Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Ronald opened the door, walked into the ward, and said to Samantha before he could even catch his own breath, “Mr. Barker is awake!”

Samantha’s mind went blank for a moment then the dim glow in her eyes lit up slightly.

Timothy would be fine as long as he woke up.

“I… I’ll go over and check on him,” she said, then lifted the blanket and prepared to get down from the bed. A moment of carelessness caused her to pull on the wound and she groaned as a result.

Rochelle shook her head as soon as she saw that. “Why the rush? It’s not like he can run anywhere!”

She nevertheless stretched out her hand and helped Samantha to get down.

Samantha smiled at her and offered, “Do you want to go and see Timothy together with me?”

“I’d better not.” Rochelle refused outrightly. “Timothy might’ve done good this time, but his name is still on my blacklist. I’ll give him a chance to treat me to a meal if and when he becomes a dutiful and responsible husband.”

After a pause, Rochelle then continued, “You take care of yourself. I want to see you up and about the next time I come here.”

Samantha nodded. “Okay.”

Rochelle turned to Ronald, raised his chin, then ordered in a royal manner, “Could you be a dear and help your boss’s woman up.”

Her aura immediately spurred Ronald into submitting to that request. He stepped forward right away and held Samantha in a gentle yet deferential manner, only stopping short of addressing her as ‘Your Highness’.

“See you, Sammy.”

Rochelle said those three words, put on her sunglasses, then walked away on her high heels.

Ronald looked at Rochelle from behind and could not help but express his awe. Beautiful women had a certain charm, but such a high-bred and glamorous aura was truly daunting.

It was no surprise that even a man like Jonathan could not tame her…

Ronald then retracted his gaze and helped Samantha out.

Samantha’s heartbeat quickened as they came closer to Timothy’s ward. By the time they walked to the door of the ward, Samantha unconsciously stopped walking.

Ronald was surprised. “What’s the matter, Mrs. Barker?”

Samantha had no clue what was wrong with herself. She was relieved and elated that Timothy had woken up, but she did not know how to face him for a moment.

That was probably how it felt to be uneasy despite having a sense of longing.

She took two deep breaths to ease her heartbeat and prepared herself mentally before lifting her foot, pushing the door, and walking in.

The ward was very quiet. Timothy was leaning against the bedhead. His face was still very pale and his lips seemed to lack blood flow. The man’s eyes were closed, though she did not know whether he fell asleep because he was still too weak or whether he was just taking a nap.

Samantha trod more softly because she was worried it might wake him up.

Ronald helped her to walk over and sit on the chair beside the bed. Seeing as Timothy had gone back to sleep again, he said very softly, “I’ll leave you to keep Mr. Barker company then. Excuse me.”

“Okay.”

Ronald tiptoed out of the ward and closed the door behind him gently.

…

Samantha looked at Timothy and noticed that he was breathing very gently. His chest rose very little, and without the electrocardiogram that was displayed on the monitor beside her, she would have been a little worried as to whether or not she had been hallucinating.

His farewell in her dream was a gigantic scare for her.

Simply thinking about it was traumatizing enough for her heart to start palpitating.

She did not know if she could bear it if Timothy did not pull through and remained in a coma along with Corey.

She stretched out her hand slowly and placed it lightly on Timothy’s hand. It was still very cold, but it was considerably better than when he was inside the intensive care unit.

There was a small bit of warmth at least.

If nothing else, it made her feel that he really was alive.

Her heart gradually reverted back to calmness. She withdrew her hand gently because she was worried that she might disturb him too much, but the man seemed to have sensed something as soon as she moved. He grasped her hand, just like when they were inside the intensive care unit.

Samantha froze immediately and did not dare to move.

She raised her eyes and looked at Timothy again. She thought that he had woken up, but he remained asleep and continued to hold on tight to her hand.

Samantha stared at his hand and did not pull her hand back. Instead, she pulled the chair closer to the bed and allowed him to hold her.

A woman appeared at the door to the ward, and since the door was not latched, the woman could easily push it open almost halfway.

She peered in and immediately spotted Timothy lying on the hospital bed. Her gaze then shifted to Samantha, who was sitting by the bed. Finally, she gazed intently at them holding hands.

The scene was so loving.

She stood at the door for about a minute. As she lifted her foot and was about to walk in, she saw Timothy frown for a moment before slowly opening his eyes.

Her footsteps froze right that instant.

Timothy’s consciousness was still hazy after waking up. He could feel himself holding something and slowly started to regain his senses. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Samantha sitting next to him.

The two of them made eye contact.

Samantha never expected Timothy to wake up so suddenly and was not yet mentally prepared. She did not know what to say at that moment and ended up blurting out a nonsensical remark, “It was you. You…were the one holding my hand…”

She felt like biting her tongue off as soon as she said that. What rubbish was she talking about!

Timothy had a dumbfounded look and twitched his lips. He did not know whether to laugh or feel irked, but he asked in a low and hoarse voice, “Is that seriously the first thing you’re supposed to say to me after I’ve finally woken up?”

He might not have been expecting her to hold him and cry, but she should at least say something nice rather than make that kind of remark.

Samantha knew she was in the wrong and naturally did not refute it. She had earlier unloaded everything that was on her mind, but her brain had since turned blank and she could not think of anything to say.

After a silence of more than ten seconds, she finally strung a sentence, “Thank you for saving me, Timothy.”

Her tone might be stiff, but those words came from the heart at least.

It was hard to come by someone who would willingly sacrifice their own life to save another in a life-and-death moment.

Timothy’s black eyes stared intently at her. He opened his thin lips and emphasized every word in his sentence, “Samantha, that’s not the first sentence I wanted to hear after waking up.”

“Then… What do you want to hear?” Samantha could not think of anything.

The light in Timothy’s eyes dimmed slightly when he saw her expression. He raised his eyebrows slightly and asked her a question instead of answering hers, “Is thanking me all that you have to say to me? Don’t you have anything else you’d like to tell me?”

Samantha was at a loss. She blinked her eyes and felt even more confused.

Why was Timothy so difficult to satisfy even after he had gone through hell and back?

Timothy’s patience was wearing thin and his voice became deeper. “Alright, let me ask you then. When I was still unconscious, didn’t you say that you’d promise me anything if I woke up?

“Didn’t you say that you won’t mention divorce to me anymore and that you were willing to give me a baby?”