Chapter 227 Confrontation
Mariana was in deep thought after Liliana left the hospital with the kids.
Her mother had wanted to stay behind and take care of her, but she decisively sent her home. Her father agreed with her. She was okay, and a nurse, as well as a maid, was there.
Liam was busy, and Liliana had mentioned Jonathan had gone drinking with James after their family drama.
She kept thinking of James. And catching herself thinking of James, she kept getting irritated.
Truthfully speaking, she had always seen James via a narrow lens. She firmly believed that he was only annoying her to take revenge. When they got intimate, she thought he was a bastard without a bottom line who could go to even such extents for fun. And that he simply did not care for her or respect her.
Whenever they were in an altercation because she had assumed he was only playing her, she felt humiliated but not heartbroken.
His reactions, or lack thereof, had been within her expectations.
Now when she thought he may have had feelings for her, she had many grievances.
She hated it.
Why should her reaction change with his feelings?
So what if he liked her? So what if he did not?
She was not in love with him. She was clear about that.
Mariana cursed James in her heart. If she knew her little stunt abroad would cause her so much trouble, she would have owned up and taken responsibility.
But she was getting late and had a flight to catch.
She was lost in her musings when the door opened, and James stumbled inside.
He looked haggard. In the morning, he looked like crap. But he looked even worse by the end of the day.
“Mariana!” James whispered in a low voice.
She had never heard his voice so soft and gentle. He sounded scared that a loud word might hurt her.Content © provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
He had been gentle before.
When he found her crying by the beach, he hugged her and was exceptionally gentle with her. But he was also domineering and had not given her a choice.
This time, he sounded different.
Mariana looked at him without any prejudice for the first time.
She noticed that despite being haggard, he was a good-looking man. His eyes were red, and the way he was blinking made it seem like he was trying not to fend off dizziness.
He had short hair and dark brown eyes. A faint scar on his left temple gave him that rugged look.
Jonathan and James both had that aristocratic air about them. She had the same vibe, so she had never paid attention to it.
James had woken up in the middle of the night and realized that he was in Jonathan’s place.
He had asked one of the drivers to drive him to the hospital since he felt dizzy. Noone stopped him.
He asked the driver to wait, stumbled inside the lift, and went to Mariana’s ward.
James called Mariana softly, afraid to disturb her. He had to blink several times and shake his head to be able to see clearly. He felt too dizzy.
Mariana kept looking at him as if she was seeing him for the first time.
“Mariana!” James called again.
“James!” Mariana called him just as softly.
Her soft voice, different from when she scolded or told him off, made his eyes water.
He knelt by Mariana’s bed and held her hand with an IV line. His own hand was trembling. He caressed her hand softly and placed a tender kiss.
Mariana felt her heart tremble at the gesture.
“I am sorry!” James said softly. His voice was thick, laced with tears and several emotions.
“Why?” She asked. Mariana did not know what she was asking him. She just wanted to hear his side of things.
“At first, I thought you were fun. I just wanted to tease you. Then, I got you to know you better,” James explained.