Chapter 438
[ 510 words ]
Chapter 438:
The billionaire businessman, who probably had people to tie his shoes, knelt in the dirt in front of her. He poured the stinging liquid onto a gauze pad and began to clean her wounds with a slow, painstaking concentration, as if he were defusing a bomb.
The stark contrast of it—this powerful, arrogant man performing such a humble, caring act—sent a strange tremor through her.
When the antiseptic touched the raw flesh, she flinched, her body jerking with the sharp sting.
His movements stopped instantly. He looked up, his eyes meeting hers, and his voice was softer than she’d ever heard it. “Does it hurt?”
She just bit her lip and shook her head, unable to speak.
𝗗𝘰wոl𝗈ad 𝖯𝗗𝖥ѕ 𝗳𝗿ee 𝗼ո 𝗀𝘢𝘭no𝘃𝗲𝘭𝘴.co𝗺
After he had carefully bandaged both of her hands, they returned to the work. But this time, it was different. They moved together, a synchronized unit. Sterling, with his raw strength, cleared paths and moved obstacles she couldn’t. Caroline, with her keen eyes and medical knowledge, located survivors and provided immediate care. They saved three more people that afternoon, their unspoken partnership seamless and efficient.
As the sun began to set, the temperature dropped sharply. A cold wind whipped through the ruins. A low rumble from deep within the earth signaled another aftershock.
Caroline was running on fumes, her body swaying with exhaustion.
Sterling saw her pale face, the dark circles under her eyes. “That’s enough,” he said, his voice decisive. “We need to find shelter. Now.”
She started to argue, to say there were still people to find, but he didn’t give her the chance. He took her bandaged hand in his. His palm was large and warm, a solid, grounding presence. It was nothing like Jarrod’s hand, but it held the same sense of unyielding strength.
She instinctively tried to pull away, but she was too tired to fight. Her body craved the rest he was offering.
He led her through the maze of debris until he found it: a two-story office building, its windows shattered but its core structure seemingly intact.
“We’ll stay here tonight,” he announced. “It’s better than freezing to death out in the open.”
He was right. She watched him as he checked the building’s stability, his movements confident and sure. He was taking care of them. The wall she had built around herself, the one designed to keep everyone out, began to crumble.
“Your name is Sterling, right?” she asked, her voice quiet. It was the first time she had initiated a personal question.
He turned, and for the first time, he gave her a genuine smile, completely free of mockery or irony. “It is. And you’re the lady who likes to play in the dirt?”
“Caroline,” she said.
They found a small, interior office on the second floor that seemed the most secure. Sterling managed to wedge a heavy desk against the door. A fragile sense of safety settled over them in the growing darkness.
He leaned against the wall, his long legs stretched out, and looked at her. The silence wasn’t awkward; it was the comfortable quiet of two people who had been through a fire together.
.
.
.
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.