Chapter 39: She Kisses Him, Jacob Sinclair Knocks on the Door

Chapter 39: Chapter 39: She Kisses Him, Jacob Sinclair Knocks on the Door

Jacob Sinclair’s frantic voice came from outside the door.

As Claire Kendall’s sanity slowly returned, her heart clenched. The panic was so intense it even overwhelmed the effects of the drug in her system.

’Jacob Sinclair had actually found her here.’

Miles Warren stood, his voice still hoarse from their recent kiss. "There’s someone at the door. I’ll go check."

"Don’t go—"

Without a second thought, Claire Kendall’s arm shot out of the cold water, hooking around Miles Warren’s neck and yanking him down toward her.

She kissed him again, murmuring, "Don’t leave."

Leaning halfway out of the bathtub, Claire Kendall cupped his face with both hands, pressing them over his ears.

Her kiss was frantic and clumsy, and the press of her ice-cold body against his made his muscles tighten instantly.

In that instant, she overwhelmed all of Miles Warren’s senses.

’The impulse was even stronger this time.’

"Claire Kendall—"

He let out a low, guttural groan before taking control, kissing her back with a savage, all-consuming intensity.

With a flex of his arms, he scooped her, soaking wet, out of the tub and into his arms. Water splashed everywhere. Claire Kendall gasped, clinging tightly to his neck.

Miles Warren carried her, strode into the master bedroom, and kicked the door shut.

Outside the door to 502, Jacob Sinclair was still relentlessly pounding on the door.

’His assistant’s intel said she lived here. How could no one be home?’

’Claire Kendall’s studio was just getting started. Where would she get the money for such an expensive apartment!’

’Could it really be Miles Warren?’

With a frantic unease building in his chest, he dialed his assistant’s number again.

"Find out! Find out who owns unit 502 at Regency Gardens!"

The master bedroom door wasn’t completely closed, letting a sliver of warm light from the bedside lamp spill out.

On the bed, Claire Kendall’s cheongsam was a wrinkled mess, barely clinging to her body. Its few remaining, pitiful buttons had long since popped off and vanished.

The long, tangled kiss finally ended. Miles Warren hovered above her, breathing heavily.

He stopped, making no further move.

In the dim light, Claire Kendall stared up at him, her heart pounding.

"Miles Warren," she said, her voice laced with a sultry charm, "do you want to... be with me?"

Even though they weren’t touching, Claire Kendall could feel his body tense instantly.

His eyelashes trembled, and his eyes swirled with an emotion she couldn’t decipher.

After a long moment, he finally spoke. "Claire Kendall, you were drugged. You’re not thinking clearly right now..."

He quickly got up, turned, and went straight into the bathroom.

’Of course. Just the answer I expected.’

Claire Kendall hadn’t really expected him to agree, but her heart still stung with pain.

But that sting was quickly replaced by a clearer, more burning thought.

’True, she was drugged and not thinking straight. But what about him?’

’His reaction just now had been even more intense than hers.’

The sound of rushing water came from the bathroom, but there wasn’t a trace of steam on the glass door. Clearly, he was taking a cold shower.

A look of understanding dawned in her eyes.

’Miles Warren, you really do have some impressive self-control, don’t you?’

-

「The backyard of the Warren family’s old estate.」

Yvonne Warren stood before the desk with her head bowed, her heart pounding with anxiety. Ever since returning from her grandfather’s birthday banquet, she knew she wouldn’t be able to escape a scolding.

"Useless!" Victor Warren slammed his hand on the desk, his face as dark as a thundercloud. "I poured so much effort into raising you, only to end up with a good-for-nothing failure!"

"You can’t capture Jacob Sinclair’s heart, and your designs are no match for that girl who came out of nowhere. How am I supposed to show my face?"

Helen Warren spoke up cautiously for her daughter. "Victor, please don’t be angry. Yvonne tried her best. Besides, Jacob Sinclair is beneath our Warren family. We can just find someone else for her..."

"SLAP!"

The backhanded slap landed on her face, and she trembled, not daring to utter a word of protest.

"It’s because of your useless womb that I, Victor Warren, have no son! That my line will die with me!"

"Such sentimental nonsense! As long as the Old Man refuses to hand the Warren Group over to me, do you think any scion from a family on par with ours would marry Yvonne? Jacob Sinclair is the best we can hope for!"

Victor Warren calmed himself, settled back into his leather chair, and stared coldly at Yvonne.

"How is the OCHH acquisition coming along? If you don’t start showing some results, how do you expect the Old Man to see your value!"

Overwhelming humiliation and resentment brewed in Yvonne’s chest. She kept her head down. "OCHH’s director, Lindsay Joyce, is returning to the country soon. I’ve already scheduled a meeting to negotiate. I’m confident it will be a success."

"Dad, Grandpa has ordered a full investigation into the drugging at the banquet. They won’t find out it was you, will they...?"

Victor Warren lit a cigar. "If I dared to do it, it means I knew how to do it cleanly."

He casually drew a finger across his throat.

「Regency Gardens.」

Miles Warren had given the master bedroom to Claire Kendall and taken the guest room, but the space was filled with her scent, tormenting him all night.

It was almost nine in the morning, and Claire Kendall hadn’t made a single sound. It was unnervingly quiet.

Miles Warren raised his hand, hesitated for a moment, then pushed the door open and went in.

On the bed, she was curled into a small ball under the covers, still asleep. But Miles Warren’s sharp eyes noticed her short, rapid breaths and the unnatural flush on her cheeks.

He drew closer and pressed a hand to her forehead. It was burning hot.

’She has a fever.’

’She was in that cold bath yesterday, and then I put her through... all that...’

"Claire Kendall," Miles Warren said softly.

She mumbled a groggy "Mmm." She was barely conscious, aware only of the alternating chills and heat, the ache in her entire body, and the heaviness of her eyelids.

"You have a fever. Get changed, I’m taking you to the hospital."

Miles Warren took a set of his own loungewear out of the closet.

Claire Kendall mumbled another vague "Mmm" but didn’t move.

"Can you change on your own...?"

She still didn’t react.

They couldn’t wait any longer. Miles Warren decided to change her clothes himself.

’I’m a doctor. I’ve seen countless bodies. It’s just changing clothes, that’s all,’ Miles Warren tried to reassure himself.

But the moment his fingers brushed her skin, his heart began to race uncontrollably.

Every beat was powerful and distinct.

His lips pressed into a thin line, Miles Warren did his best to avoid looking at her pale skin as he quickly helped her into the large, comfortable loungewear.

Miles Warren drove Claire Kendall to the hospital, checked her into the emergency room, and got her started on an IV drip.

Jonathan Keller, who was just about to end his shift, was surprised to see Miles in the ER. But when he saw the person on the gurney behind him, a knowing smile spread across his face.

"Well, well, if it isn’t Ms. Kendall—"

Especially when he noticed the faint, yet exceptionally eye-catching, red mark on Miles Warren’s neck.

Jonathan Keller grinned suggestively and clicked his tongue.

"Miles, my friend, this is just not right. You have to know how to treat a lady."

"I get it, an old man breaking his dry spell, but did you have to be so rough? You put her in the hospital??"