"No, I have to control myself."
As someone who's been through it before,
Delilah Goodman knew all too well that the nameless fire that had been silent for more than three years had been reignited.
But reason told her,
she couldn't do that.
She stood up, grabbed the kettle, and just as she was about to pour water, her mind was in such a mess that her hand shook. She heard an "ouch," and the steaming hot water spilled onto her thigh.
"Hiss... it burns."
Delilah quickly put down the kettle and retreated to the edge of the bed.
As luck would have it, the burn was in an awkward spot, right on the inside of her thigh.
Dirk Carter saw this.
He immediately went into the bathroom and brought out a basin of cold water.
He said, "Director Goodman, the burned area needs to be cooled with cold water immediately, otherwise it will blister, and it'll hurt even more later."
"But..."
Delilah looked at the water stain on her skirt.
She knew she had to take care of it immediately, but if she lifted her skirt, wouldn't she be exposing her lower body to this man?
"I'll... I'll do it myself."
Delilah thought for a moment and took the towel Dirk handed over.
However, when the cold towel probed under her skirt and suddenly made contact, she convulsed in pain.
"Let me do it."
Dirk did not hesitate.
He took the towel back from her hand.
He said, "Director Goodman, you need to take off your skirt and let me see how it is."
Forget it.
If the burn isn't treated in time,
it's going to be torturous later.
Delilah gritted her teeth.
Nodded her head.
Stood up.
Gently unzipped the back of her skirt.
As the restriction was lifted, the skirt also slipped down from her waist.
Her long, slender legs were fully exposed in front of Dirk Carter.
Although the view was incredible,
Dirk didn't leer at her wantonly.
After observing for a while, he said, "Director Goodman, it's okay, the skirt provided some buffer, it's not too serious. I'll do a cold compress for you now, it shouldn't blister."
"Um... okay."
Delilah was a bit embarrassed.
She turned her head aside.
Dirk's movements were gentle, and when the towel made contact, although it still hurt, it was much more delicate than if she had done it herself.
As Dirk continued to apply water to the towel, after ten minutes,
the pain from the burn miraculously disappeared.
"Dirk, I remember both your parents are famous Chinese medicine doctors in Ardmore City, right?"
"Yes."
"Fortunately, you were here today, otherwise, if it hadn't been dealt with in time, it would surely have left a scar."
Delilah said.
Dirk smiled slightly.
He said, "Director Goodman, if a scar marred such fair skin because I brought you here, I'd feel guilty for life."
Was he complimenting her?
For some reason,
Delilah felt a burst of joy in her heart upon hearing this.
Dirk removed the towel, examined it closely, and said, "Alright, there's basically no problem. Get some burn ointment and apply it later, it should heal by tomorrow."
Having said that,
he propped himself up on his knees and suddenly stood up.
It had been over ten minutes since he started treating the burn.
Dirk had been squatting by the bed the entire time.
This sudden stand,
made him feel dizzy, and he swayed for a moment.
Seeing this, Delilah quickly went to support him.
Originally, Dirk could have maintained his balance.
But with Delilah's touch,
Dirk suddenly lost his center of gravity.
Instinctively, he grabbed Delilah and fell onto the bed with her.
"Director Goodman, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."
He found himself pressed against Delilah, face to face.
Dirk was just about to get up when Delilah's carefully erected psychological defenses finally collapsed in that instant.
She wrapped her arms around Dirk's neck, steeled her resolve, and just as she was about to lean in for a kiss, a sudden urgent phone ring doused her rising flames.
The two bodies quickly separated.
With a flushed face, Delilah picked up the phone, and with just a "hello," her expression changed.
Her eyes swiftly turned to Dirk.
She hung up the phone.
Hurriedly put on her skirt.
She said, "The task force is looking for you, they want me to find you and bring you over immediately."
Upon hearing this,
Dirk's face showed no sign of panic.
Everything was within his expectations.
He just hadn't expected them to act so quickly.
Dylan Tate had mingled in Stillwater County's officialdom for a lifetime, with a complex network of relationships. The number of projects and promotions he had handled over the years was too numerous to count. To say there wasn't a hint of shady dealings was absolutely impossible.
This sudden act of jumping to his death had to be to cover something up.
Having lived with him for seven or eight years,
Dirk knew some things, more or less.
Although he had never been involved in Tate's affairs, as his adopted son, it was only a matter of time before the task force would come knocking.
After all, a county magistrate's suicide wasn't a small matter. If there wasn't an explanation, they wouldn't be able to brush it off.
Rather than passively waiting to be investigated,
it's better to take the initiative.
He knew, after punching Victor Ford in the face today, Ford wouldn't be able to swallow his pride.
Running to the task force to report him was also part of Dirk Carter's plan.
At 8 p.m.,
the two walked through the doors of Stillwater County Prosecutor's Office Anti-Corruption Bureau.
Since the task force was led by the Anti-Corruption Bureau, it indicated that someone above wanted to label Dylan Tate's death as suicide out of fear of being prosecuted, thus closing the case upon his death.
Since it was "fear" of crime-induced suicide,
they'd need to list some charges, right?
No one would be foolish enough to implicate themselves.
Dirk's job was arranged by Dylan Tate, and looking at it from that angle would certainly be the safest option for certain people.
It wasn't surprising that he became the scapegoat.
Since they were investigating his job,
Delilah Goodman, as his direct superior, was certainly unavoidable and had the most say.
As long as she claimed his job performance was fine, the task force wouldn't be able to pin anything on him.
Thinking it over, tonight's "set piece" with Delilah Goodman had played out at just the right time.
Sure enough,
as they entered,
Victor Ford walked out from inside.
Their eyes met, and his face was full of smugness, with a glance that seemed to say to Dirk, "You're finished."
Who was really finished, wasn't clear yet.
Afterward,
Delilah was informed to go to the team leader's office.
Meanwhile, Dirk was taken by two staff members into a small dark room.
After about half an hour,
a woman in a light blue shirt and dark blue tie walked in with a folder in her arms.
The woman seemed slightly older than Delilah, probably around thirty years old.
She wore short shoulder-length hair and a pair of thin glasses.
But behind those glasses, there was a pair of alluring almond-shaped eyes.
If Delilah was a cold and glamorous lotus,
then the woman in front of him was like a mandrake.
Alluring, yet deadly.
Especially those alluring eyes, sufficient for a man to get lost in.
More importantly, her chest was even more prominent than Delilah's, and even the two buttons on her shirt seemed to be struggling, as if they might pop open at any moment.
This woman's name was Lauren Radford.
She was promoted just last year to Deputy Director of Stillwater County Prosecutor's Office Anti-Corruption Bureau.
Dirk had seen her once at the county's young leaders' meeting.
However, they had no interaction.
She was also the team leader for the Dylan Tate suicide case task force.
"Team Leader Radford."
Seeing her enter,
the two staff members watching Dirk stood up.
Lauren nodded slightly.
She sat down in front of Dirk.
With a stern face, she asked, "Comrade Dirk Carter, you should know why we've asked you to come here, correct?"