Skin the man alive

On their way back to the hospital it was silent inside Jacob's SUV. J felt awkward since last night, she wore a nightgown which she never used to wear and Jacob saw her. Jacob said he was jealous of a country singer that she loves to listen to. She hugged him this morning and Madam Kelly caught them cuddling each other in Jacob's bed. She had every reason to feel awkward and embarrassed.

Although Madam Kelly didn't bring out that topic during lunch, she still felt Madam Kelly looking at her with ambiguity. She felt her blood rush up to her face making her uncomfortable. Jacob and Chairman John have been talking about the hospital throughout lunch. J just wanted to get it over and get out of the mansion as soon as possible.

But inside Jacob's SUV J felt more awkward.

At the corner of her eyes, she saw Jacob was smiling to himself though his focus was on the road. She can't take the silence anymore so she grabbed her phone, put the earpiece to her ears, and started scanning for songs on her phone. When she was about to play Lose It by Kane Brown, she suddenly remembered what Jacob told her last night so she quickly scanned for another song before things got more awkward.

Later that night after her shift Jacob was already home when she got home. When she was about to lie in the bed after a quick shower her phone rang. It registered Diana's house phone number. Her brows furrowed as she quickly answered the call.

"Who's Timothy?" J's heart jumped up in surprise when she heard Jacob whom she thought was asleep. She mentioned Timothy's name while in conversation with his nanny over the phone so she realized that Jacob was eavesdropping all this time.

J rolled her eyes and said, "Diana's son." he was jealous of a singer now over a kid. He's so immature. J thought.

Jacob was relieved.

That morning, an old lady is trying to open the door of J's apartment using a key. When she successfully opened the door, she was faced with two Golden Retrievers. But the old lady didn't show any fear. She is used to taming different breeds of dogs and taming a golden retriever was a piece of cake for her since they are known to be kind to a stranger. She only gave them treats then scratched their heads.

After taking care of the dogs, the old lady walked towards the bedroom. She gently turns the knob before slowly pushing the door open. Inside the room, she found J asleep in a man's arms while the man was cuddling her. She furrowed her brows at the sight.

After a couple of minutes of studying the two, she cleared her throat in an attempt to wake the two.

J felt the presence of someone in her bedroom so she opened her sleepy eyes. When she finally regained her clear vision, she was surprised to see Mrs. Potters standing at the foot of her bed. In her panic, she pushed Jacob away from her and get up from the bed.

Jacob, who was awoken by J's sudden movement, opened his eyes to see an old lady standing in front of them. She looked at the old lady and then at J with a confused face.

"Mrs. Potters..." J said.

"I came for a visit." the old lady said to J while looking at Jacob.

Why is she acting peculiar? J thought to herself.

"I brought breakfast. Quickly wash up then follow me to the dining." the old lady said then turn around to walk towards the kitchen.

Jacob looked at J then said, "Who is that?"

J gave him a deep sigh then walked out of the bedroom leaving Jacob puzzled.

In the kitchen J cautiously muttered to Mrs. Potters, "Mrs. Potters what are you doing here?" Although she was furious, she maintained a tone of respect for the old lady.

"Miss... I came here to skin the man alive. I have to make sure that he is treating you fairly despite this arranged marriage. Well, it seems to me that you were well taken care of." the old lady answered with a teasing smile.

J rolled her eyes and said, "Don't make assumptions."

"Oh...Did I?" Mrs. Potters replied with a silent chuckle, careful not to be heard by Jacob.

As soon as Jacob appeared in the kitchen the old lady returned her serious expression on her face.

Mrs. Potters quickly introduced herself to Jacob after serving the foods on the dining table.

"By the way, my name is Mrs. Potters. I'm a family friend and an old friend of Mr. Do." J looked at Mrs. Potters with a small smile at the corner of her lips when she heard the old lady call her grandfather Mr. Do instead of Elder Do. It looks like this old lady is up to something.

"When Mr. Do died, he left her to me to take care of J. But this lady is old enough, so I just visit her now and then to check out on her." Mrs. Potters continued as she sat down in the armchair in front of Jacob while J was sitting beside him.

"So... may I know who is this young man here and why is he here?"

J realized that Mrs. Potters is pretending that she doesn't know Jacob and their relationship.

"I'm Jacob Parker. I'm Jenny's husband."

Mrs. Potters raised her eyebrows. "Husband? As far as I know, J never had a boyfriend before and never planned to get married in the future."

J who was busy eating raised her head and looked at Mrs. Potters. The old lady is seriously taking her disguise. She even dropped her title instead called her by her name only.

Although Jacob hesitated at first but later decided to tell the old lady the truth about their marriage.

"It was an arranged marriage by our grandfather five years ago. It was legal and registered."

"Is that so?" Mrs. Potters replied with a raised brow.

Jacob was getting irksome. He stared at Mrs. Potters while the old lady did the same as well. For a couple of seconds, they stared at each other as if trying to read what's in their mind. J looked at them one after another then cleared her throat to grab their attention.

"So... what do you do for a living?" Mrs. Potters ask Jacob

Jacob smirked before saying, "I am a surgeon and also the CEO and President of CLP Group of Hospitals. We also owned a Pharmaceutical Company and a Private Army Company. "

"Hmm... such high profile. You look like a womanizer to me, plus with such a high status I doubt if you didn't have a girlfriend before you found out about your marriage with J."

J chuckled when Mrs. Potters said the word womanizer. She definitely hit the exact word to describe him.

Jacob gave J an antagonizing look that makes J bite her lip and return her focus to her food.

Jacob straightened his back and said in a serious tone, "With all due respect Mrs. Potters, I think your choice of word is not fitting."

Oh...oh... Mrs. Potters you pissed him off. Thought J.

"Indeed, I enjoy spending time and flirting with women but I don't go beyond that. I don't casually have sex with random girls if that's what you want to hear. So I prefer to call myself a ladies' man, not a womanizer." J blushed hearing what Jacob said. Does he have to be so blunt to prove something? She thought to herself. But that confession had a sudden change in her perspective about this man beside her.

The thought of Jacob being a philanderer irks her, that is probably one of her first impressions of him.

What a relief to find out that he is not.

"Plus... I don't use my status to chase after girls. It will only ruin my family's reputation. In fact, it's the other way around." Jacob said in a proud tone.

J choked on the coffee that she is drinking and thought to herself, 'What a swagger.'

"Anyway after I found out about my marriage to Jenny, I already renounced my old habit. I only have respect for this marriage now. As I've said I am seriously considering this marriage."

"Hmm...I see." Mrs. Potters seemed to be convinced so she turned to look at J.

"How's the family treating you J? You know, although he came from a prominent family, I will not tolerate it once I find out that you were mistreated by his family." Mrs. Potters said that as if Jacob was not in front of her.

J was out for word at first. Although Mr. and Mrs. Parker mistreated and judged her during their first meeting, that was just because of a misunderstanding. Besides, the whole family treats her well after that. So, she said that she was well treated by the family and welcomed her warmly.

Mrs. Potters and Jacob were satisfied with her reply.

Finally, their breakfast turned interrogation ended.

Jacob prepared to go to the hospital while J and Mrs. Potters were left at the apartment.

Mrs. Potters watched J while washing the dishes. J didn't let Mrs. Potters wash the dishes as she usually did back at the Lodgepole Estate saying that she is her guest and she will not let her guest do the chores at her apartment.

J takes a deep breath before she turns to Mrs. Potters and says, "Mrs. Potters you do know that the way you look at me makes me uncomfortable, right? Do you want to say something?"

The old lady narrowed her eyes and said, "You didn't tell me that your husband is the CEO of CLP Group of Hospitals."

"You didn't ask," J replied nonchalantly.

Mrs. Potters chuckled then said, "You didn't tell me that he is good-looking." with a smile on her face.

J rolled her eyes and said, "That's irrelevant."

"I think... no... I'm certain that he likes you." Mrs. Potters said while giving her a fascinated look.

J chuckled and gave her a sardonic smile. How she wishes that it is true. But their situation is quite peculiar. Her identity is mysterious to him. What if he found out that she is an heiress of an underground society? Is it possible for him to like her? Given the fact that her identity might ruin the reputation of his family?

Mrs. Potters seized the opportunity to report to J the current status of the Lodgepole Estate since J wasn't able to stay there for long the last time she visited.

Then after a couple more hours, Mrs. Potters bid her goodbye and wished to see her in the Lodgepole Estate in her coming days off.

J was left in her apartment. Since she was able to finish all of the chores that morning with the help of Mrs. Potters who insisted on helping her, she still has a couple more hours left before she goes to the hospital for her duty.

With nothing to do, she sits on the sofa and turns on the TV. A piece of breaking news flashed on the TV. It was a ribbon cutting on one of the newest government establishments that have been built just recently. On the screen of the TV, J saw a familiar face who's cutting the ribbon. It is Dominic Sloane. The husband of Leticia Parker Sloane.

The first time they met at the Parker's Mansion she sensed a peculiar look from him. Then she remembered to call Lance.

"Hey! How's your married life? I was starting to get sulky realizing that you have forgotten about me because of your husband." Lance said on the other line pouting his lips.

J ignored him and rolled her eyes then said, "I want you to investigate someone for me."

Lance is not just her personal lawyer, he is also her right-hand man. If Peter is President Martin's right hand, Leo is Madam Victoria's, Lance is her's. But unlike Peter and Leo who were always with the President and Madam, Lance is always hidden and does his job behind the scenes.

Of course, that is to protect J. It would seem weird for an ordinary nurse to have someone following her wherever she goes. That's why since Lance and J were back from abroad, they rarely see each other and had communication only through phone and email.

Lance being ignored was already used to J's attitude then said, "Oh... Okay. Who could that be?"

"Dominic Sloane." J shortly replied.

"Hmm...Dominic Sloane. The politician?" Lance asked.

"Mm..." was J's short reply while still looking at the man on the TV screen.

"I wonder what he did that caught your interest? He is a good-looking man and a good catch but he is older than you and I heard that he is already married. And you are also married." Lance started to mock her although he knows that J would never be interested in that person at least not in a romantic way.

"He's married to Leticia Parker. The elder sister of Jacob and the CEO of Parker Pharmaceuticals. I met him at Parker's Mansion. When he heard my name, he looked aghast as if he recognized me. I knew there was something about him and I wanted to know what that is. You have to get information about him as soon as possible. If he knows something about me, I have to do something about it before things become complicated." J said in a serious tone.

Lance knew that this could be a serious situation so he dared not to joke around and said, "Oh... Okay. I got it. I'll call you back as soon as I find something."