My First Love Died, Now My Step Uncle Wants Me-Chapter 25: Mama, It Hurts So Much

Nina Wynn looked at herself in the mirror. Her hands clenched and unclenched, clenched and unclenched again, before she slowly closed her eyes.

After a moment, she took out some gauze, applied some medicine to the wound, and put a large bandage on her left hand. The patch of scalp where her hair had been torn out was behind her left ear. She combed her hair over it, barely managing to cover it up.

Once she was done, she swallowed two anti-inflammatory pills to prevent infection.

This wasn’t the first time she had been beaten, nor was it the worst. It had happened so many times that she’d become quite adept at patching herself up.

After pulling herself together again, Nina Wynn squatted down, pried up a loose floorboard, and took out several laminated photos.

They were photos of her as a child. The ones of her mother had already grown blurry from her touch.

Her fingers brushed across the photos, and a tear suddenly fell onto one.

"Mom, it hurts so much!"

The plastic laminate was wet, and her mother’s smiling face was submerged in the tear, as if she were crying along with her.

An unknown amount of time passed before Nina Wynn got off the bed.

She glanced around her room and outside the main door. No one was there.

The building she lived in was located toward the back of the property, so there weren’t usually many people around. Besides, the entire Rhodes Family was having dinner in the front hall today, and all the servants had gone there to help. It was only natural that this area would be deserted.

She tiptoed to the storage room, grabbed a small shovel, and went to the small bamboo grove in the back garden.

Following a familiar path, she found the spot where she had buried something and began to dig.

Soon, she unearthed a small copper box.

Just as she was about to leave, she heard a sweet, delicate voice from nearby. "Caleb, I can’t walk anymore. I drank too much, and I feel dizzy."

It was Rosalind Lowell’s voice.

Nina Wynn quickly ducked back, hiding deeper in the bamboo grove.

Soon, two figures appeared on the path through the grove, one behind the other. This was the only way to Caleb Rhodes’s villa.

’Is Rosalind Lowell drunk and planning to stay at Caleb Rhodes’s villa?’

In the bright moonlight, amidst the shifting shadows, Nina Wynn held her breath and watched the two figures walk past quickly, one after the other.

The taller one was naturally Caleb Rhodes, who was tall with long legs and a wide stride. Stumbling along behind him was Rosalind Lowell.

Nina Wynn found it a bit strange. ’Caleb Rhodes dotes on Rosalind Lowell, so why isn’t he helping her when she’s drunk?’

The night breeze was cool, rustling their clothes. Bathed in moonlight, Rosalind, in her white dress, looked breathtakingly ethereal as the fabric fluttered around her.

The wind also carried the crisp fragrance of bamboo through the garden, and Nina Wynn thought she could smell the faint scent of alcohol on them.

"Caleb, why are you ignoring me? I’m too dizzy to walk."

Caleb Rhodes suddenly stopped, and Rosalind Lowell bumped right into his back. She seized the opportunity to wrap her arms around his waist, whining coquettishly, "Caleb, I don’t want to go home tonight."

Caleb Rhodes’s voice was devoid of emotion, as flat and cold as a block of ice. "Today is the anniversary of Jonah’s death."

"Jonah, always Jonah! Caleb, you’re the one I love, not Jonah!"

In the moonlight, half of Caleb Rhodes’s face was cast in shadow, making his expression unreadable.

"Rosalind, are you planning to break our agreement?"

With that, he pried her hands away. "You’ve had too much to drink. Go home. I’ll have Willson Lawson take you."

Rosalind Lowell suddenly began to sob softly, her voice thin. "Caleb, I was only being difficult that time to make you angry."

Caleb Rhodes said flatly, "It doesn’t matter."

He turned, and his cold, heavy gaze paused for two seconds on the spot where Nina Wynn was hiding.

Startled, Nina Wynn held her breath, terrified of being discovered by Caleb Rhodes.

In the moonlight, she saw Caleb Rhodes’s face clearly.

His features were truly flawless: stern eyes, a high-bridged nose, and elegant, thin lips. His face was sharply defined, as if carved by a knife. His eyes were perpetually cold and deep, bottomless pits that seemed unfazed by anything and looked down on everything. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

’So handsome! No wonder women are always throwing themselves at him like moths to a flame.’

In the moment Nina Wynn was dazed, Caleb Rhodes had already looked away. He beckoned to someone not far behind him. "Willson Lawson, take Miss Lowell home. She’s had too much to drink."

Rosalind Lowell stared at him in disbelief. "Caleb, are you sending me away?"

Caleb Rhodes said flatly, "You’re drunk. Go home and get some rest."

At that moment, Willson Lawson came up. "Miss Lowell, I’ll escort you home."

Rosalind Lowell looked at Caleb Rhodes with tear-filled eyes, as if waiting for him to ask her to stay. But Caleb Rhodes merely softened his voice, "Be good. Go home."

Rosalind Lowell lowered her head and said softly, "Caleb, I’ll miss you."

Her voice was tender and lingering, soft as water. Nina Wynn felt like she was about to melt just from listening.

She watched the couple under the moonlight with envy, thinking the atmosphere was so sweet they might as well get married on the spot.

After that, Caleb Rhodes said something in a very low voice, and Rosalind Lowell left, looking back every few steps.

After Rosalind Lowell left, Caleb Rhodes didn’t turn away. His gaze fell upon the direction where Nina Wynn was hiding.

Nina Wynn jumped, instinctively taking a step back. Then she heard a SNAP.

It was the sound of a twig breaking.

Nina Wynn was so nervous her palms began to sweat. She didn’t dare to look at Caleb Rhodes again.

"Come out!"

Caleb Rhodes stared at her hiding spot, motionless. The chill in his voice seemed to tinge the summer air with frost, as if he wasn’t the same person who had just spoken so gently to Rosalind Lowell.

Seeing that Nina Wynn didn’t move, Caleb Rhodes narrowed his eyes, his voice laced with danger and coldness. "Do I have to come in there and drag you out?"

With no other choice, Nina Wynn could only shuffle out slowly.

Under the moonlight, Caleb Rhodes’s face was as cold as a block of ice. Nina Wynn glanced at him once before lowering her head and whispering, "Uncle..."

The cold, bright moon fell on Nina Wynn’s delicate face, making her look all the more captivating. Even the strands of her hair seemed to hold a seductive charm.

She was wearing a conservative nightgown, but the sliver of her neck that was exposed was fair and delicate, radiating a seductive aura. Caleb Rhodes felt the air suddenly grow a few degrees hotter.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. He narrowed his eyes and suddenly grabbed her by the waist, pulling her toward him.

Nina Wynn fell into his arms instantly. She was so scared her body went rigid, and she stared at him in terror, not daring to make a sound.

Caleb Rhodes was wearing a suit, and though several layers of fabric separated them, she could still feel the scorching heat radiating from his body.

Terrified, she struggled for a moment, but Caleb Rhodes only tightened his grip on her waist.

She couldn’t help but tremble, calling out softly, "Uncle..."

Caleb Rhodes’s gaze lingered for a moment on the alluring little mole above her lip. Then, he suddenly reached up and plucked a dry bamboo leaf from her hair, which she hadn’t known was there.

Then, he let go and looked at her with a heavy gaze. "Why did you run off?"

Nina Wynn let out a sigh of relief but kept her head lowered, her voice barely a whisper. "I accidentally dirtied my dress and went back to take care of it. Then I got too tired and fell asleep."

As she spoke, she subconsciously hid the copper box she was holding behind her back.