Tangled By Fate

Chapter 98 - ARTHUR'S ANSWER

Upon hearing what was on his mind, the elderly woman's eyes sparkled with curiosity. "Oh, is this the girl you brought to us and asked for clothes? You didn't even let us talk to her. You kept her hidden. Is this the girl you have feelings for?"

Veronica's ears would drop from her head from the elderly woman's questions if it was possible. She lowered her head but was unable to eat food. She hung her head and waited quietly for Arthur's answer. Without her permission, her heart was going paranoid.

Arthur gave the elderly woman a bored look and answered, "Your imagination is running wild. I don't have feelings for any woman whatsoever."

The elder woman slapped his shoulder and said, "As if I would believe that. This is the first time I saw you protecting a girl like that. You even brought her to us. How many women did you bring to us? You brought her to us so that we can see her even for a glance, didn't you?"

Her face was blushing as she continued, "I say she is the one who caught your eyes. She has shining silver hair and a beautiful face. You must be charmed by her beauty."

"There is no such thing," Arthur readily denied.

"Enough chit-chat. Finish your meal first," the leader of the desert tribe ordered the playboy foster son he raised. "By the way, I don't see the cat. It left its food."

The elderly woman, who was the leader's wife, placed a hand on her face. She commented, "Maybe the kitten wasn't hungry. Sand cats are called desert kings for nothing."

Sand cats are small and solitary cats, native to deserts. They are superbly adapted to life in the desert. They can live without water, run on shifting sand, and detect prey underground. They can be found deep in both sandy and stony deserts, far away from any source of water.

They conserve water by spending the heat of the day in a burrow or the shade. The fur on the soles of their feet aid in insulation against the burning heat of the ground as well as giving traction on loose sand. Their loud barking calls can communicate over vast areas of the desert since sound does not carry well in dry air.

"But, the fur color of this sand cat is different, isn't it? It has silver fur unlike other sand cats," the leader of the desert tribe pointed out.

His wife remarked, "Now that you mentioned, the kitty kind of looks like the girl Arthur brought that one time, don't you think so?"

Arthur paused eating. He thought of the cat's fur and eyes. They indeed reminded him of Veronica. 'Could it be…?' A sudden thought came to his mind.

Meanwhile, after Veronica went outside the tent, she just walked randomly. She was heartbroken. She didn't know why she was feeling like this. When she heard him answering insincerely, 'Your imagination is running wild. I don't have feelings for any woman whatsoever,' something pierced her heart.

'So, this is what it is. It's just an imagination. There is no way for us to be partners. He didn't even trust me. He denied that he even liked me. Does it mean he hates me? Then… Why was he always kind to me? He is just playing with me, isn't he? Just like other girls. I'm so going to hunt him down for playing with me like this,' Veronica swore to herself.

The agony in her heart made her feel suffocated. She opened her mouth and deeply breathed in. However, the pain deep in her chest was unbearable. 'Why am I feeling this way? This is so strange. How come I don't understand what I am feeling?' She wanted to clutch her chest.

"Yo, beautiful, want to have a tryst?" A very unfamiliar voice interrupted her thoughts.

Veronica wasn't feeling well. She didn't even pay attention to the person who spoke. She continued walking forward aimlessly when her path was blocked.

Finally, she looked up and froze.

It was a desert cat. It was certainly a male. It said, "I have never seen a beauty like you. Are you new here? Would you like to join me for lunch? You seem to be my type. We can use this chance to get to know each other." Then, the cat winked at her.

"…" Veronica was speechless. 'Is this cat hitting on me?' She wondered.

She read in a romance book that a beautiful female lead would get hit on by several handsome men. But, her love for the male lead was so strong that she would not get swayed.

'If I write about myself, it would be a cat love story, not a human love story,' thinking about that made her even more depressed. 'What did I do to deserve a cat's confession?'

The cat walked past her and his tail touched her body. "What? You don't want to? I'm the king of this desert. If you mate with me, you will become the queen of the desert."

Veronica jumped and went out of his reach. "I don't want to be a queen of the desert or mate with a cat. Please leave me alone." She strode in another direction since the cat was blocking her path.

The cat became displeased by her action. He was confident that she would fall for his wealth and power. He questioned her, "What do you mean you won't mate a cat? Are you going to mate a dog? How disgusting!"

Veronica paused and yelled at him, "Don't be a racist! I'm not a cat and I will never mate a cat! Get out of my way!"

As if she wasn't upset enough, the cat was only making her feel worse. Without realizing it, she vented her anger and frustration on the cat. 'Is this my worth? A cat's worth? Am I not worthy enough as a human?' The more she thought about that, the more dejected she felt.

Just then, something deep in her heart shook her.

"!!!"