Bernard noticed Hera's subconscious action. "Whenever you lied in the past, you'd never look someone in the eye. Instead, you'd look down at your feet."
Hera didn't know what to say. She felt a mixture of anger and embarrassment now that Bernard exposed her.
"So? What are you trying to say?"
"Haven't you realized that I got jealous earlier?"
This time, both Douglas and Hera fell silent.
Douglas could only secretly lament. Why couldn't Bernard be more tactful when he brought that issue up? Why must he be so blunt and straightforward?
"You have to coax me," Bernard added.
Honestly speaking, Hera didn't know how to react. This was her first time seeing someone who would acknowledge his jealousy outright.
Seriously, what should she do?
She had never coaxed anyone in her entire life. Even when she was a child, she was always the one being coaxed.
Besides, Hera felt that she didn't do anything outrageous. All she did was follow the regular treatment process. Why was Bernard still jealous of her?
"Why don't you swim for another half an hour to calm down?" Hera pointed at the sea.
Bernard fell silent at the answer.
Hera was definitely a heartless girl.
"Don't you feel distressed for me? At least tell me what's your actual relationship with that silver-haired guy from earlier."
Bernard plopped onto the beach this time. He began digging at the sand at irregular intervals.
Hera glanced at him. As expected, he did bring up her relationship with Leon. It was a good thing she had alerted Leon earlier.
"We're just internet friends," she replied.
"Would you send your own photo to an internet friend?"
Was the passport-sized photo on the ID considered an actual photograph?
Hera could predict what Bernard wanted to say next.
"You never sent me any of your photos!"
She knew it.
"It was a mistake." Hera came up with an excuse.
When Bernard saw the girls hugging each other, he couldn't help but frown slightly.
If Hera and Leon were as close as sisters, would they have hugged each other like this?
Only after Samantha released Hera did she notice Bernard. Her breath was hitched in her throat.
"He's so hot!"
Then, she dragged Hera to the side. Clearly, she was itching for gossip.
"Is he the uncle that you mentioned last time? Holy shit! He's so gorgeous! Are you two dating right now? What's the progress? Oh, no. Did I interrupt your private time?"
"Stop!" Hera cut in hastily. "We're not dating. Stop making stupid guesses."
But Samantha just smiled mysteriously while nodding. "Yeah, yeah. I understand. You two are still figuring it out, right? Do you need my hel—"
"No! Stop guessing already!"
Hera was worried that Bernard might overhear Samantha. If he did, there would be a huge misunderstanding. So, she chose to cover Samantha's mouth immediately.
"Samantha, stop fooling around! He's still mad at me!"
Samantha pried Hera's hand away. "Oh, I know what to do. Men are very easy to appease, you know. Why don't you two join me at the barbecue party tonight? I'll teach you what to do."
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Under the Heiress' Facade