Chapter 67: He Has Been Good to Her

Tella reminisced about her childhood fear of thunderstorms. One night, while Alchand was away, a violent storm raged. She huddled at her bed's foot, tears streaming down her face. Suddenly, Dominic burst in, coldly saying, "Come sleep with me tonight." Despite his hatred, she clung to this memory, to the few times he'd shown kindness. But now, she wanted to move on—from him and her pain.

"Mr. Miller, you're back…" Sylvia's voice cut through the tense atmosphere. Dominic, annoyed, released Bella, adjusted his shoes, and went upstairs. Sylvia's face paled. "Ms. Jones, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…"

Bella smiled gently. "It's okay. He's just drunk. You should go get some rest. It's late."

Passing Dominic's room, Bella noticed the door ajar and closed it for him. As she reached for the doorknob, a deafening clap of thunder shook the house. Her heart sank. Beyond her fear, she realized Dominic had invited her to sleep with him because he knew the storm was coming. He had no other intentions. She was certain he was genuinely drunk, though he didn't seem overly intoxicated. She gently closed the door and returned to her room, the thunder filling her mind with thoughts. She was no longer a child, no longer terrified, but sleep eluded her.

The thunder continued intermittently for over an hour before a steady drizzle began. Despite this, thunder still rumbled occasionally. Bella suffered from insomnia. She found her earplugs and finally drifted off.

The next morning, awakened by birdsong, she discovered her earplugs missing. Swallows flitted under the eaves; their young had hatched, filling the air with cheerful chirps. She hadn't heard anything like it since childhood, living with her mother in a small town—a rare sound in the city.

After a night of rain, the air was fresh, the day bright and sunny. As she sat up and the blanket slipped, she caught a glimpse of something pale. Her yawn was cut short as she stared, astonished, at Dominic in her bed.

Despite being drunk, he'd showered. The scent of his body wash lingered, but he'd forgotten to dress and wore only underwear. Seeing he was asleep, she gently pulled the blanket over him and carefully got out of bed. Unfortunately, she tripped over the nightstand, causing a thud and a muffled groan of pain.

Dominic awoke, startled. His eyes opened, his expression a mix of irritation and confusion. He looked at her. "Why are you in my room?"

She pointed to the photo frame on the nightstand. "This is my room. You need to consider how you ended up here. You really scared me."

Dominic was stunned. He got out of bed, but realizing he was in his underwear, his back straightened. He said coldly, "I must have gone to the wrong bathroom. Is there a problem with that?" Bella raised an eyebrow, exposing his lie. "You have your own bathroom. Why would you use mine?"

(Note: The "Search the FindNovel.net" lines were removed as they appear to be advertising and not part of the story.)