"Don't worry, just believe me when I say I'm a good driver," answered Claire proudly. She caught the key and dashed to the garage, beaming with delight.

  "Let's go, babe," said Kevin, reaching out his hand. He waited for Leena to put her small hand in his, only to find that she walked past him without even looking at him. Kevin was stunned by her reaction —— he didn't expect her to turn her back on him. The surprise made him freeze and gape at the petite figure as she walked away. It was not until then that he realized that she had been distant from him recently. He tried hard but couldn't figure out the reason.

  Though Leena appeared to be calm and comfortable ignoring Kevin, she felt no better than he did. But she steeled her nerve, and did it. She was afraid that she'd get too used to his tenderness until she couldn't live without it. The more she was in love, the harder it would be to let him go. That was what she was doing, trying her best to protect herself.

  "Hurry up, you two. What's taking you so long?" asked Claire impatiently. She had already taken her place in the driver's seat and could hardly wait to try out the new car.

  "Coming," replied Leena with a smile. No matter how much Claire disliked Leena, Leena would smile brightly as a reaction. She did it not only out of politeness, but also out of habit formed from years of education. But Claire wasn't buying it. She rolled her eyes with a sneer as a response.

  "What's all the hurry?" Kevin said to Claire while he caught up with Leena. "Easy does it, Claire. The car's brand-new —— drive carefully," he added. Making sure Leena was comfortably seated in the back of the car, Kevin quickly chose a spot beside her. But he paid close attention to Claire's each and every move at the same time, and kept reminding her to be careful. After all, the car was a wedding gift for Leena given to her by her brother Duke. It must mean a lot to her, and was too precious to be damaged. And

  y shooting from the hip," Claire said with resignation. Not wanting Kevin to get angry, she made the half-hearted apology merely to cool him down. Otherwise, it would be impossible for her to use polite words around Leena, let alone apologize to her.

  "Mind your manners from now on, Claire. You are a girl, you can't be so rude," said Kevin sternly, and his face darkened with displeasure. Like their mother, he was now rather disappointed in Claire, but felt that he couldn't do anything about her. 'Man, she really is a piece of work, ' he thought. It seemed that the education she received these years had failed to teach her basic manners. Where could they have gone wrong?

  "Okay, I know I have a problem. I'll change, happy?" answered Claire, who was pulling a long face. Being a fearless and spoiled person from her childhood, Claire had only regarded Kevin with reverence, for he was the only person who never coddled her.

  "It's alright, Kevin. She's still young, just don't take it personally," comforted Leena. She meant to mediate in the quarrel between them, hoping that Kevin could be less strict with his sister. She had nothing against Claire personally, but her words were almost an insult to Claire, for she thought that Leena was showing off her sense of superiority by putting her down.