My Darling, My Dearest

The way Jack looked at him sent chills down Eric's spine. Bowing his head, he answered in a low voice, "Yes." "Okay," Jack nodded and left.

For a while, Eric remained seated. Then, he went outside, bent over the railing, and peeped at the entrance below.

When he was sure that Jack already left, Eric stood up straight and faced the hallway. Imagining Jack in front of him, he punched and kicked fiercely in the air.

After venting, Eric couldn't help but despise himself. 'What a coward!'

Eric swore to himself that he would never run away from Jack anymore. Moreover, teaching that guy a lesson was also on his list! But of course, this was all his wishful thinking.

There was one thing which kept nagging in his mind. What happened last night? 'Is it really true that Jack took care of Rachel the whole night?' Eric wondered. Confusion was reflected in his eyes. 'How could it be possible?' In his eyes, Jack was not a good man.

Meanwhile, Jack called his secretary. "Austin, go meet Mr. Xu at eight o'clock." Looking at his watch, he continued, "I will be late for about forty minutes. Tell him I'm sorry." ■3

"Okay, Mr. Fu. I will tell him."

After hanging up the phone, Jack rubbed his forehead. He was a little tired because of staying up all night. Remembering Rachel's improved condition this morning, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then, he heard his stomach growl. With his stomach crying of hunger, he suddenly smelled the faint scent of food in the car.

Remembering all the snacks he bought last night, he knew they were not yummy anymore.

As a local, he wasn't aware that such a food street existed. He was lucky that Rachel brought him there.

Going back to last night's outing, Jack thought that Rachel, being a doctor, would not eat in places like that for they were not clean enough.

In his view, all women were particular about impressions. Women, especially when going on a date, would pay attention to their appearances and actions.

But, Rachel was different. She had blown hard on the soup, making her cheeks puffed which he had wanted to poke.

There were only three possibilities he could think of why a woman didn't pay much attention to her behavior in front of a man. First, she was very familiar with the guy. Second, she was an easygoing lady. And third, she didn't care about the guy.

With his slender fingers tapping the steering wheel, Jack thought Rachel must be the third type. She didn't care about him at all. ■3

Just as what Jack said, the food was delivered soon after he left. Eric wanted to throw it. But when he saw the hotel name printed on the box, he changed his mind.

Rachel, who was sound sleep, was woken up by Eric. Not given the chance to brush her teeth, she just swallowed the food he brought to her lips. Then, she went to sleep after taking her medicine.

Because of illness, Rachel became short-tempered which was the complete opposite of her personality.

'Will I be killed if she remembers she has eaten food and taken her medicines without brushing her teeth?1 Eric thought.

Without any appetite at all, Rachel ate very little. There were plenty of leftovers, and Eric ate all of them.

Despite of consuming all the food, Eric was still hungry. Patting his stomach, he looked at the breakfast he bought. Compared with the food from an upscale hotel, he suddenly had an impulse to throw it away. Rachel finally opened her eyes. She was just in bed, blinking her eyes, and staring blankly at the ceiling.

She hadn't come to her senses yet.

With a miserable look on his face, Eric went back to Rachel's room. He was holding a bowl with brown liquid prescribed by Lucas.

Lucas had come, checked Rachel's temperature and asked Eric about her condition the previous night and the dosage of the medicines she took. ■3

It was a good thing that Rachel's temperature returned to normal during Lucas' visit. However, Eric felt guilty when he answered Lucas' questions.

Borrowing Jack's statement, Eric informed Lucas that Rachel had a fever all night. Fortunately, Lucas didn't ask the details anymore.

Otherwise, Eric would not be able to answer.

Before leaving, Lucas left Eric some Chinese medicine, gave him specific instructions on how to prepare it, and instructed him to administer the medicine at noon. Also, he informed Eric that he already asked several days of leave on behalf of Rachel. There was no rush for Rachel to return to work.

Nodding his head, Eric agreed. Lucas didn't stay long, for he still had something to do.

When Lucas left, Eric wondered about the relationship between Rachel and him. He could tell that Lucas cared so much for Rachel.

Rachel only had two best friends and they were Lucas and Lea. And, Eric didn't believe that pure friendship existed between a man and a woman.

Because he saw how Lucas care for Rachel, Eric didn't mention that it was Jack who stayed and took care of Rachel throughout the night. Everyone knew that Rachel wasn't happy with her marriage. Still, Eric never mentioned anything to others about her situation and feelings. He was afraid Rachel's dignity would be tainted. And above all, it was not his story to tell.

Not long after, Rachel woke up. Couldn't bear ■3

lying in bed anymore, she got up slowly to fix herself. When she stood up, she felt herself floating as if she were on a cloud.

Assisting her, Eric guided her to the bathroom and prepared her toothbrush. She was really grateful for his presence.

As she brushed her teeth, Eric prepared her warm water to wash her face. Suddenly, he turned around and asked, "Did Jack take care of you last night?"

At that moment, Rachel was already rinsing her mouth. And, when she heard Eric's question, she almost choked. Surprised, she looked at him and asked, "Who did you say?"

Turning off the tap, Eric explained calmly, "Jack was on his way out when I came..."

'Jack left just this morning.'

Thinking back to last night, Rachel was trying to piece fragments of what she remembered.

Last night, there was a time she felt very uncomfortable. When she struggled to get up to drink water, someone gently helped her up and placed the glass to her lips.

She remembered now the man's face. The man was none other than Jack.

Gradually, more and more memories became clear. She thought they were only her dreams.

It was normal for a patient to have slower reaction time and be emotional. Just like what she was now.

The more she recalled, the more disheartened ■3

she felt. As she patted her forehead, her face turned deathly pale.

'Crap!

What did I do last night?1

"Rachel, is it true? Did he really take care of you the whole night?" Rachel saw Eric's suspicious look as he handed her the towel.

Patting him on the forehead, Rachel replied, "What's it with you? What difference would it make if he really did? Let's just stop talking about this nonsense. Instead, get me something to eat, something delicious. I'm hungry."

"Uh huh! You're just avoiding my question!"

Glaring at him, Rachel shouted, "What are you talking about?! I'm not avoiding anything! I'm going to wash my face, and make myself more presentable. Get out!"

Pushed out of the bedroom, Eric was totally speechless. 'What did I do? I only asked a question. What made her suddenly irritated?'

In the bathroom, Rachel threw the towel into the water. Putting her hands on the lavatory, she sighed deeply.

She couldn't exactly name what she felt. One thing was for sure, she felt very complicated.

'What the hell!' Remembering when Jack put the ice pack on her head, she felt very uncomfortable. What she did was push his hand away several times.

But Jack was very insistent. He kept on placing it on her forehead. In the end, he got ■3

annoyed and told her to stop.

Losing her temper, Rachel snorted at him, like a child who was unhappy for not being able to do what she wanted.

Couldn't bear to think what else happened last night, Rachel just wiped her face with the towel.

Knowing that she couldn't change anything now, she just told herself that everything would be fine. But deep inside her,

she felt ill again.

Since Rachel had been taking her medicines on time, she felt much better in the afternoon.

As the saying went, "Diseases come on wings and depart on foot." But Rachel was different. "You are as strong as a horse," Eric commented.

Slapping him at the back of his head, Rachel said angrily, "How could you say that to me?!"

Snorting, Eric continued, "I was completely cheated by your delicate appearance! Humph! You must have been pretending sick this morning, right? You're just torturing me on purpose, aren't you? How could you be so healthy now when you were just sick this morning?"

Blushing, Rachel felt guilty. Pretending to be sick again, she acted weak, laid herself on the sofa, covered her head with one hand, and groaned, "Ouch... My head hurts..."

Hearing her, Eric became confused.

Then, devoid of any expressions, he said, "Oh, ■3

stop acting!"

In the Fu family's study, there was a faint scent of sandalwood coming from the incense box.

Father and son sat opposite with each other, a chessboard in the middle.

It was rare for them to play chess. Unwilling to be defeated like last time by Rachel, Jonathan was very focused on the game.

Not wanting to admit that his chess skills needed improvement, he must win this game against his son to redeem his honor.