Samuel closed the box when Kali came into the room, and he set it down on the bed beside him. "I was going to tell you. You know that, right?" "Yes. I am not mad." "You look mad." "I am not. This is me being worried." "Worried?" "Doesn't this...I don't know, scare you?" "That some weirdo is playing an expensive game of "who sent it?"" "That this weirdo is spending so much money on you. You haven't met this guy before, but he knows work is hard for you and how stressed you are with all the gossip. He misses your eyes, your beauty." Kali stared at the box. "How many times did you read that card." "Is that what matters now? Listen to me. This guy can be dangerous. If he is making fantasies in his head and convincing himself that there is a relationship between the two of you. He could do something dangerous one of these days." Kali seemed to understand where he was going. She immediately shifted from sceptical to worried. He didn't want to scare her, but it was something that t

Kali left the gallery for the garden in search of Samuel. He had disappeared for a while, and she soon began to worry about him. So, she walked through the maze of hedges and colourful flowers, whispering his name. “Kali?” She finally heard. She followed his voice around another wall of plants before she saw him. Relieved, Kali ran to him, throwing herself into his arms and laughing. 

Christen rushed up the stairs, throwing herself against the door as she banged it in urgency. Her head had been so full she forgot to take her jacket with her when she left the house, and walking in the nippy cold had left her chilly. But there were other things to worry about. Things that kept her from enjoying the rest of the party or falling asleep as her mind wouldn’t stop racing. She banged again, calling for Vincent, wondering if he was asleep. She hadn’t thought about that. It was pretty late at night, and though he wasn't an early sleeper, she couldn't see any of the lights on in the house. She was desperate and needed to talk to someone before she folded in on herself. Vincent was the next best thing. Relief filled her when she saw a light come on before the door opened, and a sleepy eyes Vincent stood in front of her.&

"What do you mean.""About why you got married." Flora raised her hand again, but he leaned away before she could touch him. "I know you didn't cheat on me with Kali. I have known it since the beginning, but I was hurt and angry, and I turned my heart off and listened to my brain. I doubted you, and you don't know how much I regret it."Samuel pulled on his hair, frustration clawing through him as they stared at each other. 

Samuel chuckled when Kali brushed her fingertip ever so gently along the bottom of his ear. "You know that tickles." "I find it odd. Such an odd place to be sensitive in." "Kali, a lot of people are sensitive behind their ears." She did it again, raising goosebumps on his skin. He shivered, his breath shaking as he shrunk away. "Stop, or I would throw you off me." She laughed. "Fine. Such a baby." Giovanna had left earlier with her friends, and Kali dragged him to the pool for them to enjoy some time in the open. She lay between his legs, muttering on about her sister's schooling and inviting her aunt to spend Christmas with them since she didn't think they'd travel home. Samuel listened absently, half his mind on the conversation and the other half on the conversation in their room. He hoped Flora and Kali would never cross paths, but even if they did, he didn't want them to fight. Flora was determined. Despite his bes