Chapter 5 A Strange Bond

'How could Christine speak to Wesley in this manner?

Is he seeing things?'

Nathan wondered. "Mr. Wesley, if you're not satisfied with Christine, I can recommend my youngest daughter as your bride. I can also help you find Jessica and protect her."

"Christine, the day we get married is the day when the Ji family will be torn down,"

Wesley addressed Christine, completely ignoring Nathan's remark.

"I see. Do you need my help with that?"

Instead of getting angry, Christine laughed at his statement. Perhaps she wanted the Ji family to disappear the most, so his words amused her.

Suddenly, Wesley's phone rang. His smug expression turned to panic as he took it out of his pocket.

The only person who knew this phone number was Jessica.

Wesley cast a sidelong glance at Christine, and sneered in his heart. He pressed the answer button and put the phone on loudspeaker.

"Wesley, I'm so scared. They all want to catch me. Help! Help me, please! I..."

She spoke in-between sobs; her every word made Wesley very anxious.

"Wesley, if your grandfather finds me, he'll kill me! Your grandfather forced my parents to give up on me.

Wesley, please marry me, okay?

I have read today's newspaper. I'm really scared. Also, can you please check your inbox folder? I sent messages to you, but I didn't get your reply."

Wesley quickly scrolled through his phone. There were indeed several unread messages; he was too busy to read them.

'Damn it!' he cursed himself.

"Where are you now? Tell me the address and I'll pick you up." Wesley got up and headed outside. He stopped at the door and looked at Christine meaningfully.

"Aren't you going to pick up your lover?

She is crying so hard."

Her eyes were filled with shock as she listened to the conversation, but Christine managed to conceal her emotions, and sneered at Wesley.

Meanwhile, the woman on the other end of the line clenched her fist, her nails dug into her palm. Just now, she seemed to have heard the voice of another woman, and she did not like it one bit.

She quickly hung up the call in panic.

"Jessica? Hello?"

Wesley called out her name, but there was no response. His grip tightened and his face twisted to a scowl when he learned that the call had abruptly ended.

"Did you say that out loud on purpose? Do you want Jessica to misunderstand me? What are you scheming?"

Wesley asked between gritted teeth.

Nathan's face turned blue when he heard this; his chest pounded heavily and sweat trickled down his spine. It seemed that he could not protect Christine anymore.

"Does Jessica know that you're going to marry me?"

Her pinkish red lips opened slightly; her words were like a bomb, decimating what was left of Wesley's sanity.

"I want everyone out, except for Christine!"

The drinking cup flew straight and hit Christine's head.

Deep, red blood gushed out of the wound and splattered on the floor, like spider lilies in late summer.

Wesley's hands were trembling.

He had not lost control of his temper for a long time.

"Christine, quit testing my patience over and over again." The moment the cup left his grip, Wesley had already regretted his action, but his pride prevented him from admitting his fault.

At that moment, he was overwhelmed by a storm of emotions.

Christine tried to cover the bleeding with her hand. Her wound pulsed with pain, every wave stronger than the last. She felt all her strength being sapped away, replaced by a sense of coldness. "Wesley, I won't forget this," she mumbled as her vision started to blur.

Her life had been ruined because of him. Even if she went to hell, she would drag him with her.

Wesley's body stiffened.

Christine's figure swayed,

on the verge of collapse.

A pair of strong arms swiftly caught Christine, cushioning her impact as her consciousness faded into nothing.

"Bear! Call the doctor, quickly!"

Wesley carefully brushed the hair away from Christine's face, and saw a deep cut, about an inch long, right above her eyebrow. He wiped the blood carefully, and picked up the unconscious woman.

"But Mr. Wesley, Miss Jessica..." Bear wanted to remind him that Jessica's welfare should be prioritized at the moment.

But he ended up not saying anything more. Bear grew up with Wesley, so he knew him like the back of his hand. Wesley did not like Jessica at all; if that incident had not happened, Wesley would not even glance at her.

Moreover, Jessica had done a lot of nasty things in the name of Wesley's fiancee. Because of those, Karl banished Jessica. She had no one to blame, but herself.

The truth was, Bear would be glad if Wesley and Christine would marry.

Wesley totally ignored what Bear said earlier. He laid Christine gently on the bed and put his hand on her forehead.

The next day, Christine woke up around noontime. She slowly rose up in a daze and spotted Wesley sleeping a few feet away from her bed.

He had been up all night, watching over her and making sure that the bleeding had stopped. He fell asleep just as sunlight started to flood into the room.

Wesley did not sleep well. It was apparent from the way his long eyelashes fluttered every now and then, while beads of sweat collected on his forehead. His thin mouth was curled in a frown.

Could it be that this arrogant man was having a nightmare?

Christine sneered at the sight of this. She herself just woke up from a nightmare where she found herself on her knees, begging in front of Wesley. She felt so humiliated.

Christine inched her way towards Wesley, her feet bare to the cold. Every step woke her up from her daze as the chill pierced her soles like a million, tiny needles.

Just before she could close in on him, Wesley woke up with a jolt. His bloodshot eyes locked in on her, sending a chill down her spine. He looked like he could murder her with that stare. The pair of demonic eyes scanned her body and fixed their gaze on her feet.

"Who allowed you to go around barefooted? Get back to bed!"

Wesley glared at her petite face.

"Wesley, shouldn't you be out, looking for Jessica? What are you doing here?"

Christine raised her chin and stared at Wesley back defiantly.

"Grandpa promised that if I marry you, he will let Jessica go."

"So? What's your point?"

"I'm saying that you have no choice but to marry me."

Christine croaked. Her throat was dry and painful so she helped herself to a glass of water on the bedside table. She had weighed her situation carefully and concluded that it would be best for her not to infuriate him. 'Why am I stuck in this situation?' she muttered to herself. If push came to shove, she would creep inside Nathan's room tonight and rummage for her passport.

"Ahem..."

She emptied the glass so quickly that she began to choke.

Christine coughed violently.

"Hey! What's wrong? Do you feel unwell? Christine, how old are you? How can you not take care of yourself?"

It was unusual for Wesley to sound so gentle and tender. He even patted her back gently.

'What's wrong with this man? What the hell does he want?' she mused.

"Only for a year."

Wesley was silent for a long time before he muttered these words.

"Mr. Wesley, breakfast is ready." After waiting patiently outside of the room, Nathan knocked on the door.

Hearing no response, Nathan pushed the door open. He was carrying a warm, damp towel with him and handed it to Wesley.

Wesley wiped his hands clean and threw the towel on Nathan's face. Wesley walked away as swiftly as his long legs could carry him, without even glancing at the older man.

Nathan brushed off Wesley's rude behavior and addressed his daughter casually, "You'd better go downstairs now." He also left the room.

Christine took a quick shower, and wore a black night gown after drying herself. Then, she descended the stairs slowly.

The late breakfast was comprised of several French dishes; a huge bowl of beef stew, a smaller bowl of cucumber salad, a plate of chicken cordon bleu, and a large pan of quiche decorated the table along with a generously packed basket of bread. Nathan's collection of vintage red wine was also ready for serving.

It was a very luxurious meal, unprecedented in that house.

"Mr. Wesley, your lover is waiting for you. Is it really okay for you to dally here?"

Christine commented out loud. She wanted to test his patience even further.

"What's this? Are you jealous?" Instead of getting angry, Wesley smiled and shoved a chunk of beef in his mouth. He moved gracefully and his thin lips barely moved as he chew the tender piece of meat.

Christine rolled her eyes. "I'm afraid that you'll be lonely all your life without your lover by your side."

"I have to correct you there; I'm not lonely, after all, I have you." After swallowing his meal, Wesley put down the fork and knife, and swirled his wine. The deep red liquor glowed like molten ruby in the sunlight.

"Mr. Wesley, I'm afraid we don't have much time." Bear appeared and announced the arrival of their ride. He then politely stepped back and waited for Wesley to finish his wine.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Nathan." Wesley emptied his wine glass and grinned.

He got up and glided across the room, with Bear following him like a shadow. Nathan watched as they left the house.

"Vivian, please put the dishes away."

Nathan stopped eating and smoothed his wrinkled clothes. He was fed up with being subservient in front of Wesley. He vowed to clip Wesley's wings sooner or later, and make him fall hard on the ground.

"But Miss Christine hasn't eaten yet."

With a plate of beef in her hand, Vivian was in a dilemma.

"I want to punish her, so don't let her eat today."

Nathan growled. Intimidated, Vivian lowered her head, nodded submissively, and quickly cleaned up the table.

"Christine, you must marry Wesley in three days."

Nathan slammed the door behind him as he left, and the hall fell into silence. Standing at the foot of the stairs, Christine finally relaxed, as if she had been granted an amnesty.