Chapter 77: Degree of Heart-Fluttering
One moment, Caroline Whitman planned to leave the resort immediately. The next, she heard Franklin Whitman had changed his mind, and her plan to leave was canceled.
’These past few days have really been a test of my patience.’
Back at the villa, she learned their son was hungry, so she and Adrian Grant took him out for afternoon tea and a stroll through a nearby scenic area.
In the evening, they had dinner at a restaurant, and by the time they returned to the villa, it was already after six o’clock.
The sky had been overcast for most of the day, but a sliver of sunset had broken through on the horizon, appearing exceptionally bright and dazzling.
Ryan Grant hadn’t forgotten about the swimming lesson he’d arranged with Adrian Grant for that morning.
He had only played in the water for a bit earlier that afternoon.
Adrian Grant, of course, was happy to oblige.
Caroline Whitman was happy about it too, of course.
’Who knew this trip would come with the bonus of watching a handsome man get in the water?’
’I never got this kind of perk when I took my son to the beach before.’
She was currently sitting on a lounge chair by the pool. Since the sunset was directly in front of her, she had the perfect excuse to put on a pair of sunglasses.
Through her lenses, Caroline Whitman openly stared at Adrian Grant in the pool. His broad shoulders and powerful waist formed clean, fluid lines. His tall, lean frame was stretched out, his proportions nearly perfect...
’Tsk, tsk. Whoever invented sunglasses was a genius.’
’They were perfect for this exact situation.’
Caroline Whitman silently admired the view for over half an hour.
Then, a warm trickle ran from her nose. Caroline Whitman subconsciously raised a hand to wipe it away.
She pushed her sunglasses down and saw bright red blood on her fingertips.
’What the hell! A nosebleed.’
"..."
’It can’t be, can it?’
’You’ve got to be kidding me.’
Caroline Whitman froze. She instinctively glanced back at Adrian Grant in the pool. Without the dark tint of her sunglasses, the world’s colors returned to normal, making Adrian’s body even more distinct.
At that moment, she felt the trickle from her nose grow heavier.
Caroline Whitman scrambled to her feet and rushed inside.
’There’s no way I can let Adrian Grant see me in this embarrassing state.’
"Daddy, I think I saw Mommy’s nose bleeding."
Children have sharp eyes. Ryan Grant had just surfaced, hastily wiping the water from his face with his chubby little hands, and his eyes immediately caught sight of something wrong with Caroline Whitman.
Adrian Grant, who was holding the little one’s arm, immediately turned his head at the boy’s words. He only caught a glimpse of Caroline Whitman’s back as she rushed into the house.
"Did Mommy get heatstroke? I don’t want to swim anymore. I want to go see Mommy," Ryan Grant said, very worried.
It was a hot summer day, and his teacher had taught him about the signs of heatstroke. With the sudden nosebleed in this weather, that was the first thing that came to his mind.
Although Adrian Grant hadn’t seen her expression, his son’s words made his heart clench. "Okay," he replied in a deep voice. "We’ll stop swimming. Let’s go check on her."
He lifted the boy onto the pool deck, then climbed out himself. Grabbing two towels, he tossed one to his son and used the other to dry himself off as he walked toward the living room.
The living room was empty, as was the kitchen, but the bathroom light was on and the door was shut tight.
Inside, Caroline Whitman was frantically splashing her face with water. When she looked up, she saw her cheeks were flushed.
’Damn it!’
This was the first time in her entire life that looking at a man’s body had given her a nosebleed.
’Was it because I was staring for too long?’
"Mommy, what’s wrong?"
Ryan Grant was the first to reach the door, knocking and calling out anxiously.
Adrian Grant’s voice followed right after. "Are you okay? Ryan said you might have heatstroke."
Hearing Adrian Grant’s voice, Caroline Whitman jumped guiltily. "I’m fine," she denied hurriedly.
She quickly splashed her face with cold water again, waiting for the flush to subside before opening the door.
But the moment she pulled the door open, she was face-to-face with his handsome features, and her heart began to pound all over again.
Adrian Grant just had a towel slung casually over his shoulders, his solid chest mostly exposed, which made her gaze drift downward uncontrollably.
"Mommy! Mommy!"
Her gaze dropped lower to find the little guy jumping up and down with his hands raised, looking at her anxiously. "Mommy, are you really not sick? I saw your nose bleeding."
"..."
Feeling the man’s eyes on her, Caroline Whitman bent down, lowering her head to avoid his gaze as she smiled and explained to her son:
"I’m not sick. It’s just the heat, I’m a little overheated. You two go on and play.
I got all sweaty today anyway, so I’m going to take a shower now."
Without looking up, she turned and shut the door.
Leaving the father and son standing there.
"Looks like Mommy’s fine. Do you want to keep learning to swim, or go take a shower?"
"If Mommy’s okay, let’s keep swimming!"
Once he was sure Caroline Whitman wasn’t sick, Ryan Grant let out a sigh of relief. His playful mood returned, and he pulled Adrian Grant back toward the pool.
Outside, the father and son’s voices slowly faded into the distance.
Inside the bathroom, Caroline Whitman raised a hand to wipe away the fresh trickle of blood from her nose. She silently unlocked her phone and typed into the search bar:
"Saw a member of the opposite sex this morning and was fine. Why did I suddenly get a nosebleed and a racing heart after looking at their body for half an hour this afternoon? What kind of illness is this?"
[Hello. Based on your description, this is not an organic physical ailment, so there is no need for excessive worry.
An accelerated heart rate and heightened emotions are normal physiological responses to strong visual stimuli, caused by an excited sympathetic nervous system and the rapid secretion of adrenaline...]
Caroline Whitman skimmed the results, her eyes finally landing on the last line:
[...Suddenly developing a racing heart and a nosebleed in response to a familiar member of the opposite sex indicates that your level of attraction to this person has become strong enough to cause your body to "overload."]
"..."
’What? My attraction to him is really that strong?’
Caroline Whitman silently turned off her phone, turned on the shower, and stepped under the cold spray.
She scrubbed at her still-burning cheeks under the cold water. After a moment, they finally cooled down.
She stood under the spray for who knows how long. Only after replaying the image of Adrian Grant’s face and physique in her mind until she was sure she wouldn’t have another reaction did she finally turn off the water.
After drying off, she was about to grab her clothes when she realized that in her rush, she hadn’t brought her pajamas into the bathroom.
So, wrapping a bath towel around herself, she carefully cracked open the bathroom door and peeked out.
The living room was unusually quiet.
’Are they still swimming?’
Caroline Whitman headed toward the master bedroom and saw that the light was on.
Inside, she found Adrian Grant with a towel wrapped loosely around his lower body. It was hard to tell if he had just showered or just gotten out of the pool.
He was bent over a suitcase, rummaging for their son’s clothes, the sharp lines of his shoulders and back on full display.
Caroline Whitman stopped in her tracks.
Just then, Adrian Grant straightened up with the clothes in hand. He turned his head, and their gazes collided unexpectedly.
She spoke almost instinctively:
"I was in a rush earlier and forgot to grab my clothes..."
"Our son is in the shower. I came to get his clothes."
Their voices overlapped.
The air fell silent.
Adrian Grant’s gaze fell on her fair, rounded shoulders, then traveled down to the white bath towel. He gave her a brief glance before nodding slightly and murmuring, "Mm."
Caroline Whitman, who had been holding the towel tightly against her chest, also murmured a quiet response before stepping past him on her slender, pale legs.
Adrian Grant, holding their son’s clothes, started to head out. But just as they brushed past each other, he suddenly stopped and turned his head.
"Are you sure you were okay earlier? Maybe we should take you to a hospital to get checked out?"