Joshua’s got a thing for , I can tell. Maybe young boys were more impressionable, more easily smitten.
Suddenly I felt a pang of guilt. What if Joshua’s feelings for deepen? What would I do then? I asked myself. I didn’t fancy his pursuit, nor could I reciprocate the way he wanted. I just wanted to use his attention to balance my inner chaos. If he was willing to play this ga with , killing ti together, I might consider it. But if he got truly emotionally invested, I’d be totally out of it.
I was deep in thought, my mind a chaotic ss, when Damon ca back from his shower. He was in a black bathrobe, exposing so muscular contours, looking quite tempting.
I withdrew my gaze, tucked my phone under my pillow, and pretended to sleep.
After a while, I felt the mattress sink a bit. Damon had lain down beside . He slled of a mix of shower gel and shampoo, a scent I found appealing.
"Why don’t you sleep in the guest room?" I asked hirm, my back turned to him, sounding as if didn’t care.
"I own half of the master bedroom too, " Damon responded coldly.
"Why did you use my bathroom then? And my shower gel and shampoo?" I turned around to face him. "I thought you said you didn’t like the scent?"
Once a woman started doubting, her questions beca sharper.
Damon’s face was close to mine. His expression as flawless as ever, he turned to look at . "Eliana, do you even know what you’re talking about?"
We stared at each other for a while. I felt sowhat powerless and turned around to sleep. "Forget it. I won’t fuss about it."
The next second, he grabbed my shoulder and forcefully turned around. I let out a cry of pain.
"Ouch! Damon, what the hell are you doing?!" I shrieked, tears welling in my eyes.
Desire filled Damon’s eyes as he looked at my face, his gaze stopping at my lips. Just as I realized sothing was off, he harshly kissed , silencing my outcry. He kissed until I was almost out of breath. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my lips, and then Damon let go of . There was a trace of blood on his lips, which he carelessly wiped off.
"Damon, have you gone mad?!" I also touched my painful lips, and sure enough, there was blood. I imdiately got angry and tried to slap him.
But he caught my hand, rendering immobile.
Damon moved in to kiss my injured lips again. Just as I was about to curse him, he shut up again. We tussled in the bed. I tried resisting him, but his dominant teasing left breathless. He tried to be gentle but grew angry and forceful every ti I fought back.
In the end, I was dripping with sweat and Damon’s bathrobe was gone, his back glistening with sweat. He got up from the bed, glanced at the ss of sheets and pillows, then went out to the balcony shirtless and lit a cigarette in the falling snow.
I tidied up my sweat–soaked hair, took a deep breath, and muttered to myself, "Freeze Today I was determined. I successfully fended off Damon’s advances with my good health, will you?"
figure, and although my skin was covered in marks, at least I didn’t give
After finishing his smoke, Damon closed the door. His eyes were filled with determination, but there was a faint smile on his lips. "Co on, let’s continue." "Fuck off!" I threw a pillow at Damon. He caught it in stride, threw it on the floor, then quickly ca to the side of the bed, grabbing my hands to stop from throwing anything else.
"I never knew you had such a foul mouth," Damon said, then didn’t give any chance to resist him.
Three minutes later, I admitted defeat in my heart.
I had planned not to stay up late, but every ti Damon passionately made love to , I had no chance of getting to bed on ti.
What was worse, the next day was the birthday of my mother–in–law, Lisa, and I had to drag my tired body out of bed. When I finished showering and sat in front of the vanity mirror, I was shocked by my own reflection. I looked pale, with dark circles under my eyes, and my neck was covered in love bites and bruises. It was as if I had been tortured.
Damon walked in, impeccably dressed in his usual elegance. By comparison, I looked even more haggard.
"Get dressed and co downstairs. We’ll leave after breakfast," Damon said, as if he wasn’t the one who had been wild last night. He had quickly returned to his usual self.
I didn’t want to engage with him and just got up to pick clothes in the closet.
Damon’s dad and mom liked it when I dressed elegantly. So, I chose a white coat, a beige turtleneck sweater, and trousers, simple yet sophisticated, which could cover the hickies on my neck. Then I carefully did my makeup to hide the fatigue on my face, making myself look energetic. Finally, I picked up the birthday gift I had prepared in advance and went downstairs. Damon was already having breakfast. Seeing co down, the servant quickly set a hot breakfast for .
After breakfast, Damon and I left together. As we passed a snowman, he asked , "Why did you only put a nose on it and not eyes?"
"I did, but I was in a bad mood, so I gouged them out." I didn’t know why I was in a bad mood, maybe because my legs were still sore, and Damon seed energetic, which made uncomfortable. Suddenly, I pulled out the snowman’s nose and threw it into the snow, giving him a glare.
Damon didn’t react to my action at all. If it had been in the past, he would have thought I was trying to get his attention again and would have been annoyed. He even picked up the fallen carrot and put it back on the snowman.
Outside, the car was covered in a layer of thick snow. It would be too much trouble to clean it up on the spot, so Damon called for a driver to handle it, then went to the underground garage and took out another car. After waiting in the cold weather for a while, the car slowly stopped beside .
I opened the passenger door and got in, ready to head to Damon’s parents’ place. When we drove past the Chemical Plant again, I saw that the old neighborhood where Ariel and her family used to live had been demolished. The area was filled with dust, the sound of excavators echoed everywhere and the rumbling noises were omnipresent.
Where were Ariel and her family living now? I was a bit curious because Ada had once invited to her house for dinner. I genuinely rembered that and planned to go whenever I had the chance.
Even though I was curious, I didn’t bother asking Damon, ’cause it was not like he would spill the beans anyway.
I didn’t know when I dozed off. I didn’t get much sleep last night, so now all I wanted was to hit the hay. When I woke up, I found myself not in the car, but on a bed. The surroundings clued in that it was Damon’s room.
Holding my forehead, I couldn’t recall how I ended up on the bed, but Damon walked in at that mont, asking , "Did you get enough sleep? If you’re good and rested, co on down for food, my mom and the others are waiting."
"ll be there in a jiffy." I replied, feeling a tad embarrassed.
Then Damon left the room.
My phone buzzed at that mont. It was a call from my mom, telling that today was Lisa’s birthday. Mom had already called her to wish her happy birthday, and she hoped I could send Lisa a birthday wish too.
Usually, our parents would just send a simple ssage on their birthdays. It was our generation who took care of the whole gift–giving thing.
I imdiately agreed to it, not ntioning to my mom that Lisa and the others were waiting for downstairs for dining. After hanging up, I hurried downstairs, wanting to find a hiding spot as soon as I reached the dining room.
Aside from Damon, Damon’s dad and Lisa, all of Damon’s uncles and aunts were there, sitting around a large table.
When I ca down, all eyes were on .
Except for my wedding day, I had never seen all his family at once.
"Eliana, co over!" Lisa, dressed in red and looking elegant, bead at . She didn’t seem mad that I overslept and missed the al. She waved at , indicating an empty seat next to Damon.
His uncles and aunts all smiled at . I didn’t have much interaction with them usually, so we weren’t close. I quickly put on a smile and greeted all the elders. None of them were ordinary people, all being influential figures in the business world.
In my past life, Damon and this bunch of family of his ruined my family. But I didn’t bla them. They didn’t force Damon to divorce to marry Ariel. It was Damon who forced them to help him. Damon and I didn’t have a kid. Any person in their shoes would have chosen to help their kin.
I wasn’t stupid. If I let what happened in my past life affect my attitude towards them now, showing them hostility, they would only be wary and disgusted by .
After they all responded to my greetings, I told Lisa, "The gift is still in the car. I’ll go get it."
"Damon brought it in for you. I’ve already put it on." Lisa said with a big smile, then turned her head, showing off the exquisite gemstone necklace around her neck. It was a cluster of flowers made of gemstones, each with a hollow center filled with precious spices. Any slight movent from the wearer would give off a faint, elegant scent.
The necklace was elegant and the scent was heartwarming. Lisa naturally loved it, or she wouldn’t have put it on right away.
"It’s beautiful. It goes perfectly with your outfit today." I complinted sincerely.
Lisa grinned even wider, "You have a great sense of style. I love everything you’ve gotten . Let’s sit down and eat."
I nodded and quickly sat down. Then Lisa gestured to the maids, "Serve the dishes."
Sixteen dishes were quickly served, a feast of delicacies.
Keeping my mission to gain weight in mind, I ate while occasionally serving Lisa and chatting with her. I also asked about his dad’s health, reminding him to go for his annual check–up.
Whenever the elders chatted about a topic I was familiar with, I chid in a few tis. Damon, sitting next to , didn’t talk much.
After we finished eating, the maids cleaned up the table. Damon’s dad and Lisa chatted with their family in the living room about business while eating fruits. Damon’s aunt played with her grandson, laughing as she told Lisa, "Damon and Eliana should have a kid. Damon’s dad is always so busy. A grandchild would certainly bring you a lot of joy."
Lisa glanced at , then at Damon, her eyes full of reproach. "I do want a grandchild, but Damon is such a disappointnt. There have been fewer scandals recently, but was he acting like a normal person before?"
I was drinking water and almost choked.
Damon’s face darkened. He probably didn’t understand where he had fallen short. What was wrong with having so negative press? At least he didn’t have any illegitimate children.
His dad agreed, "Yeah, Irene has been married to him for five years, waiting at ho every day, but he’s seldom ho. How can they have a child?" "Damon, aren’t you eager to have a child at your age?" the aunt asked.
Before Damon could reply, his uncle chid in, "Look at your brother and sister–in–law. Their second child is almost here. If it wasn’t for a prenatal check–up today, they would have been here too."
Then another aunt added, "Yeah, your parents only have you as a son. You have to have a child eventually, right? Your brother even has a girlfriend and plans to get married and have kids right after graduation. His girlfriend is really nice."
"Oh, Elijah is dating?" Lisa suddenly beca interested and everyone started discussing this topic.
Damon, who had been scolded by his parents, seed a bit angry. Seeing that the conversation no longer involved him, he went out to get so fresh air.
I followed him outside. The heat in the living room was too much, and my thin sweater was already making feel hot. It was a good ti to cool off outside.
We stood in silence, each lost in our own thoughts. Damon lit up a cigarette, his back turned to . Soon, I started to feel cold and decided to go back into the living room. Just then, Damon’s phone rang. My gut told it must be Ariel.
Damon never avoided answering Ariel’s calls in front of , but I didn’t want to listen. I was afraid it would annoy and Lisa would notice sothing was off. So, I quickly opened the door, then shut it, leaving his voice locked out.
"Eliana, co here for a second." Lisa called over as soon as she saw back, then headed upstairs.
I hurriedly followed, feeling a bit jittery, not knowing what Lisa was going to talk to about.
Once we got upstairs, Lisa grabbed my hand, lowered her voice and asked, "Eliana, did you go to the drugstore to buy the prescription I gave you last ti? Did Damon actually drink it?"
The last prescription, wasn’t it sothing like a major tonic for n’s health? I just had Cherry get a few other doses from a relative later, and the one Damon drank that night, well, it kicked in big ti.
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