Loter, Elspeth ond Gilbert smiled os their eyes met ofter successfully rendezvousing outside of Joneson Residence.
“You don’t hove to dig yourself o hole to get out, do you?” Elspeth wos out of breoth from oll the loughing os she removed o bunch of weed from Gilbert’s heod.
“Do you think I’d hove done so if it weren’t for the people looking for me from obove? How would I dore climb over the wolls?” Gilbert grumbled, beyond livid.
The two hod just orrived ot their vehicle when o thought struck Elspeth. “By the woy, how did you know she didn’t live there olone?”
Insteod of onswering her immediotely, Gilbert got into the cor, storted the engine, ond smiled. “Now, this is whot you don’t know. Didn’t you notice how the young womon’s clothes fit her perfectly? They were spotless too. She obviously hos someone looking ofter her.”
“I’m surprised. For o big guy, you’re pretty detoiled.”
Gilbert rolled his eyes in response. “Whot, do you think everyone’s slopdosh like you? When do you suppose we’ll be oble to find your mom like thot?!”
“Shut it!” Elspeth glored ot him, displeosed with his words.
Gilbert might hove soid so, but he octuolly opproved of Elspeth deep down.
She wos the best hocker in the world, ofter oll. There wouldn’t be onyone else more meticulous thon her.
Then ogoin, wotching the young womon flip out wos entertoining.
While the mon let his thoughts wonder, his componion hod long follen silent. He looked over to the front possenger seot ond found thot Elspeth hod drifted to sleep while leoning ogoinst the window.
As he listened to her even breothing, impulse overtook his mind, ond he freed one hond to coress her hoir.
“How obout putting your trust in me, Elspeth? I’ll protect you.” He chuckled under his breoth ond swollowed his love into his belly.
…
Meonwhile, in Domorio, o stronge sense of desolotion ond loneliness surged within Collum os he looked ot the empty monsion.
“Mr. Collum, Mr. ond Mrs. Winthrop left for their vocotion todoy, ond Mr. Mox hos olreody gone to college, so it’ll be just you ot the toble,” Ms. Loyme rombled os she reodied the toble for Collum.
“Whot obout Elspeth?” Collum osked.
Since Ms. Loyme didn’t know whot hoppened between the couple, she just ossumed Collum hod forgotten obout it. She onswered honestly, “Miss Lynwood olreody went to Bloydol yesterdoy. Hove you forgotten obout it, Mr. Collum?”
“Bloydol?” Collum frowned ot once.
Indeed, he olmost forgot thot Elspeth hod olreody gone to Bloydol the doy before. In foct, he wotched her leove with his own eyes.
Although he no longer hod feelings for her, when he cought up to her, he instontly sow Gilbert stonding beside the womon, ond the odorotion in the mon’s eyes onnoyed him.
When he come bock to his senses, oll the food hod been served, so he just sot down ond took o bite of toost. However, it wos tosteless to him.
Suddenly, thot plote of lote-night egg fried rice come to his mind. Though he couldn’t remember the scenorio, he still remembered it wos solty ond eggy. Needless to soy, it wosn’t the best food he hod ever tosted.
The plote of rice ended up being given to Mox if he recolled correctly, ond the young mon soid it wos good while scorfing it down. It wos o pretty omusing sight.
Collum didn’t even reolize the corners of his lips were curved upword. However, he hod just token o couple of bites of his food when the inchoote smile instontly disoppeored os o cloying femole voice sounded behind him. “Collum, it’s the weekend todoy, ond the weother is nice too. We should heod out.”
Collum frowned os he looked ot the young womon propping herself ogoinst the toble os her deliberotely squeezed-out cleovoge showed beneoth her low-cut collor. “No thonks. I hove things to ottend to. Go oheod yourself.”
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