Struggling to part her eyelashes open, Zoe's senses awakened by the strong pemeating scent that seemed to taunt her senses even from deep slumber. A gasp escaped her throat the moment her eyes finally opened, and her heart skipped a bit when she realized that, once again, she was nowhere she would have expected herself to be.Her mind flashed to the only person her mind compulsively hoped it was not, because she didn't want to be a burden to him for the nth time. But somewhere in her heart, too, she hoped that it would be him. Even if she didn't know if she could trust him as a stranger, Martin Lincoln made her feel comfortable in some kind of way. "Zoe?" She heard the deep, hoarse voice call her name, and she shut her eyes instantly to be sure that she was not hearing wrongly. More than anything, she wished that it was truly not what she had heard.Opening her eyes again to see the towering figure that was hovering after her, Zoe almost went bonkers on the spot, ignoring the IV tube
"Get out of my fucking face!" Zoe yelled at Malcolm as she head-butted him so hard, and the unexpected blow collectively struck different strange nerves in his body as they all tried to process the intensity of the pain. He took a step back instantly as his body instinctively retreated as a defensive response, and his hand held his nose firmly like it would prevent the pain from spreading. Blood drained from his face as he felt a red liquid trickle down the skin beneath his nose, and his hand caught it just in time before it splashed on the floor. He blinked rapidly as he tried to clear the fog of disbelief that clouded his vision, that Zoe had hit him so hard in that manner. "What?!" His lips found the instant words he could use to express his shock, while alternating touching his nose and looking at his blood-smeared hand, in great disbelief that it actually came from his breathing holes. "What? You've never had a nosebleed?" Zoe remarked with a scowl, when she observed the kind
"Scumbag jerk!" Zoe cursed under her breath, as she scuttled away after signaling to the kid, who helped her out of the bathroom without getting noticed by the nurse. After she had lied about wanting to go to the bathroom, she began to think of possible ways in which she could escape out of the hospital without getting caught. When she thought of the window, she knew she would end her own life if she tried jumping down from the top floor. And just when she thought there was nothing she could do after spying on the nurses for minutes, she saw a young girl that entered the bathroom shortly after she did by herself, who she deemed rude at first sight. "Are you trying to steal something?" She heard the tiny voice behind her which made her turn sharply, only to see a small cute girl with big, round eyes standing before her. "What? Steal?" She scrunched up her face at the little girl, wondering how old she was and who let her into the bathroom without assistance, "Mind your business, l
It had been days since Erin's death was announced, and it seemed like nothing had happened. Zoe had returned to work after a two-day break that was taken under a health rest, and the only person that seemed to know was Zara. Ever since she had gotten the news, she had not been the same person that she was. The pain in her heart grew each day like a relentless tide that pulled her into despair."I am sorry for your loss, Ms Zoe. I really am," Zara said to her apologetically when she appeared at the office earlier than she had expected her to. Maybe those words made her sadder, or they gave her hope that someone cared. Zoe could not even figure it out. She just nodded thankfully and made her way into her office, solemnly and languidly. Gary helped to make arrangements for the burial at a private property, and she was the only one that attended the burial to pay her last respect. Though she was informed by him that Francis Sinclair asked her to take a week's break, she didn't take the
You are still around?" Zoe asked in surprise, as she saw her secretary enter into the office after knocking, when she noticed that she was up. "Yes," Zara answered with a modest smile, while observing Zoe's face closely to check for any lingering signs of fatigue. She was relieved to see that her appearance seemed better than hours ago. "But you are supposed to have clocked out about two hours ago," Zoe mentioned as her eyes darted to the wall clock again to be sure that she had seen the time properly the moment she had just woken up. "Yes. I wanted to make sure you were awake before I left," she answered, offering a polite smile. "Oh my! Oh my! I'm sorry for keeping you waiting," Zoe apologized instantly. She couldn't understand the magnitude of this lady's care for her. 'Was it purely out of duty? Or was something else attached?' Zoe wondered in her heart. "No problem at all. It is my job," Zara added instantly, feeling burdened that Zoe was being so well-mannered and warm, u
"Did you guys hear that Zoe's grandmother is dead?" Audrey broke the silence at the dining table during breakfast. "Who cares that the sickly woman is finally gone anyway?" Ivy replied to her with heavy sarcasm, wondering why Audrey was suddenly choosing to talk about Zoe. For many days, they had not talked about anything particular at the dining table, except having the most chaotic arguments Ivy and Isla usually had. Everyone had pretty much gone back to their lives, even if it had not remained the same as the past. "It is a pity how unfortunate she is. She has no one by her side, and has always been so unlucky. Only her attended the burial. Even her supposed grandfather didn't," Audrey told them again, not minding if they were not interested in replying to her. She had been so interested in everything about Zoe and had been watching the way she acted, so that the crazy wheel of misfortune would not end up stopping at her name again. "Are you stalking her enough to know such a
Zoe had it the same at the office the next day, except with a little change that her afternoon had brought more peace than she ever thought she would find while working. Her secretary, Zara, seemed to have a new joke to tell her which was more fun than the previous ones, and she wanted her to try a new vegetable drink that she learned online too. Though there was barely enough time to make all that happen because of Zoe's busy schedule, she was grateful that someone truly made an effort to make her happy. Towards evening, Zoe soon realized that she would be encumbered with her job at the office till late hours, and called Martin to apologize for her plan to cancel their plans to meet. However, he told her that she could finish whenever she liked and that he would wait for her. Pressured to meet as soon as possible and not waste so much of his time, she had to give up the plan to work through the night and go on with the dinner date. 'It was probably the first time someone had invi
"You should find what makes you happy, Zoe. You deserve that as someone carrying a lot of responsibilities with her," Martin finally said softly, hoping that his words would get to her. "Why are you nice to me, Martin? It is obvious from our meetings that I am a boring person, and I don't have much to offer. Well, except my money," Zoe responded. "That is not all to you, you know. You have your own charms, and I want to be your friend. I'm pretty much a boring man myself too." "I don't think you are," she defended. "Yes, I am. But I am outspoken whenever I am around people I like being with," Martin replied, with his eyes fixated on her. "So, you like being around me?" Zoe speculated with a little doubt in her voice, as cold shivers ran down her spine. The dress she had on was designed with a small sleeve, and cold seemed to be crawling up on her skin and shooting tiny swells. "Are you cold?" Martin asked, observing that she was struggling not to fold her arms around her body. "