Mr. CEO, You Look Strangely Familiar

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: A Faint Ache

Mrs. Ainsworth shook her head. ”I’m fine. It’s just from not sleeping well these past few nights.”

She took Nora’s hand and said gravely, ”Nora, I’ve muddled through my whole life. I don’t want you to follow in my footsteps. You have to marry Leon in grand style. Only then can I rest easy.”

”But I don’t have any feelings for him—”

”Feelings can be nurtured. A woman must never put love first, or she’ll suffer a great deal. You’ll understand my intentions one day.”

Nora wanted to argue that the kind of feelings one could nurture weren’t love, but kinship.

But she chose to remain silent.

’Sometimes, elders can see farther than the young.’

After just a short while, Mrs. Ainsworth said she wanted to go upstairs for a nap. Nora followed her into her mother’s bedroom.

The room was spotless, as always.

A short distance away was a wedding photo of her stepfather and mother.

She looked away, and as she was about to turn, she noticed her mother had already fallen asleep.

Her expression was weary, her complexion slightly pale.

Just as Nora walked around the foot of the bed, she was stunned by what she saw.

A large patch of blood stained the floor, its crimson color both alluring and blinding.

The trail of blood led to the bathroom door. She hurried over, threw the door open, and squatted down by the wastebasket, her eyes welling with tears.

Inside, the basket was filled to the brim with blood-soaked tissues.

’Where did all this blood come from?’

She was desperate to know the answer.

Nora gently checked her mother’s body but couldn’t find any wounds. Finally, she had no choice but to leave the room.

The question remained in her heart, aching like a wound.

When Sharon came home and found her there, she asked, ”Why are you home so early today?”

”I came back to get something.”

Sharon nodded and went to her room. Half an hour later, she came out, having changed her clothes and put on makeup. Holding her purse, she said, ”Your brother-in-law is taking me to dinner. Tell the housekeeper I won’t be home for dinner tonight.”

Without waiting for Nora to reply, Sharon hurried out of the living room, clearly in a great rush.

’Since he’s taking Sharon out to dinner tonight, that means I don’t have to go.’

At this thought, she let out a long sigh of relief.

As evening fell, it began to snow.

At the dinner table, it was just Nora and Mrs. Ainsworth. No one else was home.

Even Mr. Ainsworth hadn’t returned.

Mrs. Ainsworth looked even worse. Nora ate with her head lowered, and the two of them sat in silence.

After dinner, Mrs. Ainsworth went upstairs as before. Nora, left alone in the living room, felt she couldn’t stay there any longer. She put on a down jacket and a hat and headed out.

She walked aimlessly as light snow fell. Before long, a thin layer of white covered the ground.

Each step left a solitary footprint.

A flashy car screeched to a halt beside her, kicking up a flurry of snow. Leon Lynch pulled open the door and stepped out.

”Get in.”

Nora tilted her face upward. Snowflakes landed on her skin, feeling cool and slightly chilling.

”Where are we going?”

Leon Lynch grabbed her hand and pushed her into the passenger seat before walking around the front of the car and getting behind the wheel.

”Where were you going without an umbrella?”

”Just taking a stroll, admiring the view.”

Leon Lynch reached into the back seat, grabbed a hand warmer, and handed it to her. ”Here. It’s always charging. Warm your hands.”