Chapter 17

In Scarlett's Perspective:

When I thought about how Mark took care of Lucas, I was a little worried.

I couldn't imagine what Lucas would be like if Mark took care of him until he was discharged.

But what surprised me the most was that Lucas, as the Mafia boss, didn't even hire a caregiver.

"How are you feeling today?" I rushed to the hospital right after class.

It'd been many days since Lucas got injured, and I'd been taking care of him at the hospital for a while.

His injuries seemed to be more severe than I imagined. He wasn't getting better.

Lucas remained weak in bed, struggling even to speak.

"Much better." As soon as I walked in, Lucas propped himself up. "Thank you for taking care of me."

He was clearly too weak to speak properly, yet he tried to act tough.

"You should lie down and rest." I helped him lie down and sat beside him.

"Can I have some water?" Lucas looked at me and pointed to the cup on the table. "I'm thirsty."

I really didn't know what Mark was thinking. Was this how he took care of Lucas when I was not around?

I immediately handed the water cup to Lucas.

"Can you help me with my wound?" After drinking the water, he suddenly pointed to his back.

I nodded, and Lucas immediately turned over, exposing his entire back.

The wound on his back had scabbed over, but it was still evident that it was deep.

"How did this happen?" I asked, puzzled. Lucas just shook his head.

"I don't remember. Isn't it common for Mafia members to get injured?" He joked, but I felt a pang of sadness.

With one hand on the hospital bed and the other holding an alcohol swab, I gently wiped his wound.

"It hurts." Lucas suddenly grabbed my hand and turned his face to look at me.

"I'll be gentler." I immediately lifted the swab, but he turned over and pulled me closer.

"You hurt me." Lucas's lips curled up slightly, and he wrapped an arm around my waist.

Was this the Lucas I knew? Wasn't he never afraid of pain?

"I'll be careful. Let go of me first." I lightly pushed his shoulder, trying to make him let go. "Don't make the wound worse."

I didn't want Lucas's wound to tear open again over such a trivial matter.

"Shouldn't you compensate me?" Lucas had no intention of letting go. Instead, he held me tighter. "Kiss me, and I'll let you go."

"Stop joking." I wanted to refuse his suggestion.

Lucas chuckled, his eyes fixed on my movements. Not knowing how to respond, I turned my head away.

"I'm not joking," He said, lifting my chin and kissing my lips.

Lucas's kiss was both passionate and gentle, rendering me unable to resist. His possessiveness was palpable, nearly overwhelming me. As his warm tongue delicately traced my lips, rather than resisting, I felt a subtle sense of anticipation.

Our feelings seemed to have crossed the boundary of kinship, and I didn't know how to describe it.

"That's enough, Lucas." I pressed my fingers against Lucas's chest, finally stopping his crazy kiss.

"I don't know if we should be doing this." If I said I had no reservations about these feelings, no one would believe me.

Lucas was my uncle and the heir of the Bennett family that abandoned me.

For whatever reason, we couldn't be lovers.

"It's no matter, Scarlett." Lucas pinched my cheek and gently kissed my forehead. "As long as you want to."

With that, he leaned in to kiss my lips again.

Not knowing how to refuse Lucas, I closed my eyes.

Rationally, I resisted everything happening, but a voice inside urged me to face this feeling.

I raised my head, trying to confront my doubts and fears, but suddenly heard a knock on the door.

"I'm coming in." It was Isabella's voice outside.

I immediately opened my eyes and squatted down.

What should I do? If Isabella came in now, she'd definitely make a scene about me and Lucas.

Even if there was nothing between Lucas and me, I didn't want Isabella to see me in this disheveled state.

As the door opened, my heart almost leaped out of my chest.

I quickly hid behind a coat rack, praying Isabella wouldn't notice me.

"Father asked me to check on you, Uncle Lucas. Are you okay?"

I almost forgot that Lucas was also Isabella's uncle.

Her relationship with Lucas was closer than mine.

"I'm fine." Lucas immediately responded. His voice was cold, seemingly displeased. But I couldn't see his expression, so I could only guess what was happening outside.

Isabella must not have seen me when she entered, or she would have already made a fuss.

"I didn't expect you to be so badly injured this time." I could only vaguely see Isabella standing by the bed. "Father is concerned about you."

"Thank you." Lucas was polite but distant with Isabella.

"I'm here on behalf of my father. He's worried about you." Isabella sighed. "If you ask me, why not take this opportunity to hand over the Bennett family affairs to others? That way, you can rest and recover."

The air in the room instantly froze.

"Hand it over to others? Besides your father, is there anyone else in the family capable of taking over?" Lucas sneered. "I don't want to hand the family over to someone who constantly makes mistakes."

Was the family's internal situation this chaotic now?

It turned out Lucas's life wasn't as smooth as I imagined.

"Lucas, don't be ungrateful," Isabella was infuriated by Lucas's words and suddenly shouted, "Don't think I don't know about you and Scarlett."

"I see how much you care for Scarlett. You endured beatings and punishments for her and even went against Gabriel's commands," Isabella remarked, sensing Lucas's vulnerability with a tone of arrogance, "But Scarlett is just a passing fancy. Don't take her too seriously."

"This is your last chance to take back what you said." Lucas's face instantly turned cold.

I peeked through the gap in Lucas's coat, happened to see his reaction.

"Stop pretending to be so affectionate. Scarlett is just something Alexander discarded." Isabella spread her hands. "Yet you took beatings for her. Is it worth it?"

Her arrogance was infuriating, but her words shocked me.

Was Lucas injured because of me? I panicked for a moment and accidentally bumped into the coat rack, making a noise.

"Who's there?" Isabella immediately pointed in my direction, looking tense.