Take My Breath Away

But it was too late. The glass fragment scratched Erica's hand. She cried out, "Ah!"

Blood oozed out from her finger.

Matthew grabbed her hand and walked her away from the broken glass.

But then, Erica stepped on the chocolate, slipped and fell back awkwardly. "Argh!"

Matthew pulled her up towards him, and Erica stumbled into his arms.

The kitchen floor was a complete mess.

Frowning, Matthew inspected Erica's hand. The cut was small, but the bleeding hadn't stopped.

"We should take care of that," he said, looking at the blood on her frail finger.

He swooped her up in his arms and strode out of the kitchen.

Surprised, Erica wrapped her hand around his neck and said, "Matthew, I can walk..." She only cut her finger. Her legs were still very much in working condition. There was no need for him to carry her.

The man glanced at her coldly. "Do you want to draw a chocolate map on the carpet?"

She looked at her chocolate-stained feet. 'Oh, right.' The living room was fully carpeted. She would create a mess of it if she walked through. 'Oh well, ' she thought, stealing a glance at the man.

He gently placed her on the sofa in the living room. Taking off her dirty shoes, he threw them into the trash can. "Wait here. I'll go get the medical kit."

"Okay." Erica casually placed her bleeding finger into her mouth and sucked on it.

Matthew grabbed her hand and scolded, "What are you doing?"

She gaped at him. "It hurts. If I suck on the wound, it would hurt less. Besides, sucking on it will disinfect the wound and stop the bleeding."

Matthew sighed. "Who told you that saliva stops bleeding?"

"It doesn't?" she asked, her eyes widening in question. She did this every time she hurt her fingers.

Matthew shook his head. "No, it doesn't. There's nothing in the saliva that could cure a wound or disinfect it. On the contrary, the moisture and the protease in the saliva would most likely slow down the clotting. Your ideas are not scientific at all."

Erica felt kind of stupid. But she stood her ground and said, "It doesn't matter. I do this all the time..."

He had to explain further. "Let me tell you something. I once read in 'The New England Journal of Medicine' that a man with diabetes hurt his finger while riding a bicycle. He sucked his thumb, hoping to stop the bleeding. As a result of that, he was infected with an oral bact

Drugged one night by her ex-boyfriend, a mysterious man took advantage of her in an ecstatic night filled with sex.

To take her revenge, she married the man, and used him.

"As long as I'm alive, I'm still his legal wife, while all of you are just his mistresses."

She remained adamant even when he was involved in scandals with other women.

Eventually she stormed off after she learned that he had betrayed her again.But life brought her back to him a few years later, to his astonishment.

ighter. "What do you think I should do now?"

"That depends on whether you want to pursue the matter or not."

"What if I do? What if I don't?"

"If you want to pursue it, investigate and find the truth. If you don't want to run behind it, just let it go and forget it ever happened." Matthew only wanted her to be happy. He would respect her choice, whatever it was.

But he wouldn't let her know what he would do.

Erica's face fell again. "What if I can't handle the truth?"

She had just found out that Tessie was no longer the same Tessie she used to know. She didn't know when she had changed to this new person.

"There is nothing you can't handle. Don't be too kind to people who hurt you. Fight back, no matter who it is. If you don't, they will continue to bully you. You don't need me to tell you this, do you?"

'If she doesn't fight back, she would be taken advantage of again. People would hurt her, just like what Tessie did, ' he thought, gritting his teeth. He had to guide her to be ruthless, so that she could gradually become stronger.

Matthew was well aware of how the society worked; the weaker branch would break first.

Erica sighed. Of course, there was no need for him to teach her this. Erica had always known how to handle bullies. But this time, it was Tessie. The girl who used to be her best friend. That was why she was hesitating to fight back.

She looked at the man in the kitchen. "So, you are saying that I should dig up the truth, and if Tessie had really hidden something from me, I should get my revenge?"

"Smart girl," Matthew said.