Chapter Twenty Five

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Jean was absolutely in awe of Richard's mansion because it was so incredibly Richard. She wasn't entirely sure what she had been expecting, but at the sight of the flappy, green gardens at either sides, the light blue on the walls, and the flowers all around, she clapped her hands and laughed. "It's beautiful."

He had taken her to his house. On the entire ride here, she had argued with him, and also ignored him at the end but seeing the house standing tall in front of him, she felt breathless. She wasn't materialistic. But she had never seen such a blooming house, the spaces, the garden; everything warmed her heart.

She had been to Alex's house one or two times, and it was pretty too. But Richard's house was simpler. It wasn't much showy, or luxurious. Well, she had thought of not anyone's, at least, his house would be impeccably designed and mastered. She hadn't expected this to be this simple, yet elegant.

Evening had already sheathed itself around the sky and the lights around the garden had lit up, making it look like a dream, as the light blue colour of the mansion shone like a beacon shining endlessly bright. Her mouth gaped open in wonder, as a stinging sensation of guilt settled on her stomach; she felt so pathetic staying at his house like this. It was such a big imposition.

"Rich, please, I can manage on my own, I promise." She turned around, noticing him taking out her suitcases one by one. .

He had literally forced her to pack her bags within an hour and obviously had helped her most diligently when she had trouble moving her arms too much. The bandage around her head had gotten loose and he had re-tied that too. His sweetness had entirely thrown her off-guard.

She saw him looking at her, his expression, dead serious. "Say that one more time, and I promise I'll force you inside!"

"You wouldn't dare." She stomped her foot on the ground, angling her hands over her chest. Her eyes were glazed with open challenge.

He matched her gaze with equal vigour, his face a knot of deadly confidence. With massive strides, he reached her in less than two seconds, grabbed hold of her waist and put her up in his arms. "Don't challenge me, love."

She could no longer hold her challenging gaze. As soon as she heard him call her 'love', all her resolve melted away like chocolate. She snaked her hands around his neck and his hands wrapped around her waist and her thighs, putting her up in bridal style.

"Okay, you win....please, put me down." She begged, looking here and there as he walked inside the house in an openly casual manner.

It was as if she weighed nothing. Colour stained her cheeks in a reddish hue. "Rich, someone's gonna see us, please...."

"No one's gonna--" His words stopped midway when he saw Vivian staring at them, his eyes coming out of his sockets.

Twitching his golden hair, Vivian continued to gape at them, his eyes glazing with stark disbelief and his mouth was in a perfect 'o' shape. "Oh...My...God..."

Richard immediately put Jean down from his arms and straightened up. "Viv, why aren't you in college?" His expression had already become serious and for a moment, Jean thought he was gonna lose it.

Vivian chuckled, his jaws contracting like anything. "Ah ha, wouldn't miss this for the world!"

"Viv, behave."

"How does the youngest one seem to behave properly if his elders are so ungentlemanly?" Vivian laughed hard, eying Jean.

She shifted in her place and then continued, hastily. "Oh, no, it's not what you think. I can't seem to walk on my own so Rich was just--"

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