Every time she tried to close her eyes, Everett would deliberately ease up his grip, then jolt her back to alertness, insisting she keep her eyes open to watch him.
Several times, Dorothy bit him hard in frustration, but he seemed impervious to pain and even chuckled in response! With a mock glare, Dorothy huffed and got up to run a bath.
Everett was a bit of a neat freak, so she took extra care to clean the bathtub thoroughly, wiping everything down before finally turning on the taps.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtBefore she could finish, she suddenly felt arms envelop her from behind! She paused for a second, then with a sigh, turned around.
"What now?" "Help me with my shirt, will you?" Dorothy pushed him gently. "Your hands aren't broken." "But | want you to do it." With that, he stretched out his arms, and his loosely worn shirt gaped open, revealing a glimpse of his sculpted abs.
Everett's lips curved into a sly smile, his Adam's apple sharp and bobbing with his breath, almost as if tempting her to leave her unique mark with a bite.
No matter how many times Dorothy saw this, her heart would still race, and her cheeks would flush.
"Can you stop fooling around? I'm leaving!" "No way." With one swift motion, Everett pulled her close, breathing softly into her ear, where a tiny mole resided, and spoke in a husky voice, "Where are you running off to? I'm just taking a bath." Dorothy didn't buy it for a second! Especially when it came to these matters, he was full of lies, with "just one last time" being the phrase she heard most often.
"The water's ready; you can sit and bathe." How old was he to still need company? Clearly, he had other things on his mind! "What if | faint from the steam?" "Doubtful, but okay." "I'm serious, just a bath." Everett caught her hand and placed it on the buttons of his shirt. "Unbutton this for me." This man, really! Dorothy rolled her eyes but helped him with the remaining buttons and took off his shirt.
His wounds were still visible, streaked with blood and the faint yellow of iodine, front and back, due to the through-and-through injury.
Unconsciously, her hand reached out to touch. "It must hurt... Did it hurt a lot that day?" "Not really, just felt a bit cold." "You're lying to me!" Everett lifted her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes. "I'm not lying; it didn't hurt.” Dorothy's lips pouted, and tears threatened to spill.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmLately, her tear ducts had become a shallow well, always on the verge of overflowing.
"I don't believe you. Even a paper cut hurts me, and you had an entire dagger in you!" With the pad of his thumb, Everett gently wiped away her falling tears, and when they kept coming, he simply leaned in to kiss them away.
The salty, slightly bitter taste unfolded in his mouth.
"You're not allowed to cry, Dorothy." "Then you're not allowed to do such things again! Everett, you carry so much on your shoulders, and the whole Lopez Corporation is counting on you. My life isn't worth it!" Everett's brow furrowed, "Whether it's worth it or not is for me to decide." "Do you realize how afraid | am of the possibility of you dying?" Since the incident, Dorothy had developed a phobia of the word "death". Even hearing it made her tremble uncontrollably.
She would never forget arriving in Swevia Country, witnessing Amanda's heart-wrenching sobs.
Dorothy truly thought he was gone.
Everett smirked, "You have so many admirers. If | died, it would just make it easier for them." Annoyed, Dorothy snapped, "Oh, shut up!"