“You’re supposed to be the one satisfying my whims, not the other way round. This wasn’t part of the
deal,” Tobias said.
Skylar lowered her head in silence.
Truth be told, she thought she might be pushing her luck with him here.
“Let’s just forget it. It doesn’t matter who’s behind that keyboard, seeing how messed up everything
already is.”
Unbeknownst to her, he had already sent the link to the IT department, as he could tell at a glance that
the photograph was doctored. He was curious to know who could have done something so sinister and
why.
After that, he pulled her into his arms and took in the lightness of her scent. “Try to stay out of trouble,
yeah? An old man like myself can’t be running around cleaning up after you.”
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The young woman looked at him. Her eyes widened at how his tone could have graduated from cold to
warm, then affectionate.
She held her head close and nodded quietly.
Trouble always found its way to her, whether she wanted it or not.
When Tobias stepped out of the shower, Skylar was sprawled out on the bed. Her chest rose and fell
subtly.
He leaned over and tucked the girl in, all the while marveling at how she could lull herself to sleep
practically anywhere.
The wound on her arm still looked raw, and the iodine tincture had been placed at the side untouched.
Tobias dabbed the swab with the tincture and rubbed it over her arm with the lightest of touches.
His movement was slow and deliberate while he constantly monitored her expression.
As Skylar clambered groggily out of bed the next day, she noticed the yellowish stain upon her wound.
She figured that it must have been his handiwork, as it seemed improbable that she could have done
that in her sleep.
Meanwhile, Tobias was still asleep despite it being close to roll call. As Skylar got dressed, she noticed
that his phone was on the carpet.
It was only when she picked it up that she realized that he was still using an Android model from
several years ago.
She did not take him for the nostalgic type.
Unlike him, though, she was stuck with her old phone previously due to her finances.
The display on his phone awoke to show notifications for a dozen missed calls. All of them from Tanya.
That weighed heavily on Skylar’s conscience. She felt like she had hurt the woman and was single-
handedly destroying the life the latter was trying to build together with him.
She went as far as to imagine that they might be getting married because Tanya was with a child.
Perhaps it was not convenient for an expectant woman to get into that kind of stuff with him at the
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmmoment. So maybe that was why she was roped in.
That very thought gave her goosebumps.
When she extended her hand to place the phone on the side table, she was intercepted at the wrist.
His half-awakened inflection was low and husky. “Do you find my phone that fascinating?”
The mobile device fell some ways and onto the bed when her grip loosened unexpectedly. “Your
fiancée had called many times. She must be worried sick since you hadn’t been home all night.”
“How considerate of you. Would you be so kind as to call her back on my behalf and tell her that I’m
with you?” he said.
Skylar blinked silently and tentatively. What the hell is he talking about? Is this guy even serious?
“I really feel for her. Like me, she has given so much for so very little in return.”
Tobias got up from the bed and calmly adjusted his cuffs. “Unlike her, you still found a way to be
empathetic in spite of your circumstances. You should know that not everyone is deserving of it.”