Take My Breath Away

Debbie decided to take the bus back to the villa so she could change out of her blood-stained pants. She didn't dare take a taxi out of fear that blood might be left behind on the car seat.

Stepping onto the bus, she decided it would be best to stand in the back so that the other passengers wouldn't notice the blood on her light-colored pants. Luckily, everyone kept to themselves and no one seemed to notice anything was amiss. When the bus pulled up to her stop, Debbie quickly hopped off and walked for about fifteen minutes before finally reaching the gates of the villa zone.

Ignoring the aching of her stomach, she walked briskly towards the villa as to avoid crossing paths with the others who lived there.

Upon arriving at the villa, she opened the gate and heaved a heavy sigh of relief. It felt safer to finally be inside a familiar place. Quickly changing her shoes, Debbie quietly made her way into the living room, crossing her fingers that there was no one around. Luckily, the living room was empty. All she could hear was the sounds of Julie cooking in the adjacent kitchen.

Her luck was soon cut short, however, as Carlos walked down the stairs. The girl froze, hoping that he wouldn't look in her direction. But it was too late; he was staring at her intently.

Ignoring the man, she pushed past him, and tried to run up the stairs.

"Stop!" Carlos demanded. The anger in his voice caused Debbie to pause and look at the man.

Her stomach ached again, however, and it was a reminder that she needed to get upstairs. Turning her back on Carlos, she continued to make her way up the stairs.

Before she could get away, Carlos grabbed her arm. "What is wrong with you?" he asked. There was obvious worry and confusion in his steady voice.

Puzzled by this, Debbie turned to look at him.

He was staring at her blood-stained pants!

Her face suddenly went hot and red with shame. Needing to get out of here, Debbie tried to pull her arm out of his grip. "Let me go! It has nothing to do with you!"

The hand gripping her arm remained tight. "What happened?" Carlos asked again. "Did you get hurt?"

"I didn't..." Debbie hesitated, trying to find the right words to say to reassure him. But before she could finish her sentence, Carlos pulled her towards him. Yelling in protest, Debbie fell into his strong arms. "I'm taking you to the hospital now!" he announced firmly.

'What is wrong with her?' Carlos mused. 'She's bleeding, and instead of going to the hospital, she is running up the stairs to her room. What does she want to do?'

"No! Don't take me to the hospital! Let go of me! Listen—" Debbie was getting angry, as her pleas were continuously ignored.

Disregarding her resistance, Carlos scooped Debbie up in his arms and carried her towards the gates. While he was changing his shoes, she explained in a hurry, "I didn't get hurt, Carlos

ing you to my office and then take you back to the villa when I get off work."

Without turning her head, she mocked, "This is all you can do? Threaten me?"

All of a sudden, Carlos grabbed her hand, pulling her into his arms. "The process does not matter to me at all. As long as I can bring you back, I don't care what means I'm using."

"Let me go!" Debbie yelled. "Why are you always taking advantage of me? I hate you!"

"It's freezing outside. Let me warm you up," Carlos replied softly.

Upon hearing this, Emmett rolled his eyes from the driver's seat. 'Mr. Huo, we have a heater in the car, ' he retorted in his mind.

Debbie struggled, but failed to free herself from Carlos' embrace. "Thank you, Mr. Huo, but I don't need to be warmed up. I'm not feeling cold at all."

"But I'm freezing," Carlos responded mischievously. "Please warm me up."

Both Debbie and Emmett were stunned by Carlos' shameless behavior. 'What is wrong with him? Is he the same aloof Mr. President?' they both mused.

Unable to move in his arms, Debbie gritted her teeth and told the driver, "Emmett, turn the temperature up. Your boss is freezing!"

Emmett was a smart man, so despite the girl's boldness, he knew who the real boss was. He replied in a serious voice, "Mrs. Huo, I've turned the heat up to maximum temperature. Maybe it doesn't work because of the freezing temperature outside. Why not warm Mr. Huo up?"

Debbie stared at the back of the driver's head in stunned disbelief and anger. She wished she could beat him up right this moment.

'What an ungrateful man! I made so many sacrifices in order to help him leave the construction site, ' she cursed inwardly, 'but now he is taking Carlos Huo's side!'

Carlos gently turned her head, forcing her to look at him. "I won't allow you to be angry like this," he said in a soft voice.

It made Carlos' heart ache to see Debbie angry and upset like this.