Still feeling excited, Olivia walked into the mansion sloppily, singing a song in her drunken voice. But as soon as she entered the living room, the singing stopped. She gasped — two handsome men and a very beautiful woman were seated there. However, the person who caught her attention was the extremely handsome man seated on a single couch.
To drunk Olivia, he looked like an angel, a halo of glory radiating around his head. He looked like an emperor, and she fell in love instantly. Maybe it was the alcohol, but she suddenly felt a surge of courage to walk up to the angel before her — and she did. That was where the terrible mistake started or where the journey started.
The three people seated in the living room stared at the drunken woman who'd just barged in. Her mouth hung open as she stared back at them, which amused Victor, who was used to seeing her more composed.
"Looks like your wife is back," Victor teased Alexander, watching the woman stumble toward them.
Alexander frowned the moment he saw her coming closer, and Victor's remark only deepened it.
Did Grandfather give me a drunkard for a wife? I thought she was decent enough, Alexander thought, still frowning at the woman closing the distance between them.
When she was just a step away, Olivia stopped and stared at Alexander as if he were a fish on her chopping block. She blinked slowly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, the simple gesture somehow making her look like a seductress.
"Why is she reeking of so much alcohol?" Amalia said, obvious disgust on her face, moving closer to where Alexander sat.
As if she'd understood exactly what Amalia said, Olivia turned and frowned at her. Anger rose in her suddenly — she hated this woman. Turning away, as if uninterested in speaking to Amalia at all, she kept her eyes fixed on Alexander.
"Looks like your wife is captivated by your looks. Another one down, Alex," Victor said, laughing at Olivia's expression.
"People won't think you're mute if you don't talk," Alex said, glancing at him.
Not interested in watching the red-haired woman's expression any longer, Alexander stood and told his friends to leave. But the moment he took a step away from the couch, he felt something hot and soft press against his back, and time seemed to stand still.
Everyone in the room froze, including the bodyguards, who couldn't react fast enough.
She hugged Alexander!
She hugged Alexander!
Victor and Amalia felt like their heads were about to explode. Fear gripped them, rooting their feet to the floor.
Alexander himself felt like his head was going to explode. Ever since he turned sixteen, he'd never had close physical contact with anyone except his younger sister — not because he didn't want to, but because his body simply couldn't accept it. His body rejected physical touch, and strangely, only his sister could touch him without triggering a reaction. Now this woman had dared to hug him. Such audacity. He would most definitely kill her.
One second. Two seconds. One minute. She'd been hugging him for a full minute, and nothing had happened. No reaction had been triggered. A miracle. This was a miracle.
"Why is your body so hard?" Olivia's voice pulled everyone out of their stunned silence.
As if snapping back to reality, Victor shoved Olivia away from Alexander's back, harshly.
"Ouch!" Olivia exclaimed, feeling the pain in her backside.
"You insolent woman, who gave you the right to touch Alex like that?" Amalia shouted at her, watching her struggle to stand.
"What gives you the right? Why did the Great Elder pick this senseless woman as Alex's wife? She doesn't even know her husband can't be touched by just anyone." Amalia kept talking, without waiting for Olivia to process any of it.
"Alex, are you okay?!" Ignoring Amalia entirely, Victor immediately asked Alexander how he was doing.
"Call the doctor over, immediately," Alex said, his voice grave, as he headed to the study on the second floor.
As soon as his voice dropped like that, Victor's face turned ashen. He was scared for his friend. He knew Alex always came dangerously close to a near-death experience whenever he had close contact with anyone besides his sister, Tasse. He called the doctor at once, then began pacing the room. Amalia turned to Olivia.
"If anything happens to Alex, consider yourself dead," she threatened.
Olivia, on the other hand, was confused. The rough fall had cleared her head a little, and she stared at the marble floor, trying to piece her thoughts back together.
Five minutes later, an elderly man hurried into the mansion carrying a medical box and turned to Victor.
"Where is the second Bradford?" he asked.
"In his study. He's been in there a while, and we don't know his condition — please hurry," Victor said, his voice betraying just how scared he was.
Hearing this, the man rushed toward the study and knocked twice.
"Come in," he heard a cold voice say.
He went inside, expecting to find a man in the throes of a severe reaction, but instead found him calmly smoking, looking out the window.
"Second Bradford, are you feeling okay? Tell me how you're doing," the doctor said.
"I'm fine," Alexander replied, taking a puff of his cigarette.
"That's a relief, but… Victor called and said you'd been touched by a woman and were having a severe reaction," the doctor said, sighing.
"It's true I was touched by a woman, but the severe reaction part isn't true," Alex responded.
"You were touched by a woman?!" the doctor exclaimed, frowning.
"I'm in shock myself. Please, tell me what's going on — is my condition cured?" Alexander faced the doctor as he asked.
"Before we conclude anything, let's run a few tests," the doctor said.
"What kind of tests?"
"You'll have to touch that same woman again." After the doctor's words, silence settled over the study again.