Chapter 423 His Plan

Hiram wore a disarmingly devilish smile as he clinked his glass with Rachel. "Do you really think you can stop me if I wanted to do that?"

Rachel was resting her head on one of her hands, as she thought about his question. 'Certainly not, ' she thought and sighed. She shook her head against her thoughts and drank her wine. After emptying her glass, she lay down on her bed and wrapped herself in the bed. Her eyelids were heavy.

After the earlier mess in the bar, she was feeling exhausted. Her head was still pounding even now that she was already at the comfort of her own home, and it was as if she could still hear the sounds of police sirens and the ambulance mingling with shouts in the background.

She closed her eyes and let her body sink to the familiar scent of her sheets. In no time, she was dozing off.

Hiram waited until Rachel was asleep. He quietly got up and went to the bathroom for a shower.

When he was done, he lay down cautiously next to Rachel, careful not to disturb her sleep. Then, as if by instinct, his arms found her and pulled her closer to the curve of his body.

Rachel woke up feeling refreshed. She had a restful sleep. Getting up, she stretched her arms to rouse her muscles into waking. She glanced around her and found the bed empty. It seemed that she thought too much last night. Hiram didn't touch her. An unsettling feeling came over her. Was she... disappointed?

She slapped her hands to both cheeks. It was as if an unknown feeling was making her feel warm.

'What's gotten to me? Did I eat anything strange yesterday?'

Rachel shook her head and went to the bathroom to wash up.

Then, she went to find the children to spend time playing game with them, as she always did in the mornings.

She was greeted by the sight of Nadia playing with Joyce. She woke up early that morning. The two girls were in the living room, one of them was dressing up a doll, and the other braiding its hair.

"Mommy!" At the sight of her mother, Joyce ran to Rachel. She found herself returning her daughter's bright smile.

Nadia walked towards Rachel as well. She tugged at the hem of her shirt to get her attention and asked,"Auntie, when is Mommy coming to pick me up?"

At her words, Rachel's smile froze, but she tried to keep her lips from faltering. In truth, she didn't know how to answer Nadia. Fixing her smile, she said patting the child's head,"Your mom is just a little busy now, Nadia. She might come to pick you up after a few days. In the meantime," she crouched down so she could be at level with her eyes,"why don't we just enjoy playing together? Your mommy asked me to tell you to stay here for now and have fun with Jonny and Joyce. When she finishes her work, she will come here to pick you up!"

Rachel tried her best to sound convincing and light. She was afraid of being found out, but Nadia just nodded her head innocently and went back to playing with Joyce.

Rachel breathed out a sigh of relief. At this time, Hiram was probably in the gym upstairs working out.

She went upstairs and saw Hiram running on the treadmill. His skin was glistening with perspiration, and beads of sweat trailed down from his neck to his chest. Rachel followed the trail of his sweat with her eyes. Her throat felt dry, as if she was the one who had been running. She snapped out of

"You're my wife in name only, on paper only. My heart and love will never be yours."

Edward made it clear to Daisy that she was nothing to him. They were both victims of family greed -- the marriage was arranged for them.

Six years passed. She remained quiet, gaining a reputation in the army as a tough-as-nails colonel. When she walked into his life again, Edward fell in love with this woman...

surprise "Me too? Can't I just stay home and take care of the kids? Besides, work has piled up with RaR, and I'm worried about Celine…"

Hiram covered Rachel's mouth with his hand to stop her from talking.

"You promised me. You're giving me 12 days. It's only been 3. As for your company, you don't need to worry about it. Fiona worked with Celine to take care of things while you were gone, so even if Celine isn't in the company, everything's being taken care of. Fiona is capable of handling business matters, and besides,"

Hiram pinched her lips, and Rachel thought she saw a shadow momentarily cross his eyes. "you have a lot of time to spend with the children in the future. But I've only got 12 days with you. Are you really going to reject me?"

Rachel could not possibly answer to those words. "Alright. I'll go with you after breakfast. Let's go downstairs. The children must be hungry too."

In the Streams Company, Rachel was staring fixedly at Hiram while he worked. She couldn't understand why Hiram was reasoning. Why did he want her to stay with him in the office? 'Me staying in the office with him is what he wants?' Rachel thought to herself, confused.

Then, Rachel remembered what Chad told her before. When she was gone a few days ago, Hiram behaved differently, as if he had lost focus. He would wander around or call back home multiple times to ask whether Rachel had come back.

Maybe that was why Hiram insisted Rachel stay with him. Rachel sighed and gave up thinking about it.

She sank on the sofa and resumed staring at Hiram. She was drinking juice as she looked at him. He was completely immersed in his work. Her eyes followed the sharp contours of his brow down to his nose and jaw. She swept her eyes over the hard lines of his back and shoulders, and she felt her heartbeat quickening at the sight. She sipped more of her juice, suddenly feeling parched.

'What is going on?'

Rachel felt as if the air had gotten hotter, and the warmth

spread throughout her body. She had to focus on keeping her breathing normal.

Hiram lifted his head and saw Rachel sitting on the sofa, looking at him, her cheeks flushed and her lips parted. He smirked and asked,"Like what you see?"