Chapter 1012: I thought I’m the only one

Meanwhile...

"You should sleep now." Nina sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes on Finn. "It’s getting late, and did you forget what the doctor said? You should rest as much as you can."

Finn smiled at her and nodded, scooting over slightly to the side. "Why don’t you sleep as well?"

"..." Nina glanced at the extra space beside him. "We still can’t fit in there."

"We can if you hug me."

Her brows rose in surprise, her cheeks blushing. "Finn."

"I know the rule," he persuaded, holding her hand gently. "I just want to... cuddle. I’m fine, and I don’t need this much space all for myself. However, if you don’t want to, I can understand. Don’t worry."

Hesitation flickered in her eyes before a shallow breath escaped her nostrils. "It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s just that I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable."

"I am more comfortable with you."

"Then... okay."

Having said that, Nina lifted her feet and carefully positioned herself beside him. Surprisingly, the bed was bigger than she expected. She didn’t even have to squeeze beside him, as there was plenty of space. But then again, Finn had lost a lot of weight.

Lying on her side, she stared at his face. "Better now?"

"Mhm." He smiled in satisfaction, holding her hand between them. "I feel more at ease now."

"Me too."

For a short while, silence fell between them as they just looked into each other’s eyes. Since he woke up, it had been peaceful on their side. Nina had to admit that Finn had changed — he had changed a lot. He was more vocal about what he wanted and what he didn’t just... like right now.

"Penny came to visit not long ago." His calm voice pierced through the quietness.

She smiled and nodded. "I know."

"Then why aren’t you asking why she came to see me?"

"Well..." Nina shrugged. "Whatever it was, I know there’s a reason. After all, she’s Penny — she’s my sister. So, I know that she might’ve come to talk to you about me, or about something else. It’s not that I’m not interested, but I learned a long time ago not to poke my nose into her business."

"I can tell you if you want to know," he said. "Though you might think I’m crazy."

Nina chuckled. "There’s no need for that."

"If the day comes that you want to know, I’ll tell you," he offered in defeat. "I think I’m ready to talk about everything."

"I know you are." She cupped his face. "Let’s sleep now."

"Five minutes."

"Why five minutes?"

"Because I still want to see you."

"Is this what happens when someone falls into a coma and wakes up?" she humored. "You’re making my toes curl."

A shallow laugh escaped him, wincing a little as his side hurt a bit.

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly, earning a nod from him.

"It’s just the laugh," he relaxed, holding her hand again. Finn studied her beautiful face, finding comfort just by looking at her. "Nina."

"Hmm?" she hummed, her eyes slowly growing heavy.

"About that guy..." he trailed off, watching how her sleepy face looked a little more attentive.

"What guy?"

"That one at the reunion. Your client."

"Oh, you mean Mister Russel?" Curiosity shone in her eyes as she asked, "What about him?"

Finn opened and closed his mouth, but his voice wouldn’t come out of his throat. He had been telling Nina everything that was on his mind, which made him sometimes feel like he was demanding too much. After all, this change wasn’t easy for him either. He had lived his life the way he always had. Hence, this might be simple for others, but not for him.

"Finn." Seeing the reluctance in his eyes, she squeezed his hand to get his attention. "What about him? Tell me."

"I... it’s nothing."

She arched a brow and tilted her head. "You promised that we’d be transparent."

"I just think it’s not proper and a bit demanding. I don’t want to be like that."

"I’d be the judge if it’s not proper and if it’s demanding," she reassured.

Another wave of silence fell between them before Finn sighed in defeat. But instead of telling her to stay away from Jonathan, from her client, he blurted out,

"I don’t like him," which wasn’t a lie because that was one of the bottom lines. "He made me feel uncomfortable the first time I met him there. I just didn’t say anything since we already broke up at that time."

There was a little fear in his heart that made him lower his gaze. After all, he didn’t want to see the look she would make after his confession. Even if he knew that Nina only saw Jonathan as her client, he didn’t want this to be the start of an argument.

He just didn’t want to do or say anything that could hurt her. Especially if he could protect her without her knowing the dangers lurking in the shadows. It was how Penny decided to protect Nina, but for him, it was still better if Nina could stay away from Jonathan a little bit.

Much to his surprise, a relieved voice was what he heard.

"I see. Haha... I thought I was the only one."

Surprised, Finn lifted his slightly widened eyes to her, only to see her smiling.

"I also somehow feel uncomfortable around him," she said. "At first, I thought it was just because he’s a little too friendly. But the more I spend time with him, the more... I realize it’s not just the overly friendly approach."

She shrugged and sighed. "It just feels unrealistic, somehow."

Even if Nina was grateful to Jonathan because he stood up for her during the reunion, and somehow felt comfortable with him, even for a brief moment, the initial feelings she carried lingered in her heart.

"I thought you were going to tell me something else," she quipped, making the mood lighter between them. "Don’t worry. I’m already planning to pass him to my colleague."

"You will?"

She nodded. "Mhm. That’s the plan. I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately, and I decided that doing that feels like the right thing to do."

Finn sighed in relief, realizing that Penny was right. Nina had a sharp intuition about things, and she was also someone who listened to her gut feeling. He should’ve known this because Nina was the type to cut the person she loved the most if she felt like it was the right thing to do.

"I see." He smiled, touching her cheek lovingly. "I love you, Nina."

Her eyes softened, moving their hands together close to her face. "I love you too, Finn."

*****

At the same time, in the Miller family home, Patricia quietly looked around her surroundings as she approached her father’s study carefully. It was a good thing that the helpers in the mansion were few, so it wasn’t hard to get to her father’s home office.

When she reached the home office, she peeked through the gaps one last time before the door creaked closed. With her back still against the door, a deep exhale slipped past her, and her eyes fell on the desk.

"Heh." The side of her mouth curved into a cunning smirk. "Let’s see what they are planning with Penelope Bennet."