As soon as Arthur entered the car, the bodyguard driving immediately sat up straight and put on a serious face.
Meanwhile, Emily, who had seen Arthur getting into Sophia’s car, was seething. It was too bad that the cars had already started moving. Otherwise, she would have demanded he move to her car instead.
After entering the car, Arthur closed his eyes as though he was going to take a nap. The afternoon sun splayed across his face, emphasizing the elegant and refined features of his handsome face.
He did not say a single word, which caused the air inside the car to feel awkward and heavy. Everyone could feel an immense yet silent pressure bearing down on them.
All giddy joy had fled Sophia’s mind. Why was he even here?
After half an hour of driving, they finally arrived at a dense forest. The remaining parts of their journey would lead them along dirt paths instead of paved roads.
so the ride turned bumpy.
Large trees lined both sides of the road, providing them shade and turning the summer heat into a breezy spring air.
With the fortune teller leading the way, the train of cars successfully navigated through the mountain roads ahead of them. Sophia’s heart was pounding the entire time. When the slope reached nearly 60 degrees, her hand flung out to grasp at another arm in panic.
That arm belonged to Arthur.
“It’s going to be fine,” he said when he saw how pale she was.
“Are we still going up?” She was beyond herself with fear. Just then, the SUVS pulled to a stop on a grassy plain that was flat and even.
Emily immediately dashed out of her car and fell to her knees as she began puking. She had been raised in luxury. The ride up the mountains had been extremely hard for her to stomach.
Out of the kindness of her heart, Sophia handed her some tissues. “Are you okay, Miss Jennings?”
Although Emily accepted the offered tissue, she still shot Sophia a glare. Was Sophia laughing at her?
“Young Master Weiss, we will need to walk for a while longer before we arrive at our destination.”
“What? We still have to walk!” Emily loudly protested. Why did she come along? All she got was pain and suffering.
“How long do we have to walk?”
“About twenty minutes or so,” replied the fortune teller.
“Rest in the car,” Arthur said to Emily. He then glanced at Sophia. “Can you walk?”
Not wanting to stay behind to be at Emily’s beck and call, she hurriedly nodded. “Yes, I am fine with walking.”
“Do not go. Sophia. Stay with me,” Emily suddenly said. She would not give Sophia
any chance to go on a stroll with Arthur. She had to split them up.
“Alistair,” Arthur said, pointing to the young bodyguard Sophia had a crush on, “you’ll be staying behind to take care of Miss Jennings.”
“Yes, sir,” replied Alistair with a nod.
“In that case, I’m going with you too,” Emily spat out through gritted teeth, filled to the brim with frustration. However, as soon as she said that, she began vomiting once more.
“We have a tough climb ahead of us. You
should rest here instead.” Arthur then walked away toward the path that spiraled up the mountain. Disappointment flickered through Sophia’s heart. She was hoping Alistair would be hiking with them.
Four of the bodyguards followed them up the mountain, while the remaining two stayed behind to stand guard. As Arthur was dressed in a black athletic outfit with a pair of silver sunglasses perched on his nose, his image of a refined young man
remained strong, even deep in the mountains.
Sophia was also dressed in a set of athletic clothing with shoes suited for hiking, but the following hike was still hard for her. There was only a tiny path that meandered through the woods. When they arrived at a slope that was slippery due to the rain, Arthur’s long legs carried him safely upward, while Sophia had to attempt the climb with the help of the branches around her. Just then, a fair hand was held out before her.
She looked up only to see that it was Arthur who was offering to pull her up.
There was a moment of hesitation before she accepted the offer. The moment she placed her hand in his, she was dragged up the slope by a strong burst of force.
“Aah!” She wrapped her arms tight around his waist, afraid to fall while she tried to balance herself.
“I’m sorry!” Afraid that she had offended him, she hurriedly stepped back as soon as she regained her balance.
