It’s been more than 20 minutes since Edward woke up. Instead of getting up immediately and cleaning himself, he pondered for a moment on the bed.
Throughout, so many flashes of events danced in his mind. Moreover, there was one name that had been bothering him since he opened his eyes.
“Oh God.”
Edward sighed softly. Bringing his fingers to his lips, he seemed to gently rub the surface repeatedly. Then, before long, he heard himself muttering irritably.
“Darn it! Why do I keep remembering the other day’s incident?”
Honestly, since waking up from sleep, for some reason, Edward couldn’t stop thinking about Bella. Out of the blue, he recalled the incident at the swimming pool, which accidentally led to him kissing the beautiful woman.
“No! This is absolutely insane. Besides, yesterday’s incident was clearly unintentional.”
Edward tried to reassure himself repeatedly. But, before the memory of accidentally kissing her could fade, Edward remembered the incident when he was drunk and forced Bella to sleep with him.
“You have to control yourself, Edward. Regardless, you already have a wife.”
All this time, there were plenty of beautiful women around Edward. Despite being married, he couldn’t deny that there were still women out there deliberately tempting him. Even inviting him to have fun, even to sleep together.
Yet, none of them made Edward turn away. He simply regarded their presence as nothing at all. But, why did Bella feel different? For God’s sake, Bella’s presence managed to disturb his mind.
“You’ve really crossed the line, Edward. How could you do something indecent like this to another woman without even apologizing?”
Actually, Edward felt guilty about all the incidents that happened with Bella. Especially when he was drunk and then forced the woman to sleep with him.
Indeed, Edward had tried to muster the courage to apologize. But, hearing Bella deny that they had done anything inappropriate, Edward’s courage waned, caught between pride and shame.
Ending his reverie, Edward decided to go downstairs. As he descended the stairs, his attention was immediately diverted when he found Kairos sitting casually in the living room.
“Kairos?”
Edward called out. Approaching, he approached the sharp-eyed man who was now lounging on the sofa.
“Why are you coming to my house this early in the morning?”
Kairos instantly looked up. Smiling innocently, he put on a face.
“I certainly didn’t come here to see you.”
Edward reflexively pulled his face, his brow furrowed. His friend’s statement made him wonder.
If Kairos’s visit this morning wasn’t to see him, then who was the man looking for at his house?
“If you’re not looking for me, then what are you doing here?”
Kairos grinned. After a few seconds, when Bella emerged from the kitchen carrying a plate of food in both hands, Kairos immediately got up.
Acknowledging Edward’s presence, he approached Bella, who had now entered the dining room.
“Bella.”
Kairos called out. He approached Bella, who was setting the food on the table.
“Mr. Kairos?”
Hearing his name prefixed with “Mr.”, Kairos immediately sighed. His handsome face displayed an expression of displeasure. Yet Bella had been polite as usual.
“Oh my. Why do you have to use ‘Mr.’? I’ve told you before. Just call me Kairos. Just Kairos without any additions.”
Bella nodded awkwardly, complying with Kairos’s instruction.
“Alright, Kairos.”
“So, did you come here to see Bella?”
Following them into the dining room, Edward leaned against the fridge, folding his arms across his chest, casting a scrutinizing glance at Kairos. He couldn’t help but feel irritated by his friend’s behavior.
“So you came this early and disturbed my time just to see Bella?” Edward repeated once more to make sure.
Kairos nodded then pointed his index finger towards Bella.
“She’s the one I wanted to see. I just wanted to make sure that Bella is okay after her hand got injured yesterday.” Then Kairos shifted his gaze towards Bella, who stood opposite him. “Are you alright? For God’s sake, I apologize for causing you harm last night.”
“I’m fine, Sir.” Just a few seconds later, Bella corrected herself. “Sorry. I mean Kairos. Nothing harmful happened to me.”
Edward sighed. Rolling his eyes, he responded sharply.
“You can see for yourself that Bella is perfectly fine, right? She can cook. Even set the food on the table. So, what are you worried about?”
Then Edward approached Kairos. He grabbed the man’s wrist, intending to pull him out of the dining room, even out of his house if necessary.
“You’d better leave now. I don’t want you lingering in my house.”
Stubborn as ever, Kairos, instead of complying, brushed off Edward’s attempt to drag him away. He quickly pulled out a chair and sat down casually.
“I’ll leave later. Besides, I saw Bella cooking so many dishes this morning. Why don’t you just let me have them first before they go to waste? It’s better to let me help finish them. Besides, just from the smell, I’m sure Bella’s cooking is very delicious and tasty.”
“But I don’t permit you to have breakfast in my house. So, you should leave now.”
Kairos didn’t care. Instead of leaving, he opened the plate and started picking up the food one by one to eat.
“It’s up to you whether you allow me to have breakfast here or not. Besides, I don’t need your permission.”
Edward growled in frustration. He wanted to get angry, but he was too aware of Kairos’s behavior and habits of acting arbitrarily.
Edward thought that once allowed to have breakfast, Kairos wouldn’t bother them anymore. But, to his dismay, Edward was terribly wrong.
In the evening, as Edward was leaving his office, he found Kairos visiting his house again.
What set this visit apart was that this time his friend came bearing several cakes and various gifts in his hands.
“Oh God, Kairos. What do you want coming to my house again?”
Kairos grinned widely. He knew Edward was annoyed with him.
“I came here to give Bella some gifts as an apology for last night’s incident. Also, to thank her for the delicious breakfast this morning, which I’ve never tasted before.”
Edward stared in disbelief. What was going on in Kairos’s mind?
“Excessive.”
“Do you think I’m joking? I’m serious about what I’m saying. Bella’s cooking this morning was truly delicious and deserves appreciation.”
Edward sighed repeatedly. He didn’t feel like arguing, so he just nodded his head.
“Fine. Just put all the boxes neatly. I’ll tell Bella that you’ve given her gifts.”
Although Edward had made a good offer, Kairos rejected it.
“No. Let me hand over all of this directly. Besides, I want to apologize to Bella again. So, let me meet her.”
“No way!”
“Oh, come on, Edward. Don’t be stingy like that. Besides, Bella means nothing to you.”
“If I say no, then no means no, Kai. So, don’t waste your energy pleading with me.”
In the midst of their heated debate, Kairos’s focus was diverted again. From the corner of his eye, he spotted Bella suddenly emerging from the swimming pool.
Focusing both his eyes, from behind the living room window, Kairos could see how Bella, who had been there for who knows how long, suddenly emerged from the water wearing a very sexy swimsuit. She casually walked towards the chair to grab the towel that was lying there.
Edward, realizing Bella’s presence, especially noticing how sexy she looked, quickly covered Kairos’s unblinking eyes with his hands.
“Edward!” Kairos exclaimed, displeased. He tried to push Edward’s hands away from his eyes.
“Don’t look recklessly.”
“Who’s looking recklessly,” Kairos protested. “I’ve just been observing Bella.”
“That’s why it’s better for you to leave now.”
“No. I don’t want to.”
Seeing Kairos insisting on staying there, Edward became more annoyed. Without any concern, he pulled his friend and then pushed him out of his house.
After ensuring Kairos had left, Edward quickly closed the door and locked it tightly. Turning around and about to walk towards the stairs, he suddenly felt as if something was bothering him.
Edward carefully analyzed the strange behavior he had shown since this morning. Then, not long after, Edward scratched his head. He wondered why he seemed so irritated and displeased seeing Kairos actively disturbing Bella.