Chapter 9 Have a Fever
Theodore was sitting solo in the deserted living room when a nagging feeling started to gnaw at him.
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Sabrina’s been all by herself while I’ve been at work. She’s gotta
be scared.
For a split–second, he was itching to pry and find out where she’d been, but he held his horses.
In her eyes, our father–daughter bond is as fake as it gets. If I start grilling her now, she’ll probably hold it against me.
Still, his worry snowballed. So he punched in Julian’s number.
Meanwhile, Julian was neck–deep in a steamy moment with his girlfriend. Just when things were really heating up, the shrill ring of his phone jolted them both.
“Who the heck is that?” she snapped, her mood going down the
drain in an instant.
“Just some pain–in–the–ass boss,” Julian growled as he peeked at
the caller ID.
His eyes dulled right away. “I’m done, I swear. I’m quitting this gig!”
But despite his griping, he quickly threw on his clothes and
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
answered the call.
“Yeah, hello, Mr. Theodore Fridman.”
His voice was quite flattering.
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“Track down where Rina went today,” Theodore ordered, then hung up.
An hour later, Julian called, saying, “Mr. Theodore Fridman, Ms. Fridman headed to New York, but I couldn’t nail down exactly where.”
Theodore furrowed his brow, his eyes clouded with mounting
concern.
If Julian couldn’t get the intel, it was a dead giveaway that someone was covering her tracks on purpose.
The following afternoon, when Sabrina got home, she spotted Theodore splayed out on the couch.
As she drew closer, she noticed his eyes were shut and his face. was tinged with a rosy hue.
The usually tough–as–nails guy looked shockingly vulnerable in his sick state.
“Theodore,” she murmured softly, giving him a gentle nudge.
When he didn’t stir, she tenderly placed her palm on his forehead.
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
“Oh, crap! He’s burning up. Has he been like this all day?”
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With the housekeeper and the servant off work, it was just the two of them in the house.
Sabrina quickly took his temperature and saw it was creeping close to 104°F. She rummaged through her stash and pulled out one of the fever–reducing pills she’d whipped up herself.
She wrapped Theodore in a snug blanket and laid a damp cloth on his forehead before trotting off to the kitchen to whip up
some soup.
Back when she was with the Sterling family, Hailey never gave Sabrina a dime. When Matthew was out, it was par for the course for Sabrina to come home to an empty dining table and have nothing to eat.
Hailey had told the housekeeper not to cook for her, and no one in their right mind would go against her orders.
As time went by, Sabrina taught herself to cook and, lo and behold, she’d become quite the whiz in the kitchen.
After getting Theodore to take his medicine, he still passed out cold. Sabrina managed to spoon–feed him about half a bowl of
soup.
That night, since she wanted to be within reach in case he
needed anything, she unfurled a blanket and crashed on the sofa across from him.
A
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
Around three in the morning, Theodore’s fever finally broke. When he opened his eyes, his head, which had been all foggy, was surprisingly clear.
There, fast asleep on the opposite sofa, was Sabrina. A funny little warmth started fluttering in his chest.
Even though he’d been in and out of it, he could tell someone had been by his side, looking after him.
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In the Fridman family, love was as rare as hen’s teeth. Whenever he got sick, he’d just tough it out and pick up some medicines if need be. No one had ever fussed over him like this before.
As Theodore realized it was his own flesh and blood, his daughter, who’d been caring for him, a warm, fuzzy feeling welled up inside him.
The next morning, Sabrina woke up to find Theodore still catching some Zs.
“That’s weird,” she muttered to herself, remembering how she’d given him the fever–reducer she’d whipped up herself.
Sabrina was certain it was made of nothing but harmless stuff and was way more potent than anything she could buy off the shelf. So, it just didn’t add up that he was still burning up.
Sabrina crouched down in front of Theodore and tentatively placed her hand on his forehead.
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
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Just then, Theodore suddenly popped his eyes open, giving her quite a scare. She yanked her hand back in a flash.
Caught in that moment of locked eyes, Sabrina felt like a fish out
of water and scrambled to her feet. “You… you’re awake?”
“Yeah,” Theodore replied, his eyes lingering on her.
“How’re you feeling now?” she asked.
The sickly look had vanished from Theodore’s face. As he got up from the sofa, he slipped back into his usual tough–guy act, though there was a newfound softness in his eyes.
“Feeling a whole lot better.
“Thanks for looking after me yesterday,” he said, then quickly looked away.
Theodore never in a million years thought he’d say something
like that.
He hadn’t expected to spend a sleepless night fretting about Sabrina when she said she wouldn’t be coming back.
This nagging sense of worry was a whole new ballgame for him.
Sabrina, feeling a bit jittery, replied, “Aw, it’s nothing.”
With the housekeeper and the rest of the staff off for the weekend, Theodore threw out an offer. “Wanna come to the office with me later?”
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
Sabrina paused for a split–second but then quickly gave the go–ahead.
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When she was a kid, she used to tag along with Matthew to his office all the time. But since she came back home six months
ago, his tune had changed.
He’d been dragging his feet about taking her with him, even though she was just a harmless adopted daughter in his eyes.
Once upon a time, she was in the dark about it. But now, with a fresh pair of eyes, it was as plain as day–Matthew only saw Brianna as the rightful heir of the Sterling family. He’d even given Sabrina a stern warning not to have her eyes on things that weren’t hers. He was scared of any rivalry brewing between her
and Brianna.
Fridman Group was a real heavyweight compared to Sterling Group. As she strolled beside Theodore, plenty of inquisitive eyes landed on them.
Seeing a girl by Theodore’s side was a once–in–a–blue–moon event. Naturally, it piqued the curiosity of quite a few folks.
“Whoa, who’s that girl with Mr. Theodore Fridman?”
“I’ve never seen him bring girls to the office before.”
“That girl’s a real looker, like a princess! Check out how she’s walking with such poise. She must be from money!”
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
“Oh crap! She caught me staring! So beautiful!”
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The female employees in the office were practically drooling over Sabrina, their eyes aglow with curiosity, and their interest was as plain as the day.
Sabrina felt a bit daunted, but she didn’t pick up any bad vibes. from those stares.
Once they got to Theodore’s office, the feeling of being under the microscope melted away.
Theodore had set up a nice desk right next to his. It came with a computer, one of those trendy gaming chairs that the young folks are crazy about, and all the latest tech gadgets. Everything was spick–and–span for her arrival.
Her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree when she took in the sight.
As a kid, Sabrina was a total gaming junkie. But since Brianna was into singing and dancing, almost every spare room in their house had been turned into dance studios and rehearsal spaces.
When Sabrina aced her exams and ranked first in her grade, Matthew asked her what she wanted as a reward. Sabrina asked for a gaming setup for her room, and he had agreed. However, he shot her down later, saying it would mess with Brianna’s rest and chewing her out for being thoughtless.
From then on, she didn’t dare to ask Matthew for anything ever again.
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
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“Do you dig it?” Theodore noticed the sheer joy on Sabrina’s face for the first time.
- 19.
She was beaming like a kid who’d finally gotten that
long–awaited present.
Even though she didn’t say much, he could tell she was over the moon, which made him crack a little smile.
Good job setting this up. Maybe we should consider giving Julian a raise.
Sabrina nodded like a bobble–head. “Yeah, I’m loving it!” Then, without another peep, she plopped herself down in the chair.
“I’ve got a meeting now. Just hang out here and play. If you need anything, give Julian a ring,” Theodore said, glad to see her all smiles before he headed out the door.
With Theodore gone, Sabrina was left alone with the computer and some free time on her hands. So, she thought, “Why not?” and logged into the website where she’d published her novel.
As soon as she got in, she was floored. There were countless notifications staring back at her.
In just a few days, there were thousands of comments and a ton of requests for updates. Sabrina started clicking through. Almost all the feedback was off–the–charts positive, with just a handful of negative comments here and there.
On top of that, her account had been flooded with signing.
Chapter 9 Have a Fever
invitations from different editors.
After checking out all the offers, she picked one and decided to go for it. Taking the time to carefully read through it to
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ensure there were no hidden pitfalls, she confidently signed the electronic agreement.
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