"I'm sorry. My mistake got you a tongue lashing from my brother." Leena bit her lip sorrily. She knew that Duke leveled those harsh accusations at Kevin only because he loved her too much. Duke was always overly tense when it came to her.
"No, he's right. I didn't take care of you. It's my fault. I don't feel like he was out of line." In fact, it was already the best thing that could happen. He had thought that Duke would beat him up. Yet he had only got yelled at. How lucky was that? But he was also aware that this was not over, that Duke might get even with him someday.
"No, please don't take Duke seriously. It's my fault. I'll be more careful. Please don't blame yourself for me being careless." Leena didn't know whether Kevin had said all those things out of sincerity or pure anger. But she felt like a loser for not being able to take care of herself. No wonder Kevin would be mad at her.
"We should hire a maid. This way you would be taken care of when I'm not at home." Kevin took Leena's injuries seriously. Preferred to be alone, he never hired any help. But now with Leena here, he must hire one to make sure she was okay.
"Why? I can look after myself well enough. Today was just an accident. It will never happen again. Besides, I don't like strangers walking around my home. It makes me uncomfortable."
Back in the Lengs' house, she hated it when the house maids walked around and interrupted her designing. She often wished that she could just be alone. After all, inspiration didn't always knock on the door. And it always took her time to get back into the groove when she was disturbed. Now the marriage finally gave her some space. She didn't need to worry about anyone infringing on her and driving away her inspiration. After Kevin went to work, she would be alone in this house. That was exactly what she hoped for all along. So she must prevent Kevin from hiring help.
"You might as well put up with it for a bit. At least during your recovery, we need a nurse to check on you. How about an hourly worker? This way you wouldn't be interrupted."
Kevin was quite puzzled about Leena's insistence on not hiring anyone. After all, as a daughter of a well-to-do family, she must have grown up surrounded by maids. How come she was not used to it?
"Please don't hire anyone, Kevin. I promise I can look after myself. This will never happen again. Besides, it'll get better in a few days, like Daisy said. There is no need to hire anyone in particular."
"You sit here tight. I will turn on the water for your shower." Without waiting for Leena's response, Kevin walked into the bathroom. On the way, he pondered, 'Why am I mesmerized by Leena's smile? This isn't normal.'
"Ah! Taking a shower? How am I supposed to wash myself like this?" Leena murmured as she looked at her scalded hand in worry. Yet Kevin didn't notice Leena's words for he was troubled by the same question.
Leena lay down and closed her eyes. She found that she might have fallen in love with Kevin gradually. Just now when Duke blamed Kevin, the first thing crossed her mind was not her brother's feelings, but Kevin's instead. She didn't want Kevin to feel like he was treated badly. That was why she defended him so eagerly, and it disappointed Duke. Duke must have felt hurt that his own sister talked back to him for a man she married for only a handful of days. You could see it in his eyes.
She sighed. She knew how Duke felt. She still remembered why she slept with Kevin in the first place -- purely out of disappointment for another man. What she didn't know was whether her feelings for Kevin were really love or a mere crush? If she was in love, would the love grow so deep that she could never forget?
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