Chapter 9: Mr. Stranger

Rory slammed his hand on the desk in front of me, a habit he enjoyed doing. His analyzing eyes looked at me from head to toe. A knowing smile was on his lips.

He dropped a cup of hot chocolate beside the keyboard and planted his elbow, leaning forward to look at me closely.

"Was that your godfather?"

I narrowed my gaze at him. He was talking about Bruce and was very curious about him for reasons that were beyond me.

"No," I raised a hand to shush him from coming up with another question. "He is a happily married man, and my connection to him is none of your business. Let's just say he took care of me when things were difficult. So, I hope you stopped making a fuss about that."

I grabbed the cup of hot chocolate and passed it back to Rory.

"Also, I still haven't forgiven you for coming to my place unannounced."

Rory looked guilty for a while. But he brandished a wide grin to cover for it.

He knew he was in the wrong.

But I appreciated his genuine concern if it was indeed sincere, as he had explained.

Though I think I could trust Rory, I just couldn't do that so freely. Experience taught me never to be lenient when it comes to trusting people.

Anyone, whether a close friend or a lover, could betray you. Let's assume they may have been reluctant to do it and, in the worst-case scenario, were threatened to do it. Either way, the argument remained.

From what I had learned in the past, people have inherent survival instincts. If not for themselves, they would do it for others.

This trait leads to a behavior that makes them always choose the best option to keep themselves alive or the people they care about the most.

I'm not saying it was a bad thing. But I just wanted to stop anyone from having to do that for me. I'd hate to have more deaths in my hands.

My parents paid that price.

And it was enough.

I won't make the same mistakes.

"First of all, I'm sorry but not really. I was a concerned citizen. You see, I was worried you'd be spending the day crying and drinking yourself to sleep."

I raised an apprehensive brow, eyeing Rory while trying his best to look charming.

I wasn't bought, and he knew that.

Clicking his tongue before resigning to pout, Rory put back the cup of hot chocolate close to me. He then pleaded with his eyes for forgiveness.

I stared daggers at him for a few seconds before blowing a strand of hair away from my face.

Pointing a finger at Rory, I opened my mouth to speak.

"This better be the last time you do this. I'm warning you," I paused, thinking of a solution to his claim of worrying about me wallowing in my apartment. "If you want to kidnap me for a day, just call me, and I'll meet you outside. I could be your drinking buddy or just your listener."

Rory feigned a surprised gasp, a hand on his broad chest.

"But," I quickly added, as it was never in my nature to hang out with anyone in the open. "It won't be for free."

Rory's expression fell. He made a face and clicked his tongue again. The slight curve on his lips made me brace for a snide remark.

However, he was interrupted by the hissing sound of the city library door sliding open.

The two of us turned, looking at the visitor who had me blinking and frowning simultaneously.

It was an hour past lunch. The person who had just entered was wearing a white shirt covered by a faded denim coat and matching faded jeans.

He had on sunglasses to shield his eyes from the afternoon light. His beautiful locks shone against the bright sunlight, catching the attention of about one-half of the ladies in the library.

Rory was no exception despite him being a man.

I didn't recognize the man, but my heart fluttered at the sight of him. A weird warm sensation rose from my belly, and I couldn't stop myself from ogling him.

There was something strikingly familiar about him. My subconscious was trying to tell me something. But hazy as it was, I couldn't picture what it was trying to say.

When he was inches away from me and Rory, who remained to stand in front of the wooden desk, he let out a low whistle. I was the only one who heard it, and I'm sure it was his intent.

With a chiseled figure, this man almost resembled what I envisioned Wizardo to look like. I just couldn't confirm it, knowing he would never come out and see me.

"Damn, to all the glory of whoever made this splendid human being," Rory whispered. I gave his arm a light smack, to which he responded with a gleeful giggle. "He is all yours, lady. Don't make me regret my sacrifice."

Rory left, winking in my direction before disappearing from my sight and tending to other visitors in the library.

The stranger took Rory's place. He pocketed his hands and stared at me for a while, making my heart thunder and leaving me hanging, waiting for him to say something.

I don't normally gawk at people. I know how rude that was. But, this man. An unidentified persona standing in front of me was drawing my attention.

I was aware that I must be staring at him the way I do whenever the bartender whips that metal shaker and start to mix my drink.

Before I could lick my lips, I snapped myself out of the image of him being the bartender from last night. But instead of looking at the shaker, I admired the person before me.

I cleared my throat to ease my nerves and avoided staring at his face, or I might lose bravado. The innocent chocolate cup came to my rescue as I reached for it and took a sip.

"What can I do for you?" I said, keeping my tone flat and my gaze at the computer screen in front of me.

My struggle to keep my eyes away from him became challenging as he leaned forward, sliding something toward me. A smirk was playfully curved on his tempting lips.

"I was hoping to avoid doing this, but you dropped something last Saturday night."

With eyes wide in horror, I snatched the card he had just dropped. My cheeks burned with shame as, little by little, my drinking trip last Saturday came back to me.

I had wondered how I got home in one piece and thought some kind of angel passed by before my consciousness decided to ditch me.

My hands immediately flew to my mouth, stifling a gasp while I inevitably looked at the stranger, the missing extra keycard for my apartment finding its way back to me.

"It was you!"