At 2 a.m., Hunter sat in his wheelchair, precisely in the living room, and the seat was so cold with his hands constantly holding the phone.
'She can't have left me because mom hasn't given her money yet... No... She won't leave me!' he thought, recalling that Isabella hadn't returned yet despite promising to come back soon after ending her relationship with Joe.
"Sir!"
A voice from the door diverted his attention. He turned and saw Collin entering the room hurriedly, carrying Isabella. He immediately stood up, greeting them with a serious look.
"What happened to her?" He looked at the unconscious Isabella with a weary face.
"I found her in a bar, she was drunk," Collin explained.
"Take her to the room!"
Collin immediately carried Isabella to the room while Hunter followed with his wheelchair.
Once in the room, Collin laid Isabella in the middle of the bed, straightened her legs, and then left the room.
Hunter remained silent, his eyes fixed on Isabella, wondering what had made her drunk.
"Is she like this because of stress? Is she stressed because she didn't want to end her relationship with her boyfriend?"
"Five years!" Isabella suddenly exclaimed, then turned over, groping around until she found a pillow and hugged it. "Why didn't the time we had to make you think about giving certainty? Why... You were crazy!" she continued with her eyes still closed.
Rubbing his forehead, Hunter sat at the edge of the bed and kept watching Isabella muttering in her sleep.
"Joe... Is it true you're not good for me?" Isabella asked with a sorrowful voice. "I feel Hunter can provide a good future for me, but I want you to reassure me... Because... Because I love you... I love you so much, don't you understand?"
"What if Hunter just likes me because of passion? What if one day he cheats? He's a perfect man... I'm scared... I'm afraid to love him... I want you... I only want you!" Isabella exclaimed angrily, even throwing the pillow randomly and then rolling over towards Hunter.
Hunter remained silent, watching Isabella slowly open her eyes.
"Joe..." Isabella mumbled again.
"I'm Hunter," Hunter whispered.
Isabella sighed heavily, lay back down, and closed her eyes again.
"I don't like you!" she exclaimed.
Hunter sighed. "I know you don't like me... Don't worry, I won't force you to like me," he said anxiously.
"Then how do you want me to be your wife forever? Is it possible for us to be husband and wife forever without love?" Isabella asked, again looking at Hunter with narrowed eyes. "You're weird... You're pretending... Then you want me to end my relationship with my boyfriend... Tell me your reason. Do you think three hundred thousand dollars is my price so you can control my life?" she continued angrily.
Hunter was just stunned.
"You can't be selfish! After thinking it over... You don't have the right over me just because you gave me money... I'm not that low... But I had to obey all your wishes because I needed the money... But..." Isabella sighed heavily, then sat up and looked at Hunter intensely. "How could you think like that? You consider everything can be handled with your money... You belittle me... How can I spend the rest of my life with a man who belittles me?"
Hunter just kept silent, looking at Isabella who looked sad and was so close to his face that he could even smell the alcohol on her breath.
"You're arrogant!" Isabella shouted while pushing Hunter's chest, then lay down again.
"You're drunk... You need to rest," Hunter replied while standing up. "I'll make something for you," he continued, walking away.
Isabella remained silent, letting Hunter leave, even now she closed her eyes again, back in unconsciousness.
...
The next day...
Isabella slowly opened her eyes and looked around, then lowered her head and realized she was covered with a white blanket and was in Hunter's room. She immediately held her head, closing her eyes again.
"Oh God... How could I be here again? Did Hunter pick me up from the bar?" she wondered, then opened her eyes again and turned to the side. "The wheelchair isn't in the room, which means he's still using it... He's still pretending... So it wasn't him who brought me here last night?"
She sat up and remained silent in confusion until her gaze fell on the open door and saw Hunter approaching with his wheelchair, carrying a tray complete with a glass and plate of food on his lap.
"You don't need to pretend to be disabled in front of me anymore," she said curtly.
Hunter gave a thin smile, stopping his wheelchair right beside the bed. "I like this act... It doesn't make my legs tired," he said while placing the breakfast on the bedside table.
"That means you're lazy... You won't have energy if you keep this up."
"Energy?" Hunter chuckled. "Energy for what? Do you think I need to make myself full of strength?"
Isabella frowned.
"Maybe you're worried I won't be able to satisfy you when you're ready to fulfill your duty," Hunter said, raising his eyebrows with a teasing smile while Isabella pouted. "I know you're very ready," he continued.
Isabella remained silent, suddenly feeling awkward and annoyed. 'I'm having a headache, why is he talking about this? I can't even accept this fate!' she shouted in her heart.
"Drink the honey tea, it's good for relieving your headache," Hunter said, handing the glass of tea to Isabella.
Hesitantly, Isabella took the glass of tea and sipped it little by little, occasionally glancing at Hunter who kept watching her with a smile, making her feel awkward and nervous.
"Uhuk!" She suddenly choked.
"Oh God!"
Hunter immediately got up from his wheelchair and patted Isabella's back. "You should be careful even if it's just drinking!" he said, frowning.
Isabella remained silent after trying to stop coughing but now felt strange about Hunter's attitude.
'Why do I feel he's starting to be nice? Will he be a good husband? What if this is his way to lure me? Should I fall into his arms? What if he's going to play with me?'
"Hey!" Hunter sat on the edge of the bed and saw Isabella startled from her thoughts. "What are you thinking, hum?"
"Um..." Isabella immediately turned her gaze, focusing on the glass of tea she was holding on her lap.
"Honestly, I was very surprised to see Collin bring you back drunk," Hunter said with a concerned look. "What's the problem? Couldn't you end your relationship with your boyfriend so you were confused and went to the bar?" he wondered, as if not remembering how Isabella had mumbled in her sleep last night.
"It's not like that..." Isabella shook her head and looked at Hunter again, biting her lower lip for a moment. "He didn't mind ending our relationship."
"Really?"
"Yes... There's nothing for you to worry about anymore..." Isabella frowned, unable to hide the sadness in her eyes when she remembered Joe's attitude.
"You shouldn't be sad... Maybe this will be a temporary moment because you think you're with me just to fulfill your duty after you get your money," Hunter said with a flat look. "You already have plans to return to him, right? So there's no reason to be sad... And I don't want to see you sad or seem burdened... Your love affair with him is not something I need to know... I just want you to dedicate yourself to me until the time we've set," he continued, then stood up.
Isabella was stunned, Hunter's words surprised her, making her heart pound and feel disappointed.
'What is this? Is he saying that because he's canceling his intention to make me his wife forever? Does that mean I shouldn't hope for him?' she wondered to herself until she heard the door open and at that moment Hunter hurriedly sat back in his wheelchair.
She immediately turned to the door and saw Jake and Katrina coming with two gray and white paper bags. The old couple walked towards her with smiles.
"Oh, my new bride!" Katrina said with sparkling eyes.
Hunter wheeled his chair away from the bed, and then received a kiss from Katrina, allowing her to move closer to Isabella.
"What happened to her?" asked Jake, standing beside Hunter.
"Um, she was just exhausted," Hunter lied.
Jake immediately looked down at Hunter with a frown. "How could she be exhausted? Have you started doing it?" he wondered.
Hunter remained silent, his lips suddenly stiff as if unable to answer his grandfather's question, even now surprised when his grandfather suddenly laughed and patted his shoulder hard.
"Haha... I'm sure you've done it and maybe she's..." Jake leaned towards Hunter's ear. "You made her the dominant one so she's very exhausted and in pain?" he whispered with an amused smile.
"Uh..." Hunter smiled awkwardly. "No... Not like that."
"You don't need to be shy with us," Katrina said, sitting on the edge of the bed facing Isabella. "This is not a taboo subject anymore... So don't be shy to be open with us, and actually, we know what happened to you without you telling us," she continued with a happy smile.
Isabella remained silent with an awkward smile, feeling amused by the grandparents' words.
"Hunter..." Jake patted Hunter's shoulder again, then focused on looking at Isabella. "You have to work hard to recover... You're not just trying to restore your function as a normal man, but also have to try to become a capable man... I'm sure it will succeed!"
"You have to work hard so your wife won't be exhausted," Katrina said, then looked at Isabella. "I know being a dominant woman in bed isn't easy, especially when your husband's condition doesn't allow him to take turns being dominant," she continued.
"Eh ..." Isabella grew increasingly confused and thought to herself, 'Why has this conversation gone so far off track?'
"Don't worry, I'll get you an energy drink specially for women," said Katrina with a sweet smile, causing the wrinkles on her face to become more noticeable but not hiding her natural beauty. "I'll order it now!"
"And I have this for you, it's great for restoring bone and nerve function," said Jake, placing two paper bags at the edge of the bed in front of Katrina.
Isabella and Hunter just looked at each other, occasionally glancing at Katrina who was ordering the energy drink from an online shop.