Chapter 25: Chapter 25

When she woke up again from her afternoon nap, a beautiful pink dress lay on the bed waiting for her. She didn’t know when Jake had left the room, but as the space next to her was still warm, she assumed he hadn’t left for long.

She refrained from smiling as she thought of how Jake had held her while she was just in her undergarments, while they were in bed. Just a hug; she reassured herself.

But no, she knew it was wrong. By lying with a man in bed, it was already cheating. How could she resolve it with Hart? One day, such things were due to come to light. Even then, two months of feelings were difficult for her to put down in an instant.

She’ll get to it when it happens. There was a Chinese idiom, “when the boat gets to the bridge-head, it will naturally go straight.” Everything would be fine.

Somehow, a deep feeling nestled inside her, telling her she was wrong.

Jake and his father sat at the dinner table, as if waiting for her presence. She nodded politely, walking towards them gracefully in the pink fairy-like dress Jake had left for her. Wearing a fanciful dress made her feel overdressed.

Myra engaged the men with a smile as she took her seat next to Jake.

“Uncle Marc, I apologise for the wait.” She bowed courteously.

Marc smiled before clapping his hands.

“I hope that changes soon?”

Uh, her lateness? She looked apologetic. Jake gave her a nudge, whispering in her ear.

“He means he hopes to hear you call him Dad soon.”

Wha..at? Myra stared back at Jake in confusion. Now, everything was happening too quickly. She hadn’t even accepted!

She opened her mouth to reply to him, but remembering his words earlier, asking her to pretend, she didn’t know what to say. Eventually, she gave up, reclining on the sturdy wooden chair.

If he wanted an act, he would get one. Her eyes glinted with mischief as an idea formed in her eyes. Immediately, she linked arms with Jake.

“Right, my future husband is so right.”

The elder man seemed pleased. Myra looked at Jake playfully for a few seconds before facing Marc again.

“I see Jake has told you,” Marc said, attempting to sound less serious than he usually was. “Since both of you have been very young, I’ve always thought of you and your father as family.”

“Thank you, Uncle Marc,” she said amicably. “I didn’t know, otherwise, I would have come earlier to pay my respects to you.”

“Now is just as fine.”

Myra swallowed. If she married Jake, then a lot of things would have to change. What would become of her and Hart? Becoming the Yus’ daughter-in-law would involve a massive transformation. Marc was a strict, no-nonsense person and, for sure, his daughter-in-law would have to follow the rules.

“Have you two decided on a date?”

The question somewhat startled her. She stared earnestly at Jake, observing his deep brown eyes. Eventually, his eyes lightened up deviously before he answered.

“Yes, the lunar fifteenth of next month.”

Next month! That date was just too soon! Was it a good time for them to get married? Whether they confirmed marriage or left it just tentative, she feared for the worst.

Under the table, she gave Jake’s foot a little kick, but he appeared indifferent.

“Indeed, it is an auspicious date. Are you mentally ready?” Marc indulged Myra with a concerned look. “Your father’s condition is worsening, and we never expected it to happen so suddenly. I have told him…”

The graveness returned to Marc’s slightly wrinkled face. “It is too late now for regrets. Myra, I am sorry that this ultimate responsibility came to you. But I promise, once you and Jake get married, YX will become the major investor of Alfred’s hotels and his other businesses. With YX’s help, you might evade this storm.”

What could a second-year university student do, she lamented silently. Especially when they were on the verge of losing everything. Then, what about Sierra and her mother, who heavily depended on her father? She didn’t know if telling them the news would break them. She couldn’t.

Myra knew she had to do it. It wasn’t an option for her anymore, after how she had considered it. It was a choice she had to make, disregarding Hart and the two months they had spent together. Her father and the efforts he had spent in raising her and building up his father’s empire weighed way more than her two months with Hart.

She had to make things clear with him, that she didn’t love him and that she needed to give up on their relationship because of the bigger picture. But how could she just tell him that without hurting his feelings?

“Myra?”

Jake’s voice brought her back to her senses. She had drifted far in her thoughts.

“Sorry, I was distracted.”

He took his arm from hers and caressed her cheek gently. She felt a tinge of hope in her, but didn’t know whether to take him seriously. Was he just acting in front of his father?

“You should eat before the food gets cold.”

“Ah, yes.”

She reached for her chopsticks, bumping into his hand again carelessly. “Oops, sorry.”

Myra thought she heard a chuckle from Marc, but his face was as grave as ever. No words could describe how alike Marc and Alfred were, she thought as she consumed the food before her, bearing in mind the lessons of dining etiquette that she learned all these years. Jake kindly brought food to her plate, offering her more of her favourite Chinese cod fillet. She wasn’t too fond of greens, but he gave her some, anyway.

“Thank you, Jake,” she mumbled softly before taking another bite. As members of prominent Chinese families in V City, they had to act classy. Thus, they knew not to talk while they ate. Silence filled the dining hall, so quiet that they could hear the soft noises of their chopsticks hitting the porcelain dishes.

“I’ll send you home, Myra.”

The rain had stopped since she had fallen asleep; but she knew Jake had a lot to speak to her in privacy. She went to the bedroom and grabbed her handbag quickly, entering the car where Jake was waiting for her, seated behind the wheel.

Two hours’ drive was more than enough for them to talk to their hearts’ desires. Jake maintained his coolness, driving through the empty streets. The roads were still damp from the rain, keeping him at a mediocre speed.

“The highways have a lot of traffic. I’ll make a detour.”

She nodded without saying a word. Jake headed in a different direction, one she wasn’t sure of, but she didn’t bother asking about. After some time, Jake stopped the car at a deserted construction site. Though he remained silent, Myra fathomed he had a lot on his mind.

“Myra, between me and him, who makes your heart beat faster?”

In the past, it wasn’t like Jake to ask such a question without acting jealous. She looked at him queerly, trying to guess what was on his mind.

“Jake, I… I can’t answer you on this,” she squeaked back. “Back in Bali, it was you… you had another… that’s why I went...with him…”

Jake’s face turned black as he berated her.

“Myra, because I hugged someone, did it give you the right to run from me and tarnish yourself by sleeping with another? Why didn’t you look for me and find out what happened? Everyone was worried. You didn’t answer your phone, and nobody knew where you went! Luckily, you didn’t land in the hands of kidnappers or got sold to black-market organ dealers!”

“But I--”

She couldn’t say any words in her defence, just moments before his lips found their way on hers again. His lips were as hot as fire on hers, ravaging her mouth as hard as he could while she felt the penetration of his tongue.

Jake kissed so well that when she was kissing back, she couldn’t think of anyone else. Even if it was cheating, she couldn’t resist his advances. She didn’t know when he had climbed over to her seat, when he reclined her seat all the way back, pressing his weight over hers.

She struggled to breathe. Her heart was racing so hard that she didn’t know what to do but to obey and succumb to his dominant kisses.

Outside the car, it poured again. Jake pulled away from her so suddenly.

“We can’t head back in this foul weather,” he grumbled, watching the weather prediction from his all-in dashboard. It predicted heavy rain and thunderstorms would happen soon.

“You with me, Myra?”

She nodded. Though he stopped kissing her, she understood how she was craving for him and didn’t want it to stop. But with such harsh weather, they had to take shelter.

“Remember the deserted mansion, Myra?”

Again, she nodded.

“We’ll take shelter there first. The rain isn’t expected to stop until two hours from now.”