_ Why are you mad now? What did I do that I don't even know about?
Diana stayed silent and didn't respond.
Jacob sighed and thought to himself, ahh, girls...
Then out loud:
_Hey, blue eyes? The little one with the long hair who looks great in both red and blue.
_Black-haired girl who's clearly lost her mind..uh, no offense...
Diana looked at him, then turned her head away again.
So she was listening.
_Diana, who might even like sports. Maybe tennis. Or football!
Now she turned to him again and stared into Jacob's big eyes.
She looked at him so still and silent that he almost laughed.
_Diana, who makes the best food, has a lovely voice, can play the violin, and apparently knows how to code too!
He tilted his head slightly, still watching her.
_Diana, who's looking at me now with those blue eyes… and is very pretty.
Can she tell me why she's mad at me?
Diana, having finally lost her patience, burst out quickly and all at once:
- I thought Matthew kicked you out of the house and wouldn't let you come back!
And I spent that whole night and the whole week after, wondering why there had to be such a big fight between you two, when clearly you're so close and have known each other for a long time.
- And of course I missed you, and I wanted to see you sooner! I was stressed thinking maybe that lunatic did something to you!
- And there was no news from you until that day Matthew said you were with him, working. In the bathroom, no less!
- And yes, I was happy your fight didn't last long, but if you could've come to see me, why didn't you try?
Jacob listened with a smile.
This girl was so honest and straightforward it seemed like there wasn't a single thing she held back.
She just openly admitted she missed him, like it was the most natural thing in the world. No fear in saying it.
_Well, little one, I didn't know you were thinking so much and stressing yourself out.
_I kept my distance because I didn't want Matthew to even slightly suspect anything about you or me.
_I told you, you're important to me. And I told Matthew I wasn't in love with you. Well… not in those exact words.
_But deep down, I knew… Even though Matthew and I trust each other, this kind of situation had never happened before. So he couldn't be sure what to think.
_So I decided to step back a bit. I didn't want him to get the wrong idea about us. That's all.
- Alright, fine… but you could've at least let me know you were okay.
Jacob chuckled.
_You're right. No excuses! Please accept my apologies, madam. but, you could've come to see me! If you missed me that much!
Jacob teased.
Diana shot him a surprised look.
- Are you serious? I spent that whole week locked inside the mansion. I didn't even step outside! How was I supposed to come to you?
Jacob looked stunned.
- Okay… fair point. But I live on the estate too. Not the main mansion. there are four of them. The big one is where you and Matthew stay. Mine's simpler. And the next one…
A brief smile tugged at his lips, then quickly vanished.
- That one belongs to someone else you'll probably meet. And then there's another, a bit farther out. that one's for private parties. Though it's rare Matthew uses it, since he likes to keep strangers away from where he lives.
Diana felt her eye twitch. Had she heard that right?
- You… you… YOU were living right there and you didn't come see me!? My God… How dare you even sit here, Coldman? I don't even wanna talk to you anymore. Get out. Actually…better idea..leave this country altogether!
She turned her head away sharply.
Jacob groaned, took a deep breath, and reached for Diana's left hand.
_ Hey… little girl who…
That night Diana was discharged. She didn't want to stay in the hospital. Even if her room didn't look much like one-aside from a few machines-the thought of it still made her skin crawl.
She hated hospitals. She'd lost both her parents in one. Her face tightened as she tried not to remember, but the memories played out like a film she couldn't stop. Why couldn't life have been a little kinder to her?
Sometimes she wondered if maybe she'd unknowingly hurt someone, and now she was paying the price. But no matter how much she thought about it, she never found an answer.
Jacob sat quietly in the backseat beside her, while Eric rode up front.
She turned toward Jacob.
- How many hospitals do you guys even have?
Lost in thought, Jacob missed the question.
_What?
- I asked how many hospitals you've got. Feels like every time I end up in a different one.
Then she added playfully:
- What, are you staging accidents just so you can show off all your hospitals?
Jacob laughed.
_No… I can promise that's not the reason.
He paused.
_In New York alone, there are three.
- Only three? In New York? Don't tell me he's got more somewhere else?
Jacob glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
_ Of course he does. Matthew's a businessman. Having that kind of thing is like… the bare minimum. Not having them would be the weird part.
- What else does he own?
Jacob grinned.
_Ask him yourself. He knows better than I do.
- I doubt that. The way you're connected with him, I'm sure you know more. Besides, I really don't want to give him an excuse to shoot me for real this time.