Chapter 48: The Way of Punishing

Matthew moved his face closer to Dolores’. “If you dare disrespect me like that in the future, I…” He
glanced at her lips, leaned down, and bit them.

She felt a sudden pain. The taste of blood spread in her mouth. She grimaced. It hurt, it burned.
Matthew really bit her.

“In the future, every time you wrong me, I’ll do this as my way of punishing you. Does that sound fair?”

Dolores felt disoriented as she gazed at the man in front of her. She couldn’t understand the reasoning
for behaviors.

“Do you understand what you’re doing right now?”

Speechless, Matthew didn’t know how to answer her question. Every moment that happened after he
met Dolores was so unexpected that he lost control of himself and became a different man from who
he was in the past.

He realized Dolores wasn’t virtuous, as she was impure, and didn’t respect herself.

However, the fact that he was interested in such an immoral woman, and felt like a real man—a man
who had the normal, physical reaction a man should have when facing a woman—was confusing. He
hid his emotions well as he stared down at Dolores.

He smiled faintly and asked, “What about you? You rushed forward to protect me from the sword
without worrying about your own life. Does that mean…”

As Matthew spoke, his face moved even closer to hers. When Dolores took a step back, he would take
a step himself and follow her. They were very close to each other. The smile on his face was slight,
soft, gentle, and could hardly be ignored.



“Have you fallen in love with me?”

Was that why she rushed forward without concern for her and her child’s safety when Matthew was in
danger?

Matthew remembered how shocked he was when he turned around and saw her rushing over.

Dolores turned away and refused to look at him. “Mr. Nelson, you have quite the sense of humor. I’ve
only known you for a few days. How could I fall in love with you so quickly?”

If she didn’t suspect he was the father of her child, she certainly wouldn’t have put herself in such a
dangerous situation. She cherished her own life as she had to survive for the sake of her mother and
her child.

Matthew didn’t anger. Instead, turning away and leaning back on the sofa, smiling. “Perhaps, you fell in
love with me when we first met? Love at first sight. That happens, right?”

He was apparently speaking to Dolores, but it sounded like he was asking a rhetorical question.

Dolores’ hand that had been resting on her leg squeezed tightly, but she responded with a calm
demeanor. “I don’t believe in love at the first sight.”

Not wanting to continue the conversation, she stood up to get some water for herself, deliberately
ignoring the topic. They were strangers, but they lived under the same roof due to fate. Now they were
talking about the most indescribable word in the world, ‘love.’ She couldn’t help but laugh quietly to
herself.

While drinking her water, Dolores looked through the glass and gazed at the piano placed in front of the
floor-to-ceiling window. Depression clouded any happiness she had been feeling.

*****



The next day, Dolores went to the hospital to see Jessica. This time, Jessica was sober and recognized
Dolores at first glance. She grabbed Dolores’ hands, not letting them go.

“Lola, I’m so happy you’ve come to see me. I’ve missed you a lot during my stay here.” Jessica held
Dolores’s hands tightly, as if she was afraid Dolores would disappear as soon as she was no longer in
her grasp.

Seeing Jessica more alert, Dolores was ecstatic. “I won’t leave. When you’re strong enough, we’ll leave
this place together.”

After the agreement with Matthew ended, Dolores would buy a small house to live in with her mom and
her child.

“How come Dr. Herbert hasn’t visited me for the past few days, Are you angry with him?” Jessica
asked, more or less knowing Sampson’s thoughts.

Jessica liked Sampson very much and was very pleased with his personality. Besides, he was also a
doctor. If Dolores could leave Matthew and marry Sampson, a majority of their problems would be
solved. The problem was Dolores being pregnant with a child whose father was unknown. Whenever
Jessica thought of the child, she would fall into a deep depression.

“He has been called away on business and won’t be back for a while,” Dolores said looking down sadly.

Sampson promised he would help her to find out what happened that faithful night. So, he should be in
A Country now.

“If you weren’t pregnant, wouldn’t it be wonderful to be with him? He’s a doctor so you know he’s kind
—”



“Mom,” Dolores hurriedly interrupted Jessica and helped her clasp a bracelet around her wrist, “Mom,
do you recognize this?”

Jessica looked down and gasped. “Of course! It’s been years though…” Jessica looked up at Dolores
in shock, believing she’d never see the bracelet again after Randolph sent them away. “How did you
get this?”

“Randolph gave it to me…” Dolores trailed off, not sure how to broach the topic of the main reason for
her visit, besides spending time with her mom. “Randolph is in a financial situation and he came to me
begging for help yesterday. I don’t know what I should do.”

Dolores hated Randolph so much she hoped he would die. On the other hand, he was still her father,
even if he was a bastard. He helped give her life.

Jessica looked down at the bracelet. “I don’t want you to worry about this, Lola. Don’t dwell on the past.
Don’t get involved with people from the past. Don’t focus on revenge but don’t forgive them either.”

Dolores understood what her mother meant. No matter what Randolph was like now, regardless of
good or bad, she shouldn’t get involved with him.

“Okay.”

*****

The two of them talked for a while longer, and it was only when visitor hours ended that Dolores left the
room.

After leaving the room, Dolores headed to the nursing station to ask about her mom’s condition.

“She’s so aware of everything around her now; doesn’t that mean she’s recovered?”



“No, she randomly forgets some matters and while she does remember things in the short term, but not
everything in the long term. We need to keep her under observation for a while still to see if we can
figure out what may be wrong.”

Dolores struggled to hide her disappointment as she thought Jessica was recovering quickly. “Please
take good care of her for me then.”

“We will. Dr. Herbert specifically told us about this, so please don’t worry.”

Dolores thanked the nurse and left the hospital.

Since Jessica recommended she not do anything to Randolph, Dolores decided to let go of her former
grudge against her father as well. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, Dolores called a cab back to her
office.

In the cab, Dolores looked out the window, gazing at the city that was both so familiar and unfamiliar to
her. She let herself get lost in her thoughts until the car passed by the building of the Flores Group and
many people were gathered outside the entrance, holding banners with big letters saying ‘Return my
hard-earned money.’

“Stop here, please,” Dolores called as she rolled down the car window and stared at the protesting
workers.

The driver looked at Dolores in the mirror and spoke up. “You heard about all this, right? This
unscrupulous business executive uses inferior materials so the buildings he’s constructing collapse
before they’re done. Those who already paid the company had terrible luck, who would dare to live in
such a house? However, even if they don’t want it, the company won’t refund their money. People
gather here every day to voice their anger, but nothing has come of it as of yet. Miss, have you also
bought a house from this company?”



Dolores shook her head. “No. Thankfully, I haven’t”

“That’s good. Most people can’t afford to buy a house, so many people here have used all their savings
to hire this company and their builders. Now that all these issues are coming to light, the customers are
understandably frustrated. In short, the developer is too deceitful and many people have been deceived
by them.”

The more the driver spoke, the angrier he became. It sounded as if he was also a victim of the scam.

“Do you want to get off here?” The driver asked, not wanting to waste any more time sitting there when
he could be getting more customers.

“No, let’s go,” Dolores said, turning away, not wanting to see any more of the demonstration.

It was none of her business.

As soon as the car stopped in front of WY Tower, Dolores paid and got out of the car. She was about to
walk into the building when a man in a black suit ran over.

“Excuse me, are you Ms. Flores?”

Dolores turned her head and sized up the man. He was completely unfamiliar to her. She tried to recall
him from her childhood, or maybe the news, but she was certain she had never seen him before.

Having been victimized last time, she was extremely alert and cautious. Instead of admitting who she
was, she asked him a question. “Who are you? I don’t know you.”

The man was perfectly calm and answered with a smile and small bow. “I’m the driver of the woman I
serve. She wants to speak with you.”

“Who is the woman you serve?”



Dolores frowned. She looked around and saw a luxurious black car parked on the roadside.

The person inside the car must’ve noticed Dolores looking their way as the window slowly rolled down

The driver glanced over at the car, and his smile widened as he spoke. “This is Mrs. Herbert.”


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