Chapter 410: Chapter 410

Try as she might, Rayna couldn’t stop blaming herself. My first mistake was not picking up Jessica’s call. Otherwise, I’d have known Kristie sneaked out to look for me. My second mistake was putting the phone on silent mode and missing Kristie’s call. If I had answered and picked her up from the airport, none of this would’ve happened! Even James had avenged Kristie by marching off to Yartran alone and breaking Arnaud’s arm. I, on the other hand, have done nothing! I’m such a useless sister!

Before Rayna knew it, tears were streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably. She covered her mouth as she sobbed and didn’t hear the footsteps approaching until a pair of legs appeared in front of her.

The next second, Rayna felt herself getting lifted and dragged outside.

She struggled to keep up with Curtis’ pace, and when she almost fell, her hand went instinctively to her stomach.

“Slow down. The baby—” Rayna muttered, only to stop herself midway.

Curtis suddenly released his grip on the woman and turned to glare at her. “Who told you to come here?”

“I wanted to see Kristie,” Rayna replied as she slowly moved her hand away.

“Well, you’ve seen her.”

Having tried her best to compose herself, Rayna gingerly raised her head and met Curtis’ gaze. “I’m sorry... What did you do to Kristie? Why doesn’t she remember James?”

“Why do you care?” the man scoffed. “Are you going to berate me if I did do something?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Rayna retorted as she clenched and unclenched her fists nervously. “You know how much James loves her. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have—”

“I don’t. I only know they’ve broken up and no longer have anything to do with each other,” Curtis interrupted coldly. “Please leave here this instance.”

“Curtis Faymon!” Rayna said through gritted teeth.

I don’t get it... Why has he become so cold and unfeeling after that night? That said, I must admit I was the one who messed everything up. All I can do now is try pleading with him...

“It wasn’t easy for James and Kristie to be together, so why must you break them up? Is that what Kristie wants? Besides, James isn’t at fault here. He has always taken good care of Kristie. If someone has to shoulder the blame, it’d be me. It’s my fault for not finding out earlier that Kristie had gone to look for me—”

“It’s indeed your fault, Rayna! To make matters worse, this isn’t the first time you’ve done something so stupid!” Curtis thundered, his eyes burning holes through the downcast woman in front of him.

Whenever he thought about the video or how she had abandoned him to leave with another man, he’d undoubtedly lose any wise restraint and calm reasonableness. In all honesty, he wanted nothing more than to strangle her to death.

“Not only are you presumptuous and gullible, but you also don’t think before you act! What’s the point of apologizing only after something’s happened? Huh?”

It was the first time Rayna had seen Curtis so angry, and his unadulterated rage sent chills down her spine.

With him inching toward her, she had no choice but to back away until her waist hit the sharp edge of a cabinet, causing her to wince in pain.

Even after taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down, Rayna still didn’t have the guts to look Curtis in the eye. “You’re right about me. I’m useless, and this has all been my fault. I only hope you don’t make things difficult for them.”

“Rayna, do you know what Kristie was like when I brought her home?” Curtis asked. “She behaved like a child and would either spend her time sleeping or watching cartoons. She didn’t even bother interacting with anyone else. I spent a lot of time with her, yet I never could get through to her. In the end, I got Jeremy to invite a few friends over to read her stories, hoping that’d be a good distraction to help her forget the traumatic experience.”

Rayna lowered her head even more. “I-I’m sorry...”

“You dote on your brother, and I dote on Kristie. I’ve known her since she was a teen, and she’s like a sister to me. If she forgets about James, she can start anew and work toward a happier life. She might meet someone better, perhaps someone who loves her more than James.”

“What about James, then?”

“I haven’t even settled the score with him after everything that has happened, yet you dare ask me that?” Curtis said brusquely as he grabbed Rayna’s chin. “Listen up, then. If he ever shows up here, I can’t guarantee I won’t do anything to him. Who knows? You might end up having to identify his body the next day.”

Furious, Rayna balled her fists tight. She wanted to lash out at the man, but at the same time, she didn’t know what to say.

Eventually, she gave up and slowly unclenched her fists.

“Yes, you dote on Kristie. Nothing you do is wrong,” she muttered before swatting Curtis’ hand away and striding off in a huff.

Right there and then, her waist began aching again, and she couldn’t help but massage the sore spot.

Curtis remained in his spot as he watched her rub her back. Even though it didn’t take long for him to notice the sharp edge of the cabinet, he chose not to say a word.

As soon as Kristie saw Rayna back in the living room, she instantly clung to the latter. “Curt also went into the bathroom earlier, didn’t he? What were you guys doing inside? Were you...”

Upon hearing that, Rayna almost choked. My, my. Kristie sure is observant, huh?

“Oh, it’s nothing. He just needed to use the bathroom, too,” she said while gently ruffling Kristie’s hair. “I’m going off first. I’ll drop by another time to see you.”

Alas, Kristie refused to let go of Rayna’s arm. “Please don’t! You’re finally back after so long, and I was looking forward to your company. I want to taste your cooking, Rayna!”

“Be good. Let Mdm. Lovett cook for you,” Rayna coaxed. I’m sure Curtis will blow his top if I don’t leave soon...

“Mdm. Lovett’s cooking isn’t as good as yours,” Kristie whined, her soft, pleading eyes fixed on Rayna. “Just one meal, please? I can always wait at your place if you think I’m in the way.”

Before Rayna could reply, Larissa jumped in to help her. “Let’s not put Ms. Garland in a spot, Ms. Winton. You know how busy she is with work. How about I order some dishes from Good Times Restaurant instead?”

Kristie shook her head. “No. I want Rayna’s home-cooked food.”

As luck would have it, she saw Curtis entering the living room and immediately ran toward him. “Curtis, Rayna whips up the most amazing dishes! You want to try her food too, don’t you? Can you plead with her to cook for me?”

Stunned, Rayna turned around and made a beeline for the door.

Just as she was about to leave, Curtis’ voice rang out. “Rayna isn’t a professional chef. Let Mdm. Lovett cook for you.”

“You’ve tried her food before, haven’t you? It’s really delicious.”

“No. I haven’t,” Curtis replied. “She merely ordered from Good Times Restaurant and replated the food. Tell you what. I’ll get lunch from the restaurant, and you can try it yourself.”

“Is that true?” Kristie asked, looking somewhat skeptical.

Needless to say, Rayna was riled up. D*mn it! That annoying man ought to be fed to the sharks!

Without further ado, she walked back to Kristie with her phone in hand. “What would you like to eat, Kristie? I’ll buy the ingredients and cook for you.”

“Really? Oh, my goodness! There’s so much I want to eat...”

“Don’t worry. I can cook whatever you like,” Rayna said while shooting a dirty look at Curtis. “In fact, I’ll prepare both lunch and dinner for you. I may not be a professional chef, but at the very least, I don’t put sugar in my food like some idiots!”

Naturally, Curtis was rendered speechless.