As Aaron speaks, he grabs Katrina and pulls her to his side, prepared to hold her in his arms.
From the lessons she learned from previous mistakes, Katrina believes that in this respect, he"s a man who will do as he says.
She felt mad, and her face turned red at his outrageous request.
He wants her to sit on his lap? In broad daylight, his heelers can come in at any moment!
If someone sees them, she wouldn"t want to stay alive! She may as well kill herself as soon as she can!
Although Katrina is angry with Aaron, she can"t let go of her dignity.
She glances at Aaron and grits her teeth angrily. "Aaron! Don"t go too far!"
Aaron ignores her resentful eyes and touches her head. "Are you going to eat now?"
Katrina can"t stand it anymore. She picks up the chopsticks on the table and grabs the food in the bowl, bringing it to her mouth.
Her fingers are thin, and her knuckles are a little white. Her body looks so frail than the black chopsticks, he"s worried she can"t even hold it.
When Katrina starts eating, Aaron breathes a sigh of relief.
He keeps putting food into her bowl. He never lets her bowl be empty, fearing she won"t be able to eat enough.
Her bowl is like an endless treasure trove. After one bite, there"s another one waiting for her.
Finally, Katrina stops and puts down the chopsticks. "I"m full."
"This is the last one. Eat it."
Aaron finally stops putting food into Katrina"s bowl and asks her to finish up the food in the bowl.
At last, the problem of lunch is settled. Aaron supervises her taking medicine, and lets her go for the moment.
It"s only then that Katrina realizes that since she was carried down from upstairs, she"s not wearing any shoes on her feet.
Just as Katrina prepares to leave barefoot, Aaron bends forward to pick her up and carry her to the couch in the living room.
Her body suddenly rises again, making Katrina"s heart fill with unspeakable gloom and rage.
This impudent b.a.s.t.a.r.d!
Why does he always force her to do things she doesn"t like?
Why does he always hold her without her consent?
Does he know what respect is?
Katrina looks out the living room"s French window and sees two men kneeling in the courtyard. They seem to be the ones who locked her up on the balcony yesterday.
She doesn"t know how long they"ve been kneeling in the yard. They seem to be in an awkward position, and their hair and clothes show signs of being washed by the rain.
Katrina is stunned at sight.
Why are they kneeling in the yard?
Did Aaron order it?
Why did he do that?
Did he do it for her?
The idea instantly disappears from Katrina"s mind.
He was the one who ordered his heelers to shut her up on the balcony yesterday! He"s the culprit! Why would he do something so unnecessary?
Perhaps it"s just her imagination. The men might have made some other mistake to get punished.
Aaron sits next to Katrina on the sofa.
To keep her distance from him, Katrina looks out of the window and ignores him.
Aaron says, "Your friend is safe."
Katrina immediately drops the silent treatment and quickly turns her head back. "Did you see Farrah?"
Since Aaron caught her, she"s been particularly worried about Farrah. She was afraid that her friend would be worried sick from her disappearance.
At the sudden mention of her friend, Katrina immediately gets excited.
Aaron doesn"t answer her question and says instead, "She"s back home."
Katrina is relieved at the news.
Farrah should be back home than to stay in the unfamiliar Hadley City.
At the very least, she doesn"t need to worry that Farrah will be alone in Hadley City. She doesn"t have to worry that Aaron will take Farrah and coerce her into doing something.
The two men in the yard look up, their eyes filling with surprise at the sight of Katrina.
Has Miss Miller woke up?
Is their punishment finally over?
Through the French window, Katrina inadvertently makes eye contact with them. She"s surprised to see the joy and expectant look in their eyes.
Why are they looking at her like that?
Do they want her to beg Aaron for mercy on their behalf?
She"s already in trouble with Aaron and a victim of his bullying. Why do they think she can persuade Aaron to forgive them?
Besides, she doesn"t want to get involved, nor does she want to talk to Aaron.
Katrina"s nose suddenly itches. She can"t help sneezing, and she quickly wipes her nose with a tissue.
Aaron immediately takes off his coat and puts it over Katrina. He"s as overbearing as ever. He wraps it tightly around her in fear that she will get cold.
Seeing Katrina sneezing and catching a cold, the two men in the yard become worried. They droop their heads in silence.
It turns out that Miss Miller is not quite well, and still has a cold.
In that case, they won"t dare beg Mr. Wilson for forgiveness. It"s due to their carelessness that she became ill.
The men go from looking happy at seeing her awake to looking fearful and lost at seeing her sneeze.
Now, Katrina becomes a little convinced that they"re kneeling outside because of her.
Did Aaron really blame his heelers for her illness?
What is he doing?
Is he worried about her?
Katrina suddenly realizes that her guess is probably true.
She remembers that as soon as she opened her eyes today, Aaron was by her bedside.
He didn"t go to work this morning, nor did he go out for any social engagement. Instead, he wasted all his time on her.
He forced her to eat porridge and take medicine. Although his methods were abominable, from an objective point of view, he seems to have done it for her sake.
When he saw her sneezing, he immediately took off his coat and put it on her.
If he doesn"t care about her life at all, he doesn"t need to do that. He can just leave her to her fate.
Why does he suddenly care about her? Why is he treating her so well?
Does he feel guilty about her illness and wants to make it up to her?
Or something else?
No matter what the answer is, Katrina won"t easily forgive him because of his tenderness. She won"t give up the idea of leaving this place.
After all, he"s still the b.a.s.t.a.r.d who bullies her every day. He locked her up, and she almost died because of his actions.
Remembering everything he did to her, Katrina gnashes her teeth with hatred. Her resentment against him doesn"t diminish at all.