"Patricia, it's not just Tom. In fact, I act the same way around all my brothers. They are all the same to me, really. I have only ever considered them as my brothers," Leena said, furrowing her brows. She had a feeling that something was slowly changing, and she also wondered if she was behaving inappropriately around her brothers. Should she start keeping her distance from them, now that they were all married? Maybe that was the reason why Patricia had that ridiculous question. To be honest, if Patricia had known any better, she would have found that Leena was much closer to Edward and Rain than to Tom. But it was understandable, because Patricia was Tom's wife and she had probably only noticed her interactions with him.
"Leena, I was just curious. I didn't mean it in a bad way," Patricia said in a hurried tone. She didn't want Leena to misunderstand her. She had only asked out of curiosity, not to cause trouble or to warn her.
"Of course. I know you were just curious," Leena said with an understanding smile. It looked like she really didn't mind Patricia's doubts. But she was secretly thinking back if she was really behaving inappropriately around her brothers. After all, they were all married and now belonged to other women. They were not just her brothers anymore. Maybe she was just so used to the way she had been interacting with them that she hadn't realized that it might cause their wives to feel uneasy and suspicious. So maybe this should change from now on. She shouldn't be too close to them anymore.
Tom had a bad feeling when he saw the bitter smile on Leena's face. He knew that Leena's smile was just a farce to cover up what she was really thinking. He looked at her with a worried expression. He knew his little sister very well, and she had always been extremely sensitive when it came to things like this. He just hoped that she wouldn't take Patricia's words to heart.
"Okay, enough of this ridiculous talk! Let's go have lunch," Tom said, breaking the awkward silence. He reached out to grab Leena's hand, but to his surprise, Leena hurried ahead and dodged his hand, as if she hadn't seen his hand at all. Tom's heart sank at her reaction. He finally understood what Leena wanted to do. She wanted to keep her distance from him after hearing Patricia's question. Tom felt so lost at Leena's behavior. Why did she have to do this? Patricia seemed really understandable. Now he regretted ever keeping asking his wife what she was thinking about. He should have just let it slide.
Throughout their lunch, Tom noticed that Leena was intentionally keeping her distance from him and avoided his concerned questions. If he asked her something, she would give short answer. She didn't demand his attention like she always used to, and she didn't initiate any conversation with him either. Tom was deeply hurt by her avoidance. He didn't like Leena being this way towards him. He had a feeling that she was gradually trying to disappear from his world.
Kevin raised his eyebrows in surprise when he heard Leena being so persistent. He had a feeling that she was not quite herself. Kevin was now really sensitive when it came to things that involved his little wife. "All right. I will have Lee go and get you when you arrive here," Kevin said softly.
"Okay! Go back to work now. I don't want to disturb you anymore." Leena finally smiled. She really wanted to go to him, and she looked forward to picking him up in the evening.
Kevin hung up, and was immersed in thought. 'Didn't she say that she was going to visit Tom at the hospital today? Why did she want to come here and pick me up? Besides, she sounded so weird, as if something was weighing on her mind.' He wondered if Tom had said something that might have worried her. He was curious and a bit worried. He disliked seeing Leena unhappy, and that was why he had agreed to let her come to the base.
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