My Darling, My Dearest

Chapter 133

Claris turned pale with fright, her lips quivering. Her legs became shaky as she stood up.

Jack lowered his eyes to Rachel and fondly tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear. "Miss Ying, I hope you would pay attention to your words next time. Just because you are free to say whatever you want doesn't always mean you should.

Do not be stupid and assume that other people will also value the man you adore," he said coldly.

His words struck Claris hard. She tried to explain, but her voice barely functioned. Before she could speak, Jack turned to Rachel and held her hand. "Let's go back."

"Don’t we need to stay here after the problem is solved?" They talked as if Claris was not in the room.

"The case has nothing to do with you. Why should we waste more time here?" He pulled her, and together they walked out of the room.

Claris was left staring after their retreating backs, waves of regret and fear surging through her veins.

'What should I do?

I shouldn't have been so impulsive!'

Jack was her brother's most prominent client, and she had managed to offend him. She could not imagine what might happen to Rick.

The longer she worried about it, the more it chipped away at her. She put her hands over her face and whined.

She must have had a momentary flare of insanity to say those words to Rachel. And she even let Jack hear her!

How reckless she was!

Frantic, she pulled her phone out of her pocket to call Rick.

She scrolled through her contacts and was about to press the call button when it suddenly occurred to her that it wasn't such a good idea to make her brother worry. Calling Rick might prove totally disastrous. With a shudder, she put her phone back to her pocket.

Rachel followed Jack out of the police station. When they were walking across the parking, she couldn’t control herself any longer and dissolved into a puddle of laughter.

"Why are you laughing?" He was stunned by her outburst. The sound was so sweet and joyful, her almond eyes sparkling with mirth that he could not help smiling.

Rachel said nothing and merely shook her head. 'What could I say? That I'm happy that he defended me?'

Rachel wasn't a woman who was good at reasoning.

If not for Jack, she could only guess how many more hurtful words Claris would have hurled at her.

Seeing she had no intention of giving him an

answer, Jack was somewhat confused. They walked in silence and headed for the car.

Once seated, Jack fastened his seat belt and turned on the ignition. He shifted gear and drove out of the parkway. "By the way, what's your answer to Claris' question?"

Rachel was in the front passenger seat. She just buckled up when she heard Jack. "What?"

The car traveled down the highway. Jack was looking straight ahead, trying to look nonchalant. He said in a flat tone, "I'm also curious what's between you and Lucas."

He spoke rather straightforwardly. He saw Rachel make a slightly surprised expression out of the corner of his eye, and he felt his heart jump nervously.

Rachel had not expected the question. She felt ambushed and hesitated to reply. The more reluctant she was, the more nervous Jack felt. He subconsciously held his breath, his handsome face tensing up.

He gripped the steering wheel tightly when she remained silent after what seemed like forever. It was not a good sign.

He took a quick sideways glance at her, and he saw her absentmindedly fiddling with her mobile phone.

He suddenly felt a pang of jealousy. "What's wrong?" he asked calmly with a smile on his face as if his heart was not beating erratically. "Is it difficult to answer?"

"Not really," she said. "I'm just wondering why

you asked."

She paused as if reflecting on a memory. "For me, he always seems like the ideal husband."

Jack's heart sank. He clenched his jaw, but Rachel was too absorbed to notice.

"I mean, he's almost perfect. I once decided that if I never fell in love with someone after the divorce, I would consider having a relationship with him," she murmured.

She hadn't expected that she and Jack would sign the divorce agreement so soon. She had believed that they wouldn't get divorced until another three or four years.

Jack tried hard to control his growing jealousy. His face was gloomy, and his voice hardened. "And then?" Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

"Now, the situation is different."

She tilted her head to the side. "I'm being childish. Not to mention, selfish.

I thought if I never fell in love, it would be the same for Lucas. Then we will be in a relationship together. But now, I think I'm self- centered and naive." She scoffed in self-mockery.

Lucas already had feelings for someone.

How silly of her to think she could push herself to others! Maybe it was because he had always cared for her, which made her greedy and reliant.

She recently realized that her feelings for Lucas was like a sister's love for her brother.

She knew if she told Lucas she wanted to have

a relationship with him, he would agree despite his own feelings.

If they got married, they would only be a couple who respected each other, nothing more.

Jack's tensed face relaxed a bit, although he still felt depressed.

He regretted asking such a stupid question.

Somehow, he was secretly happy because Rachel felt nothing for Lucas.

As long as she was not in love with someone, he still had a chance.

Nevertheless, she still thought a relationship with Lucas would be possible.

"What about him?" he prodded.

Startled, Rachel raised her hand and touched her lips guiltily. "I don't know..." She had no idea how Lucas felt.

Jack coughed in surprise. He could not believe Rachel was planning her future one-sidedly.

"Do you think... Lucas likes you?" he continued to ask.

If her answer was positive, he would need to keep his guard against Lucas in the future.

"You talk too much," she hurried on, with a hot blush. She pretended to look out the window, clearly avoiding any further questions.

Jack glanced at her, wondering what she meant. He could not tell where her mind was.

He did not understand it, but every time he saw

Lucas, his senses went on high alert for no reason.

Rachel pictured him as her ideal future lover. That bothered him.

He thought she would not say anything, but after a moment, she began to speak. "I don't think so. We are just close friends who treat each other as family."

Something seemed to snap inside Jack. His heart ached, and for a while, there was no oxygen in his lungs. But then the snap eased as if the tight band constricting his heart had loosened. In return, he was filled with bliss.

He looked indifferent as before. No one would guess how happy he was.

'It doesn't matter!

There's nothing between them!' Jack secretly cheered.

With Lucas out of the game, pursuing Rachel became more attainable. Lucas was not an easy opponent.

There was almost zero chance for him to win against Lucas.

As the car drove forward, he thought about it over and over. His heart was dancing in his chest.

He didn’t notice that Rachel was calling him. "Jack."

"Yes?"

"Do you have some wine?"

"What?" He didn't think he heard her right.

Rachel rested her head against the window and whispered, "I want to drink some wine. Do you have any?"

The corners of his lips pursed, his narrowed eyes glinting as he thought of an answer. "Yes, I have."

He turned the car around and steered towards his apartment.

The room in his apartment was shrouded in semi-darkness. Rachel turned on the light and let her eyes wander. Wine bottles were neatly arranged on the shelves covering the wall.

Stretching a few feet above her was a collection of wine bottles. He had everything from red wine, spirits, and rare vintage world-class wines.

But Jack didn’t know what Rachel wanted to drink.

"What would you like to drink?" Standing in front of the wine cabinet, he rolled up his sleeves and opened the glass door.

Rachel’s eyes traced every wine bottle from left to right. She wanted to drink but she didn't know which one to pick.

It wasn’t like she had to buy a bottle. She only had to choose.

While she stood undecided, Jack chose for her and took out two bottles of red wine. "Have you had lunch?"

"Yes. What about you?"

"I haven't eaten yet. Come and sit with me, then we can drink some red wine."

She nodded. She was feeling depressed earlier, and her mood ricocheted between low and lower. She needed to vent and thought of alcohol as a good option.

Jack had attended to a lot of work in the office. Plus, they also had to deal with the matters in the police station. He had no time for lunch.

When Rachel proposed to drink, he figured she might be in a bad mood.

Looking at her closely, he saw a faint shadow between her brows. He wondered why she looked unhappy.

"I'll cook two dishes. You can wait in the living room."

Rachel was pouring a glass of wine. When she heard him, she faced his direction and saw him standing in front of the fridge.

She was stunned. "You want to cook?"

He nodded. Without turning his head, he replied, "What do you want to eat?"

She placed the bottle at the table and then walked over curiously.

She was surprised but at the same time couldn't help but doubt. "Do you know how to cook?"