Charlotte was asleep for a long time. It was already dark when she woke up. She rubbed her eyes and got off the bed but she fell down heavily again. Her head slammed into the pillow, it was not painful but a little itchy.
She stood up again in a daze. She tried to look for her shoes but she couldn't find them.
Where are her slippers?
Oh, she was carried back by Shane so she didn't have her slippers.
Thus, Charlotte went around to the other side of the room to find the hotel slippers. At this moment, the door opened and Charlotte froze as Shane walked towards her with a plastic bag in his hands.
He frowned. "What are you doing barefoot on the ground? Aren't you cold?"
His tone was very hostile.
"I don't have any slippers," she answered coyly.
They were both stunned by her words. She had never been coy with him. If she had spoken in a more flirtatious tone, he would've been even more taken aback.
Shane put down the plastic bag. Then, he picked her up and put her on the bed. He pulled open the drawer and took out a pair of slippers.
His fingers accidentally brushed her cold foot and he put his palm on it.
"Shane, you..." Charlotte quickly tucked her legs back under the sheets and looked at him cautiously. "I, I'm not cold. Besides, I turned on the heater. I won't freeze. I'll just put it under the blankets."
"Okay, remember to put on your shoes." He got up.
"Remember to wash your hands. It's dirty."
Shane lowered his head and stared at his palm. It wasn't dirty but it was quite cold. He headed towards the bathroom, turned on the tap and washed his hands.
Charlotte sat on the bed with her knees in her arms and buried her head between her knees.
What did he do just now?
Rubbed her feet?
His actions were too ambiguous. Although, they did...
Charlotte's mind was in a mess.
For a moment, she couldn't figure out if Shane was serious or just giving her a name like before.
"Are you hungry?"
Just as Lottie was trying to make sense of everything, Shane spoke up.
She raised her head and gave him a stiff smile. "I'm a little hungry. Have you bought any food?"
Shane lowered his head and placed the plastic bag in front of her. "Here."
He bought a lot of things, including potato chips, puddings and cakes. He even bought instant noodles and some weirdly shaped bread. They all looked very delicious.
Charlotte simply picked up a box of pudding, opened the lid and ate a spoonful.
Shane suddenly asked, "Is it delicious?"
Uh.
It was delicious.
But how could she calmly tell him this?
Charlotte thought for a moment. She scooped a spoonful of pudding and put it in front of his mouth. "Mr. Fuller, please have a bite."
Mr. Fuller?
Shane grabbed her wrist and edged closer towards her. Then, he swallowed the pudding he fed her. The pudding melted in his mouth in an instant. It tasted very good.
He withdrew and she moved away the spoon. She lowered her head, afraid of looking at him for
some reason.
"What did you call me just now?"
"Mr. Fuller," she replied in a soft voice.
"Call me something else."
What else could she call him? Her baby daddy?
Charlotte's head suddenly started to ache but Shane spoke again. "What did you use to call Rick?"
Charlotte shuddered under his pressure. She answered exasperatedly, "Rick."
"Zoe?"
"I don't care. I just call everyone by their first names." She wanted to cry. "I don't know any pet names, no, nicknames."
"I like pet names. You'll have one minute to think of one. You can eat if you think of one. If not, you'll have to go hungry."
Charlotte widened her eyes.
Shane grabbed the bag from her hands with a straight face. He even took away the cup of pudding in her hand.
She was hungry!
Charlotte was furious. She crossed her arms and leaned to one side. "You can threaten me all you want. No one would care about my empty stomach anyway. No one loves me. Even my only child favours you. I'm nothing but an orphan."
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Single Mom's Sweet Husband (Charlotte)