When she pushed open the door and saw her parents, she almost got blinded by them. Her father was wearing a suit that he only wore when he was taking pictures while her mother was wearing the new clothes she bought not long ago. She even did her makeup and tied her hair.
Judging by the hairstyle, she knew it was by the boss lady of the salon in their residential area.
Lina Sweeney had a feeling that every middle-aged woman in her residential area knew that she was bringing her boyfriend home today.
After all, the boss lady of the salon was famous for being a blabbermouth. Whenever she got wind of someone else’s business, it would mean that the entire residential area would know about it too.
Lina Sweeney looked at her parents awkwardly. She noticed her parents were looking at Hadwin Stephenson weirdly. On the other hand, Hadwin Stephenson looked unperturbed like he was not affected at all.
“Dad, Mom, this is Hadwin Stephenson, my… um, boyfriend.” It was as if she wasted a lot of effort just to say that word.
“Uncle, Aunty, hello, I am Hadwin Stephenson.” Hadwin Stephenson greeted Mr. and Mrs. Sweeney respectfully.
“H-hello,” Mr. and Mrs. Sweeney quickly responded.
Mr. Sweeney invited Hadwin Stephenson to take a seat while Mrs. Sweeney pulled her daughter to the side. “This is your boyfriend? He’s not someone you hired to put up an act?”
Lina Sweeney rolled her eyes. “You can just think of him as an actor I hired, then.”
Mrs. Sweeney was exasperated. “What a child! How can you speak that way! Alright, go serve tea.” With that said, Mrs. Sweeney then plastered a friendly face and walked over to Hadwin Stephenson.
Since Lina Sweeney was the designated waitress, she headed to the kitchen to prepare some tea. When she stepped into the living room with a tray of tea, she saw the three people chatting joyfully with each other.
“Tingxin, you said that you got to know Lina while abroad, so have the both of you been keeping in touch all these years?”
“We didn’t. It’s after I returned to the country recently and bumped into Lina on the streets that we kept in contact. To be honest, I’ve been searching for Lina all these years.
Fortunately, I’ve found her.” Hadwin Stephenson smiled.
He shot a look at Lina Sweeney as he said that. From Mr. and Mrs. Sweeney’s view, that was a look filled with love. However, for Lina Sweeney, it was a look filled with threats.
Mr. Sweeney smiled. “Both of you are truly fated. However, since you guys first saw each other overseas, that would mean it was only within a span of a few days. How did you develop feelings for Lina?”
Mr. Sweeney was curious to know. After all, his daughter only went abroad for a few days. How did she manage to make a man unable to forget about her for over three years within such a short time? Furthermore, that man was an attractive-looking man who could make girls swoon. It was not a problem for him to look for a girlfriend, yet he had been looking for his daughter for the past three years. This made
Mr. Sweeney’s impression of Hadwin Stephenson increase exponentially.
“Lina is a straightforward girl. I feel comfortable interacting with her. There was once when I was drunk…” Hadwin
Stephenson said without any reservations. Lina Sweeney suddenly shuddered, and the cup of tea in her hand spilled by half.
“Ouch!” She growled softly and immediately put the cup down. The back of her hand began to turn red from being scalded by the hot tea.
Hadwin Stephenson frowned, speedily pulled Lina Sweeney up, made a dash for the kitchen, and turned on the cold water tap to allow the cold water to wash over her scalded hand.
“Why can’t you even hold a teacup properly?” he said sulkily.
“Hey, don’t mention that I’ve spent the night with you in the hotel back then. My parents are conservative people. If they find out about this, they’ll break my canine legs,” Lina Sweeney urgently said.
“Canine legs?” He side-eyed her. “This is the first time I’m hearing someone describe themselves as a canine.”
Lina Sweeney felt deflated. She admitted that she kind of used the wrong description.
“Whatever it is, just don’t breathe a word about it.” There was begging in her eyes.
He sealed his thin lips tightly, not saying a word.
“As long as you don’t mention it, I can…” She abruptly paused mid-sentence.
‘What can I do? Buy him a meal? He doesn’t seem like someone who will be interested in a meal that I can afford.
Shall I give him a gift as a reward? I don’t have the cheek to say that out when the person I’m speaking to is richer than me by more than a thousand folds.
Whichever idea that came to her mind did not seem appropriate at all. Thus, Lina Sweeney’s sentence was paused for a long time. There was no sign of continuation.
“What can you do?” Hadwin Stephenson bent forward slightly to look at her.
She looked at that handsome face that was merely inches away from her and her heart could not stop beating rapidly. Lina Sweeney could not help but complain inwardly. ‘Why does a man need such a good-looking face? Especially his skin… It’s way better than mine. His skin was so good that she had the urge to ask him what skincare products he used.
“Then you can make any request you want,” she replied. After all, she only had a limited amount of money and only one life to give.
“Okay,” he responded.
She was taken aback for a moment. ‘Did he just… agree to my request? He’s being rather easy-going.”
“How’s your hand? Is it still burning?” He shifted his gaze back to her hand that was still under the running cold water.
“It doesn’t hurt as much now. Since it has been under the water for some time, I think it should be fine,” she replied.
He then turned off the tap and took out his handkerchief that he always carried with him to wipe her hand dry.
“Do you have any ointment at home? It still looks quite swollen. It’s better if you apply some ointment.”
“Oh, we do.”
“Bring it here now.”
Lina Sweeney ran to her room to fetch the ointment for burned skin. When she got hold of the ointment, she suddenly realized. ‘Why am I so obedient?’
However, that remained as a thought. She still took the ointment and came out of her room. When she stepped out, she saw Hadwin Stephenson in the living room chatting with her parents.
When she came nearer, she heard her mother say, “Oh, so that’s it. Lina sent you back to your hotel room after you got drunk and took care of you the whole night. Lina is a kind-hearted girl. We always teach her that it is a joyful thing to be able to extend help to those in need.”
When Lina Sweeney heard those words, she nearly slumped on the floor from having weakened knees. ‘Kind-hearted? A joy to extend help?
‘If Mom knew what ‘good deeds’ I’ve done, she won’t be saying those words at all.’
“Indeed. If not for her meticulous care, I might have been in a worse condition. Sometimes after getting drunk, there is a risk of asphyxiation when the vomit gets into the airway,” Hadwin Stephenson said and looked over at Lina Sweeney. “I’m truly grateful for Lina.”
That sentence made Lina Sweeney extremely guilty!
Her parents then added, “Oh please. That was something she needed to do. We’re all fellow countrymen, so of course we need to help each other when we’re abroad.”
Lina Sweeney wanted to dig a hole to bury herself in.
At that moment, Hadwin Stephenson waved a hand at her.
“Come, come. Sit here.”