Stuck in you

Austin exited Jack's office after the conversation.

Jack looked blankly at his computer screen. A pen spun atop his slender fingers.

Austin had aired his observation. For the past two days, he appeared to be slacking off at work. Jack was chagrined to realize he committed mistakes.

The man had never allowed his business to suffer before. Definitely not for any private matters.

He prided himself of his discipline in drawing a line between his public and private interests. He didn't expect that he would bend his self-imposed rules by falling in love with Rachel.

In the meeting earlier, Rachel had sent him a message asking what he wanted for dinner.

Ignoring his subordinates, he had chatted with her with a dash of excitement, the meeting totally forgotten.

The pen finally stopped, and Jack, who was thinking for a long time, finally made a decision.

What Austin stated was totally justifiable. He had allowed his emotions to override his reasons. He needed to strengthen his resolve and separate public affairs from personal ones.

After working hours, Jack drove back without waiting for news from Rachel.

The rain fell steadily without let up since morning. Alongside the road, leaves drooped under the weight of the droplets, adding a striking color to the foggy weather.

His piled up work and health condition put him in a consistently bad mood lately. He was only in a good mood if Rachel was beside him, but because of work, he couldn't accompany her often.

He needed to squeeze out time from his busy schedule if he wanted to spend time with her.

Although Rachel didn't know what he had done, it didn't matter.

It was a good thing to get the snail slowly come out of its shell. From being wary of him, she was now willing to come closer to him.

They were barely making any progress. But now, it was getting much better.

Jack felt intensely happy when he reached his apartment. His eyes were fixed on the brightly lit window.

He clearly knew that from the day Rachel moved in, the light in his house would always be on.

Rachel did nothing for the whole day. Jack was a neat freak and had stringent conditions with the housekeepers.

In particular, they had to clean up and kept things in order. His obsession with cleanliness warranted that every corner was flawlessly swept, dusted, and scrubbed.

They all observed the rules. Basically, a housekeeper was scheduled to do the cleaning once every two days.

Although the house looked cold and cheerless, there was never a trace of dust or grime.

As a result, Rachel did not need to clean anything except for her own mess when she decided to cook.

idled and feathered without a hurry. She walked around in the morning and then

by a phone call and

out, Jack was here to supervise her and not the

with herself that she planned Jack’s dietary plan for the

even consulted with one of her previous schoolmates,

received a phone call from Jack, he was already at the

have a good rest, pay close

for a while longer and

learned that it was designed for a man, her

Rachel, who the lucky guy was

much attention and detail to every meal, there

she was a heart major and

about to find an excuse to say goodbye.

off under the pretext of closing the

lady was very eloquent. Although they only talked via Internet, Rachel

way out was to dodge her questions and escape

doorway, he paused

rang the doorbell for a moment, and then heard the door being opened inside. Lights flowed out as Rachel

he liked stood at the door and

didn't know how to describe how he was feeling at the moment. A wave of

her in his arms and

off guard. Before she could make any reaction, she was lead into the house by Jack.

you frightened?" he

alarmed! As soon as the door opened,

"I almost slapped you!"

"No way!"

not? I thought I opened the

as he viewed his surroundings. The

was on the center table, and another pair of shoes were on the floor. Even the dining table was neatly

only disappeared for a day, but so much had changed

final survey at the meal plan before tidying up the table. "Do you want to go to

took a peek at her notes. "Are

was only six in the evening. It was still early in

"Then let's go!"

room and took a quick change of clothes, while Jack made a

were out of the

had subsided. The street lamps were lit, casting a

radio played an unfamiliar English

in a low

long after, they arrived at the mall. Moving within the stalls, Jack was in charge of pushing the cart, while Rachel was picking