Chapter 353


    Rayna swiftly withdrew her hand.


    Jefferson’s countenance was cloaked in darkness, so it was impossible to read his expression. He


    drew two pieces of tissue and handed them to her. “It’s just a movie.”


    “You’re going to say something along the lines of ‘the actual war is crueler than movies, aren’t you?”


    She wiped her tears with the tissues and grumbled, “Aren’t you sick of repeating yourself? I can’t help


    that I tear up so easily. It’s not as if I’m disrupting your movie–watching anyway.”


    “I can’t bear seeing you cry, even more so when a movie’s the cause. You might as well shed tears for


    me. It’d be more worth crying over me.” His heart ached at how miserable she seemed.


    Rayna was choked with fury. “Fine, you win! I can’t outsmart your silver tongue!”


    “Where’s the lie?”


    “You’re right.” Then, she grabbed a handful of popcorn and forcefully stuffed them into his mouth as


    she threatened, “Concentrate on the movie. If you dare disturb my crying session, it’s off to bed you


    go!”


    Jefferson’s mouth was so full that he could not utter a word.


    While watching the movie, Rayna silently wept. In no time, the number of used tissues on the table


    piled up. By the time the movie ended, her eyelids had drooped, perhaps because she was too sleepy.


    Her drowsiness took over her, and her head tilted to the side,nding right on Jefferson’s shoulder.


    When he felt the weight on his shoulder, he turned off the projector and waited for his eyes to adjust to


    the darkness before carrying Rayna to her bedroom. Gently, hey her on the bed and switched on the


    night light..


    The soft, amber light bathed the woman’s slumbering face in a golden hue and cast shadows beneath


    her thickshes. Her sharp chin was proof that she had lost a great deal of weight from her hard work


    in the past period of time.


    Jefferson sat on the side of her bed and stared at her protractedly as if she were the most riveting


    piece of art in the room.


    He reached out and gingerly stroked Rayna’s cheek lest he disturbs her sleep before nting a light


    kiss on her lips longingly.


    “Goodnight, my princess.”


    May you have sweet dreams tonight, and may I be part of them.


    The following day, the sun shone brightly, bringing up the temperature.


    Rayna and Jefferson threw themselves into setting up the garden once they had breakfast. While he


    worked on constructing a shed, she formted fertilizer with the help of a botany manual and tilled the


    soil.


    Before they began, she was initially concerned that his pampered upbringing would render him unfit for


    manualbor. Yet he surprised her by building a sturdy shed single–handedly with only its blueprint as


    a guideline.


    Rayna gave him a thumbs–up. “I’ll have to address you as ‘Mr. Omnipotent‘ from this day forth!”


    nting flowers was an arduous task. Even the construction of the shed took up several hours. The


    duo rested at noon and resumed work after devouring venison soup and several other tasty dishes


    prepared by Rayna


    It was not till around five in the afternoon that the green roses were nted in the spacious and toasty


    shed.


    Rayna and Jefferson howled inughter as they took in one another’s grimy appearance. After cleaning


    up, they went to the supermarket to get some groceries and window shop.


    Verdant Vine Garden on Lavanya Road was where they settled down In Frosa. When the weather was


    pleasant, they would go for jogs in the morning, then read or y puzzles in thefort of their home


    during the afternoon.


    asionally, Rayna would bring Jefferson out to explore the area, dine at fancy restaurants, and


    purchase new clothes. However, because he disliked the food from said restaurants, theyter took


    turns cooking at home instead.


    The research progress on Ixora was always in the back of Rayna’s mind. From time to time, she would


    text the blond–haired man named Robert for updates.


    In the blink of an eye, she and Jefferson had been living in Verdant Vine Garden for half a month.


    That day, Rayna woke up early as per usual. Just as she was reaching for some milk in the fridge, she


    smelt something that made her nauseous. The churning of her stomach prompted her to make a mad


    dash for the bathroom, where she started retching at the sink.


    However, that wave of nausea did not persist for long. Therefore, she was under the assumption it was


    caused by her empty stomach and was soon back on her feet preparing breakfast.


    All of a sudden, the phone on her table began ringing.


    Rayna, who was busy with the breakfast preparation, rushed to pick up her phone. After tapping on the


    answer button, she ced her phone next to her ear and asked in Ferropenian, “Mr. Robert, is there


    any progress on the research of Ixora?”


    James and Robert were the only ones privy to her new contact number, which she had gotten after


    moving to Frosa.


    There was only dead silence on the other end of the line.


    A long time had passed by the time Rayna sensed something was amiss. She took down her phone


    and checked the caller ID.


    This text is ? N?velDrama/.Org.


    It was an unknown number that had Frosa’s calling code.


    Her heart clenched.


    Abandoning whatever she was doing, Rayna lifted the phone to her ear once more. Then, she bit her


    lip and waited mutely for the caller to speak.


    Just like that, the two of them remained silent.


    A baritone voice with an air of aloofness sounded after the drawn–out silence. “I can’tprehend why


    I still take care of it when I obviously detest long–haired pets. I called Jessica, and she told me your cat


    is at Jasmine’s house. I’d wanted to send Lucky away, yet I f*cking ended up bringing your cat back


    from Jasmine’s instead. Your cat is seriously obese that it resembles a pig. Besides, it’s spoiled with


    the most premium cat feed and high–quality mineral water that costs dozens per bottle. Despite its


    docile appearance, it fought with Lucky frequently My floor is constantly covered with fur”


    Rayna cracked up at that, and her eyes stung “Please help to trim its nails. Lucky’s skin isn’t resistant


    to its scratches. Don’t worry. They’ll stop fighting once they’ve gotten to know each other”


    “Taking care of your cat is too costly. It’s too much of a glutton.”


    “I’ll reimburse you when I get back. Just state the amount. Her longing for him reached its apogee at


    the sound of his voice, causing her to shed tears. She had to bite her lip tightly to hold back her sobs


    lest he hears her.


    Curtis sighed and grumbled, “Of all the things you could do, why did you be a thief? You made a


    mess of my life and absconded.”


    “I’m sorry”


    “Is that all you have to say? You ran off with another man and broke off contact with me. Tell me, is my


    anger not justified? Do you think a single word of apology would suffice when I had to get hold of new


    means of reaching you from your brother and take care of your cat in case you forgot all about it and


    never returned?”


    “I…” Rayna was at a loss for words from his unconditional care, concern, and consideration. By then,


    tears would fall from her eyes with every word she spoke. Covering her mouth was all she could do to


    conceal the sound of her sobs.


    Of course, she yearned to tell him that she missed him dearly, that he upied her thoughts day and


    night, that she missed kissing and hugging him and even his scent. But s, such things could only be


    kept to herself.


    Curtis relented and said in a low voice, “Do you know that I missed you so much that I had to drown


    myself in work every day? When night came, I never wanted to head home, terrified of the heartache


    that results from the realization of your absence.”


    Rayna wept even harder.


    She recalled what Jeremy had told her. “Curtis says nothing, but everything he does is for you. You


    mean the world to him.”


    Curtis was a reticent man, never one to express his affection readily. The fact that he could confess


    that he missed her showed how much he treasured her. It was because he pined for her greatly that he


    decided to verbalize his feelings.


    Rayna sniffled. “Curtis… I miss you too.”


    To her dismay, there was only dead silence on the other end of the line. Not even a breathing sound


    could be heard. Only when she looked at her phone screen did she find out that the call had already


    disconnected.


    She attempted to reach him, but the line was busy.


    Rayna hastily began typing a message on her phone. At that moment, she no longer held herself back,


    nning toe clean about how much she yearned for him, in addition to the fact that she would be


    returning as soon as Jefferson recovered after taking medicine.