Chapter 69

When I looked down, he wasn't lying. He climbed up using a thick rope tied to a tree almost adjacent to the room where I was staying.

"What's nice after a long day? Pic nic." He said and then went directly into the room and passed through the window.

“Seriously?” I fully rolled my eyes. "Aren't you running out of energy, Manager Sol? You mean, Richard? The night is too late.”

He didn't seem to hear me as he laid the cloth he was carrying on the floor and then placed the basket he was carrying on it.

“Girls love sweets, don't they? I want to please you, Catt. So, I picked all these fresh strawberries for you, washed them, and brought you some melted chocolate.” He proudly exclaimed as he carefully set down plates full of strawberries and a bowl of melted chocolate.

"Did you go shopping for strawberries?" I asked and then approached him when Richard pointed the empty space in front of him. “It looks really good. Let me taste one.” I pressed my lips together, watching Richard as he took one of the strawberries and dipped it in the melted chocolate.

I accepted it when he handed me the strawberry. I took a glance of him before I tasted the strawberry.

I felt my eyes welling up the moment I bit into the strawberries. It's really sweet and fresh. I was surprised by its softness and its smell is really fruity.

I couldn't help but smile, loving how sweet the fruit was and made it even better with the melted chocolate.

"I'm glad you like it." Richard grunted with a smile.

"I love it." I answered before taking another bite of the strawberry after dipping it in the chocolate.

"I always give this to my mom to cheer her up too. And after seeing you earlier, I thought you might like something sweet so I went to the farm and picked some."

“Really? Where's your mom?” I asked as I couldn't stop myself from eating the strawberries because of how sweet it tastes. 

“She's in the city, of course. But sometimes, we go back here together. Whenever she misses how life is here, she always takes me back and escapes our real world. There's nothing wrong with taking a rest, Cattleya.” I felt his hand as it brushed over my cheeks. “How can those sad eyes tear my heart this much..?”

“I never imagined you were this thoughtful. I always see you as a meticulous manager that only has the business matter inside his head like any other entrepreneur.”

He made an abrupt chuckle as he took a nibble of the strawberry with a grin on his lips. “We never actually had a chance to get to know each other better until tonight so that's reasonable.”

I reciprocated his soft giggles as we were abruptly engulfed in silence. 

“Listen, Cattleya. I understand that what happened to you tonight is not the best and you felt horrible. And I don’t know what went on to the two of you, I had no idea what he had done for you to burst into tears all night. Regardless, if I am going to give you advice, as a friend. I would say that you should at least listen to him. Give him a chance and hear his apology for you to understand the real meaning of his actions or what he said before you decide how you will behave toward him.” Richard murmured calmly as he soothed me with his genuine gapes. “It’s totally normal for couples to have misconceptions that will tarnish their relationship. So, as your friend, all I want to say is that giving him a chance to speak is worth the time.”

My eyes fell over from Richard as I let out a heavy sigh, playing with the strawberry in my hands. “I already gave him a chance to talk…” I whispered. “But, no matter what he says… or anything he will do, I think that the words he brought to my face are no longer possible to be taken back… It already wounded me.” 

“The words that wounded you aren’t possible to be taken back. But it’s still possible to be healed.” Richard replied in a hushed tone. “Don’t get me wrong. I'm not taking his side, Catt. I just don't want to end up seeing your unhappy face. I can't stand another day of my life seeing you like this. What you are doing right now could possibly create a distance between you and your husband, and I know if that happens, that will break you more than his words. Our strawberries might be gone before I can even cheer you up.”

I chortled softly as my eyes raised back to him. Richard is very gentle tonight and I am thankful that he is here for me to have someone cheer me up. 

“What I want for you is to be happy, and believe me or not, that’s what I see in you when you were with him earlier. Your smiles are brighter and I didn't even see you smile in the club before. But now that you are away from that man, your eyes look empty and sad.” He took a long pause as he stared sincerely into my eyes. “There is nothing wrong with taking a rest and having time to breathe. You can stay here as long as you want, KitCatt. But, you can never run away from your life. No matter how long you stay here in the villa, and no matter how much you put everything on hiatus, you will still go back to your life and have to face everything that is waiting for you.”

After he spoke those deep and meaningful words, Richard gave me a delicate gape for a second before he began to carefully stand up. He gave me a goodbye gentle pat on my head with a small and comforting smile.

I closed my eyes for a second as I felt his hand land on my head. I lifted my gaze to him as I flashed a smile on my lips, to thank him for his effort to join me tonight and cheer me up.

“I will think about it…” 

I whispered to which he put on a small nod in return before he began stepping towards the end of the window and then carefully exited it without making a sound. Richard used the rope tightly tied to the branch of the tree to get down on the ground.

My eyes were left in the air as I let the window open for a moment, and allowed the cold breeze to brush my face as I let out a loud series of deep sighs.