Chapter 4: Punish

Rosalynn's POV.

The sky outside turned dark, and the torrential had finally stopped.

I slowly opened my eyes and raised a hand to massage my forehead to reduce the headache. The unfamiliar ceiling startled me for a second, and then I sat up abruptly, scanning the spacious bedroom with no sign of anyone.

Placing my hand on my chest, I calmly thought about the entire incident that had just happened. I was sure this place was his home. Just one room was as large as the entire house I used to live. I exclaimed in my heart, then bent down to look at the white shirt I was wearing.

A masculine scent of sandalwood kept lingering around me, sneaking into my nostrils, making my cheeks turn red like two ripe tomatoes... I didn't know why memories of that night rushed back into my mind like a fast-forwarding movie made my heart pound and pound.

“Miss, are you awake?” The door was pushed open, interrupting my thoughts. A middle-aged woman walked inside with a very gentle expression.

I recognized her as the person who helped me into the house before I passed out. With a gentle smile, I nodded and timidly said, "Yes, thank you for helping me..."

She came closer to me and placed her hand on my forehead to check my temperature, then replied with a sigh of relief, "Your fever has subsided. Sir was very worried. He called a doctor to check on you.."

The smile on my face gradually became forced. Worried? 'Master' she mentioned was probably Nolan Kingston. Judging from the expression he looked at me while I was kneeling in the rain, how could he be worried about me? This had to be the funniest story I've heard all day.

I silently looked at her without answering.

After combing my hair, she gently patted my shoulder warmly, "Miss, you can call me Anne. Master is waiting for you in the dining room. It's time for dinner, you should go downstairs.”

“Is he… Is he… at home now?” I hesitantly asked again, still sitting on the bed, not intending to move.

Anne seemed to see the awkwardness in my eyes. She smiled and nodded, “That's right. Master is rarely at home, but when you came here today, he told us to prepare dinner.”

I took a deep breath, trying to hold my breath to gather my thoughts. Just being in this mansion made me feel suffocated, not to mention facing him directly in a while.

“Miss, shall we go?” Anne tilted her head slightly and looked at me, repeating it while trying to help me get off the bed.

I originally intended to pretend to be sick so that I wouldn't have to leave the room, but Anne's kind and earnest eyes made it difficult for me to refuse her, "Yes, I can go by myself."

The stairs were covered with shiny gold. The whole villa glowed with warm yellow light, but it couldn't dispel the darkness in my heart right now. Stepping down to the first floor, Anne led me into the dining room, bowed once to Nolan, and then quickly left.

“An… ne…” I was somewhat panicked when I saw Anne leave.

As soon as I turned around and met his amber eyes, I was startled and lowered my head to the ground, my hands continuously clasped together to relieve tension.

"Are you planning to stand there forever?" His cold voice pierced directly into my ears, making me jerk my head up to look at him with a bewildered expression.

I tiptoed to the position farthest from him, but before I could sit down on the chair, this man again ordered me with a bossy attitude, "Sit next to me!"

My eyes could not hide the hesitation and fear. But I had no choice but to obey him. True to what my father said, he bought me out for 10 million dollars, so I must listen to every request he made. Even I had to laugh in surprise when I learned that I was worth that amount of money.

Looking up at the wall clock, it was 7 pm. It turned out I had been sleeping all afternoon. My hand holding the fork was a bit stiff, I rolled my eyes and secretly glanced at Nolan.

He was calmly cutting a piece of premium beefsteak. His facial features were sharp and serious, his thin lips were slightly pursed, and the muscular on his arms stood out, adding to his masculinity. He was as perfect as a flesh sculpture that God gave to this world.

Observing him for a while, I spoke in a volume that was barely above a whisper, “Mr. Kingston…”

“Nolan.” He didn't raise his head and responded immediately after I called.

My eyes couldn't hide the confusion, I slightly raised my eyebrows, "Huh?"

“Call me Nolan.”

Even though I didn't understand his intention, I could only pursue my lips and agree. I coughed a bit awkwardly then adjusted my voice, "Yes, Mr. Nolan."

“Nolan!”

However, after I finished speaking, this man suddenly raised his voice violently and placed the fork on the high-quality porcelain plate. His intense reaction made my heart skip a beat, to the point where I involuntarily leaned back. His cold amber eyes were warning me with a piercing gaze.

I was originally a fragile and timid girl, that's why my shoulders trembled nervously after seeing his brutality. Yet I didn't understand what mistake I just made; because I called him too respectfully?

“Yes, Nolan…” I mumbled, following his wishes.

The irritated expression on Nolan's face gradually softened. He returned to his usual coldness, "What do you want to say?"

“Tomorrow, I have a class. Can I go to school?”

I didn't dare look straight into his eyes, my heart filled with anxious anticipation for his response. If he didn't agree, I didn't even know how to negotiate with him because, quite simply, I was afraid of this man.

Despite the continuous stream of incidents in the past few days, I hadn't forgotten about going to school. In less than a year, I would graduate, but I still hadn't found a company for an internship. I had to quickly return to school to continue the unfinished tasks because my life kept moving forward, and a future was waiting for me ahead.

But his answer showed that my worries were unnecessary. He put the fork on the table, elegantly wiped his hands with a napkin, and then looked at me.

"Okay, the driver will take you to school. You can go anywhere, as long as you're present when I need you."

"Really?" My eyes sparkled. I was so happy that I lightly slapped my hands on the table, my whole body almost jumped up.

Nolan frowned tightly, his deep and hoarse voice revealing his dissatisfaction, "During meals, don't make impolite noises. Sit up straight and strictly adhere to the table manners. I don't need to teach you this, right?"

I suppressed my excited smile and immediately sat up straight following his adjustment. This man returned to his cold, emotionless demeanor. His every gesture exuded a noble elegance that seemed to seep into his bones, making me unable to take my eyes off him.

The quiet atmosphere of the dining table was suddenly broken. I looked up to see someone entering – the driver who had brought me here this morning. Looking at the bruises on his face, I was startled and blurted out a question, "Why are you so seriously injured?"

The driver bowed to Nolan and me, then clasped his hands and replied with a slightly embarrassed look, “Because I didn't finish my job well, of course, I had to get a fine. It's just a small wound, you don't have to worry about it, Miss."

Immediately after he met Nolan's eyes, he lowered his head, coughed lightly, and returned to his main purpose, "Boss, the stores have sent all the items you requested. Do you want to see them now?”

“Bring them here,” Nolan said nonchalantly, placing the wine glass in his hand down.

When he finished speaking, a group of people dressed in elegant business clothes walked in, pushing racks of sparkling clothes and jewelry. I looked at the exaggerated scene in front of me and was stunned for a moment.

“What… is... this?” I stammered and asked Nolan, “For me?”

“It's all for you. From now on, throw away your old worn suitcase. You must wear what I have prepared. Don't let me see you appear like today again..."

“Yes…” I bowed my head slightly and replied.

Nolan's long fingers pushed a black card into my sight. He calmly took a sip of wine and waved his hand for the group to leave. From start to finish, just a slight movement of his finger commanded many to obediently follow.

So, after accepting these items, would I officially become his "doll" as he said?

Thinking of this, my heart trembled for a while. I hesitantly pushed the black card back towards Nolan, “I… I don't need it. My savings are still enough for my daily expenses..."

"Take it." Two short words, yet carrying an air of dominance.

He glanced at me, "You have no right to object to any of my requests. Remember that."

[...]

At JW Margaritte, the city's most upscale restaurant.

I played the last few keys to conclude the piece I had been performing. Pushing back the bangs that were covering the side of my face, I breathed a sigh of relief and stood up, bowing down to greet the audience. Like every time I faced the eyes of the crowd, I had to clench my fists to keep calm. Only when harmonized with the piano melody could I forget everything and live in my world.

While I got off the stage, I lifted the hem of my dress and took each step carefully. Suddenly, something blocked my foot, causing me to lose my balance and fall forward.

But before I could fall to the ground, I accidentally crashed into a woman. The glass of wine in her hand spilled out, soaking a piece of her luxurious black gown.

“Ah! Where did this damn thing come from!” This woman shouted angrily, quickly attracting the attention of many other people.

I frantically looked for a piece of paper to wipe her off, bowed my head profusely, and apologized, “Miss Celina, I… I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I will pay you compensation for this dress.”

"Compensate? Do you think you have enough money to pay for a corner of this dress, you fucking poor pianist!” Celina huffed, grabbed my bun, and pushed me back roughly.

This insult made my face turn pale. But I couldn't argue, because the manager had warned me that everyone sitting there was the powerful figures in the city. This party was a social gathering of famous businessmen, so I might lose this beloved job if I acted indiscreetly.

While I was still panicking inside, this sour woman suddenly slapped me in the face, "Are you dumb? Don't you know to kneel and apologize to me! Are you planning to stay silent and run away?"

I hugged one cheek in surprise. The burning pain brought tears to my eyes. My eyes widened as I looked at Celina in disbelief, but she responded to me with an incredibly defiant expression.

Biting my trembling lip, I struggled to fix my tangled hair and suppressed the lump in my throat to speak, "Miss Celina, I know it was my mistake to ruin your dress. But you just assaulted me in public, I can completely…”

My chest heaved up and down with tension, but I clenched my fists to muster up the courage to continue, “I can completely sue you.”

“Sue me?” Celina sneered. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised her chin at me, "Do you know that my family is the host of this party? I can kick a cheap, vile, low-class type like you out of here! Right away!"

“I may not be as rich as you, but I am not vile!” I angrily gritted my teeth and protested. Since bravely standing up to my parents, I was learning how to become stronger.

Celina seemed to lose her mind, pressing her fingertips to push me backward, "Bitch, you still dare to raise your voice. Do you know what kind of punishment you'll get for throwing wine at me?"

Right after that, she didn't hesitate to throw the remaining wine in the glass at me.

This action happened so fast that I didn't have time to dodge it. Originally, I had closed my eyes to wait for the wine to be thrown at me, but 1 second, 2 seconds... By the 3rd second, I slowly opened my eyes to find a large figure had embraced me with the smell of sandalwood straight into my nostrils.

All the crimson wine soaked the back of his vest. I raised my head to look at his face from close range, it seemed like this man was starting to get angry.

He didn't turn his back, but his voice was enough to make Celina turn pale in fear, "What punishment?"

“Mr… Mr… Kingston?” Celina called out tremblingly in doubt.

Now who would be punished? Throwing wine at Nolan Kingston... What would be the punishment?