Chapter 1100


    Cynthia Moore?


    Cynthia was wearing a loose, white T-shirt which sported a short phrase. She had paired it with a


    pair of pink shorts. Although her outfit''s color scheme differed from Santiago''s, they looked like a


    couple when they stood together.


    Cynthia walked out and nced at Santiago. She was obviously embarrassed, from how intensely


    she was blushing.


    "Hello, I''m Cynthia Moore, Santiago''s friend," Cynthia greeted them shyly.


    Santiago smiled. "This is my elder brother, Jepherson, and that''s my future sister- in-w, Raeleigh."


    Cynthia did not know what to say in reply. She eyed Santiago again. Raeleigh, on the other hand,


    unwittingly looked at Jepherson. He was probably taken aback too.


    But in the next moment, Raeleigh heard him say with a smile, "I heard that you were endowed with


    both beauty and talent. Well, seeing is believing. It''s so nice to finally meet you. If you don''t mind,


    you can consider me as your elder brother the way Santiago does, and you can refer to Raeleigh as


    your sister-inw too."


    Cynthia was leftpletely stunned.


    Raeleigh was equally surprised and stood there, dazed.


    "Go ahead, since he gave you the green light." Santiago smiled evilly. Raeleigh came to her senses


    and interjected, "Since you''re Santiago''s friend, that means that you''re our friend. It''s nice to meet


    you."


    "Likewise," Cynthia responded extremely politely. However, she just could not bring herself to


    consider Jepherson and Raeleigh as her brother and sister-inw.


    Santiago then turned around and headed for the deck of the yacht. It was only then did Raeleigh


    realize that he had a tiger tattooed on his back.


    The tiger tattoo took Raeleigh''s breath away. It was a majestic tiger indeed.


    Santiago led Cynthia onto the deck, mentioning something about starting up the yacht. Raeleigh


    watched them leave. After they were out of earshot, she asked Jepherson, "Did you know about


    that?"


    "About what?" Jepherson queried back. Raeleigh hesitated for a moment, observing his expression.


    "Did you know that Santiago and Cynthia became friends?"


    "I don''t really know much, but he''s already eighteen. I''m sure he''s capable of making his own


    decisions. When I was eighteen, I already started working at the Richards Group. I had to make a


    lot of decisions on my own," Jepherson answered as he walked forward, ready to change his attire.


    Raeleigh trailed behind Jepherson and piped up, "Sometimes, I don''t even get the feeling that


    you''re brothers. The two of you have very different personalities."


    "Ever since Santiago and I were young, we were taught to be independent. If we make any mistake


    in doing so, then we would have to take responsibility for our actions. That''s all there is to it."


    Jepherson went to his and Raeleigh''s room. He put down the backpack that he brought and took


    out the clothes inside. He, too, had brought a pair of floral shorts, perfect for the beach. However,


    he opted not to go shirtless like Santiago and donned a in white T- shirt that he had brought. He


    handed Raeleigh a pair of blue shorts and a simr shirt as his.


    Once they were both changed, Jepherson led Raeleigh out of the room. He helped Raeleigh tie up


    her hair. Together, they went onto the deck to enjoy the sea breeze.


    As Jepherson and Raeleigh arrived at the deck, he asked her, "Is it cold?"


    Raeleigh shook her head. "Nope."


    With the breeze gently sweeping across her, Raeleigh leaned against the railing of the yacht,


    watching the rippling of the waves rise and fall. She wondered how Jepherson would react if she


    left.


    But she did not dare to continue down that line of thought. There were some things that she could


    not allow to cross her mind. The more she thought about it, the more unwilling she would be to


    leave.


    She could not think about all that. She should spend all her time with him while she still could.


    Raeleigh smiled and out of nowhere, kissed Jepherson on the cheek. Jepherson had been looking


    at the sea. Her kiss caught him off guard. It was rare for Raeleigh to make the first move.


    Why did she do that?


    Jepherson looked at Raeleigh, with his back to the sea, and enveloped her carefully into a hug.


    With one hand on the railing, he wrapped his other arm around Raeleigh''s waist.


    "What are you so happy about? You''re so bold that you made the first move to kiss me. Were you


    thinking about doing more than that?" Jepherson deliberately teased her, he had a bright smile on


    his face. Raeleigh blushed intensely at his words. She turned to look around them. When she made


    sure that Scarlette and Hadrian were nowhere to be seen, the redness faded from her face.


    "Am I not allowed to kiss you?" Raeleigh demanded. Jephersonughed. "Of course you can. In the


    future, do this sort of thing more often, okay?"


    Raeleigh was amused by Jepherson''s words. What sort of thing was he referring to?


    A momentpsed. Deep in her thoughts, Raeleigh allowed herself to sink into Jepherson''s embrace,


    and said, "The sea breeze is amazing, it makes me want to hold you and follow you to the ends of


    the world."


    The urge to cry overwhelmed Raeleigh, but she held back her tears.


    Jepherson raised his hand and patted Raeleigh gently. She mustered a faint smile. Although he did


    not know why, he knew that Raeleigh had been depressed and was doing her best to cover it up.


    She did not want to tell him about it.


    "I''m willing to take you to the ends of the world, if that''s what you want. Nothing can get in between


    us." Jepherson hugged Raeleigh and kissed her on the cheek.


    Raeleigh nodded and smiled after she pulled away for him. Nevertheless, she felt a bitterness at


    that moment. If only she knew how harsh and hurtful it was.


    "How long will it take us to reach the spot where we can catch mackerel?" Raeleigh asked


    Jepherson. A thought suddenly urred to Jepherson. He started, "Raeleigh..."


    "Yes?" Raeleigh looked at Jepherson. He looked as if he had something important to ask. But


    Jepherson''s next words were, "Do you really know what a mackerel is?"


    Raeleigh thought for a moment. "Isn''t it a beltfish?"


    The corners of Jepherson''s mouth twitched. The expression on his handsome face showed that his


    guess had been right. He broke out into full-onughter, leaving Raeleigh a little confused.


    "What are youughing at? Tell me." Raeleigh was a little anxious. What had she said wrong?


    "Here''s the thing. Beltfish are a sub- species of cussfish. They are long and slender, and can


    grow up to three metres long and about 20 centimetres wide. But we usually eat smaller ones,


    around 60 centimetres long."


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    "Some people call them beltfish, some call them hairtail fish. They have various names. This


    species of fish is long and slender, hence the various names such as ''belt'', ''hair'' or ''tail''."


    "But they are not mackerel."


    Jepherson seemed like he was giving a lesson about fish to Raeleigh. She quietly stared at


    Jepherson, blushing, and asked, "What are you trying to say?"


    Jepherson gently tapped Raeleigh''s nose. "My point is, you''re one of the top students in Elkton


    University, who excels in every subject, but you have no idea what a mackerel is. Isn''t that funny?"


    Raeleigh thought it over. "What does being a top student have to do with knowing what a mackerel


    is?"


    Jepherson hugged Raeleigh again, grinning from ear to ear. They gently swayed on the deck,


    making Raeleigh feel as though they were dancing. She held him tightly and furrowed her


    eyebrows. She wondered what a mackerel was, then.


    Wasn''t it a beltfish?


    It was just another kind of cussfish.


    "What are they doing? Are they dancing?" Standing at the window and watching Jepherson and


    Raeleigh out on the deck, Cynthia asked Santiago without thinking too much about it. Santiago


    answered, "They''re saying sweet nothings to each other. Can''t you tell?"


    Cynthia was taken aback at the response. She immediately turned around and faced away from


    them.


    Santiago was gripping the yacht''s steering wheel, propelling the yacht towards their destination.


    When he saw Cynthia turn away, he chuckled but did not say anything. He changed the topic and


    asked, "Has anyone in your family given you a hard time?"


    Cynthia recounted what had happened and shook her head. "No, they treat me really well."


    "That''s good. If someone treats you badly, then you must let me know immediately. You can just call


    me. I''ll go over to help you." Santiago asserted.


    Cynthia looked at Santiago and told him, "You don''t have to worry about me, really. I''ll be fine. I''ve


    been fine all these years."


    "That was the past. Things are different now." Santiago was careful with his words. Since their


    families were not on good terms, and Cynthia was currently in a rtionship with him, he knew she


    would be having a rough time. As the person who dragged her into that whole mess, he couldn''t


    very well sit by and do nothing.


    "There''s no difference," Cynthia insisted. Turmoil wrecked her heart. She frowned as she thought


    about what Yanora had said to her when she came over to her room the previous night. Yanora had


    told her that she and Santiago were not suited for each other.


    When she thought of how Yanora slyly peeked at the jewelry she wore before she left, she was


    ovee with a sense of difort.


    Santiago nced at Cynthia and asked, "What''s wrong?"


    "Nothing," Cynthia quickly replied. She hesitated for a moment, before asking, "What do you think of


    Yanora?"


    "Your sister?" Santiago thought it over. "Did she cause any trouble for you?"


    "No, I just want to know what you think of her."


    "I''ve never really paid any attention to her. What does she look like?"


    Cynthia was speechless. She was silent for a good moment, and she then sighed in relief. Yanora


    had wanted toe out with her that day. She imed that she wanted to have a good talk with


    Santiago about their rtionship. However, Cynthia suspected that that wasn''t Yanora''s true


    intention. She had a feeling that Yanora just wanted a chance to meet Santiago.


    "Why aren''t you wearing the ne that I gave you?" Santiago queried. Cynthia processed his


    question and responded, "I thought it was too eyecatching, so I left it at home."


    "You have to wear it out next time. You don''t have to take it off when you sleep or whenever, really,


    unless it makes you feel ufortable. One day, that thing may save your life," Santiago urged.


    When Cynthia heard that, she had absolutely no idea what he meant. Butter, she suddenly


    understood that he had everything nned out for her. It was just that she did not know about it at


    the time, as she had been kept in the dark.


    It was not until many yearster that she finally understood the meaning behind those words.


    Scarlette was sitting quietly on one side of the deck as she watched Jepherson and Raeleigh. She


    was very disdainful of them. Jepherson clearly did not have a good sense of humor, so how could


    he make Raeleigh that happy? It was really strange.


    Scarlette thought of the fool with her. He had neither said anything to her, nor had he done anything.


    Scarlette seethed with hateful jealousy and envy.


    Hadrian appeared from the side of the yacht, wearing a loose ck T-shirt and a pair of white


    shorts. Scarlette was a little annoyed when she saw him. She wanted nothing more than to kick him


    into the sea.


    Everyone else was dressed simrly ording to the asion, but he just had to be different from


    everyone else. He looked like he was attending a funeral instead.


    Hadrian walked to a corner and stood with his hands in his pockets. He stared at the surface of the


    sea and looked around. He seemed to be inspecting the surroundings. It was as if he was afraid


    that there would be an ambush at any time.


    While Hadrian was looking around, Scarlette gave him a kick. However, she miscalcted her kick


    and nearly fell into the sea. If it weren''t for Hadrian''s help, then she would have fallen into the water


    for real.


    The shock sent Scarlette into a nervous breakdown. It took her quite a while to finally return to her


    senses.


    Raeleigh, on the other side of the deck, looked at Scarlette and shook her head. She was at a loss.


    Scarlette knew that it was impossible to kick Hadrian into the sea but she still attempted to do it.


    What a fool!