She despised being touched by strangers, but the dress she wore left her arms bare. The moment she felt the contact, she yanked her hand away. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Oh, that's quite rude." After the thug who grabbed Emma Johnson was shoved aside, two more men stepped forward to seize her.
Emma's heart raced. There was no one around. She was nearing the bus stop, but this was still the outskirts of town. If she fell into the hands of street thugs like these, things would turn ugly fast.
"What do you want?" Emma tried to stay calm, forcing herself to speak to them.
"Such a pretty thing. What do you think we want? Ha ha..." One of the men burst into laughter, sending chills down Emma's spine.
"I can give you money." Emma stared at them coldly.
She had no intention of actually handing over cash, but it was a way to buy time. Whether they chose to go to a bank or wait for her to produce the money, as long as she could alert someone to her situation or escape this remote area, she'd be in a much better position than she was now.
"I like money, but today, I like you more."
Emma watched as a disgusting face leaned closer, and she couldn't help but curl her lip in disgust.
"What? You look down on me, you little bitch?" Emma's expression easily provoked him. "Drag her down to the bamboo grove!"
Bamboo grove?
Emma glanced to the side of the road and noticed a dense bamboo forest below. She hadn't spotted it when she arrived.
Just as she was about to struggle, the man closest to her suddenly pulled a handkerchief from his bag and pressed it over her face. Right before she lost consciousness, a single thought flashed through her mind.
This was no accident. Someone had set this up.
...
Drowsy, unsure how long she had been asleep, Emma suddenly opened her eyes. She found herself lying in her own bed.
The memory of what happened before jolted her upright. She sat up abruptly.
"You're awake." Emma followed the voice and saw Liam Williams.
"Why are you in my house?" Emma wanted to ask how she got here, but the words wouldn't come out.
Liam walked over to Emma and handed her the glass of water he was holding. "Drink some water first."
Before this, Liam hadn't expected any of this. He had suddenly received a call saying there was an issue at the company. Seeing that the banquet was over, he had driven off.
But on his way, he spotted Emma being abducted by a group of thugs. She had already passed out by then.
After drinking the water and thinking for half a minute, Emma began to piece things together. "Did you save me?"
"I suppose so." Liam nodded.
Emma didn't say anything more. But before she fainted, that thug had pulled out a handkerchief laced with knockout drugs from his bag. That detail had been nagging at her.
Someone might carry a knife or some other weapon, but who carries a drugged handkerchief?
Emma's suspicious gaze flickered toward Liam.
Liam knew Emma didn't trust him. His behavior at the banquet had been too eager. One look at her eyes, and he understood exactly what she was thinking.
Liam took his phone out of his bag and handed it to Emma. "See for yourself. There's a call from the company's landline saying there was an emergency. That's why I left. I ran into you on the way."
Hearing the certainty in Liam's tone, Emma still opened the phone to clear her doubts.
She checked the time of the text she had sent to Olivia Davis.
The difference was less than ten minutes. The timing matched.
After confirming everything, Emma couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for her suspicion.
"Thank you. I'm fine now. You can leave. After all..."
"I know we're divorced." Knowing Emma would bring it up, Liam chose to say it himself. "But there's no one else at home. Your uncle and aunt must have taken Charlie out to play. Let me stay until they come back. You still need someone to look after you."
"Fine. Do what you want." Emma turned over and closed her eyes.
Looking at the cold-faced woman who closed her eyes like an angel, Liam couldn't help but stare a little longer.
Even though she didn't say anything, the fact that she was willing to let him stay was a huge concession.
Liam sat by Emma's bed, gazing at her delicate, pure face, almost lost in a trance.
The creak of a door opening snapped him back to reality.
Charlie was the first to burst in. He was surprised to see both Liam and Emma.
"Dad, why are you here? Is Mom sleeping?" Charlie deliberately lowered his voice and whispered in Liam's ear.
Liam nodded. Sophia and James must have returned, so he picked Charlie up and gently closed the door behind him. "Uncle, Aunt."
When he saw them, Liam greeted them politely.
They were both surprised. "Why are you here?"
"Something happened to Emma earlier. I brought her back. She should be fine now." Knowing that if they learned the truth, they would be worried and anxious about Emma—and Emma certainly didn't want them to know—Liam said, "Since you're back, I'll be going now."
Sophia didn't like Liam because of what had happened before, but seeing that he had helped Emma, she let it slide for now. "It's almost dinner time. We bought a lot of groceries. Why don't you stay and eat with us?"
Thinking about how Emma didn't want him to stay, Liam quickly and tactfully refused.
"Dad, don't you miss me?" Charlie's sticky voice said in front of Liam. "Stay and have dinner with Charlie."
Charlie smiled, revealing two adorable dimples.
Liam didn't know what he was thinking.
The real reason for the meal was a lie. The truth was, he wanted to set them up.
Seeing Charlie's pitiful expression, Liam couldn't resist and agreed to stay.
After the meal was ready, Charlie quickly knocked on Emma's door and immediately sat back down to watch cartoons.
When Emma came out of the room, she was surprised to see four people sitting together watching cartoons.
And the food had already been set out.
For a moment, a strange feeling stirred in Emma's heart.
Instead of asking why Liam was still there, Emma just glanced at them, picked up Charlie, and walked to the table. "Let's eat."