A smile never faded from Caraline's face. She never seemed to tire of scanning her surroundings. Her eyes sparkled every time the light changed color.If forced to be honest, Caraline had no regrets about accepting Deric's offer. She just couldn't believe that he could prepare all of this in just one night, even though his movements were limited by a wheelchair."When God takes something away from you, He strengthens another part of you," Deric said.Caraline turned around. The first thing she saw was the movement of Deric's hands, which were focused on rowing. Her gaze shifted to Deric's muscular arms and shoulders as he paddled the canoe. Deric had been paddling this canoe for quite some time, but Caraline saw no sign of fatigue. [If you can't walk with your legs, you just have to try to walk with your arms. Lack doesn't mean you have to give up]Caraline suddenly remembered Deric's words the other day. It was possible that what he had just said was directed at his condition. There
Deric stiffened when the brief kiss landed on his cheek. His eyes rounded in disbelief. The man never thought that Caraline would kiss him, a gift that never even crossed his mind.Deric soon smiled. His frozen body gradually returned to normal. "Thank you."Caraline slowly opened her eyes. Her body instantly froze when she realized that she was once again in the crook of Deric's neck. Her tension melted away as a blush graced her cheeks. Slowly, the woman looked to the side, and the first thing she saw was Deric and his charming smile.Caraline reflexively pulled back. She looked at Deric with an incredulous gaze. Her heart was filled with an unfamiliar, yet strangely comforting feeling. On the other hand, her lips trembled as if she wanted to say a series of sentences. Her breathing was suddenly racing rapidly."I-I... I'm ...." Caraline felt as if her body was about to melt away like a syrupy solution. Nonetheless, there was a relief she felt, as if the burden that was clogging her
Helen was pacing back and forth in her office. The bespectacled woman occasionally glanced at her watch and cell phone screen. It was almost eleven am, but there was no sign that Caraline was coming."Did something happen to her?" Helen opened the window to the room, drawing in oxygen greedily. She hoped the fresh air would relieve some of the tension.Helen contacted Caraline for the umpteenth time. Neither her calls nor her texts were responded to. This was highly unusual. If anything had happened, Caraline would have contacted her immediately.Helen was not deterred. She tried calling Caraline's home phone number. However, the call was not connected at all. "I have a feeling that something is going on with Miss Caraline."Helen decided to sit down in her work chair, taking a sip of hot tea to calm her nerves a little. Her fingers drummed on the table, debating whether to go to Caraline's residence immediately or stay in the office for a while longer."I'll wait about ten minutes,"
Caraline blinked slowly. When she opened her eyes, the woman felt her head grow dizzy. Her vision seemed to blur as she scanned her surroundings. She changed to a sitting position as she massaged her forehead. "What is happening to me?" "Miss Caraline," called three maids in unison. Their gazes held obvious concern.Caraline scanned the room again. In addition to the maids standing at the bedside, she also saw a woman in a white coat coming out of the room."What's happening to me?" repeated Caraline as one by one her consciousness came back together. Her hand began to descend to her brow and cheek and then stopped at her lips. The footage of the kiss suddenly returned.Caraline stiffened. Her eyes opened wide like they were going to jump out. She hoped that the kiss was just a bad dream. However, when she realized that the clothes she was wearing were the same ones she had worn when she met Deric, she immediately dropped back down."Miss Caraline!" the maids chanted as they approach
Caraline quickly picked up Deric's gift which she luckily found behind the trash can. She got up with her hands behind her back, then moved slowly towards the dressing table."Do you still need some time?" asked Helen, who thought Caraline was acting a little strange."One more minute," Caraline said, giving the code with one finger. "Give me one more minute, Helen.""I understand." Helen quickly left the room.Caraline quickly hid the gift under the pillow. "You put me in a difficult situation. What an annoying man!"Caraline sat on the couch, being as calm as possible, "Come in, Helen."Helen re-entered the room, taking her place in front of Caraline. "How are you at the moment, Miss?""I'm... fine," Caraline replied in a flat tone."I was really worried when I heard you fainted.""I... fainted?" Caraline pointed at herself. The shock was painted on her features. She had not expected this to happen to her at all. However, upon further thought, it seemed to be a reasonable answer as
"What do you mean, Grace?" asked Caraline with a sharp look. "How could Deric have made ....?"Caraline closed her eyes as she massaged her temples. She had no intention of finishing her sentence after hearing the truth. Caraline never thought that Deric would give her another surprise."Miss Caraline," Grace said, her eyes flickering over Caraline. The woman tried to shake off the fear. "According to the maids, Mr. Deric rushed to the garden to pick strawberries after hearing that you were unconscious. Shortly after, he gave the juice to me and told me to give it to you when you regain consciousness.""Go on." Caraline got up from the sofa, walking towards the window that separated the room from the balcony. Her eyes narrowed to search for Deric's whereabouts. The delicious flavor of the juice was still lingering in her mouth. "How can he make such delicious juice?""Do you have ear trouble, Grace?" asked Caraline when she saw that the maid was still in place. "I just asked you to le
Caraline woke up when the sky was already adorned with purple. She felt more refreshed after resting. Her head was also not as dizzy as before. She got out of bed, walking towards the balcony. "How refreshing."Caraline spent a few minutes on the balcony. She scanned around the backyard and garden pulling out a chair to sit on. Her gaze shifted to the building where Deric lived. "Don't ever expect me to drink that bottled juice again."Caraline turned her head when her cell phone vibrated. Diego's name appeared on the screen. She let it ring twice until she finally picked it up."How are you doing?" Diego asked on the other end."Do I have to answer your question?" Caraline responded flatly."Can we meet somewhere?" Diego cleared his throat. "There are some things I need to explain to you. It's... about... you know what I mean."Caraline rolled her eyes. "I need to rest for the next few days. You can meet me at the office if you're not busy.""Are you sick?" Diego asked in a panicked
Caraline closed the door as soon as she entered the room. She hurriedly ran to the room where the bag was kept. She quickly retrieved it from the closet, carrying it to the bed. Caraline rushed to check the contents of the bag as soon as she sat down on the bed. Not just once, but five times. The bandana bearing the name "Jacob Aberald" was still in place. "I can't imagine what it would be like if Deric recognized it. Deric would be very suspicious and would think all sorts of things about me."Caraline lay down on the bed, scrutinizing the black bandana closely. Her cheeks suddenly painted a red hue as she recalled the picture of Deric in his basketball uniform, especially when she saw how he was able to get the ball into the hoop.Caraline reached for her phone and opened the gallery. She swiped through the screens several times until she stopped at a video file. With trembling hands, she started pressing the play button. In an instant, footage of Deric playing basketball filled th