Mason practically ran out of Sarah's room as if the devil was hot on his trail.
He didn't stop until he was halfway down the hallway.
His breathing was uneven, his heart racing, not out of fear, but out of pure confusion.
Why didn't he react?
For so many years, any skin-to-skin contact with a woman had sent him into an allergic frenzy.
Red blotches, violent vomiting, even fainting spells.
But after that little scuffle with Sarah, when she punched him and he grabbed her wrist momentarily, there was nothing. No rash. No nausea. Not even a single itch.
It made no sense.
His brows furrowed deeply, and without another thought, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
"Doctor Qin," he breathed into his phone in a cold and commanding voice.
On the other end, a startled voice responded, "Mr. Liu? I was just about to board my flight. I'm flying to Chengdu for a medical conference—"
"Cancel it. Come to the mansion. Immediately."
"But—"
"I said now." Mason ended the call before the man could finish his protest.
A shadow moved beside him and he turned to see who it was. He was preparing to make a run for the door if it happened to be that woman.
Thankfully, it was just his assistant, Derek Cheng.
Mason didn't look at him as he barked, "Get that strange woman out of my house this minute."
Derek's eyes widened in confusion. "You mean Miss Chen?" he asked, just to be sure. He'd been informed by James that the boss brought a woman home. And although he couldn't touch her, he'd been considerate enough to ask James to lift her and take her along with them.
But now, Mason was saying he should send her out? Was it because of the scandal against her?
"Who else?" Mason snapped and continued walking without another word.
Derek sighed and scratched his head awkwardly. He had also just instructed the servants to prepare lunch for the both of them, thinking that perhaps the atmosphere was improving since his boss brought the woman home and was forced to marry her.
But clearly, something had gone wrong again. He sighed and turned back to Sarah's room.
Inside the bedroom, Sarah had just combed her hair and was applying some cream to the bruise on her wrist and pimple. She had been trying to recover from the slap of emotions that Mason's offer had dumped on her. Also, the way he pushed her away like she was some filthy dirt he didn't want to get close to.
She looked up when a knock came at the door. "Come in."
The door creaked open, only to see another good looking man walk in with an apologetic expression on his face.
"Miss Chen," he said slowly.
Sarah frowned. "Do I know you?" She asked.
"No. I'm Derek Cheng, Mason Liu's assistant." He introduced himself first, just so she could get comfortable.
"Oh, is there a problem, Mr. Cheng?" Sarah questioned after a slight bow.
Derek looked away, then back at her with a helpless smile. "I'm afraid Mr. Liu has requested that you leave the mansion."
Sarah's face fell at once and fear crawled up her spine. "But…" she blinked fast. "Where am I supposed to go? I don't have anywhere else. Please just let me stay here for a few more days. Just a week. I'll be gone before anyone notices."
Derek hesitated. Her tone wasn't arrogant or defensive like he expected. It was desperate. She didn't sound like a celebrity or an award-winning singer. She sounded like a lost girl looking for a place to breathe.
"I'm really sorry, Miss Chen. I… I don't have a choice. Mr. Liu was very specific," he said softly.
Sarah clenched the sheets on the bed. Her stomach churned.
"Alright," she muttered. "It's fine. I'll leave."
But it wasn't fine.
After Derek left the room, she grabbed her phone and started browsing. She checked every hotel listing within the city. But each time she clicked one, her heart sank a little more.
They all knew her. The receptionists, the managers, even the bellboys.
The news scandal was too hot. Everyone would recognize her immediately. No hotel would welcome her. And if someone took her picture entering one, the media would chew her alive.
Worse, there was still that stupid rumor floating around, that she had bribed the judges for her award. There was even an ongoing petition to strip her of her title.
The shame was suffocating.
She dropped the phone on the bed and buried her face in her hands. "Where am I supposed to go now?"
Downstairs, Mason sat alone in the study, his eyes fixed on his hand, the one that had grabbed Sarah's wrist.
He still couldn't believe it.
No reaction. Not even a tingle.
He didn't want to think about what that meant. Could it be… was she the one? Was she the woman he could finally touch?
But no.
That was impossible. She was a liar. A scandal magnet. A disgrace to her family.
Just then, the door opened and Doctor Qin walked in, panting slightly.
"I ran here," the older man muttered. "What's the emergency? I nearly lost my seat on that plane—"
Mason looked up at him, at the same time a maid walked in to deliver the bottle of whiskey and glasses.
He raised his arm towards the maid. "Touch me."
Doctor Qin blinked. "What?" both the maid and Qin asked in unison.
"Touch me," Mason repeated, lifting his sleeve. "Now."
The maid hesitated, then reached out and poked Mason's forearm with two fingers.
Mason retracted his hand and dismissed her at once.
The moment she left the room, he broke out in cold sweat as he pulled his sleeve up.
Almost immediately, red splotches appeared across Mason's skin.
Qin nodded. He'd been informed by Mason before he arrived that Sarah touched him but there wasn't a reaction.
"So… it wasn't a miracle," the doctor muttered. "Your allergy is still active."
Mason's jaw tightened. "Except… it didn't happen when Sarah touched me."
The doctor paused. His eyes widened as if realizing something. "Wait… are you saying—"
"I'm saying," Mason cut him off coldly, "she might be the only woman I'm not allergic to."
Doctor Qin blinked again. "That can be true. But you don't also react to your grandmother." He pointed out, taking a step towards Mason.
He grabbed Mason's hand and stabbed something into his thigh. Mason closed his eyes and inhaled sharply.
When he opened his eyes and glanced down at his hand, the redness and what looked like spikes were gone.
He was back to normal.
"I need to see her. She has to try touching you again. That's the only way to know what's going on." Qin said and stepped back.
Mason growled low in his throat before grabbing the whiskey. Now he asked Sarah to leave, how the hell was he supposed to find her?