淑女的欲望

"Carter, actually, Zara is in town, and she wants to talk to you," Scarlett mentioned. "Zara is really concerned about you. She\'s been trying to reach out but hasn\'t been able to get through. Are you intentionally avoiding her?"

Carter was taken aback upon hearing that Zara was in town. A flicker of happiness appeared in his heart, but as his gaze landed on his injured leg, the happiness waned. He felt his confidence drain away when he considered meeting her in his current state.

"Sis, truth is, I didn\'t avoid her deliberately. I can\'t contact her because my mother has taken away my phone and restricted my access to other devices," Carter explained, a hint of frustration in his voice. His mother wanted him to rest and not worry about work matters.

Scarlett chuckled softly at Carter\'s helpless expression. "No wonder you\'ve been unreachable. So, do you want to meet her face-to-face? Zara was concerned about hurting your feelings when she turned down your proposal."

Carter didn\'t respond immediately. 

Instead, he looked out the window, attempting to mask his sadness. He didn\'t want Scarlett to witness him in such a vulnerable state. 

After a moment, when he managed to compose himself a bit, he turned his attention back to Scarlett. "Sister, I don\'t want to see her right now. It\'s not because she turned me down; I don\'t want her to see me like this. However, please convey to her that I\'ll call her later..." He intended to reach out to Zara once he was out of the hospital.

"Ok, I will tell her," Scarlett replied with a comforting smile, respecting Carter\'s wishes.

"One more thing, sis," Carter added, a hint of urgency in his tone. "Please don\'t mention my injury to her. I am afraid she will be even more worried."

"Don\'t worry, I won\'t," Scarlett assured him.

**** 

Scarlett reached home before dinner, relieved that Xander hadn\'t arrived yet. This gave her time to freshen up and call Zara to update her about Carter.

As soon as the call connected, she could hear Zara\'s curious voice from the other end, "Scarlett, you finally called. How about Carter?" She took a moment to inhale deeply before continuing, "Does he want to meet me?"

A sense of sadness welled up within Scarlett. She didn\'t want to disappoint her best friend, yet she also couldn\'t compel Carter to meet Zara in his current condition. She respected his decision.

"Zara, I\'m sorry... but Carter can\'t meet you right now," Scarlett said gently, conveying the news. 

Scarlett could hear a disappointed sigh from Zara. She quickly added, "Sis, Carter is in a third-tier country with poor signal coverage, so it\'s been really tough to communicate with him," she explained casually, though she felt a pang of guilt for deceiving her best friend.

Despite the uneasiness of lying, Scarlett had no choice but to do so out of respect for Carter. She continued, "I was fortunate to get through to him this time, and he wanted me to pass along the message that he\'ll call you as soon as he\'s back in town."

"Really?" Zara\'s voice perked up on the other end. "Are you absolutely sure about this, Scarlett?" she asked, seeking confirmation.

"Absolutely sure. Why would I joke about something like this?" Scarlett tried to sound as sincere as possible. 

"Thank goodness! Now I can finally relax," Zara sighed in relief. "You know what? This past week has been torturous for me. I\'ve been so anxious and on edge, waiting for his call," she admitted.

"Ahem, big sister..." Scarlett playfully teased her. "...could it be that you\'re starting to develop feelings for him? Yay!! Should I call you sister-in-law from now on?" 

Zara, "..."

"Scarlett, Ugh... I need to shower now," Zara\'s voice sounded hurried. "Thanks for everything. Talk to you later. Bye!"

Beep!

Scarlett couldn\'t help but chuckle as she looked at her phone screen after Zara abruptly hung up. 

"Oh, Zara, you can\'t fool me! I\'m absolutely sure you\'re now falling for him," Scarlett murmured to herself, placing her phone on the table before heading downstairs to help Aunt Martha prepare dinner.

As Scarlett prepared to leave the room, Xander\'s voice reached her ears from the doorway. "Did you just finish talking to Zara?" he asked while walking towards her and removing his suit before placing it on the sofa.

"Xander," Scarlett called his name, ignoring his question, and promptly threw herself into his waiting arms.

"I thought you might arrive late for dinner. How was your day? Feeling tired? Go take a shower, and then we can head downstairs to eat," Scarlett rapidly fired off her questions. 

Xander could only chuckle as he tightened his embrace around her.

"Traveling was a bit exhausting, but having you here in my arms erases all the fatigue," Xander mused, leaning in to gently kiss her forehead before loosening his hold. He gazed down at her, their eyes locking. "Did you miss me?" he playfully questioned.

"Hmm, I missed you terribly," Scarlett replied with an affectionate smile, her cheeks warming under his adoring gaze. "But, dear hubby... can you please shower now?" She gently nudged him toward the bathroom, her hunger growing.

"Oh, my beloved wife, why did you rush me to go? I\'m so entranced by holding you like this..." Xander again tightened his embrace as if reluctant to let her go.

Scarlett chuckled. "Hubby, I believe our little one is quite hungry now..."

"Oh, babe... I need to wash now. I feel my body itchy," Xander quickly released her, hurrying towards the bathroom, mindful not to let his wife go hungry. "Wife, you go ahead and eat. I\'ll join you shortly."

"Hahaha, alright. I\'ll head down to assist Auntie Martha..." Scarlett grinned, feeling amused, looking at Xander run to the bathroom. After she saw the bathroom door close, she headed downstairs to the dining room.