In the hospital room, Melissa plopped down on a chair with a dramatic sigh. “Oh my God, I almost broke into a cold sweat just now.”
She peeled an orange for herself, grinning. “Frank looks so gentle, but when he was talking to Conrad, I seriously thought Conrad was going to rip his head off.”
Lillian, who was enjoying her own snack, shot her a look. “Are you here to check on me, or to have a snack?”
Melissa quickly swallowed her bite. “Okay, okay, enough with the jokes. Seriously, how the heck did you end up like this?”
Lillian rolled her eyes. “Obviously, I’m a coward who likes to avoid trouble. I wouldn’t go looking for trouble on purpose.”
Besides, she’d only been having some verbal spats with Conrad’s women. How in the world had she ended up in a situation with Hunter, of all people?
“You know Hunter?” Lillian was trying to remember where she’d heard that name.
“Yeah,” Melissa hesitated for a moment. “Don’t tell me this is somehow tied to Hunter?”
Lillian gave her an exasperated look, and Melissa’s eyes widened. “Damn it, I was just starting to think Conrad had changed, that maybe he actually cared about you, and now I find out you’re in the hospital because of him?”
Lillian sighed. “I knew you’d figure it out.”
It wasn’t that Melissa necessarily knew everything about Conrad, but since Conrad and George had grown up together, and Melissa had been so obsessed with George, she’d surely looked into anyone close to him.
“You were always so protected by your dad, of course, you wouldn’t know about Hunter. Honestly, I don’t know him well, either. All I know is, he’s Conrad’s sworn enemy. Conrad even blinded him in one eye. After that, Hunter left City N, and I have no idea where he went.” Melissa frowned. “I’ve heard people say Hunter’s been shady since he was a kid. If you get caught up with him, it’s like a sticky piece of gum-you’ll never get rid of him.”
Melissa’s face turned serious. “I’m not afraid of anything else. I just don’t want him to keep latching onto you. Conrad might not be able to handle him, but if Hunter wants to bully you, he’ll do it in a heartbeat. Oh, and I almost forgot-Old Mrs. White is in this hospital, too. There’s a huge scene downstairs. I couldn’t even take the elevator, had to walk up the stairs.”
Lillian froze for a moment. “Old Mrs. White? What happened to her?”
“Not much news on the outside, but I’ve got my sources, especially when it comes to Conrad,” Melissa said, leaning in with a mischievous look. “Word is, Conrad sent someone to the White family late at night and basically kidnapped the expert who was treating Old Mrs. White.”
Of course, the White family wasn’t happy about that! And you know Conrad and his temper. He didn’t just argue with them-he tore down their front gates,” Melissa continued, shaking her head. “I’m just thinking-White family still wants to marry their granddaughter off to him after all that, no wonder Conrad doesn’t take them seriously. People are laughing about it all over town.”
“What’s the gossip outside?”
“Well, all that’s been circulating are some pictures of Conrad having dinner with Pandora a few days ago. People are saying Conrad’s engagement with Daisy has been affected, but now Conrad’s back with Pandora. It’s all a mix of truth and lies, lots of smoke and mirrors.” Melissa clicked her tongue. “He’s a real jerk, but you can’t say he’s entirely heartless. At least he tried to take care of your grandma.”
Lillian sipped from the cup Melissa had handed her. She wasn’t sure if it was the warmth of the water or the comfort of her body that was soothing her, but at least she was thankful for what Conrad had done. Despite all the unpleasantness between them before, she felt more gratitude than anything else.
Conrad had been gone for a while when Melissa got an urgent call from home, telling her to come back. Since she was bored sitting alone in the room, Lillian decided to get up. As she walked toward the door, she spotted Andrew standing guard.
“Is Conrad inside?” she asked.
Andrew nodded without looking up.
“Can I go in and see him?”
Before opening the door, Andrew gave her a long, thoughtful look.
“Don’t pick a fight with Mr. Conrad. He hasn’t slept in two days, staying by your side the whole time. I’ve been with him for years, and I’ve never seen him like this.”
Lillian froze. She didn’t realize how much Conrad had really done for her. Before she could respond, Andrew opened the door.
Conrad was sitting on the couch, his shirt off, letting the nurse clean and dress his wounds while he operated his phone with one hand.
“Did I say you could come in?” he said coldly, before glancing up at Lillian and frowning. “Are you tired of living? What are you doing here when you’re still not well?”
Lillian felt like he couldn’t speak in any other way.
“I just came to check on you,” she said, standing there with a pale face.
“I won’t die,” he muttered, his voice softening. “Come here.”
The nurse took the hint and left the room.
Soon, it was just the two of them.
Lillian stepped forward, but before she knew it, Conrad pulled her down onto his lap.
“Wait!” Lillian was startled. “Your wounds!”
He didn’t listen, pulling her into his arms with one hand wrapped tightly around her waist, resting his head on her shoulder. He closed his eyes and murmured, “If you care about me, let me lean on you.”
Lillian froze, unsure what to do. Conrad’s warm breath brushed against her ear, and his bare chest pressed against her back, his hospital gown clinging to her.
She squirmed uncomfortably, trying to move, but then stiffened and looked at him with wide eyes.
“What are you staring at?” he said, his eyes half-opening, locking onto hers. “My ‘member’ is fine.”
He paused for a moment, eyes piercing into hers, his voice low. “And you should know what I need.”
If she wasn’t on her period, she wouldn’t have any chance of escaping him-morning, noon, and night. Every time he came back from a trip, the first thing he’d do was get her into bed. If he couldn’t have sex with her right away, his mood would turn sour.
She had been with him for three years, Lillian couldn’t pretend she didn’t have feelings for him, but since the news about his engagement had come out, her reason had taken over, making all the decisions for her.
But now, as he held her so tightly, Lillian kept worrying. “Are you sure your injuries are okay?”
Conrad snorted. “It wasn’t a big deal.” Then he added in a low voice, “Well, it does hurt a bit. You should kiss it better.”
Lillian stared at him, speechless. “Didn’t you just say it wasn’t a big deal?”
“Well, I’m injured, so I might as well get some perks out of it, right?” Conrad said, eyes locking onto hers.
Lillian hesitated. She quickly came up with an excuse. “I don’t have lipstick on right now, so if I kiss it, it won’t leave a mark.”
Conrad raised an eyebrow. “Oh? You want to leave a kiss mark on me? Fine by me.”
With that, he grabbed her bag-the one she had been carrying the day she was kidnapped-from the small table beside the couch. He pulled out a tube of lipstick and twisted it open with one hand, then held her chin firmly.
Lillian’s eyelids twitched. “You know how to apply lipstick?”
“Please, I can handle a gun just fine. Applying lipstick is nothing,” Conrad said dismissively.
The lipstick slowly glided across her lips…
Lillian couldn’t help but think that this was exactly how Conrad must have applied crayons when he was younger.
She couldn’t even imagine what her lips must look like now.
Unable to resist, she added, “Just put on a little color, then blend it with your finger.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Blend with my finger?”
He didn’t use his finger, though. Instead, Conrad used his thumb to smooth out the lipstick. They were so close that Lillian could feel his breath, and for some reason, that small gesture made her feel an undeniable tension.
Conrad took a step back, assessing his work. “Yeah, that looks fine.”
They already had sex before, but suddenly, this whole act of kissing a wound made Lillian feel incredibly shy.
Still, when her eyes landed on the wound that hadn’t been properly bandaged yet, her heart twisted a little.