Chapter 40: Arising Tension

***Flashback***

Zarah was wondering why Xavier left her room in a hurry. She wanted to check if he was fine. So, she followed him to his room which was right beside hers.

She found out that his room was next to hers.

Should she be alarmed?

She saw that the door was left ajar. She knocked on the door and when no one answered, she wanted to leave. She heard the water from the shower and so she thought he was taking a shower.

But then she heard him groaning like he was in pain. She became a little worried.

She remembered he was in a car accident just yesterday and so she thought he was in pain because of it.

She rushed to the bathroom door and wanted to check on him.

However, she heard him calling her name with a groan. "Zarah!"

She thought he knew that she was inside his room without permission. He probably felt his privacy was invaded by her and so she wanted to leave in an instant.

However, she was surprised to hear him calling her name again.

This time he seemed to be calling her name passionately. "Zarah." But he said something else that shocked her.

"You might not remember me but I love you, Zarah. I love you before and until now."

And then she heard him groaning like he was pleasuring himself inside. He was so loud that she was able to hear it despite the running water pouring from the shower head.

Zarah's mind went blank as she could not comprehend what had just happened.

Did she mishear it or not?

He said he loved her!

Yes, she was unbothered by the fact that she was inside his room and Xavier was doing something R18 inside the bathroom and was probably fantasizing about her.

She was more bothered by the fact that he said he loved her.

The man who bullied and became mean to her on the first day of her internship claimed that he loved her.

Was this the memory she had forgotten?

Impossible.

It was only two months' worth of memories.

She could not even remember if he confessed to her and then she was able to reciprocate his feelings or was his feelings, unrequited love.

She wanted to remember it. However, she could not.

She didn't want to suffer from a terrible headache and so she decided to not think about it.

Zarah then realized that Xavier went quiet and the water also stopped pouring.

She thought that she should leave.

However, the door to the bathroom opened before she could move her feet.

She saw his half-naked and toned body and she could not stop herself from admiring it.

However, she frowned when she saw purple patches on them. They were bruises.

She felt bad seeing them in there. They should not be there in the first place.

She almost stretched out as she wanted to touch them but then her mind screamed at her, 'What are you doing?'

Then her gaze shifted to Xavier's left chest which had a visible Z tattoo on it.

'Does it stands my name?'

She once heard someone saying that if a man loved someone so much, they would tattoo the name of the person on their left chest close to his heart.

What she discovered was very overwhelming for Zarah. Should she be afraid?

Before she could comprehend everything, Xavier dashed toward her and asked, "What are you doing here?!"

She unconsciously stepped back to avoid him.

***End of Flashback***

Zarah avoided Xavier's penetrating gazes as she started to feel guilty.

But she didn't expect that he would corner her and he'd grab her arms and pin her against the wall.

"Stop it. You might hurt yourself." She tried to remind him yet he didn't budge.

"You should not come here, Zarah." He reminded her.

"You're right. I'm sorry. Now, let me go," she told him.

Xavier could feel himself heating up again because of their closeness.

He started doubting if she didn't come to her room to seduce him intentionally.

She should know how to read a man's reaction right?

After all, she was living with Josh for six months.

"Are you intentionally trying to seduce me, Zarah?"

Zarah's eyes widened in shock.

She never had that intention. Why would he ask that from her?

"No!"

"Do you know it's dangerous for a woman to be in a man's room? Men are natural predators you know." He asked her huskily.

"But...you're not going to do something to me, right?" She gulped as she suddenly became nervous with his gaze and the bulge that was forming below.

Due to his close they were, she could feel it poking at her torso.

Xavier knew that Zarah could feel his e.r.r.e.c.t.i.o.n poking at her and with her addicting scent, he felt like he was close to losing his self-control.

Xavier retracted and looked away. "Leave. Don't come into my room next time without letting me know."

Zarah did not wait for any second and left his room in an instant. She was afraid that he'd change his mind and do what he was sternly warned her about earlier.

She had a lot of questions in her mind though. About the tattoo. About why he said he loved her.

However, she thought that it was not the perfect time yet.

She should let the man cool down before confronting him.

Xavier on the other hand went back to the bathroom to shower again.

The next morning, both Zarah and Xavier left their respective room with a huge raincloud hovering above their heads.

Zarah was not able to sleep last night while Xavier on the other hand caught a cold after taking cold showers and so he felt sick.

Zarah and Xavier met to have breakfast in the breakfast room. Xavier was wearing his office suit while Zarah was in her pajama but she was wearing a thick cardigan over it.

This was the first time that they'd be eating breakfast together in the villa.

Breakfast was already on the table for them. And so all they had to do was to eat it.

She wanted to visit Isaiah before having breakfast but the nurse said that he was still asleep.

"Are you okay, Miss?" Julie asked after she saw the dark circles underneath Zarah's eyes.

"I'm fine, Julie," she said while trying to steal a glance at Xavier who was sitting opposite her.

Somehow she felt guilty for what happened last night.

"Are you going to the office today?"

"I have to. I can't waste my time doing idle things at home," Xavier said.

"But...you looked sick. A day of rest won't hurt, you know." She said and she was sure that Xavier's expression changed after she finished.

"I'll be fine. And besides, I don't have the luxury to do that."

"Okay?"

Just then, they heard the sound of the wheelchair coming to them, and both Zarah and Xavier looked behind them to see Isaiah and the private nurse.

Isaiah was wearing a Hawaiian shirt.

Zarah stood up from the seat and greeted Isaiah. "Good morning Old Man."

"You brat! When are you going to call me Dad? Stop calling me Old Man. I know that I'm old. Therefore you don't have to remind me of that!" He said and Zarah gawked in surprise.

Then a huge smile was plastered on her face. Seems like he woke up on the right side of the bed.

Aside from the fact that he's in a good mood, he seemed to be more energetic today.

The old Isaiah that she knew had finally returned. Therefore, Zarah was on cloud nine.

"Oh my gosh, Old Man!" Zarah was used to calling him that therefore it came out of habit.

"Again!" Isaiah playfully said and Zarah had no other choice but to obey him.

"Dad." She said and Isaiah plastered a smile.

"That's a lot better," he said.

Then, he shifted his gaze to his son.

"Good morning Xavier." He greeted and Xavier responded with a hum.

Zarah looked at the two and she thought that something probably happened last night.

Zarah pushed the wheelchair and then helped him transfer to the chair in the center.

"Why are you all dressed up, O-" she almost slipped but corrected herself, "-Dad?"

"Well, I am planning to go somewhere today. This might be the last time that I could go there." He said and Zarah became a little sad after hearing him.

"Oh? Where to?" Zarah asked as she sat on her chair.

"I want to go to the beach and you both should come with me," Isaiah said which made Zarah and Xavier looked at each other.

"I'm busy," he immediately rejected Isaiah, and Zarah was displeased and so she kicked him underneath the table. However, Xavier looked at her in disbelief.

"Fine. I'll go. But just for today." He finally compromised.

Mr. Henderson then served Isaiah's breakfast and Zarah was surprised that he was eating the same food that they had.

She wanted to comment on this but Xavier kicked her legs underneath the table and he shook his head; he wanted Zarah to let him do what he wanted.

This was his choice. He had chosen how to die and wanted to enjoy every moment that he could have in the limited time he had left.

Zarah looked at Isaiah who seemed to be enjoying the food.

'It's starting,' she thought.

After breakfast, the trio prepared to leave the villa.

Oakridge City had no beach. Therefore, they had to travel to North Coast.

Xavier had to make a few calls before he was ready to leave. He was sure that they'd be staying overnight. They had to be mindful of Isaiah's condition.

Dr. Miller would also be joining them on this trip.

He was also surprised that he had to wear a Hawaiian shirt just like what Isaiah was wearing.

The fall season had started and it also started to be chilly.

The trees had also started to shed their leaves.

North Coast was a little warm though.

Everyone gathered at the entrance of the villa as they waited for Isaiah, the nurse, and Zarah to join them.

Of course, Julie and Mr. Henderson would be there.

Isaiah then came out and joined them. "Where's Zarah?" Isaiah asked Julie.

"Miss Jansen asked me to go down first and she'll follow right after."

Like on cue, Zarah came down the stairs wearing a flowy flower-printed dress which she matched with a denim jacket, and flats.

She wore a beach hat and sunglasses.

She looked cool that Xavier could not take his eyes off him.

As Zarah slowly descended the stairs, Isaiah looked at his son and heaved a sigh.

"Don't worry son, I'll make you happy today." He said in a whisper.

Since they were finally complete, they finally headed to the waiting vans outside.

Four vans left the villa all in all. Xavier made sure to bring Brian and his team with him since Rupert and Chris were left to run the company without him.

Zarah, Xavier, and Isaiah were in the same van with the nurse and Dr. Miller.

Isaiah, the nurse, and Dr. Miller were seated in the middle while Zarah and Xavier were seated in the back.

Zarah was puzzled why the seating arrangement was this way.

She wanted to sit beside Isaiah and tried to avoid Xavier but the latter made her sit in the back.

'Are you plotting something, Old Man?' she asked him in her thoughts.

And then she realized that she had never got the chance to talk to him after they arrived at the villa. She did not get the chance to ask him about what Xavier said last time.

'Did he know about Xavier's feelings toward me?'

All Zarah could do was heave a sigh for now.

Xavier heard her sigh and he thought she was tired.

"Try to get some rest. We won't be arriving soon." He reminded her.

"You should rest, too. Don't let your cold ruin the moment." She reminded him back.

Isaiah who could still hear them, all thanks to his hearing aid, chuckled.

But then he started contemplating something.

Should he not stopped these two to date in the past, would things be the same?

Would Zarah be happy with Xavier? And would Xavier forgive him a long time ago?

He still remembered Zarah's sad face when she told him that she had broken up with Josh.

Though he didn't know what happened between them, he felt guilty as he kind of pressured her to accept Josh's feelings.

He never supported the idea of his two children dating. So, he felt like he wronged these two.

And so, he wanted to correct his mistake.

This was a part of his bucket list before he'd depart this Earth.

***