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Novel Catalog
Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Zachary and Serenity were merely a married couple on paper, so even though the alcohol was clouding Zachary’s mind, he didn’t need Serenity to tend to him. He certainly didn’t trust her enough to risk her taking advantage of him while he was intoxicated. At thirty years old, Zachary had never kissed anyone, much less allowed anyone to violate his modesty. Romance had never been something he cared about. Nana often called him loveless and passionless, but due to his indifference towards love, Zachary had married Serenity to get Nana off his back.
Despite patting down his pockets repeatedly, Zachary couldn’t find his house keys. “Jim, maybe you should wake the missus,” he muttered, realizing he had left home without them.
The bodyguard immediately knocked on the door. Although Serenity was asleep, she was a light sleeper, and the sound of knocking woke her up. She listened carefully and realized someone was at the door. As she got up to check, she remembered she was in her pajamas. Quickly pulling a winter jacket from the wardrobe, she put it on before heading to the door. When she opened it, both Zachary and Jim were taken aback by the sight of her in a thick winter jacket.
It was October, sure, but it wasn’t cold enough for a winter jacket yet. “Hello, I’m the designated driver from a chauffeuring service. Your husband is drunk, so I walked him up,” Jim quickly explained, handing Zachary and the car keys to Serenity.
Serenity almost buckled under Zachary’s weight as she helped him inside. “Thank you, Mister,” she said to Jim.
“No problem,” Jim replied, giving a quick glance at Zachary before slipping away. After closing and locking the door, Serenity helped Zachary steady himself as they made their way inside. “Why did you drink so much? You stink of alcohol,” she nagged him.
Zachary didn’t reply, but in his mind, he was thinking, Whose fault was that? Yours!
Serenity tossed the car keys onto the coffee table, then helped Zachary up to his bedroom door. When she let go of him, she said, “It’s written in the contract that your bedroom is off-limits. This is as far as I can go. You’re on your own. Wait until tomorrow to take a shower; I fear you might drown in the bathroom in this state.”
Zachary fumbled with the door, stumbling inside before stopping and slowly turning around. “Why are you wearing such a thick jacket on a hot day?” he asked, confused.
“I didn’t have time to get dressed, so I put on a jacket to open the door for you,” Serenity explained before shutting the door behind him.
The sound of the door closing signaled the end of their interaction for the night. Serenity returned to her room, quickly shedding the jacket and murmured to herself, “The heat’s killing me.”
Meanwhile, Zachary, left alone in his room, stood in silence for a while before stumbling to his bed, diving headfirst into the soft sheets. His drowsiness quickly overtook him as he fell into a deep sleep.
By the afternoon, Zachary finally woke up. He had slept the whole night without turning on the air conditioner, so he was greeted by the stench of alcohol and sweat. His usually neat-freak tendencies kicked in, and he rushed to the toilet to throw up. Afterward, he immediately took a shower, feeling refreshed.
When he came out of the bathroom, Zachary was fully awake and back to his usual self. As he recalled the events of the previous night, he vowed never to get that intoxicated again. Fortunately, Serenity had kept her word and didn’t take advantage of him while he was vulnerable. Zachary wondered if he had been right to draft the contract after all, but one thing was certain — they might just survive this arrangement after all.
