Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Timothy was caught off guard and got pushed back a couple of steps. A shocked expression appeared briefly in the depths of his eyes.

Samantha only realized that she had overreacted right after pushing him away. If he were to touch her a second time, she might continue to lose control over herself.

The thought of Timothy staying with Harmony the previous night and lying to her after that made her feel sick.

Samantha did not have any appetite during the entire day. Aside from that one piece of roast duck, she only had a glass of milk in the morning and two mouthfuls of porridge at noon. There was nothing for her to vomit out. In the end, she could only vomit out sour stomach acid, and her entire face scrunched up because it was just too uncomfortable.

When Timothy saw that, he did not care about her inexplicable push and grabbed a towel as he squatted down and wiped her lips for her. He placed his other hand on her nape and patted it gently to soothe her.

Samantha vomited until she could not vomit anymore. Her head was still spinning and her body fell limply on Timothy even though she did not want him to touch her.

Timothy caught her and immediately rushed back to the bedroom while carrying her.

After putting Samantha on the bed, he pulled the quilt to cover her and frowned as he sat on the edge of the bed. He asked in a worried tone, "How are you feeling now? Do you feel better?"

Samantha opened her eyes halfway and looked at him. She was feeling very uncomfortable and her mind was still in a mess. She did not want to accidentally make a mistake. He was a very keen person, and she was not prepared to let him notice that something about her was amiss.

She gulped heavily and whispered, "I want to drink some water. Warm water."

"Okay. I'll pour some for you right now." Timothy stood up and strode out.

Samantha stared at the man's tall rear figure as a layer of mist appeared in her eyes and gradually blurred her vision.

She trusted him unconditionally…up until the moment he lied.

During that period, she could clearly feel that Timothy showed care and concern about her. If that were not the case, she would not have gradually opened her heart to him, accept him once again, and allowed him to enter her heart.

However, he had lied to her.

Although she did not know if he was put in a tight spot, her trust in him had shattered completely when he chose to lie to her at that moment.

When Timothy came back with a cup of water, Samantha had already suppressed her emotions as best as she could and tried to calm herself down.

Having undergone many experiences in life, she had long learned to quickly revert to calmness and to immediately refrain from exposing her vulnerability to others.

Timothy did not hand her the water cup, but supported her up and allowed her to lean into his arms as he raised the water cup to her mouth.

Samantha clenched her hands subconsciously and endured her emotions. She finished the water and then lay back down again.

Timothy put the cup on the bedside table and placed his hand on her cheek. His fingertips hooked her cheek and turned it to one side as he said softly, "I've called the doctor. He'll be here soon."

'Doctor.'

She knew that there was nothing wrong with her body and that she had only reacted that way because she was disgusted by Timothy's lies.

If the doctor came to check on her and said that she was fine, Timothy would start wondering about other things.

Samantha hurriedly said, "I just didn't eat much today, and I probably felt nauseous because my blood sugar level was low. I'll be fine after I drink some glucose water and get some sleep. You should tell the doctor not to come."

After a pause, she added, "Grandma will know if the doctor comes over. She hasn't slept well these few days, which is why she wanted to go to her place of worship and meditate. She'll rush back if she finds out, and I don't want her to worry too much."

Timothy's eyes sank. "Are you really okay?"

"Yes. I just feel like sleeping right now, and my rest will be disturbed if the doctor comes over," Samantha replied affirmatively.

The man's eyes looked intently on her pale face as he asked, "Why didn't you eat today?"

Samantha did not avoid his gaze and replied rather naturally, "Didn't I tell you two days ago that I had gained weight recently? I'm going back to work tomorrow. As an anchor who has to be on camera, it's a must for me to take care of my figure and lose weight!"

"That's a personal accomplishment in my line of work!" Samantha emphasized.

Timothy could not refute her reasons.

Samantha did tell him two days ago that she had gained weight, and since she had to go back to work the next day, she had to be photogenic.

Her excuse was reasonable.

Timothy sighed slightly and compromised, "Okay. I'll tell the doctor not to come then, but you mustn't starve yourself to lose weight. Your health must always come first."

He lowered his voice a little and there was a clear tremor in his tone, "You scared me just now."

That sentence nearly caused Samantha's tear ducts to burst.

She could not understand why Timothy would be so affectionate towards her after returning home from spending time with other women.

At that moment, she was almost about to be deceived again.

She blinked vigorously to restrain the soreness in her nose and held her tears back.

"Yes, I know." Samantha's voice was slightly muted. She did not want Timothy to see her uncomfortable emotions and she closed her eyes abruptly. "I'm a little dizzy and I'd like to sleep."

Seeing her discomfort, Timothy merely lowered his voice and said, "I'll make some glucose water for you right now. You can go to bed after you drink it."

Samantha nodded without saying anything.

Timothy stood up again and went out.

Samantha did not open her eyes after that, but a tear appeared at the corner of her eyes and streamed down as it fell onto the pillow.

A few minutes later, Timothy returned and fed Samantha the glucose water. He then laid her back on the bed. Instead of leaving, he sat on the edge of the bed and held her hand as he said softly to her, "Go ahead and sleep. I'll be right here. Just call me if you're not feeling well."

Samantha closed her eyes and did not answer him.

Although she had initially thought she would not be able to sleep, she eventually did fall asleep. However, she did not know whether she was tired from crying or whether it was due to her physical discomfort.

Unfortunately, she did not sleep peacefully and had all sorts of nightmares.

In the end, something seemed to have frightened her as she woke up all of a sudden.

Samantha opened her eyes in horror and began panting heavily.

It took her about ten or so seconds before she finally managed to calm down. Her eyes rolled stiffly within her eye sockets and Timothy was nowhere to be found. In the meantime, the sun had already risen.

She had nightmares the entire night, while Timothy—who said he was going to be by her side—had disappeared again.

There was a hint of ridicule in her eyes.

Her poor sleep had caused both her mood and body to feel unwell. She wanted to close her eyes and rest a little longer, but she heard a sudden loud crash from downstairs as she closed her eyes.

Samantha opened her eyes right away and her heart began beating violently.

What happened?