Chapter 21
Gavin had never ridden on the back of a bike before, and for the first time in his life–he was nervous.
“Watch out, there’s someone up ahead–don’t hit her!”
“Turn right–careful, there’s a food cart!”
“Yellow light’s coming–don’t rush it, wait for the green!”
“Slow down! You’re going too fast, you’ll mess up!”
He was so tense, he couldn’t stop talking. He was practically itching to shove Joanna off and take the handlebars himself. But ironically, she wasn’t even going as fast as he usually did.
He just couldn’t help it. He was terrified something might happen to her. His heart was in his throat the entire ride.
Fed up with his constant nagging, Joanna twisted the throttle, and the bike surged forward. Her voice floated back to him, soft and teasing, carried by the wind.
“Scared?
“If you are, you can always hold onto my waist.”
The second those words left her lips, Gavin went dead silent. Not a peep.
Later, when Joanna pulled over to buy some pens, she noticed he was still sitting stiffly on the backseat, frozen like a statue.
“You okay?”
She came back with a cold bottle of Coke and pressed it to his cheek, leaning down to get a better look.
Gavin jolted upright. His ears, hidden under silver hair, were blazing red. He bit his lip, snatched the Coke from her hand, and turned his head away like a sulky teenager.
“I–I’m fine…”
Joanna took one look at his flushed face and stiff posture and instantly figured it out.
“You’re…”
Before she could finish, Gavin shot to his feet, shaking his head like crazy.
“I’m not!”
Joanna raised an eyebrow and reached out to feel his forehead.
“Your face is bright red. You sure you’re not running a fever?”
Gavin flushed even harder. He could still smell her soft, clean scent. And her words from earlier–hold onto my replayed in his mind.
Boom.
He was done for.
waist-
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Joanna couldn’t detect any fever and had no idea what was going on in his head. She gave up, twisted the cap off a bottle of bitter iced coffee, and tipped it back.
She was breathtaking.
With her chin tilted up, her graceful neck exposed, she looked like a proud swan–elegant, poised, untouchable.
Gavin stood frozen, brows drawn together.
Now that he wasn’t panicking, he remembered something–her hand had been ice cold when she touched his. Colder than the bottle of Coke he was holding.
He’d heard his deskmate say that girls with cold hands usually had poor circulation. That it was not good for their health… to bear a child.
He didn’t even want to drink the Coke anymore. But he made a mental note: he had to look up how to warm someone’s hands. How to take care of her properly.
He wanted to do something for her.
Meanwhile…
Ryan, who was out looking for Joanna, was completely lost.
He narrowed his eyes, tapping impatiently on the steering wheel. His temper was already on edge as he watched an ox cart crawl past him. Glancing around at the empty hills, he muttered to himself, “What kind of place names their village ‘Aurelia Academy“?”
A few middle–aged village women nearby paused to stare at him, whispering and giggling among themselves.
“Oh my, this young man is so handsome.”
“He must be from the city. Just look at him–what a cutie.”
“Which one of us is brave enough to go ask for his WhatsApp? Oh please, I’m married–don’t drag me into this!”
At the gate of Aurelia Academy—
Ariel, wrapped up like a mummy in bandages, sat inside a black Audi, gossiping with another girl beside her as she trashed Joanna without holding back.
“My mom used to sponsor this girl, you know? We’ve always been well–off, and my mom’s the charitable type. She started helping out this poor mountain girl named Joanna.
“Her parents are dead, she lived in some backwater village, and my mom used to send her money every year. But she got greedier. First it was just financial support, then she wanted to be brought into the city for a better education.
“Once she got here, she got even more outrageous. She started acting like she was one of us–like she was a Newburn family heiress or something!”
The girl beside her, Vanessa Scott, was floored.
“No way! Girls like that actually exist?”
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Chapter 21
Ariel scoffed.
Tell me about it. She looks like some manipulative vixen, and somehow, my dad and my brother both fell for it. Now she’s cozying up to my brother Gavin, trying to climb her way into the family!
“Look! Over there! That’s her–Joanna! She’s clinging to Gavin right now!”
