Loving A STRANGER

Stephen didn"t reproach her, but he insisted that she let him help her to the elevator. Once they were inside, Kylie caught her image in the mirror. She was wearing a ball cap and gla.s.ses, which she hoped would prevent her from being recognized.

As the elevator moved closer to their destination, Stephen explained that the expert Surgeon had been contacted and that this would be their first consolation. "Jane"s mother," he continued, "isn"t in very good shape. If she hadn"t received this treatment, it is likely that she would have been dead by the end of the week."

"Then, help her to surpa.s.s this one. I begged you," She said. 

"Okay, don"t worry, I will do it. I just can"t imagine why you are so nice to other people," Stephen said. 

"Is it a crime to be nice?" She hissed. 

"Actually, not. I just can"t figure out why you trust people that you don"t know personally," He quickly responded.

Kylie just looked at him and didn"t repeat any words. 

 ***

At each stop, more and more people got into the elevator until it was completely stuffed, and the conversation was nearly impossible. Stephen tried his best to keep a polite distance from Kylie, but it was like a can of sardines in the elevator, and, as the last person got on, he was pushed right against Kylie; her head was on his chest.

Kylie felt nervous. She didn"t know why, but she always felt a bit nervous when she was around Stephen.

Stephen raised his voice and addressed the crowd. He said, "I"m so sorry, but my wife"s pregnant. She has been told that it is a "high risk" pregnancy. If she is stressed, she could have a miscarriage. Please help her so that she can have a little s.p.a.ce."

Immediately, the people around them took a back step to the best of their ability. n.o.body wanted to be responsible for the death of a child.

The elevator finally stopped at the floor dedicated to cardiac surgery. Stephen helped Kylie out and, once the elevator doors closed, they both broke out into laughter. "That was quite a scheme," Kylie snorted. "I"m going to go visit Laurence. I"ll meet you in the parking lot when I"m done."

"Alright," Stephen replied, and they each went their separate ways.

Kylie was surprised when she arrived and found Laurence"s bed was occupied by someone else. She didn"t know that he was in ICU, so she a.s.sumed that he"d been released. Not having anything else, she wandered back to the parade. Just as she arrived, though, she received a text message from Khloe. It said, "I am willing to show your mother respect if you agree to stay away from me. You should follow my order,"

Kylie frowned and silently cursed Khloe.

Kylie texted back: "Any bargain with you is a bargain with the devil. Do you really think that you are in a position to negotiate with me? Ha! That is laughable! You think highly of yourself, Khloe,"

"I can see why you would think that," Khloe replied, "but your mother died in shame. If you could bring her some comfort from this side of eternity, wouldn"t you want to? Would you still not going to negotiate with me?"

"What is this really about?" Kylie wondered and clenched her fist, "What do you really want from me?"

Khloe replied back, "I know that I"m the loser or villain in this story. I have come to accept that, as for myself or my well being, I just don"t care anymore, but I do care about Aiden. He is the only one that should be mine," 

Kylie rolled her eyes. "This stupid woman think I still care about Aiden, disgusting,"

 After a few minutes, Kylie responded, "Get to the point."

Khloe replied, "I know you"re still with Lord Ethan. I know that both of you hid your relationship with the public. If I married Aiden, we would occasionally run each other. All I want is, when this happens, it is for us to be civil to each other. What do you think?"

Kylie thought about it for a while, and then she typed her answer: "Deal, I agree on it. It would be in everyone"s best interest. Perhaps we should get together and talk about this in person? Even I hated to see your face, and I know I shouldn"t trust you since you take the initiative to approach me, I will gamble on it,"

" That sounds like a good idea," Khloe replied. "How about the coffee shop at Merlin Villa? They make great cappuccinos, and their staff is very friendly."

After hanging up the phone, Khloe turned to Dora and said, "It worked. Kylie is on her way."

Dora smiled and puffed out her chest proudly as she keyed Matthew"s number into her phone and sent him a text message. It said, "Matthew, I"ve prepared what you want. I"ll send you the address later."

Merlin Villa wasn"t far from the Center Hospital, but it took Kylie an hour to get back because of the traffic. She parked the car, got out, and headed in the direction of the café.

When Kylie entered the café, her first thought was, Wow, this place isn"t very big!"

Kylie scanned the café and was annoyed to find that she didn"t see Khloe there. She was just about to call her and give her s.h.i.t, but someone touched her on the shoulder. She turned quickly and felt sick to her stomach when she came face to face with Ken White.

Kylie scowled and asked him what he was doing there.

Ken laughed and said, "I"m here to watch the show! Something seems so interesting as I thought,"