Chapter 30: Chapter 30

I blink my eyes, thinking of something to say. I parted my lips, but no words came out. Harry squinted his eyes, looking down at his body before looking up and was about to sit straight when I yelled and smacked him on his face, knocking him out. The situation drove me to do it!

"Oh my god!"

I panic, not knowing what to do. I looked around the area. Hopefully, no one saw it. Harry dropped his head on the couch, and a snore echoed throughout the site. I sighed since he was back sleeping soundly. I fixed his position, finished what I started before leaving him peacefully, and hoped everything would be okay tomorrow morning.

However...

"Who did this to me?!"

A thunderous voice of yells echoed, making me jump and flinch in surprise. I swallowed the tension in my throat, slowly descending to the ground floor while peeking into the living room to see what was happening. I woke up with a dry throat, suddenly parched. So, I decided to get up from my bed to get some water when a commotion happened.

"Sir, we don't know who did it."

When I finally reached the house's ground floor, I tip-toed my way closer to see what the fuss was all about. I glimpsed at Harry, who was looking, caressing his swollen eye. My eyes increased, and my mouth hung open. There was a huge black circle around it, and he couldn't even blink without flinching.

"I could still remember how I got home, but no one punched me along the way. How did this happen." Harry sighed, placing the mirror on the couch. When Harry dismissed them, the maids bowed their heads, going in a different direction. Some maids greeted me with their good morning, and I smiled back until I was left in the middle.

"Oh, Natasha," he called my name when he saw me. His eyes narrowed into slits when he saw getting up early.

"It's a surprise to see you this early. Is it something you need?" he said, standing up but stumbling on the couch. I quickly cross our gap, helping him stand straight. He laughed humorlessly before shrugging.

"Sorry, it's my hangover, and don't worry about this black eye if you find it weird. I'm going to find that bastard who did this and make him pay-"

"I actually did it," I stopped him before he could even finish his sentence. I let go of him, looking away, ashamed of what I did. I'll explain to him anyway if he would let me. I bit my lower lip when Harry was speechless for a minute. My heart was buffeting loudly against my chest, and I could feel my whole muscles getting numb.

"Oh, so you are-"

I heard a gasp coming from him when I suddenly dropped to my knees, pleading for him to forgive me. I could sense Harry was aghast to see me holding my palms together, imploring my apology.

"I was actually taking care of you last night since I saw how wasted you are. Because of your generosity in giving us a place to stay for a while, I thought that I should help you even a little. You suddenly woke up, and I was surprised by it, so my first instinct was to throw a punch at your face."

A long deafening silence creeps over the area. Harry must be taking his time to process this information. I lifted my head up. My face was covered with tears.

"Please, forgive me. I didn't mean to. It took me off guard too. Please don't sue me or throw me away. I still need for my husband to recover and-"

I paused when Harry suddenly burst out laughing, clenching his stomach while pointing at me. He took a step back and fell on the couch, wiping off the tears from his eyes. I frowned and noticed some helpers were peeking just to see what was happening between us. Oh god, this is so embarrassing. Harry is making a scene, and they might think I have said something funny when I am not.

"You're a joker, Natasha. Of course, I forgive you. You don't have to kneel down for me. Come here." he snatched my arms, helping me get up on the ground. I slowly stood up, my eyes not leaving his face.

"You're not mad?" I asked.

"Well…" he shrugged his shoulders, "I will have a meeting later with the other board members, and it's humiliating to show up looking like this." he pointed at his eye, and that made me look down at the ground, disgraced of what I did.

"But!" he continued. I lifted my face, and our eyes met.

"I can use sunglasses and just tell them that I haven't slept properly." he gave me two thumbs up, telling me I shouldn't worry too much.

"I'm still sorry, Harry. What can I do?" I asked, and he shook his head.

He stood on the couch, stretching his arms before sliding them into his pockets. He smiled and then guided me towards the kitchen.

"Come on, let's have breakfast. I'll eat with you before taking a quick shower," he said, and I nodded in response.

I zip my mouth, focusing my eyes on the ground, still unable to look at him. He's so friendly and forgiving. It makes me want to get out of this place sooner once Ethan awakens and recovers. It eating my conscience to think we're hiding something from him. It's best not to say anything about why we're being chased, but at least I told him our real names.

Even though that didn't make any difference from the guilt that is eating me up.

We were about to reach the kitchen when I heard a bark from behind. I stopped in my tracks, looking back from my shoulder, and my eyes widened when I saw Bobby running to me! I quickly twisted my body to embrace him. We both fell to the floor, cuddling each other. Bobby licked my face, happily barking to see me. His tail was waggling with so much enthusiasm. I almost cried to see him okay.

"He's happy to see you."

I looked beside me, and I suddenly sat up when Harry kneeled down, looking at Bobby, who smiled and barked at him in return. Harry raised his hand to pet his head.

"S-sorry…I just got excited to see him." I said, looking away from him to focus my attention on Bobby.

"It's okay. He has his own house outside along with my other dogs there." Harry mentioned, and that put a smile on my face. It's generous of him to think of giving Bobby his own house here.

"Sir! I am so sorry! The dog escaped from my grip because I was about to give him a bath." an old man came running towards our way, bowing his head, when he saw Harry, who waved his hands in dismiss.

"I know how you missed your dog, Natasha. But it's best to give it to Mr. Hamilton so he could take care of him." Harry stated, motioning his hand to Mr. Hamilton, who bowed his head at me, offering his service.

He looked like a lovely man, and I knew he could take care of Bobby for me. I hugged Bobby one last time, giving him a gentle kiss on his nose before giving him to Mr. Hamilton. Bobby abruptly cried, whimpering as if he was hurt, but when I noticed he was only going to miss me too, I smiled. He's sometimes dramatic, but I am not going anywhere. I also didn't realize that he was covered in mud, and my pajamas were tainted with dirt.

"Do you want to clean up first before eating? I can bring the food upstairs if you want to-"

"It's okay, Harry. I'll clean myself later." I gave him a warm smile before proceeding to the kitchen.

I decided to went straight to the maids to help set up the table.

"What are you doing here, Ma'am? You should go and sit there. Let us handle this job." the maid I talked to last night when I ate late whispered to me as if I had created a terrible sin. I chuckled because of her expression.

"I'm just going to help since I was the one who punched Harry last night."

"You what?!" she yelled but quickly composed herself since Harry was here. I smiled at her.

"Let me serve his food for him as my apology." I pleaded, and she sighed in defeat, nodding and giving me away.

"Rena, my name is Rena. You can call me that," she said, tapping my back slightly before helping the other maids. I followed her back, beaming to myself.

"Natasha? What are you doing there?"

I heard Harry's voice behind me, and I didn't say anything. Instead, I continued with what I was doing. I sensed him beside me, watching me with furrowed eyebrows until I was completely done.

"You prepared your own food? But you don't have to, though. We have cooked here and helpers that-"

"It's for you," I said, walking past him to serve it on the table.

"What?" he was stunned after a minute of standing there.

The table was already clean and settled, but I needed to ensure it was spotless. I wipe the surface before placing the bowl of soup. I grabbed the spoon and was about to put it on the vessel when Harry stopped me.

"You don't have to do that if you think I'm mad at you-"

"No, Harry. It's okay, please let me serve you just this time." I smiled, reaching both corners of my eyes.

Harry paused from his spot, looking at me directly in the eyes. We just stood there, feeling each other's presence, when he sighed in defeat, sitting on the chair before taking a sip of the soup.

I was holding my breath and suddenly anxious about his reaction.