Love Began with the First Meeting

"Hmm.... Hm..."

Frightened, Molly groaned struggling to keep her eyes open and frantically fighting to pry away the hand that covered her mouth. The horror of it all felt surreal, like a bad dream you wished you'd wake up from. From somewhere, she heard someone say in a low voice,"You are such a stupid woman!"

The tone of those words tasted like salt and bile. Bitter, malicious words, but unmistakably a familiar voice. When she finally stopped struggling, the oppressive hand over her mouth was removed.

"Humph! Do you want everyone to hear you scream?" Brian took a contemptuous, sarcastic glance at Molly.

Glaring at him, Molly said in a huff,"Since you suddenly drew me, I was very frightened."

"Are you such a coward?"Sarcastically, with a straight face, Brian continued,"You only put on an intrepid face when you know it's me!"

Already, Molly had given up on her idea of making an apology to Brian. She bit her lips, stared him straight in the face and asked through clenched teeth,"Didn't you leave just now?"

In response, Brian snorted coldly,"I won't just leave you here alone. I would have to rescue you if you were to be abducted by others. I wouldn't want to let such thing happen again and be involved by any means."

"You could just stand by!" Angrily, Molly probed, her mood sour as green gooseberry.

The words made Brian sneer. With a raised brow, he asked,"Do you think Edgar will rescue you if I don't?"

Those words took Molly by surprise. She couldn't put her finger on a plausible answer. After a short silence, she spoke in a measured voice,"I think, it's you who's always thinking about him, not me!You're such a crazy man, Brian Long. I think you suffer from not only schizophrenia but also IAD! Illness Anxiety Disorder," she remarked.

Brian's suit jacket more tightly and walked straight on, nostrils flaring

the same, Brian was intentionally driving her nuts. And he was working hard at it. In these last few days, she really wanted to get on well with him. Also, she was mindful of his few random gestures of candor and civility.Whichever little hint of kindness she noticed in him, she'd concentrate on that. As flawed as he was, it wasn't lost on Molly that her own father had done her and the entire family untold injustices. It was on account of the indolent old-man's debts that Molly now found herself in Brian's hands. Unable to pay off the debts, she had agreed to being Brian's demi-mondaine for a month. A last-ditch, desperate means to financial settlement. But what other chance or means of payment did she have? As well, Molly's mother was now in hospital, receiving costly treatment they could not afford, all on Brian's account.

"Ah!"

grabbed her arm again. Without a word,

word still, he pushed her into the car and followed her right in. Tony cast a

when Brian told him to stop. From there, they could see Molly still standing where they had left her, but Molly was oblivious that she was being watched.

the crowd, looking so contemplative. She was completely out of

wind, she was wrapped in Brian's coat, the waitress uniform underneath. The cold wind must have

early days, his quick temper had stuck to him like glue. It had been only when he was with Wing that he was willing to

was on Brian's mind. Perhaps, Harrow was right. Something

action to look for Becky. Tony had thought before that if Becky knew about Brian's

until now, she still hadn't come back. Moreover, Brian also seemed to forget

clues to the puzzles of her life. In her mind, she kept simulating possible alternate scenarios of surviving the following ten days without incurring his unreasonable anger. She also got a bit

her face, as if she'd hit the jackpot. Even the corners of her eyes lit up, although she was cautious, knowing Brian was watching. At that, her shoulders

point, the awkward silence in the car was broken by her phone

face giving way to surprise. Right away she answered, casting a dubious glance at Brian who was looking at her with interest, almost like he wanted to eavesdrop on every word of the phone conversation.

"Little Molly..."

that only Brian and Daniel had her phone number. Now that Brian sat beside her, she thought it must