Kindness?Bryce's gaze was locked on her. He felt a piercing sensation of discomfort spreading within him. He scoffed in frustration.After their three years of marriage, all that was left for Holly was a sense of indebtedness.It was no wonder that whenever he had repeatedly asked her if she loved him, she either avoided answering him or told him that it no longer mattered.Bryce suddenly felt irritable. He waved a hand at her and said, "Just leave.""Take care." Holly looked at him once before turning away and walking toward the car parked at the roadside.Bryce stood unmoving as he watched her leave. He chuckled self-deprecatingly.What was the point of being so strong? In the end, he still lost anyway.Bryce couldn't even win against Abel when he was still presumed dead. He was even more powerless now that Abel was alive and well.However, Bryce felt unwilling to give up just like that.…Holly walked over to the car parked by the roadside and got into it. Cooper then

Abelin's hand halted midair. His heart sank, and he felt somewhat hurt. It seemed as if Holly was trying to push him toward Zenia.However, he composed himself quickly and casually replied, "She's like a relative to me. Even though she looks feminine, she's actually a tomboy—she doesn't need me to take care of her."Zenia gave Abelin a sidelong glance. "You should do what Ms. Sinclair said. Just take care of me instead of wasting your words."She then picked up the wine decanter and filled Holly's glass halfway with red wine. "Have some wine, Ms. Sinclair."Holly replied, "Thank you."Zenia then poured some wine for Abelin. She sulkily poured him a full glass on purpose, murmuring, "This will teach you a lesson!"Abelin picked up his wine glass and gave Holly a toast. "I'm happy that you're here to celebrate my birthday."Holly smiled and replied, "I'm happy, too."Their eyes were rimmed red despite their cheerful words. They felt bittersweet, as if they were almost separated b

Even though Holly couldn't see the man's face clearly, she was familiar with that tone. It was Bryce—no one else would talk to her like that.Holly wanted to retort back, but she was too uncomfortable to do so. She said nothing else and just buried her face in his chest. An arm was loosely wrapped around his neck to make sure she didn't fall.Bryce was upset yet heartbroken upon seeing her reddening face. He frowned and adjusted his arm around her legs before walking toward the door.Zenia hurriedly jogged over and opened the door for him. "Please head back safely."Bryce eyed her and coldly questioned, "Did Abelin spike her? Where is he? I thought he was a gentleman, but how dare he do such a horrible thing to Holly?"Zenia panicked when the misunderstanding grew bigger. She hurriedly waved her hand and said, "No! It's not his fault! It's me. I'm the one who did it."Bryce frowned. His gaze grew harsher as he looked at her disdainfully. "Are you crazy? What did Holly do to you f

After Bryce was done feeding the hangover cure to Holly, he proceeded to clean her up. He helped her brush her teeth and even wiped her face, as if he were taking care of a baby.Holly couldn't sit still when he was tending to her.One moment she was knocking over the mouthwash cup, and the next she was touching Bryce's face, then kissing him, pulling at his clothes, grabbing him, and scratching at him. She also wrapped her legs around him and refused to let go. She even splashed him with water.Bryce wasn't expecting Holly to be this difficult when she was drunk. There were times when he was tempted to knock her out.However, he recalled the way she had to bear with everything back when she took care of him. He decided to repay her kindness and let it go.After a while, Bryce finally finished cleaning Holly. He carried her back to the bedroom and placed her on the bed. He then leaned down to kiss her, feeling the passion reigniting within his body.Just as he was about to adva

Holly left the house and got into the car. While she was on the road, Abelin called her. "I'm sorry about last night. It was Zenia's fault. She's been living with us since she was a girl. She's the youngest in our family, so she's pampered a lot and can do whatever she wants.""It's alright.""Everything happened too fast last night. I'll treat you to a meal next time." Since Holly was planning on giving him the flutes, she accepted the offer.…That weekend, they met at Rev, which was located in the biggest building in Jardington. Abelin picked the place. Most of the patrons there were couples.As they sat next to the window, Holly thought about when Bryce brought her here for the first time, and she couldn't help smiling. Then, she returned to her usual self soon after that.Holly opened the lockbox and placed it in front of Abelin. "Every year, I would buy a flute as your birthday gift. I had never been able to give it away in the past. Now, I can finally do it."He looke