Forbidden Passion
Chapter 449 Hand Warmers

Phoebe finished her breakfast, folded her pajamas, and noticed Theodore rubbing his arm, looking like he wanted to say something but hesitated.

She pretended not to see him. After packing her suitcase, she turned back to find Theodore still massaging his arm.

Theodore smiled innocently when he saw her looking. "It's okay, you go ahead. I can wait."

Phoebe sighed and walked over. She brushed his hand aside and gently pressed his arm. "Does it hurt here?"

Theodore nodded. "A little."

"And here?" she asked.

"Also a bit," he replied.

Phoebe glanced at him and silently helped relax his muscles.

Theodore stole a glance at Phoebe, detecting her soft demeanor. His gaze drifted to the marks on her neck, a pang of sorrow clouding his eyes. Without thinking, he reached out to gently graze his cool fingers over the bruises, causing Phoebe to freeze in surprise.

"Does it still hurt?" he asked softly.

His touch was gentle, but it still made Phoebe feel suffocated, it wasn't as intense as when she had been throttled before.

Her eyes burned, feeling tender inside. She turned her head away.

Such tenderness after violence felt ridiculous, yet it moved her deeply.

She knew Theodore might still hurt her if she angered him again. But at this moment, his brief tenderness made her feel a bit relaxed. She even bizarrely wanted to offer her neck to his hand.

Suffocation or pain, she didn't care anymore.

A knock on the door snapped her back to reality. She realized she had actually put her neck into Theodore's hand. A shiver ran down her spine.

Theodore's fingers moved away, gently ruffling her hair before withdrawing. "Open the door," he said.

Phoebe hurried to the door, almost tripping over the suitcase.

She opened it to find Orlando standing outside, about to knock again.

"Ms. Ziegler," Orlando said, noticing her flushed ears. "Have you and Mr. Reynolds finished packing? We're ready to leave."

Phoebe cleared her throat. "Yes, we're ready. We can leave anytime."

Orlando glanced inside, seeing Theodore on the bed and two large suitcases. "I'll take the suitcases down first."

Phoebe stepped aside. "Thanks, Orlando."

"No problem." Orlando walked in. Theodore stood up, putting on his jacket.

Orlando greeted him. Theodore nodded, picked up a suitcase, and said, "Let's go."

"Yes, Mr. Reynolds," Orlando replied.

As they walked out, Phoebe went back in to check if they had forgotten anything.

On the bus, some employees from the company's art troupe were heading to the mountains for a charity performance. They were pretty lively.

Last night, when they found out that Theodore and Phoebe were rooming together, they felt a pang of envy. A strikingly beautiful young girl saw Theodore standing outside the bus smoking. She admired his tall, dignified figure, even in the snow. Her heart fluttered.

She had never had a chance to get close to Theodore at the company, but today was different.

She grabbed two hand warmers from her backpack, put them in her jacket pocket, and got off the bus, not caring if her colleagues saw.

Although people spoke of Phoebe with more disdain than envy, they would also try to seduce Theodore if given the chance.

The girl, Violet Morris, was the lead dancer of the art troupe. She was beautiful, not as dazzling as Vanessa, but somewhere between Vanessa and Phoebe.

Violet jogged to Theodore's side. In the icy snow, she spoke, her breath forming a white mist, "Mr. Reynolds, why are you standing outside? Aren't you cold?"

Theodore, holding a half-smoked cigarette, glanced at Violet. She had a delicate and pretty face. He took a drag of his cigarette and said nothing.

Violet clutched the hand warmers in her hand and said, "I heard from Orlando that it will be even colder in the mountains. Mr. Reynolds, did you prepare any cold-weather gear?"

Theodore exhaled a puff of smoke and asked indifferently, "What kind of cold-weather gear?"

"For example, hand warmers. If you didn't prepare any, I have some here." Violet took out the two hand warmers from her bag and handed them over. "You haven't used these before, have you? Just tuck them inside your clothes, they work like magic in keeping you warm."

Theodore looked down at the items in Violet's hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Phoebe coming out of the hotel. He took the hand warmers and said, "Thank you."

Violet was thrilled. "You're welcome. If you need more, you can come to me. I have plenty."

Theodore nodded, extinguished his cigarette, and said, "Let's get on the bus. We're about to leave." Violet replied, "Okay."

Violet felt that Theodore holding the hand warmers was like holding her heart. Her heart was pounding.

She thought, 'Theodore accepted my gift. Does that mean he's interested in me too?'

Violet shyly looked at the handsome Theodore beside her, already imagining their future together. As they approached the bus, Violet saw Phoebe walking over and gave her a challenging look. "Ms. Ziegler, good morning." Phoebe had seen them standing together from a distance, thinking they made a good-looking pair. Now, seeing Violet's defiant look, she didn't mind and nodded before getting on the bus first.

The seating was the same as yesterday. Phoebe had just sat down when she heard Violet say, "Ms. Ziegler, I get carsick. Can we switch seats?"

Phoebe raised an eyebrow, seeing Violet's delicate appearance. She stood up. "Of course."

Theodore got on the bus and saw Phoebe getting up and moving to the back. He frowned. "Phoebe, where are you going?"

Phoebe turned back and smiled at him. "Miss Morris gets the carsick, so I'm switching seats with her. Mr. Reynolds, take good care of your employee."

This sentence had a hint of implication.

Theodore's face instantly turned cold. He grabbed Phoebe's jacket hood and pulled her back.