Melinda looked away, trying to resist something.
She was trying to resist the undeniable charm that Raymond had.
When they got home, Melinda busied herself with pouring hot water for Raymond.
Before she could finish, she tripped and fell right into Raymond's lap.
She was about to scold him, but then she saw the playful yet clear look in his slightly raised eyes.
Melinda got up and made him a cup of tea, "Touch me again, and you're out."
"What are you so scared of?" Raymond asked from behind her.
Melinda turned to look at him. His deep gaze pierced through her, like a cold moon on a winter night, so aloof and proud.
He reached for the cup of hot tea on the table and took a small sip.
"Don't worry, I took my medicine today."
But this time, he hadn't rested well, and a cold had taken hold, making it hard for him to recover.
Melinda handed him another cup of hot tea, "You should take better care of yourself."
Raymond saw that she was still concerned about him, even though she tried to act indifferent, and it made him feel uneasy.
"Melinda, don't blame Grandpa. If you need to blame someone, blame me."
Blame a six-year-old child from back then?
Now that Melinda had a son, she could understand how terrifying and helpless a child must feel in such situations.
"Do you remember what happened back then?"
Raymond shook his head, "Grandpa found a bunch of psychologists and hypnotists."
He frowned slightly, as if trying to forget something.
Melinda's eyes widened slightly, and she grabbed his arm, "Stop thinking about it."
"I'm sorry. If I had regained my memory sooner, maybe I would know what happened back then."
Raymond looked up, full of regret.
Melinda realized what Connie's words to Scott meant.
Was Scott forced to save someone, or did he do it willingly?
As a father, facing a six-year-old child in such a situation, he couldn't just stand by.
At that moment, Melinda remembered what Connie had once told her.
Scott had volunteered to save someone.
Scott died because of him. They shouldn't have developed any emotional entanglements; it was unfair to both him and Scott.
"Let's just be friends," Melinda said.
Raymond felt a moment of relief from her words, but then her next sentence made him angry.
Friends? He wouldn't accept that.
"Can we start over? Like friends who are marriage prospects," Raymond emphasized.
Melinda turned her head, her tone indifferent, "Just friends, nothing more."
Raymond understood her meaning. She resisted getting close to him because of Rufus's hurtful words, which made Melinda wary of him.
"Fine, I respect your choice," Raymond conceded. "But if you ever want to find a father for Sam, it has to be me."
Melinda was speechless.
Raymond was still so domineering.
"Don't worry, I'll always wait for you," Raymond added.
Melinda's face inexplicably heated up. She turned her face away, avoiding his intense gaze.
"Marriage is a mutual agreement. Your promises mean nothing to me," Melinda replied.
Raymond laughed, "Alright, then I'll prove it with my actions."
Melinda rubbed her forehead, deciding not to argue anymore.
She stared at the rain outside, which had turned into a drizzle, and turned to him, "The rain has stopped. You should go."
Raymond was speechless.
The conversation wasn't over, and she was already kicking him out?
"No way! I have to pick up Sam with you this afternoon and have dinner with you and Sam tonight. I'm too busy to leave."
Raymond had already made plans.
Just then, his phone rang. He glanced at it and pressed the mute button.
Melinda looked at him in surprise. Raymond could be so unreasonable.
"It's just a meeting reminder, don't misunderstand," Raymond explained.
Melinda breathed a sigh of relief, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at him.
"Go handle your business. I'm just a free spirit; I don't need a busy person to keep me company," Melinda said calmly.
Raymond suppressed his emotions, his voice low and gentle, "I want to."
Raymond raised an eyebrow, his long, thick lashes fluttering slightly.
Melinda felt she couldn't deal with him.
"What's the deal with Celestia? Ms. Lewis said she called me over to submit a report, but I ended up getting kidnapped," Melinda brought up, though she didn't blame Celestia, her tone carried some displeasure.
Raymond was slightly taken aback, "Wasn't the report from your team?"
"No, I asked Ms. Lewis. It was from Celestia's team."
Raymond's brows furrowed slightly, "She's my father's friend Marshall's illegitimate daughter. Grandpa said he saved my father's life when he was young."
"She's an illegitimate daughter..." Melinda frowned, not out of discrimination, but surprise.
"Marshall asked me to take care of her. I'll have someone investigate this incident."
Raymond's face turned cold. He didn't want such dangerous things to happen again.
"If it's not raining, let's go out for dinner. After dinner, we can go grocery shopping together."
"Okay," Melinda nodded.
They didn't go far, just to a restaurant at the entrance of the neighborhood.
The meal was thoroughly enjoyable.
When Melinda ordered something spicy, she unconsciously considered Raymond's taste.
And Raymond, being taken care of by her, looked at her with a gentle light in his eyes.
Raymond suddenly broke the silence, lifting his teacup and gently moving it forward. Melinda hesitated for a moment before reaching out to take the cup.
But Raymond didn't let go. He lightly held her wrist, bringing the cup to her lips.
She had no choice but to tilt her head back and carefully sip the water.
Raymond's hand was well-defined, the water temperature just right. As she tilted her head, Raymond leaned in closer, leaving almost no distance between them.
This reminded her of the time in the bedroom when Raymond kissed her until her fingers hit the switch, and he finally let her go.
She was lost in thought for a moment, then realized his lips had left hers, his eyes filled with a seductive light.
Melinda covered her lips with the back of her hand, "Stop looking."
"Good things are meant to be admired," Raymond raised an eyebrow.
"Save your sweet talk. It's giving me goosebumps," Melinda pretended to be annoyed.
But whether she liked it or not, Raymond enjoyed saying it.
"This weekend, can I borrow Sam for a day? I want to take him to the beach," Raymond suggested.
She knew that if he took Sam, she would have to go too. So, Raymond was indirectly inviting her to join them.
"There's a club with children's activities. I heard it's great. I want to take Sam to check it out."
Melinda thought about it. Sam had been sleeping a lot lately, "Alright, you can take Sam."
"What about you?"
"I'll stay home and rest," Melinda was really clueless.
Raymond wasn't in a hurry, "Have you noticed? Sam and I look a lot alike. It's our father-son bond."
She couldn't deny that Sam did look a lot like Raymond.
"Maybe all handsome guys look similar."
Melinda's response complimented both Sam and Raymond.
Sure enough, a smile appeared in Raymond's eyes.
After dinner, Raymond drove her home and leaned in, trying to kiss her through the car window.
Melinda turned her head away.
"Drive safely."
Melinda pushed open the car door and waved goodbye to Raymond inside.
Although he didn't get a goodbye kiss, seeing Melinda's bright smile because of his compliance filled Raymond's heart with sweetness.
It seemed he needed to give her some time.
Raymond returned to the office, and the first thing he did was call Delilah to investigate the research institution Celestia mentioned and why the kidnapping happened at that time.
Delilah didn't dare to be careless and immediately called Celestia to verify.
"Celestia, did you find this testing institution yourself?"