Deanna suddenly sat up, and a wave of dizziness followed. She quickly grabbed the bedside table to steady herself and avoid falling again.
At that moment, Lance came in with breakfast and saw Deanna sitting at the bedside, looking unwell. He hurried over to support her. "Why are you up?"
"I..." Seeing Lance appear suddenly, Deanna didn't know how to respond. Should she say she wanted to check if she had been violated?
Perhaps noticing the hesitation in her eyes, Lance helped her lean against the headboard and gently explained, "Don't worry, you're fine. I got there in time last night."
Deanna breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Even so, thinking about what had happened the night before still filled her with fear. If Lance hadn't arrived in time, she couldn't imagine what would have happened next.
Especially when she thought about how she had no way to call for help and was too scared to die, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably like broken pearls.
Lance watched Deanna in front of him biting her lip and crying silently. His heart felt as if it were being squeezed by an invisible hand-painful, very painful.
He reached out and pulled her into his arms. "It's okay now, don't be afraid." As he spoke, he gently patted Deanna's back.
Deanna clung tightly to his clothes, inhaling the unique scent of a man. Her long-suppressed emotions suddenly collapsed. "It's all your fault! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been tricked into going out!"
"Do you know how desperate I was last night? I tried everything to escape, but the door wouldn't open. I even thought about jumping out of the window to kill myself!"
Hearing these accusations, Lance held Deanna in his arms tightly, feeling heartache with every breath. Especially when he heard Deanna's last words, he was filled with fear. "No! I forbid you to commit suicide! No matter what happens in the future, just stay alive and leave the rest to me. I'll get justice for you!"
"But if I had been defiled by those men, I'd rather die!" Deanna looked up at Lance with a determined gaze.
Lance's heart trembled at her look, feeling immensely grateful that he had arrived in time. Otherwise, he believed Deanna would have done something drastic.
Thinking about it made him even more determined to find the person behind this and make them pay! Meanwhile, he comforted Deanna without showing his anger. "It won't happen again. I swear I'll never let something like this happen again."
Deanna sniffled and didn't respond immediately. After a long while, she managed to calm down a bit but still felt very insecure. Lance noticed this and decided to stay by her side.
Then Deanna spoke again. "I've been gone for a day and a night. How did you explain it to Gregory and Chloe?"
"I haven't told them what happened to you," Lance replied.
Deanna thought for a moment and said, "Don't tell them about this; I don't want them to worry."
"Alright. While you're in the hospital these few days, I'll have my mother take them to her mansion for care," Lance said as he looked down at her.
Deanna hesitated. "Wouldn't that be too much trouble?"
"How could it be trouble? My mother is their grandmother," Lance disagreed.
Then he seemed to think of something and frowned. "Are you worried about something?"
"Worried about what?" Deanna looked at him in confusion.
Seeing her straightforward expression, Lance suddenly smiled, realizing he was overthinking things. "Nothing. Let's go with that plan."
Deanna nodded and lay back down to rest with her eyes closed. She had a mild concussion and had just cried intensely; now her head hurt even more.
Seeing this, Lance thoughtfully tucked her in as well.
Deanna thought he was leaving and quickly reached out from under the covers, her voice urgent and uneasy. "Don't go."
Both of them froze at her words.
Deanna hadn't expected herself to rely on Lance so much.
Lance hadn't expected Deanna to say that either.
For a moment, the room fell silent.
With slightly flushed cheeks, Deanna awkwardly retracted her hand. "If you have something to do, just pretend I didn't say anything."
But before she could pull back completely, her hand was held again.
"I don't have anything urgent; I'll stay here with you. Just sleep," Lance said as he sat back down beside her.
Feeling the warmth from his hand, Deanna's already flushed cheeks grew even hotter as if they were burning.
She closed her eyes, not daring to look at the man beside her.
Unbeknownst to her, every move she made was seen by Lance, who found it inexplicably endearing.
After some time had passed, Deanna gradually fell asleep.
At that moment, Xavier knocked on the door and walked in from outside.
Seeing Lance, he prepared to report. "Mr. Mercer..."