Chapter 23: The Antidote
She realized Adrian hadn’t left after turning off the light. Instead, he was walking toward her, step by step.
The sound of his footsteps grew closer, and her heart began to pound faster and faster.
Until a voice sounded from right above her.
"Open your mouth."
Caroline’s mind went blank. ’Open... open my mouth?’
’What does he mean? What is he going to do?’
’What does he want me to do?’
In an instant, countless blush-inducing, heart-pounding scenarios flashed through her mind.
She swallowed hard, moistening her tight throat. "Why should I open my mouth?"
"..."
"Take this medicine."
"This stuff has an antidote?" Just as Caroline was puzzling over this, a bitter pill was placed in her mouth.
The bitter taste alone was enough to make half her arousal instantly wither away.
Immediately after, an opened bottle was brought to her lips. She tilted her head back instinctively, and Adrian cooperatively angled the bottle.
The bathroom light was off, illuminated only by the warm glow spilling in from the hallway. In the dim light, the beauty in the bathtub was still dazzlingly clear.
Her silhouette, her features, her figure, her every detail, her allure...
He took it all in.
Adrian lowered his gaze and said, "The antidote will take effect within three minutes."
Seeing that she had drunk it, he withdrew his hand, turned, and walked out of the bathroom. This time, he turned on the light for her and thoughtfully closed the door behind him.
"..."
She was alone in the bathroom.
Caroline lay in the tub, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes with a sense of utter despair.
But the moment she closed her eyes, the image of him bursting in flashed through her mind.
Her heart was still beating ridiculously fast.
...
Adrian returned to his own room.
The seductive image he had just witnessed instantly rekindled the desire that the medicine had suppressed.
He casually undid his buttons, pulled open his shirt, the cold detachment in his eyes completely gone, and walked straight into the bathroom for a cold shower.
His long fingers raked through his hair as cold water cascaded from the showerhead, soaking his bangs and trickling slowly down the contours of his face, over his chest, and across a lingering hickey.
...
Adrian’s antidote was indeed effective. He said three minutes, and it was three minutes.
As Caroline soaked in the tub, the lust simply washed away.
But as the lust receded, her sense of shame came flooding back, stronger than ever!
She scrubbed at her face, on the verge of a breakdown.
Caroline climbed out of the tub, peeled off the soaking-wet formal dress, and took a warm shower.
When she was done, she looked at her dress draped over the edge of the tub and suddenly realized a problem.
She didn’t have a change of clothes.
Putting the wet one back on was out of the question.
Caroline stared at the closed bathroom door. She didn’t have the courage to go out and face him yet.
So, she showered for another half hour before finally toweling off and blow-drying her hair.
Only then did she wrap a towel around herself and cautiously open the door.
As if he had anticipated this, a fresh set of clothes was waiting for her outside the bathroom door.
Caroline quickly grabbed them and shut the door. Only then did she realize the set included everything, from innerwear to outerwear.
Even the underwear was a perfect fit.
Blushing, Caroline’s mind once again flashed with fragments of sensual, lingering images.
Her mind racing with wild thoughts, she finished dressing, opened the door, and stepped out of the bathroom. Standing in the hallway, she glanced at the row of closed doors.
Just as she was wondering if she should start knocking on doors one by one to find him, a door opened with a CLICK.
Caroline looked toward the sound, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw the familiar face.
Adrian was wearing a bathrobe, his hair slightly damp. He had clearly just gotten out of the shower himself.
As he approached, a red mark was clearly visible on his slightly exposed chest.
Caroline’s gaze involuntarily fell upon her handiwork. She felt her cheeks flush, the blush that hadn’t faded yet deepening another shade.
"Are you all right?" Adrian asked.
"..."
’How can he sound as if nothing happened?’
Seeing him so composed, Caroline actually managed to calm down, telling herself she couldn’t lose her nerve in front of him.
"Yes. Your medicine worked very well."
"Good." After confirming that Caroline was fine, Adrian turned to go back to his room.
Caroline hesitated for a moment, then followed him and asked, "How did you have that kind of antidote?"
She had assumed a novel’s male lead, like Vincent Fuller, would have a professional medical team or a doctor brother. By contrast, she figured the villain would have a similar setup.
But she never expected Adrian to go off-script and just carry the antidote himself.
Adrian walked ahead of her and explained:
"Someone was trapped in a similar situation once. They were filmed in a compromising video, which damaged their reputation and affected their business interests. To be safe, I prepared for it in advance."
The wine he had drunk earlier flashed through his mind.
The only time he had a drink was during his meeting with Vincent Fuller.
’Interesting. To think someone would pull this kind of trick in the Grant Family’s home.’
"I just never thought I’d actually have to use it on myself," he added with a light, self-deprecating laugh.
Caroline froze, then it dawned on her. "Your drink was drugged too?"
’No wonder he responded to my kiss at first.’
’What’s surprising is how strong Adrian’s self-control is. He actually managed to stop in time.’
But thinking about how Matthew had actually dared to set her up here, she said irritably, "Your Grant Family really knows how to treat its guests. Not only do you drug your visitors, but your own family members get caught in the crossfire."
Adrian frowned slightly, clearly surprised that Matthew would be so bold as to pull a stunt like this right under his nose.
He was even more surprised that he himself had fallen for it on his own turf.
"Once this matter is investigated, I will give you a proper explanation."
...
"Useless! Are you telling me she was taken away by Adrian?"
Matthew had just come out of a guest room after sating his lust. When he heard the news from the waiter he’d posted as a lookout, he flew into a rage!
Shit!
He knew it! That woman had gotten together with Adrian.
’Wait, what if that woman whispers in his ear...’
Matthew’s scalp tingled with fear. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, and he finally decided that if anyone asked, he would just deny it to his dying breath.
’Once it’s ingested, it’s untraceable. There’s no proof. Who’s to say what she ate that was off?’
...
Exchanging words, Caroline followed Adrian into his bedroom without realizing it.
"Your purse and phone are here." Adrian tilted his chin to indicate the direction. "Your parents have called quite a few times. They probably couldn’t find you and are worried."
Just as he finished speaking, the phone on the table buzzed. She walked over, picked it up, and saw it was Franklin Whitman.
"Caroline, where are you? We’ve been calling you over and over. Did something happen?"
Caroline glanced in Adrian’s direction and saw that he had already gone into the walk-in closet.
She looked down at her new dress and finally said, "It’s nothing. I just left early with a business partner. I’m just letting you know. You two can just have the driver take you home later."
"Oh."
After the call ended, Adrian came out of the walk-in closet.
He was dressed in a bespoke shirt and trousers that accentuated his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and upright posture. The cuffs were casually rolled up, revealing a pair of toned forearms. He walked over and casually picked up a pair of gold-rimmed glasses from the coffee table and put them on.
"Let’s go."
"Go where?" Caroline asked instinctively.
"Back to Brocade Bay. Or, if there’s somewhere else you need to go, I can take you."
"You’re going back to stay at Brocade Bay tonight?" Caroline blurted out.
She thought that after what had just happened between them, they would at least avoid each other out of awkwardness.
Adrian just turned to look at her coolly. "Why not? Isn’t the child waiting at home?"
"No, I just thought that since today is your grandfather’s birthday, you’d be staying here for the night."
"There’s no need. The old man has more than enough children and grandchildren staying with him tonight. Besides, I already promised the child I’d be back tonight before I left."
"Oh, then I’ll go back too. I also promised the child I’d be home tonight..."
If she suddenly chose to go back to her own home to sleep now, it would just make her look guilty.