Ellinor saw his intention and gave the wheelchair a purposeful kick, sending it rolling perfectly to a stop right in front of the man.
Marcus glanced at the wheelchair and raised his eyes to meet Ellinorâs, uttering a subdued âthanks.â
He then moved himself onto the wheelchair, inch by inch, maneuvering it towards her. He reached out for the water bottle on the small balcony table, a bottle both of them had sipped from, and opened it to drink.
Ellinor was busy with her smartphone. She was sending messages, but her peripheral vision caught Marcus taking a drink. She lifted her eyes briefly to watch him, then lowered them again to continue texting.
âEllinor, you seem to actually fancy me, donât you?â Marcus suddenly said.
Ellinor paused her texting, didnât lift her eyes this time, and candidly replied, âYes, I do fancy you. Is there a problem with that?â
Marcus was taken aback by her straightforward and honest answer. âI thought you would hate me more by now.â
Ellinor snorted dismissively. âI do hate you, too. These two feelings arenât mutually exclusive.â
Marcus gazed at her thoughtfully. âEllinor, you really are unlike other women.â
Ellinor smirked; her distaste was barely hidden. âHow many women have you met since you lost your memory? How would you know whatâs different or not? In these three years of your pseudo-house arrest, havenât you only been in contact with one woman, Sophia?â
Marcus frowned as a hint of displeasure crept into his eyes.
Once she was done with her messages, Ellinor put her phone aside and calmly handed him a napkin to wipe the sweat from his brow. âDo you want to take a shower and change your clothes? Or are you afraid Sophia will find out youâre secretly doing physiotherapy?â
Marcus accepted the napkin and replied in a low voice, âYou donât need to worry about that. Iâll shower after you leave.â
Ellinor glanced at his powerless legs, then back up at his face, âAre you scared Iâll watch you shower?â
A hint of sarcasm flashed across Marcusâ lips. âWhat would I, a man, be afraid to show? Besides, havenât you seen it all already?â..
Ellinor rested her cheek on her hand, nonchalantly replying, âI have, but I was young then. I was too shy to take a good look.â
Marcus fell silent.
This girl really had no shame.
Adrian sat quietly nearby, watching his mom and handsome Dad interact. He was both dismayed and thrilled. Heâd never seen his mom talk so much to anyone else, let alone-share a water bottle.
âMommy, did you know handsome Dad before?â He asked..
Ellinor didnât hide it. âYes, not only did I know him, but we were quite close.â
Adrianâs eyes lit up. âReally? How did you and handsome Dad meet? Can you tell me?â
Ellinor scoffed. âWhy donât you ask him?â
Immediately, Adrianâs curious eyes turned to Marcus.
Marcus, not knowing where to start and with no memories of those times, deflected the question.
âAlright, Adrian, let the adults worry about adult matters. Go run a bath for your dad, will you?â
Adrian, not receiving the answer he hoped for, pouted slightly but still obediently went to prepare Marcusâ bath.
After watching her son obediently leave, Ellinor maintained her casual pose while raising an eyebrow at Marcus. âAre you sure you donât need my help?â
Marcus replied, âNo, but thank you.â
Ellinor shrugged. âWell, itâs okay. Iâm not really into serving people anyway.â
Marcus gave her a pointed look. âIs that so? Your face tells me youâre quite interested.â