HELP ME (CHAPTER TWO)

"Are you alright?" The man asked as he held Ria up so she could stand. She had fallen back on the ground after bumping into the young man.

As he helped her up from the ground, Ria realized that she had let go of her torn gown and now her breasts were fully exposed before him.

She quickly held her gown together when she saw the man look at her breasts in surprise. The man noticed she was barefooted and there was so much fear in her eyes.

Ria wanted to quickly get away from him but when she looked behind her, she noticed Arthur coming out angrily from his Bentley.

She knew that if she continued to run, it was only a matter of time before he caught up to her. She looked at the handsome stranger and said, "Please help me."

As Arthur stretched out his hand to grab her, she quickly moved and stood behind the young man while wrapping her arms around his waist.

The young man whose name was Hale noticed that Arthur ignored him and still tried to drag Ria away. He pushed Arthur and said, "What's wrong with you, man?

The girl clearly doesn't want to go with you, so what's your problem?"

Arthur pointed his finger at Hale and said, "Young man if you don't want me to beat you to a pulp, mind your business. This is my daughter, and I have every right to take her home."

"It's a lie. He is not my father, he is a monster." Ria screamed from behind.

Hale freed Ria's arms from his waist and for a moment, she thought he wanted to hand her over to Arthur. She was already prepared to scream at the top of her voice and attract as many people as she could.

However, Hale began unbuttoning his jacket and acting like he wanted to fight Arthur.

Arthur laughed; with his huge size, he was surely going to take out Hale with just one blow. However, when Hale opened his jacket, Arthur was shocked to see a gun strapped to his waist.

Hale smiled at him, while Arthur lifted both his hands up and walked back to his car. He quickly drove off the minute he got into it.

Ria, who didn't see the gun on Hale, had no idea why Arthur ran away, but she felt a little bit relieved that she was now safe from him.

Hale secretly took out the gun from his waist and put it inside his pocket. After that, he took off his jacket and covered Ria with it.

Ria observed his facial features for a while and realized that he was the most handsome man she had ever seen. She smiled at him, "Thank you so much for saving me from that monster."

"You're welcome," Hale replied. "Where do you stay? I can drive you there because it's already late and not very safe for a young girl like you to be outside."

Ria gazed at him as her eyes became misty. "I do not have a place to stay. I spent most of my life in Boston and moved to San Jose with my mum a few months ago after she got married.

She recently died in an accident, and I was left with my stepdad. He tried to force himself on me, and I struggled to run away. He was the man chasing me just now. My phone and belongings are all in his house.

I need help to get to the police station and make a complaint, after which, I will go back to Boston and stay with one of my friends until I figure out what to do."

Hale stared at Ria for a long time and finally asked, "What's your name, mine is Hale."

"My name is Ria," she replied.

"Ria, I don't think it would be a good idea for you to go to the station because this is a place that is more familiar to your stepdad, and you don't know how connected he is.

The officers might be his friends, and you may end up being sent back to his house."

Ria suddenly became afraid. What was she supposed to do now?

"Don't worry, Ria," Hale said as he placed his hands on her shoulders. "You can come to stay at my place, and tomorrow, I will take a few friends with me to your step dad's house and get all your belongings.

You can stay at my place until you eventually get a job and move into your own place."

Ria wondered if it was a good idea for her to go with Hale. He seemed really harmless, and he had also saved her from Arthur.

"What is the worst that could happen?" She thought to herself. Hale was very handsome and seemed like a gentleman. Even if he wasn't, the worst he could do was ask her for sex.

She would rather give out her virginity to him than let Arthur force himself on her. It was already very late, and she didn't know the dangers she could face if she turned down Hale's offer.

For all she knew, Arthur could be hiding somewhere, waiting for Hale to leave. She smiled at Hale and said, "Thanks a lot for offering me a place to sleep. I promise to make it up to you someday."

Hale smiled sweetly at Ria, and she was held spellbound for a moment. She began to wonder if he had a girlfriend.

Considering how handsome he was, that was quite likely. She wished he didn't have a girlfriend as she wouldn't hesitate to accept if he were to ask her out.

He led her to where he parked his car and opened the door for her while she sat in the passenger seat. As he drove them to his house, Ria began stealing glances at him and suddenly felt excited about living with him in his house.