Chapter 321 Kiss Me
Elissa was kinda floored when she heard about Claire's situation. "How the heck did this happen?"
Seeing me all down in the dumps, she threw an arm around my shoulder and tried to cheer me up, "Life's a wild ride. Claire's been the backbone of the Harris family for so long, she's gotta be pretty tough. Don't stress too much. With Mr. Quill and Mr. Griffin on the case, even if they can't fix her up, they can at least keep things steady. Claire's been awesome to you; she won't just forget you."
I couldn't share her optimism. "Even if she doesn't want to forget me, the disease is out of her hands."
Elissa had heard a bit about Alzheimer's.
Old folks with it could change completely, sometimes getting violent. They wouldn't listen to anyone and could wander off if you weren't watching, getting lost the second they stepped outside.
If they wandered into traffic or some sketchy place, it was a nightmare. Taking care of them was a whole different ball game.
"I know you're feeling really low right now." Elissa squeezed my hand. "But you're pregnant, you can't be stressing out too much, okay? The doc just told you to take it easy."
"I haven't forgotten..."
But everything was hitting me like a ton of bricks, one thing after another.
I thought the storm had passed and Jerry and I could finally chill, but getting pregnant just made things crazier.
Elissa tried to soothe me, "Even if Claire ends up looking for Larry, we'll figure it out. Worrying about it now won't help."
She mentioned the baby, and I touched my belly, feeling a bit uneasy.
I had just gone through the scare of almost losing the baby. Even if I was worried about Claire, I had to try to stay calm.
"Thanks, Elissa." I touched her injured shoulder. "Does it hurt a lot?"
Elissa laughed, "I've got some skills, you know. A cut on my shoulder is nothing. As long as it didn't hit your heart, I'm grateful. When I saw Larry rush at you, I was totally like freaked out."
She went on, "I'm still shocked he came out of it okay and even more freaked that he actually tried to kill you."
Hearing this, I was stunned. "Larry was the one who hurt you?"
Elissa hesitated. "Well, I'm actually feeling kinda tired."
"Jerry told you not to tell me, didn't he?" I called her out.
Elissa sighed, "Damn it. I always let things slip."
I took her hand gently. "Tell me everything. I can handle it. Otherwise, I'll just overthink."
"Then you can't tell Jerry, or he'll be mad at me."
"I promise." I nodded quickly. "I'll never tell him."
Elissa relaxed and said, "Anyway, you and Larry are just blood relatives, no feelings. Treat him like a stranger from now on."
I nodded.
Seeing I was calmer, Elissa continued, "If Larry hadn't attacked you, Skylar wouldn't have succeeded. You had so many bodyguards."
She said, "Everyone was in shock, especially since you were pregnant. All eyes were on you. The bodyguards took me away to get patched up. That's how Skylar managed to take Claire hostage. I owe you an apology. I promised to take good care of Claire."
Looking at Elissa's injury, I felt only guilt. "I should be the one apologizing to you."
"Not at all!" Elissa poked my head. "Think about it. Which shoulder is more valuable, yours or mine? My job's all about talking. If my arm gets hurt, no big deal. But you? As a designer, if your shoulder's messed up, ElevateJoy is toast."
Elissa said, "Then I'd be broke, so I'm not really getting hurt for you, but for my own comfy life, okay? Besides, if anyone should apologize, it's Larry. I still can't wrap my head around how Skylar got him to hurt his own mom."
I gave a bitter smile. "Maybe Larry's just rotten to the core. How else could Skylar's few words make him turn on his own mom and daughter?"
Elissa nodded. "Yeah, but don't sweat it too much. Jerry's not gonna let them get away with it. Let them enjoy their little victory while they can. They'll pay for it eventually."
As Elissa and I kept talking, we drifted off-topic.
Right before we crashed, Elissa suddenly remembered something. "Oh, by the way, Jared got wasted a few days ago and said he wanted to spill a secret about Francis. But then Francis showed up and scared him sober. No matter how much I bugged him, he wouldn't spill. Can you ask Jerry for me? He must know."
"Sure," I agreed.
Jerry, Francis, and Jared had been tight since they were kids. If Jared knew something, Jerry probably did too.
I had just picked up my phone to text Jerry when it lit up with a message from him.
Jerry: [Get some good sleep, don't overthink, good night]
For a moment, I felt like crying. I hesitated for a long time, not knowing whether to send a message.
If I did, Jerry would know I wasn't sleeping and would worry. If I didn't, I wanted to say good night to him.
At that moment, another message came in.
Jerry: [Why are you still staring at the screen? If you've got something to say, just say it and then get some sleep.]
I smiled and typed: [How did you know I wasn't sleeping?]
Jerry just sent a screenshot of our chat, showing that I was in the middle of typing a message.
I got it and typed: [Good night.]
Jerry: [Then give me a kiss.]
Elissa was watching me from the side. Since I was messaging Jerry, I couldn't not ask him.
Me: [Let me ask you something first?]
Jerry: [Go ahead.]
Me: [Does Francis have a secret?]
After sending the message, I thought Jerry might hesitate about betraying Francis.
Unexpectedly, he replied almost instantly: [He has a first love who is likely to return soon.]
I felt it would have been better not to ask. But Elissa had already seen it.
She forced a smile. "I'm going to sleep; you two chat."
Then she wrapped herself in the blanket, turning her back to me.
I sighed and replied: [Why didn't you mention this before?]
Jerry: [I never thought Elissa would go after Francis. Later, because that first love had been gone for many years, and Francis didn't seem to be in contact with her, I hoped he could start fresh.]
Me: [So why are you telling me now?]
Jerry: [You're my wife, I tell you everything. Besides, now that the girl is coming back, if I don't say it, I'm afraid Elissa will get hurt.]
I had to admit, I couldn't find any fault in his reasoning. Jerry always thought things through, more so than I did. And matters of the heart were indeed tricky to meddle in.
If Francis really couldn't develop feelings for Elissa, then telling her this would enable her to move on and avoid further heartache.
Me: [You make a good point.]
Jerry sent a voice message.
I glanced at Elissa, buried myself in the blanket, turned down the volume, and pressed play.
Jerry's voice came through the speaker, even more deep and alluring. I heard him chuckle, as if he had finished his work, his voice relaxed.
Jerry: "Honey, since I did so well, give me a kiss?"
The slight upward inflection at the end made my heart flutter.
Wrapped in the blanket, I was already hot, and after listening to the voice message, I felt even more flushed.
I replied: [Don't call me that, who is your honey?]
Jerry sent another voice message. "Hope, can you give me a kiss?"
I built up the courage for a long time before pressing the voice button and lightly kissing the screen.
Jerry sent another voice message, his clear voice carrying a hint of huskiness, like a feather brushing, making my heart tingle.
Jerry: "Good girl."
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