to me. Now you don’t want to take the responsibility, do you…”
“I’ll marry you,” his words interrupted Florence’s words.
He stared at her, stressing each syllable as if he was swearing. His deep eyes were full of sweetest and deepest affection.
Florence grabbed Ernest’s collar stiffly, still looking quite fierce. However, all her temperament was broken down by his words. She couldn’t continue yelling at him.
He said he would marry her.
Ernest reached out and held Florence in his arms.
His chin rubbing her head, he said in a tender and deep voice, “When I knew you were the girl that night, I wanted to tell you it was me. However, you hate that night so much, so I couldn’t tell you.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Florence finally got the explanation of the questions that had bothered her.
When they met for the first time, Ernest was so aloof as a god, arrogant and proud. He even asked her to sign the agreement of a fake engagement.
At that time, he didn’t care about her, his fiancée, at all.
Florence asked again, “When did you get to know it was me that night?”
“On the night of our engagement.”
Before that night, Ernest ignored her completely. However, after that night, he kept pestering her as if he wanted to prove something…
At that time, she thought that he wanted to have sex with her, so she thought he was a shameless rascal. It wasn’t until now did she realized that he had done so because he wanted to prove if she was the woman that night.
It turned out that he had recognized her such a long time ago.
That was why he changed his attitude to her – he started treating her so well and ambiguously.
“Mr. Hawkins, ever since that night, have you done all those things to chase after me?”
Florence glinted at Ernest with unconcealed amusement.
She was way too slow, and she didn’t realize it until now.
A trace of embarrassment flashed through Ernest’s handsome face. He had only chased Florence all his life, and he did it in secret after knowing that she was his first woman. It was not so frank as a man should be.
He pressed his thin lips. Raising his hand, he pinched Florence’s chin.
His handsome face approached her suddenly. He asked in a seductive tone, “Have I succeeded?”
Of course. He had succeeded long ago. How could she resist him?
Florence blushed. In shyness and embarrassment, she pushed away his hand.
“Humph! Do you think you could fool me with just a few words? I’m not that easy-going!”
Awkwardly, she looked away. Rolling her eyes, she said deliberately, “Unless you can prepare a magnificent gift to me that I can’t resist.”
Ernest curled up his lips into a smile. “Florence, since when you got the bad habit of receiving the bribe?”
“Just now.” Florence looked arrogant.
Ernest smiled at her dotingly, reaching out to rub her hair.
“Okay. I’ll bring it to you next time.”
The man’s palm was big and warm, flustering Florence’s heart. She could hardly keep her unhappy and arrogant look any longer.
Whenever facing Ernest, she couldn’t win against him at all.
After talking intimately for a while, Ernest had to leave before the dawn broke.
Florence lay down again. Holding Ernest’s pillow, she was so delighted that she couldn’t get back to sleep at all.
It turned out that Ernest was the man that night.
The biggest worry and nightmare had suddenly become the fantasy that started the relationship between Ernest and her. Everything enveloped by her nightmare before had gradually become brighter and clear in the dark.
She no longer resisted or hated it.
Florence looked out of the window. She curled up her lips and muttered, “Fortunately, it was you.”
–
The evening came. Florence had gone back to her room quite early. After informing Tammy, she locked the door of her room, waiting for Ernest.
She wondered expectantly what gift Ernest would bring to her.
Unexpectedly, she had been waiting for several hours, but the man who would always climb in through the window didn’t show up at all.
Florence couldn’t help but stand next to the window and look out from time to time. After a long while, she didn’t see anyone.
Then she checked the time – it was almost half-past eleven at night.
She wondered if he would still come over tonight.
He also didn’t send her a message. Did anything happen to him?
The more she thought, the more worried Florence got. Checking her phone, she found that Ernest hadn’t replied to her message for almost two hours. After a hesitation, she called him.
“Beep- Beep- Beep-”
She only heard the beeps, but the phone wasn’t answered at all.
Florence felt more uneasy. When Ernest was busy before, he would always answer her call.
Something must have happened to him.
Florence was lost in thought, feeling so worried. Right then, she heard the message tone on her phone. A new message came in.
She immediately tabbed to read it.
Ernest only sent her a few words: “Quite busy now.”
Florence’s heart, which was about to jump out of her chest finally fell back in her chest.
However, reading the simple reply, she felt quite upset, wondering what on earth Ernest was busy with. How could he even not have time to talk to her?
Feeling worried and grieved, she had to lie down on her bed with the cell phone in her hand.
Since he was busy, she couldn’t interrupt him.
Lying on the bed, Florence still kept the window opened. From time to time, she glanced over at the window. Although it was quite late, she still expected that Ernest would climb in suddenly.
It didn’t matter if he would appear later than usual.
While waiting for him, Florence only got another message.
Ernest: “Go to bed early, Florence. Good night.”
Florence looked at this message in a daze. Her hope became ashes instantly. She knew that Ernest wouldn’t come to her tonight.
She wondered what made him so busy even he had to work overtime and stay up all night.
Florence was confused, worried, and quite disappointed. She couldn’t get used to it even he wouldn’t make it for just one day.
She didn’t sleep soundly this evening, so she got up quite early the next morning.
As usual, she received a message from Ernest with the morning greeting.
Florence replied to him: “Good morning, Ernest. Are you still busy?”
After the message was sent, it was like sinking in the ocean. She didn’t get any response at all.
Helplessly, Florence went downstairs for breakfast after tidying herself up.
Since she went there earlier than usual, only Victoria was playing on her cell phone at the table. Alexander was reading a newspaper. Stanford’s seat was still empty.
“Good morning, Dad and Mom,” Florence greeted them and sat down on her seat.
Alexander looked at Florence, nodding at her with a smile. Then he put down the newspaper.
“Flory, you got up earlier this morning. Let’s eat.”
As he spoke, Alexander waved. Immediately, several maids came to serve the dishes.
There were only three sets of tableware and bowls.
Florence asked in confusion, “Where is Stanford?”
“He’s busy. He even didn’t come home last night. Just ignore him,” answered Alexander casually.
Then he picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
Florence felt quite surprised. It seemed that it was the first time that Stanford didn’t have breakfast together with the family since she came back.
She wondered what he was busy with and even he didn’t come back for the whole night.