Fortunately, Cameron and Queenie came to offer a toast at this moment.
For some reason, Carter insisted on keeping Cameron here for a few more drinks. Queenie also cooperatively sat on the side, pouring wine and saying with a smile, “Cameron told me that you and Laura are very loving, with an excellent relationship. I envy you so much! Actually, I hope that after marrying Cameron, we can be like you and your husband!”
She glanced at Cameron with a hint of shyness while saying this.
I clinked glasses with her. “You will be.”
Queenie finished her drink in one gulp. “I heard… Laura is going to have a baby soon?”
Carter responded, “That’s right. Laura and I plan to have a child, but we can only go for in vitro fertilization.”
“In vitro fertilization is also good! I heard that babies from IVF are especially smart and adorable!”
“Yes,” Carter downed another glass of wine, but a lonely expression appeared on his face. “It’s just… Laura has worked so hard.”
“Doing IVF is not easy; you have to take many injections, undergo many tests… Those things scare me, a man, let alone her as a woman… It’s all my fault. If I were a normal husband, she wouldn’t have to endure all this…”
“Carter!” I interrupted him, taking away his wine glass. “You’ve had too much to drink.”
He pushed me away, swaying unsteadily on his feet. “No, I haven’t had too much…”
“I’m happy today.” He laughed. “My brother got engaged… I’m happy!”
“Carter…”
Suddenly, Carter hugged me tightly, burying his face in my hair, and a warmth flowed into my neck.
“Laura…” His voice choked. “We will have our own child, we will!”
I felt a bit sad, seeing Carter like this made my heart ache. I gently patted his back. However, when I lifted my eyes, I met Cameron’s icy gaze.
My heart trembled.
He glanced at me, then said to Queenie, “Let’s go somewhere else to toast.”
I watched him leave, while Carter was still leaning on me, babbling drunkenly. I greeted my parents and took Carter back home.
Carter, being a lightweight drinker, was now completely drunk and unconscious.
I changed his clothes and wiped his body with a warm towel. Just as I was about to go to the kitchen to make some sobering soup, Carter grabbed me.
“Laura…”
He was a bit anxious, holding onto me tightly. “Don’t leave me.”
“Carter…”
“I know I’m not as good as Cameron!” He suddenly roared.
My heart trembled, and my body almost stiffened.
“I know I can’t compare to him!” Carter slowly sat up from the bed. “I have a heart condition, I’m a cripple… I can’t even be considered a man!”
“If you followed Cameron, I don’t know how happy you would be now… But why did you have to marry me?”
“You’re talking nonsense!” I was a bit panicked. “Carter, what’s wrong with you? You’re confused after a few drinks!”
“Dare you say you’ve never had feelings for Cameron? Dare you say he doesn’t have the same feelings for you? The way you look at each other, I see it clearly! Don’t fucking think I’m blind!” He suddenly stood up, leaning on his crutches.
He shouted hysterically, cheeks slightly flushed, breathing heavily.
I recalled the day he rolled down the stairs, discovering me with Cameron, unable to bear the shock, he resorted to violence… and now he was like this again, as if scrutinizing a betrayer.
A shiver ran down my spine.
Could it be that he remembered something?
“Carter…” I cautiously tried to pull at his sleeve. “Carter, you can’t misunderstand me like this. I’m your wife! How can you not trust me? Since I married you, I won’t have any improper thoughts! How can you misunderstand me like this?”
“Do you feel wronged?” He sneered and then shouted, “If you feel wronged, just leave! What kind of wife are you? We aren’t even considered married, Laura. We don’t even have a marriage certificate!”
“You get out… just get out!” He pushed me hard. “Go to Cameron, he can make you experience the happiness of being a woman… Just go!”
“Carter, don’t go crazy…”
I couldn’t bear it any longer; this was the first time I had a hysterical argument with Carter. I felt anxious, scared, conflicted, guilty, and unable to face Carter. Meanwhile, Cameron seemed like a trap, leading me step by step toward the abyss.
I could only cover these complex emotions in my heart with a voice that was hoarse and desperate.
Carter, however, was even more insane. He lifted his crutch and began to wildly strike and hit things in the house. Although his movements were awkward, every action seemed to carry destructive power.
He roared, his terrifying voice echoing throughout the house. I huddled in a corner, feeling that the lunatic in front of me was nothing like my gentle and cultured husband.
Suddenly, he swung the crutch at a corner cabinet, and with a loud crash, a ceramic vase shattered on the floor. My heart trembled. Then, I saw him rushing toward me, the crutch smashing onto my shoulder. The pain made me dizzy, and he forcefully shoved me, making me slip. My palms landed precisely on the pile of broken vase shards.
A piercing pain shot up from the palm of my hand, and I caught a whiff of blood, slowly wafting through the air. In that moment, I felt like my hands were going to be useless.
I opened my mouth, wanting to scream, wanting to cry in pain, but no sound came out. I was probably scared senseless, sitting there in a daze.
Carter, with crimson eyes, seemed uneasy. Leaning on his crutch, he approached step by step. He began to ask, “Laura, are you-”
However, before he could finish his sentence, the door slammed open. Before I could react, I was already enveloped in a warm embrace. A man’s breath instantly surrounded me, and a strong heartbeat echoed in my ears, giving me an endless sense of security.
“Cameron…” I was sweating from the pain, on the verge of losing consciousness, but I knew it was him. Only he could give me this feeling.
Cameron quickly lifted me into the car, and I leaned on the seat, my hands hanging lifelessly, blood staining the car seat red.
“Don’t fall asleep!” he shouted, “Laura, open your eyes!”
Due to the pain, I really wanted to close my eyes and rest for a while. However, the car abruptly came to a stop. Following that, I felt something winding around my neck, just above my chest, emitting a slight warmth.
Lowering my head, I saw Cameron’s amulet that he always wore was now around my neck.
“Wear it, don’t lose it!” he glared at me, “This was left to me by my grandfather. If you dare to lose it, I won’t let you off!”
Suddenly, my heart felt a bit sour.
He restarted the car and headed to the hospital.
Perhaps it was the protection of the amulet, but by the time we reached the hospital, my hand had stopped bleeding. After emergency treatment, the wound was disinfected and bandaged, with no major issues.
The doctor said fortunately, we arrived in time. If it had been a bit later, my tendons might have been severed.
I glanced gratefully at Cameron, who was attentively listening to the doctor’s instructions.
The masculine scent emanating from him made it hard for me to look away.
I sat there absentmindedly, starting to daydream. I thought about the moment he lifted me, that incomparable sense of security. I thought about how he was at the engagement banquet a moment ago, but suddenly appeared outside my room… What was going on with him? Why did he suddenly show up?
Was it because of me?
My thoughts were chaotic. Cameron called me several times, but I didn’t hear. He walked over, waving his big hand in front of my eyes, “What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing…”
My face flushed a bit, and I quickly lowered my head.
“Let’s go.” He held a bag containing various medications, “Your hand injury isn’t serious; you don’t need to stay in the hospital.”
“Go where?”
I felt uneasy in my heart. Go home? I didn’t want to go home. I didn’t know if Carter had calmed down, and besides, when I fell and hurt myself, Cameron rushed in and carried me away. How would Carter feel about it?
Returning home at this moment, especially with Cameron, was not a wise decision.
“Let’s go!” Cameron urged me.
I stood there motionless, and he glanced at me before swiftly scooping me up in his arms. Startled, but with both hands wrapped in bandages, I had no chance to resist.
“Don’t worry, I won’t take you home.” He smiled and carried me into the car.
Indeed, the road we took wasn’t leading back home, but the surroundings were becoming more and more familiar. When the car stopped downstairs, I whispered, “Did you bring me here?”