25 25. Potential Boyfriend

William was stunned by the sight. He didn’t expect to find Samuel kissing Paula-because from William’s point of view right now, the two were making out. He didn’t expect the two people he trusted the most to betray him.

Out of anger, William wanted to come inside, grabbed his cousin’s collar, and then hit him hard. But, Lea stopped him in time. She dragged him away and tried to calm him.

“Will, you should never do that!” Lea said in a flat tone.

“But, Samuel is my cousin, Lea! He kissed my wife!” William’s rampage made his brain couldn’t think straight.

“Your wife? Are you jealous?” Leah’s brows furrowed. Her heart clenched to see William’s expression at this time. She strongly suspected that something had changed William’s mind and heart.

“I-I am not,” William stuttered as he realized his mistake. Unknowingly, he made Lea feel jealous. He did not understand why he was so angry with Samuel. “I’m not jealous. I just feel so betrayed. Why did Samuel kiss her? She is still my wife!”

“How about if Paula is the one initiating the kiss?” Lea muttered, her hazel eyes pierced, looking at William’s green orbs.

“Impossible. She will never do that!” William shook his head.

“She is that kind of woman, no? She was the one who seduced you,” Lea insisted, squeezing William’s arms tightly. “She can do it with you, a mere stranger to her. Why didn’t she do it with another man?”

.....

“No! She is-”

“All you see was probably just Samuel kissing her. How about behind you? Can you guarantee they won’t do much more than that?” Lea strengthened her argument about Paula’s betrayal. She didn’t want William defending her to death.

“But, I know who Paula is. She’s not an unmannered woman who would-”

“That’s perfectly natural, Will! Remember that she doesn’t love you. She should be prepared to find a replacement for you, right? That was the consequence of the agreement,” Lea objected and continued trying to influence William’s dark thoughts.

This time, Leah succeeded. William gave up helplessly. No wonder Paula easily let him go with Lea without any objections. It must be because she had found another man. Was Samuel the lucky bastard?

“Let’s go, Will! Don’t bother to think deeply about some trivial thing like this.”

Without any objections, William followed Lea to go home. However, he still couldn’t accept the fact that his marriage to Paula had to end so soon.

***

Samuel was nodding off in the patient room, waiting for Paula to wake up. The strong smell of antiseptic disgusted him so badly. However, he ignored it for the sake of the woman he loves.

Meanwhile, Paula, who had just woken up from fainting, slowly opened her eyes. Her tired blue orbs scanned the room. It was all white. Her nose smelled of a mixture of alcohol, soap, and cleaners. She confirmed instantly where she was. Hospital.

“William? Is that you?” Paula’s gaze was still not perfect, mistaking Samuel for William. It was not her fault, though. At first glance, both of them were indeed similar.

Samuel’s eyes, initially half-open, popped wide when the man heard Paula’s voice. He then chuckled for a moment and said, “I was desperately sunbathing to distinguish myself from that loser, and what did you call me? William?”

“Sam?” Paula asked, hiding her surprise. “Sorry, I thought you will not-”

“Did you tell anyone about the baby?” Samuel cut Paula’s words, bringing up the most important thing in his head.

Paula startled. “Who told you?”

“The doctor said it a while ago,” Samuel whispered in Paula’s ear, making Paula’s face even paler.

“Don’t tell anyone, please,” Paula said, looking at Samuel with pleading eyes.

“Why? Isn’t that his?” Samuel asked again. “Or, were you tricking him to get yourself pregnant and intend to bring the baby away from him?”

“No, of course not!”

“Then?”

“Just mind your own business, Sam!” Paula snorted, throwing her face away.

Silence clouded the room. Paula and Samuel were busy with their thoughts. Paula didn’t want to spill to anyone about the bad treatment she got from the drunken William several days ago.

“Or, did you tell William about the baby, but he still chose his bastard over yours?” This time, Samuel almost hit the nail on the head.

Almost.

Paula stayed still, trying to hide her surprise. The exact reason was William didn’t believe her when she told him the truth. However, she didn’t intend to share her problem with Samuel or any other people.

To break the stern situation, Samuel changed the topic. “I bought some bread and fruits for you. You must be hungry since you didn’t eat anything at the banquet.”

Paula smirked. “I’m surprised you’re watching me,” she joked.

“I can always find you even in the crowds,” Samuel replied. A sad look crossed his manly face. He offered a bag of bread to Paula, letting her choose one she liked.

“Hei, someone will misunderstand your words as a love confession!” Paula giggled, picking bread from a paper bag in Samuel’s hands.

Samuel smiled lightly. He enjoyed the sight of the woman he loved eating Asian cheese bread. Her humming of joy reminded him of his mom who also happened to like the same kind of bread.

“I am glad you like the soft bread,” Samuel said, chuckling. He picked an apple and peeled it for Paula.

“It’s delicious! I even opened an Asian-styled bakery,” Paula explained enthusiastically. “I love Japanese-Western sweets. They are tasty and cute.”

Samuel enjoyed the sight of Paula’s other side. The iron-faced woman turned cute when she talked about her passion. Samuel’s green eyes stared at her without blinking at all. He then offered a plate of sliced apples to her only to find her even cuter when she bit her lips while thanking him.

“Sam, you are gentler than I thought!” Paula said, sincerely. Her heart felt warm by Samuel’s kindness.

“And you as well. I wonder how William can escape your charm?” Samuel smirked, picking a bread for himself.

“What do you mean? He couldn’t. We were like ... umm ... it’s ridiculous since we are married but you can call it friends with benefits thing,” Paula explained, “at least, he couldn’t resist my beauty.”

Samuel chuckled at Paula’s explanation. He surely understood why William did that. Which man could resist the charm of a blonde hottie with deep blue eyes like her?

“I envy him,” Samuel murmured.

“Pardon?”

historical

“If I were him, I would never leave you.”