As soon as the idea popped into Claudia's head, she heard footsteps. She looked up and saw the man's steely eyes before she caught a whiff of the familiar woody scent.

After a moment, it dawned on her that Bennett had returned.

Claudia stared at Bennett in astonishment. "Am I dreaming?"

She then pinched her cheek.

“Ouch!"

It hurt, which meant it was real.

She was not dreaming.

By the time Claudia was done processing this information, Bennett was already in front of her.

He pulled his hand away from her cheek and asked, “Why did you pinch yourself?"

Claudia blinked her eyes, both pleased and shy at the same time. "I wanted to check if I was still dreaming."

"Is that the only way to confirm it?"

Claudia's cheeks reddened at the question.

It was the only way she could think of after all.

Now, she was starting to realize how ridiculous she had been.

Bennett wrapped an arm around her waist while his free hand began to massage the back of her neck. He then asked, "So, do you know now whether you're dreaming or not?"

Claudia's flush deepened, but her bright eyes remained on him. She felt embarrassed, but she did not want to look away from him.

“Aren't you supposed to still be in Erivale on your business trip?"

“I got worried."

Bennett cupped her jaw and caressed her cheekbone with his thumb.

“Do you feel like eating something now?"

Hearing his inquiry, Claudia realized she had slept in rather late this morning.

“What time is it now?"

She did not sleep until noon, did she?

Bennett checked the time on his phone and replied, “It's ten to eleven in the morning.”