Unexpected Couples

Chapter 2

One week after Erland’s arrival at her house, Kayla now has an uninvited guest, Jacob, a handsome man with a sharp gaze. To be honest, the first time she met him, the impression she got was not very good. Jacob, who did not talk much, had his own way of looking at the other person. How could Kayla explain it? The point was that she felt easily intimidated by the look in Jacob’s deep eyes. Was that really the case, or was it just Kayla’s point of view?
“Am I interrupting your time?” asked the man in the gray coat.
They were currently in the front yard of the Smith family home, sitting on a long bench facing the street. The quiet night atmosphere added to Kayla’s nervousness. The girl in the white fur coat bit her lower lip before finally answering, “Not really.”
“Are you okay?” Jacob inquired.
“Yes?” Kayla turned her head quickly.
“About this wedding. Are you okay?”
Had Kayla not heard wrong? Why did that question sound like Jacob cared about her feelings regarding this marriage?
“Before that, may I ask you one thing?” she asked.
Both of Jacob’s eyebrows rose, indicating he was waiting to see what question the girl beside him would ask.
“Were you forced to marry me, or was this of your own free will?” Actually, she had prepared that question a week ago – preparation to face her future husband. The man was not entirely unfamiliar. Back at university, she had heard a lot about Jacob. From her few observations, the handsome man was not the type of person who would be willing to go along with an arranged marriage like this. So, she wanted to know why Jacob agreed to this loveless marriage.
“If I answer your question, will you believe me?” Jacob asked.
“It depends.”
“Depends?” Her head tilted slightly.
“On whether what you’re going to say is honest or not.”
“Are you some kind of honesty detector?” Kayla burst out laughing. Realizing that he was overreacting, Jacob silenced himself while muttering the word ‘sorry.’
“You’re still the same,” Jacob said with a faint smile. It was so faint as to be invisible.
“The same? What do you mean?”
“You haven’t changed. Your smile and laughter are always pleasing to the eye.”
♡♡♡
Kayla could not be hypocritical. Her feelings were still for Mateo, from whom she had been separated for more than a week. The matchmaking continued until tomorrow was her engagement day with Jacob.
“Are you really serious about this?” asked Evelyne, the cute girl with glasses propping up her chin.
“I’ve broken off my relationship with Mateo. Do you think what I’m doing is just teenage angst?” said Kayla, a little annoyed.
“Eiii... you’re not venting to me, are you?” Her light brown eyes narrowed in displeasure.
Kayla chuckled softly as she raised one hand. “Oh, sorry.”
“If you find it hard, try not to force yourself.” Honestly, Evelyne did not agree with the decision her best friend had made. Oh, come on... these days does an arranged marriage still make sense? What kind of madness would require someone to marry another person without love? Those who marry for love alone don’t always end up happy.
“Debt,” she said, as if listening to her friend’s head. Kayla let out a long sigh.
Evelyn smiled sadly. That’s right, there’s nothing crazier and more powerful than money. What a terrible influence money has. She shook her head dramatically, patting Kayla’s shoulder. “I can’t help but encourage you. Life is like this, my friend!”
Kayla wasn’t sure if her current life could be described as being alive.
“Ah, yes!” exclaimed Evelyn. She changed her position from lying down to sitting cross-legged, hugging Kayla’s pillow. “You once said that the man you’re going to marry is a good person. What’s his name? Daniel? Devlin? Daendels?”
“Jacob,” Kayla corrected.
“Ah, that’s what I meant. You said yourself that you used to know him. That means you didn’t really marry a stranger. In your own opinion, which one is better, Mateo or Jacob?” Evelyn raised her eyebrows as she smiled seductively.
“You think they can be compared?” Kayla sneered. After a moment of thought, she realized that on closer inspection, Jacob was not bad either. Besides his appearance, the man’s demeanor was not rude; it was just that he rarely showed expression.
“See... you even took so long to think.” Evelyn giggled amusedly. She was trying to comfort her best friend. Kayla was clearly distressed and had doubts about whether the decision she had made was the right one. However, all Evelyn could do was support her friend.
“That’s not it!” Kayla threw a pillow and hit her best friend right on the head. Not yet satisfied, she intended to throw another pillow, but her cell phone suddenly rang.
“Who’s calling at this time of night?” Evelyn squinted suspiciously.
“Probably a prankster.” Nevertheless, the girl wearing long pink pajamas answered the call from an unfamiliar number. “Hello,” she greeted.
Kayla frowned when after a few seconds there was no answer. She intended to hang up, but a baritone voice rang out.
“Am I interrupting your time?”
It took a moment for Kayla to process the information in her brain. She glanced at Evelyn, to which the girl replied by raising both eyebrows.
“Who is this?” Kayla asked, trying to confirm her suspicion.
“You can tell by my voice.”
Kayla secretly bit her lower lip. It was Jacob, the man who was currently speaking to her over the phone. “What’s wrong with calling at this time of night?”
“Am I the only one who can’t sleep?” Jacob’s voice sounded hoarse.
“What do you mean?”
“Tomorrow is our engagement day. I can’t sleep. How about you?”
One thing made Kayla feel strange and warm when talking to this man. His demeanor was too sweet, and it was not what she had expected from someone with his outward appearance.
An example was when choosing an engagement dress. Jacob was with her to choose a suitable dress for their engagement later, far beyond Kayla’s expectations. Unlike his outward demeanor and cold, untouchable appearance, Jacob had a warm and caring heart.
“Are you sleeping?”
“Oh?” Kayla was roused from her reverie. “No, I’m not. I haven’t been able to sleep either.”
“It’s not just me.”
There was a moment of silence.
“Then go to sleep. I think I can sleep now after hearing your voice.”
Kayla covered her own mouth in disbelief at the words just now. Oh my! Why does her face feel so hot now?
“Good night. Don’t sleep too late; you’ll be tired during our engagement ceremony.”
Before she could reply, the call had ended.
It couldn’t be like this. It shouldn’t have taken Kayla such a short time to feel this kind of pounding. She had only recently broken up with Mateo, so why was her heart racing over another man?
“Future husband?” Evelyn guessed. She was taken aback when she saw Kayla’s face reddening like a boiled crab. “Oh my! What did your future husband say to make you blush like that? What are the plans for the first night?”
“Shut up!” The pillow that had been delayed to be thrown finally hit Evelyn right in the face.