Chapter 42 Did You Kiss Me on Purpose?

"Thanks for saving me again, Uncle Henry," Alice said, her eyes full of gratitude.

Henry turned around, sounding annoyed, "Do you have any sense of self-preservation at all?"

"What?"

"Why didn't you try to grab the railing to save yourself?"

Alice thought, 'He's so sharp. He totally saw through my little plan.'

She stepped closer, standing behind him, her voice shaky, "I saw you and got distracted. When I fell into the water, I thought it might be a hallucination. I tried to save myself, but Clara pulled my belt towards the propeller. I was so desperate until you came to my rescue."

Her explanation made some sense. Even Henry found it hard to believe how things had turned out.

He was relieved he made the right call today. If Alice hadn't been saved in time, things could've gone really bad.

Seeing Henry's shirt stained with blood, Alice felt a pang of guilt. She wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing against his back. "Uncle Henry, you got hurt saving me again. I always cause you trouble. Do you hate me?"

Henry looked at her hands around his waist. Her fingers were wrinkled from the seawater. He gently pulled her wrist away. "No."

Alice held his cold hand. "The wound needs to be cleaned and treated. Let me help you with that."

Henry pulled his hand back. "I can handle it."

Alice moved in front of him. "Uncle Henry, you keep getting hurt because of me. I feel awful about it."

She blinked her clear eyes, her nose red and pitiful.

Henry looked away, his Adam's apple bobbing. He sat on the leather sofa and took off his shirt. "The first aid kit is in the cabinet on the left."

Alice quickly grabbed the kit and sat beside him. She dipped a cotton swab in disinfectant and applied it to the wound. "Does it hurt?"

"No."

"You're lying. It must hurt. Seawater can cause infections and make things worse," Alice said, gently blowing on the wound.

Feeling her breath, Henry tensed up. "What are you doing?"

"Blowing on it to make it hurt less."

"Stop it."

"No, it helps."

Henry shifted slightly, and Alice's lips brushed against his abs.

The soft touch made Henry freeze. It felt like feathers teasing his heart, a tingling sensation spreading through him. His breath grew heavier. "Get up."

Alice looked at him. "I didn't kiss you on purpose."

"I know."

"Then did you kiss me on purpose in the sea?"

Henry realized she was fishing for information. He calmly said, "You were low on oxygen. I was giving you air. You're overthinking it."

"But you clearly kissed my lips twice."

Henry placed a finger on her forehead. "You were hallucinating."

Just then, Ethan walked in and saw Alice lying on Henry's abs.

The scene was too suggestive, and Ethan couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Sorry, Mr. Howard, I didn't see anything."

Henry gently pushed Alice's head away, frowning. "Don't overthink."

Ethan's eyes darted around, "Is it what I think it is?"

Henry's face darkened. "There's a project in the desert that suits you well."

Ethan immediately lowered his head. "Mr. Howard, I came to bring you some ointment."

Alice happily ran over to take it. "Thanks, Mr. Ross."

"You're welcome. I'll head out now. Call me if you need anything."

Alice nodded, watching Ethan leave, then hurried back to the sofa. "Uncle Henry, let me put the ointment on for you."

Henry took the ointment from her. "I can handle it. You should go back."

"Uncle Henry, you got hurt because of me. I can't just leave." Seeing Henry scoop some ointment with his fingers and apply it to the wound, Alice reached out to help spread it evenly. "Uncle Henry, why did you suddenly come back? Weren't you on a business trip?"

Recalling the message from Oliver, Henry's expression turned colder. "Something came up in Floragada. The meeting is in three days."

"Okay, I thought you came back because you missed me, or..." Alice leaned in, a faint smile on her face. "Missed my desserts."

"No."

Alice gently leaned against Henry's back. "Uncle Henry, do you know how upset I was that day? I brought you cake and cookies, and even sent you a Facebook message. But you said those cruel words to me. I really thought you were tired of me, even speaking harshly to me later. But you still care about me; otherwise, you wouldn't have saved me."

Henry frowned and turned around. "What exactly did I say?"

Alice blinked. "You sent a Facebook message telling me to leave with my cheap cake and cookies and you were tired of me."

Henry's eyes narrowed, recalling that Julia had been in his office that day.

Julia had spilled coffee on his shirt, making him change clothes in the lounge. She must have taken that opportunity to delete Alice's messages and send those cruel words.

He finally understood why Alice kept saying her desserts weren't cheap and kept her distance from him.

Henry asked, "Then how did your cake and cookies end up with Oliver?"

"What?" Alice was surprised. "I gave them to the receptionist. I don't know why they ended up with him."

Hearing this, Henry had figured something.

"Uncle Henry, so you were actually jealous, right?" Alice asked, tilting her head, her eyes gleaming with mischief.

Henry denied it. "I just thought you were untrustworthy."

"Let me guess. Uncle Henry, you must think I'm a love cheat, preparing so many backups for myself."

That was exactly what Henry thought.

Alice explained, "That day you saw me with Mr. Astor at Bernardin Restaurant because he wanted me to help him reject a blind date." She leaned closer to Henry. "In my world, there's only Uncle Henry. No one else catches my eye."

Hearing Alice's words, Henry stared at her for a moment before saying, "I'm sorry."

Alice paused, taken aback by Henry's sincere apology. "Uncle Henry, do you feel you've been quite harsh to me lately?"

Henry nodded. "I do."

"But I don't want your apology."

"Then what do you want?"

"I want you to like me." Alice said, her eyes shimmering with tears, her delicate skin looking adorable.

Henry chuckled, "Do you really like me that much?"

Alice nodded earnestly. "Yes, I like you, so I want you to like me the same way."

At that moment, Oliver's voice sounded, "Uncle Henry, I've made my decision this time."

Instantly, Henry put some distance between himself and Alice.

Henry looked displeased as he turned to Oliver. "What decision?"

Oliver looked at Alice. "I have something to discuss with Uncle Henry."

Alice cast a deep, lingering glance at Henry before standing up and leaving the cabin.

Oliver sat on the sofa, looking nonchalant. "I've decided to fulfill the agreement between the Howard Family and the Savoy Family. I'm getting engaged to Alice!"