Jessica's POV
Arriving at the hotel, the lobby was bustling with people. Many eyes turned to me, accessing me, and I felt some people, especially the front desk ladies were talking about me.
I doubled my steps, and my walking pattern changed from the awkwardness I felt. I stopped at the desk, took the penthouse keys and made a beeline for the exclusive elevator that headed straight to the penthouse.
I clicked the buttons with urgency, wishing to disappear from sight immediately. Those hungry eyes seemed to strip me bare.
What were they gossiping about me? That I left my two years marriage and sneaked into my ex-husband's enemy's bed? Or that I seduced Kristen to climb up the social ladder…otherwise, why were those gazes so malicious; filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred?
By now, I was already inside the elevator, the door slowly closing, putting those people out of my line of sight. I sighed with relief. The feeling of being alone filled me with peace.
But just as the elevator door was about to shut, a hand suddenly wedged into the narrow opening, halting the door's motion. The abrupt stop made me jump, my heart leaping to my throat.
Could it be one of those haters? Perhaps Kristen's girlfriend is coming to assault me? Or maybe a pervert, Liam…no, he wouldn't enter his enemy's turf just for me.
My grip on my purse tightened as my mind raced with the worse case scenario, my purse's weighted stones offering me a sense of security.
Little did I know, it would come in handy just seconds later.
The doors slid open again, and a figure stepped into view. Before I could even process their presence, my purse swung through the air, driven by instinct.
Time seemed to slow down as my purse connected with the intruder's face. The sound of impact echoed through the elevator, followed by a startled groan.
My heart racing, I waited for the stranger's next move.
But as the person stumbled backward, clutching their face, I realized it wasn't a stranger at all.
"Kristen!" I exclaimed, shock replacing my alarm.
"Argh!... Jessica!"
"Oh my god, Kristen!" I rushed forward, prying his hand away from his forehead only to see his skin was broken and blood was trailing down. Even his nose was affected. My breath grew shallow as my eyes widened. "I'm so sorry!"
Kristen's eyes watered as he sucked in a deep breath when I accidentally touched his nose. "What was that for?"
I felt a wave of embarrassment wash over me. "I thought you were...I didn't see it was you," I stammered.
This was an exclusive elevator for the penthouse dwellers. And I didn't see him in the lobby, reason I never thought of him.
Kristen's expression changed from shock to amusement. "You pack quite a punch," he said with a chuckle.
I helped him into the elevator, still apologetic. "I'm so sorry. My purse has stones on it."
Kristen winced, "I gathered."
Together, we made our way to the penthouse, Kristen's nose throbbing, while my embarrassment lingered. To be fair, I wanted to laugh, but it would be insensitive of me.
Arriving at the penthouse, I hurried to the kitchen, pulling and closing all the drawers.
"What are you searching for?" His voice drifted in from the entrance.
"Searching for the first aid kit." Just then, I caught the red and white box and quickly pulled it out. "Found it."
I walked with urgency back to him, pulled his hand and walked him into the living room. Sitting opposite him, I held an ice pack to his nose. "Hold it in place while I clean your wound."
He did as I instructed. I could feel his gaze on me: he'd been staring at me for the longest I could remember. Although I wasn't comfortable with that stare, I pretended not to notice.
Carefully cleaning his wound, his voice entered my ear. "How did your day go? I see you came back late."
I glanced towards the wall clock, its ticking hands revealing it was quarter to eight. The evening unfolded without my notice.
"I saw a friend after stopping at my adopted mother's place," I explained, carefully dabbing a fresh cotton ball, soaked in antiseptic solution, onto his wound.
He winced slightly at the sting.
"Sorry again, Kristen. I feel terrible about this," I said, genuine remorse coloring my tone.
"How many times do you intend to apologize?"
"For as long as it takes," I replied, my eyes still on his wound, not acknowledging his amused stare.
"Did she treat you well?... I mean, your adopted mother."
My hand froze and my gaze shifted to hold his. How did he know? I didn't tell anyone how I was being treated by my adopted family…
"You must be wondering how I knew," he began. "Your brother told me."
…My family doesn't know either. The only thing they knew was that Liam didn't treat me well. They're even grateful and wanted to pay my adopted family a surprise visit to reward them for taking me in, but I stopped them, telling them to hold on.
And that was because I wanted to be sure they deserved any reward. I wanted to give them a second chance.
But as I stared at Kristen, who just lied about my brother telling him that, I didn't know what to feel.
Has he dug into my life? It shouldn't be a problem, but somehow, I felt uncomfortable. The feeling that someone I don't know much about has my personal life in his palm like an open book, unsettled me.
"Jessica, what's wrong?" His voice pulled me back from stupor and I shook my head, trying to force a smile.
"It's nothing." I began to dress his wound.
"Are you not comfortable with the fact that your brother told me things about you?"
I looked at him, my lips pressed into a thin line. I'm not, but I couldn't say that.
"It's not that," I shook my head. "It's just…"