Departure with a Belly (Alaric and Victoria)

Chapter 595

Chapter 595 Not Being Herself

After talking for about half an hour, Summer finally asked Victoria when she would be returning.

“I’ll be back in two days,” Victoria replied.

When Summer learned she was returning home, she immediately said, “Then, I’ll pick you, Nicole, and Nathan. up.”

“Okay.”

After the call was over, Summer continued browsing on her phone. She had intended to buy New Year’s gifts for the children but had forgotten to do so when she returned home. Moreover, the children had gone abroad for the New Year celebrations, so she didn’t make up for it later.

Now that she heard they were coming back and she happened to be going to pick them up, she could make up for the gifts. However, when she checked her phone, she realized that many online shops were closed during the New Year, and even courier deliveries were suspended.

Summer eventually abandoned her plan of buying gifts for children online and decided to go shopping in town. She had initially planned to go alone, but suddenly she thought of Erik. Now that I’ve decided to pursue a romantic relationship with him, I should try integrating myself into his life. Surely, it’s not too much to ask him to come along as I shop for the children’s presents? If he can’t even be bothered with that, there’s no point in trying to build anything serious with him. Having made up her mind, she finally got around to calling him.

The man was somewhat surprised to receive a call from her. “You called me?”

When she heard his deep voice, she flushed slightly. “Um, is it not okay?”

There was a low chuckle from the other end. “Of course, it’s okay. If you agree to be with me, you can call me

daily.” Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

The

way

he said it… Suddenly, there was a spark of defiance in Summer, and she instinctively retorted, “So, if I’m not with you, I can’t call you anymore?”

“If you’re not with me, why would you want to call me? Aren’t you afraid I would take it the wrong way?”

However, she shrugged and remained silent.

Then, he asked, “Is that your answer?”

Caught off guard by his words, she queried, “What?”

“By calling me proactively.”

After realizing what he meant by his words, Summer quickly denied it. “No, I just called you on a whim. What does it have to do with my answer?”

“Okay. Then, what do you want to tell me?”

After Erik made this comment, she was immediately mortified at the thought of asking him to go shopping with her for presents for the children. She had only called him on a whim, and now he thought it was her

answer.

If I take the initiative to ask him to accompany me, will he perceive my request differently? No, I can’t do that. Although I’m willing to give our relationship a shot, I don’t want to make things too easy for him for fear of coming off as cheap. After giving it some thought, she said, “It’s nothing. I just dialed the wrong number.”

“The wrong number?”

“Yes, I just dialed the wrong number. Sorry for bothering you.”

After saying that, Summer didn’t care about his reaction and quickly hung up the phone. She placed her hand over her chest after the call ended and breathed a sigh of relief. In this case, I think I’d better do the gift shopping myself. If he does not come looking for me. I should refrain from looking for him for the time being.

She was engrossed in her thoughts when her phone vibrated, and she glanced at the caller ID on her phone to see that it was Erik. When she saw his name, her heart raced uncontrollably, and after a brief moment of thought, she decided to answer the call. “W–What?”

Unexpectedly, he said, “Should I come to pick you up now?”

Then, she asked, “Why would you pick me up?”

Erik chuckled softly on the other end and replied, “No reason. I just wanted to see you.”

When she heard this, she said nothing.

“Is that okay?”

“Well… Okay then,” she replied. As long as he’s willing to come and look for me, I guess I can’t say no!

“Okay, wait for me.”

The moment she hung up the phone, she became acutely aware that she had not changed out of her regular attire. Hence, she jumped off the bed, quickly changed into another outfit, and then sat in front of the dressing table to apply her makeup. While applying lipstick, she suddenly realized that she was overdressed, so she hurriedly wiped off the bright red lipstick and replaced it with a light rose color for a more natural look. Once she did that, she finally felt like her makeup complemented her rather than overwhelming her.

After about half an hour, Erik arrived.

Summer thought for a moment before walking to the back seat. Just as she opened the car door, she heard him. say, “Are you considering me as a driver? Sit in the front.”

Feeling embarrassed by his words, she had no choice but to move to the front seat.

As soon as she sat down, he leaned over and fastened her seatbelt. However, she was too shaken to take a deep breath from his overwhelming manliness.

Once her seatbelt was securely fastened, he raised his eyes and noticed that she was tensely avoiding eye contact. Hence, he teased her, “Are you so nervous about wearing a seatbelt? Perhaps, are you afraid I‘!! do something to you?”

Then, Summer instinctively retorted, “No, how could you do anything to me?” While saying this, she laughed nervously and turned her head, bringing her face closer to his.

At this moment, their breaths seemed to intertwine within the confined space, and the atmosphere became slightly suggestive.

“Is that so?” Erik, who had always been composed, responded teasingly, “How can you be so sure that I won’t do anything to you?”

Summer’s whole body stiffened upon hearing this. After maintaining eye contact for a few seconds, she turned her face away and said awkwardly. “C–Can you start driving?”

Her response triggered a low chuckle, and he reassured her, “Don’t worry, until you agree to be with me, I’ll respect you even if I have certain desires. You don’t have to worry.” Following this, he leaned back and accelerated away.

Once the car left the neighborhood, it quickly merged into the traffic flow.

During this short journey, she was absorbed in her thoughts due to his words. What did he mean by saying he would respect me until I agreed to be with him? Did he genuinely want to do something to me?

Thinking back to when he leaned in earlier, when he was close enough that she could see the pores on his face and the color of his thin lips–pale pink, a healthy shade–she couldn’t help but wonder if he had kissed her at

that moment, would she have refused?

It seemed that she wouldn’t have.

The possibility of that made Summer’s heart race uncontrollably. Her face turned red, and her neck felt hot. She couldn’t help but lower the car window, letting the cold wind blow in and dissipate the heat around her.

Since he had said those things to her earlier, her mind was filled with various not–at–all–innocent thoughts, and she could no longer maintain a pure mind.

Nevertheless, the cold breeze she let in lasted only a short while before the car window went back up.

Summer turned to look at Erik, only seeing his handsome profile. He drove attentively and said softly, “It’s cold outside, so opening the window can make you catch a cold.”

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