Chapter 46
She could feel the way the driver kept sneaking glances at her.
She had no idea if that phone call earlier had come off too stiff or if she would actually make it through the next 40 minutes unharmed. Her nerves stayed wound tight, every second on edge, eyes glued to the window, tracking the route. The moment the road veered from what she remembered, her whole body tensed like a wire about to snap.
The driver kept trying to chat her up, still laced with the same invasive undertones. “Your skin’s so fair and smooth. I bet your husband’s really lucky.”
“It’s not cold in here. Why don’t you take your coat off?”
“Is your husband a doctor? He must be making good money. There’s no way you’re low
maintenance.”
20 minutes in, her phone rang. Sebastian’s name appeared on the screen.
She picked up instantly. “Hello?”
“I’m at the entrance,” Sebastian said.
It was just a simple sentence, but it grounded her. She quickly gave him an update. “I’m near Queenhill Road. I should be there in about 20 minutes.” She hadn’t expected him to call her
back.
However, after that call, something in her chest loosened. The car had entered the north end the streets outside were finally familiar again. She exhaled a quiet breath of
finally stopped at the gate of her apartment complex, Valeria opened the door in ike someone breaking free from a nightmare. With her head down, she crossed the street and headed toward her apartment in fast, purposeful strides, not daring to look back.
Then, she crashed right into a muscular chest. A clean, cool trace of men’s cologne filled her nose as she stumbled back, caught off guard. She hadn’t expected anyone to come and couldn’t regain her balance in time.
She looked up as the tall, lean, and serious Sebastian reached out to grab her wrist, steadying her with a tug. He didn’t budge, not even a step. She collided with him again, the soft weight of her body and a faint trail of perfume brushing against him.
His palm was dry and firm against her back, guiding her gently into his embrace.
She wasn’t sure if it was from his body or the familiar scent she had come to recognize, but in that moment, she finally felt safe. His hand was holding her to keep her steady.
She didn’t know why he was here, but he came. All she knew was that she had made it home in one piece.
Her throat tightened. The urge to cry surged out of nowhere. Valeria forced it down with all her might.
Sebastian’s gaze slid past her, settling on the white BYD still idling on the other side of the road. From the moment she stepped out of the car and crossed the street, it hadn’t moved. It sat there as if the driver was watching.
If that car hadn’t seen another man here, the driver might have followed her home. There were only Valeria, Lucy, and Selena in the house-three women, none of them a match for him.
However, he hadn’t expected Sebastian to actually be standing at the entrance. After one look in the rearview mirror, the car peeled away.
Valeria gently pushed away from Sebastian’s embrace.
Under the streetlight at the entrance, her face looked pale. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and her lashes were damp. When he held her earlier, she had been wound tight, like a bow pulled too far.
“Why… Why are you here?” Her teeth chattered involuntarily.
“I dropped a coworker nearby,” he said.
“Thanks,” Valeria replied.
“You’re welcome.” Sebastian let go of her waist.
was when Valeria finally realized that she had been leaning into him. Her cheeks flushed and she took two steps back. The breeze caught the hem of her coat, lifting it just enough reveal the slender curve of her legs, wrapped in skinny jeans.
Sebastian’s throat felt dry. His gaze lingered for a second too long before he looked away.
