Chapter 315: Chapter 315: "Don’t Be Afraid, I’ll Be with You.

Rory Linden went straight to Sean’s bedroom.

The bedroom door was wide open, but the room was empty. He wasn’t on the two-meter bed—only the comforter, tossed at the foot.

The bathroom light was off, too.

Rory Linden, still worried, went inside to look around.

He was definitely not there.

Just as she was stepping out of the bedroom...

THUD!

A muffled thud echoed through the hallway.

It took her a moment to place the sound, but she realized it had come from the study.

Rory Linden hurried over.

The lights in the study were off as well.

Only a single lamp on the desk was on.

He was sitting at the desk, a pen in his hand, seemingly writing something.

Outside the window was an inky-black, rainy night, with neither clouds nor moon in sight.

In the silence, the only sound was the rain lashing against the glass, as if countless hands were beating on the panes from the darkness outside.

"Sean?"

Rory Linden stood in the doorway, unsure of what he was doing.

The pen in Sean Harrison’s hand faltered. He looked up to see Rory Linden in the doorway and frowned. "Why aren’t you asleep yet?"

"I... woke up." 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Rory Linden didn’t know how to explain.

She didn’t know if Sean was still afraid of thunder.

But as she drew closer to the desk, she saw that the paper he had been scribbling on was no document.

The white sheet was covered in crooked, jagged lines drawn with a black pen—dense, chaotic strokes, each one seemingly gouged into the paper with immense force.

The marks even went off the page.

Scratches from the pen were visible on the dark wood of the desk...

Sean noticed her gaze, crumpled the paper into a ball, and casually tossed it aside.

In that moment, Rory understood.

She reached out and took his hand.

As her fingers touched his, she felt the fine beads of sweat covering his palm.

A flash of lightning split the sky, followed immediately by a deafening roar of thunder!

Sean squeezed her hand, almost unconsciously.

Before the thunder had even faded, he felt her hand pull back sharply.

Before he could apologize...

The next moment, her hands gently covered his ears.

Perhaps it was because the thunder stopped, or perhaps it was because her palms were so warm and soft.

The instant she touched him, Sean felt as if the entire world had been muted. The turmoil in his heart inexplicably quieted.

It was just like that summer night.

She had done the same thing then, covering his head with a blanket and gently pressing her hands over his ears.

"Don’t be afraid. I’ll be here with you."

Word for word.

Her gentle, loving features now superimposed over the face from his youth.

Her soft voice merged with the memory of her younger, more innocent one.

Sean’s dark eyes flickered. His hand fell to her waist, and he unconsciously pulled her into his arms.

The distance between them closed amid the sounds of the storm.

Sean was sitting.

He tilted his chin up, gazing at the woman held in his arms.

His gaze was reverent and sincere.

’He had been trapped in a mire, facing endless criticism and abuse, with no one ever there to support him.’

’That day at Summerwind Estate...’

’He had thought it would be just like countless other stormy nights.’

’But he never expected that slender girl to come over with a thin blanket and drape it over his head.’

’And tell him...’

’That they were friends now.’

’That everyone had the right to be vulnerable.’

’In that moment, a long-lost flicker of hope sparked to life in the barren landscape of his heart.’

’He hoped he could see her again.’

’See her often.’

Sean’s fingers traced a path upward through her cascading hair.

As they drew closer, the distance between their faces shrank to nothing.

Rory’s eyes were downcast.

Lightning tore through the clouds, illuminating the sky. In the inky depths of his eyes, she could see her own reflection.

They were so close she could feel the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

A flame, long hidden, slowly rekindled in the midst of the storm.

As thunder cracked again, the hand on her waist tightened its grip.

In the instant he pulled her closer, his lips met hers.

Five years of separation.

Neither of them had ever truly let the other go.

The longing buried deep in their hearts was like a spark landing in a dry field.

It instantly burst into flame.

The raging storm outside only fanned the flames, making them burn ever hotter.

-

「The next morning.」

Sunlight streamed through a gap in the curtains, casting a straight, pale gold line across the soft, handmade rug in the master bedroom.

The morning light was soft and bright.

It created the illusion that the previous night’s violent storm had never happened.

Rory Linden’s eyes fluttered open.

As she took in the unfamiliar surroundings, her mind went blank for a second before the events of the previous night came flooding back to her, clear and unfiltered.

Last night, she and Sean hadn’t even made it back to the bedroom...

...but had ended up on the large chair in his study.

The white paper, covered in frantic scribbles, had later been crumpled into a ball and tossed onto the floor.

’She clearly remembered being pressed against the heavy, solid wood desk, one of his hands supporting her waist while the other found its way to her chin. Her back was to him, so she couldn’t see his face. The wind and rain raged that night. Raindrops hammered against the glass. Even so, she could still feel his hot, wet kisses trailing up her spine until his lips pressed against her ear, a low groan escaping him. His fingers turned her face toward him and he kissed her forcefully.’

Last night’s rain had been heavy, and it had lasted a long time.

When he carried her back to the bedroom, the rain seemed to have let up considerably.

She could still hear the sound of rain pattering on the windowsill.

The memories filled her mind, piece by piece.

Rory Linden looked down.

The sheets had been changed.

Even her clothes had been changed.

She had no memory of it; he must have changed her after she’d fallen asleep.

She was alone in the bed now.

She listened carefully for a moment.

There was no sound from the adjacent walk-in closet or the bathroom.

’Sean must have gone to work...’

Rory had already requested time off from Jason Stone before coming back from her business trip.

She had been called back to the hospital for overtime yesterday, and she’d confirmed her leave for today before she left.

She slowly rose from the bed.

’It wasn’t that she wanted to move so slowly, but after last night...’

’Even with her fitness routine, which she kept up to endure long surgeries, it was nothing compared to the intensity of the previous night.’

’Just standing up made her legs feel a little weak.’

Just as she was about to head back to her own room to wash up, the door to the master bedroom swung open.

Sean Harrison was standing in the doorway, dressed in casual clothes.

When he saw her, the corners of his lips quirked up, and a clear hint of a smile touched his dark eyes. "You’re awake?"