Chapter 26: Forgive The Naughty Girl
Scarlett fell asleep against the wall after an hour of hopeless waiting before a police officer came in and informed her that she could leave. She walked out with her sleepy eyes to find that the man shaking hands with the head office was none other than Francis Sandler.
Why did she have to let this man witness every single embarrassing moment in her life? Scarlett thought desperately.
“Sorry to cause you trouble, Sir. Forgive the naughty girl.” Francis said to the officer politely.
“The fault is mine, Mr. Sandler. We had no idea that Miss Morris is your niece…”
Francis’s eyes had settled on Scarlett as soon as she walked out from the detention room. Scarlett shivered at the sight of Francis. She was wondering if sleeping at the police station for the night might have been a better choice. Francis quickly waved goodbye to the police officer and walked out with Scarlett. Sitting in the car, Francis put on his poker face again, and this time, it was even colder. Scarlett got chills down her spine.
“Tell me what time it is,” Francis said in an aloof voice. Scarlett glanced at her phone and said,
“It’s three in the morning…”
“Very well. Then explain to me why you were at the police station instead of school at this time. No excuses, no lies!”
Scarlett shuddered, and the chills got even stronger.
“Why are you here? I called Chuck…” Scarlett tried to change the subject. Francis groaned coldly,
“He is abroad. Don’t digress. Could you answer my question? Explain yourself.”
“I was hanging out with my friend and just passed by the racetracks…”
“Scarlett!” Francis knew she was crafting tall tales. He had had just about enough. Scarlett was frightened by the sudden interruption, plus the threatening tone of his voice.
“Be honest, or I’ll send you back in there!” Francis stalled the engine and pointed to the police station.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I’ll never call again…” Scarlett murmured in her heart. Even the officer’s interrogation had been more tolerable and friendly.
But still, she tried to think rationally about the situation she now found herself in. After all, Francis had saved her from the cold, dark detention room. Perhaps he was genuinely worried about her. Scarlett decided not to keep any secrets. She confessed– she told him everything.
“Car racing? Very well. You’re always involved in something beyond my imagination.” Scarlett’s explanation didn’t actually calm Francis down at all. Instead, he felt himself burning up from the inside.
“Wait… did you smoke?” The smell of nicotine on Scarlett’s coat seemed to grow stronger the longer they sat in the car.
“That’s from the policemen…They smoked, and the smell just lingered on me…” Scarlett tried to defend herself, but a glimpse of Francis disarmed her. She handed over her arms and surrendered,
“Alright, it’s me…but it was just one.”
Francis wanted to scold her for not respecting herself, but he felt like he was not well-positioned to take a strong stance when it came to her behavior. She looked wretched and innocent at that moment, and the sight of her cooled his anger down.
For the first time, Francis, who was so seasoned and sophisticated, could do nothing in the face of a woman. He took out his cigarette box and lit a cigarette up. Scarlett, meanwhile, was like a criminal waiting to be sentenced to life imprisonment or the death penalty. Francis seemed to be lost in thought and did not take a look at her. After a long silence, Scarlett tilted her head and fell asleep.
When Francis finished smoking two cigarettes and was ready to give a lesson to Scarlett, he turned around to find she was already asleep. He signed, turned the engine back on, and then drove straight home.
Scarlett was incredibly tired. Francis knew that it would be difficult to wake her up once she’d fallen into a deep sleep. He stalled the car and tightened his hand on the steering wheel, thinking about whether he should wake her up or not.
He took a look at Scarlett cautiously. It seemed like she was sleeping quite comfortably. Under the faint light in the car, her cheekbones looked like sharp crescent moons. Although her eyes were now closed, Francis thought of her eyes– the most beautiful eyes in the whole world, curtained by long and lush eyelashes. Without the witty and sometimes foxy temperament and sexy charm of her waking moments, she now looked like a sweet and innocent baby.
Francis got out of the car, opened the door to Scarlett’s side, and bent down to hold her up gently. By the time they entered the house, the housekeeper and all the other servants had already gone to sleep. Francis held Scarlett in his arms and walked upstairs quietly. He kicked open the unlocked door of the guest room and softly placed Scarlett on the bed. She was quite docile, and after he wrapped her up inside a quilt, she continued to dream sweet dreams.NôvelDrama.Org holds © this.
Standing in front of the bed, Francis thought of the pink dress he had bought for her last time. He couldn’t help but picture how alluring she had looked in that dress.
Francis had long been interested in Scarlett’s early experiences, and he finally decided to ask his assistant to check Scarlett’s information and send it to his phone overnight. What he uncovered hardly surprised him.
It was soon to issue the scholarships, and the annual ceremony was as grand and serious as ever. Though there were, of course, those same boring speeches by teachers and students alike, the audience was still quite excited. They cheered raucously for the scholarship awardees– as if they had just won gold medals at the Olympics. UI was just that type of institution: competitive and hyper-focused on academics. Those students who did well academically were desirable to the rest.
Scarlett stood on the right side of the stage, waiting for the awards to be distributed. She caught a glimpse of Francis. He was sitting in the first row, next to the provost of UI.