LOGINColin held his gaze.“…I do.”The answer came without hesitation.Noah nodded once.“Then go.”Colin exhaled slowly.“Alright. My sister is in your care.”He turned slightly.Then paused.“I’ll be back soon,” he added. “Mom and Dad will be back as well.”A faint smile touched his lips.“And this time… I’m bringing my sister home properly.”Noah didn’t respond.But his expression softened slightly.Colin gave one last glance toward the hallway.“I’ve got to go now.” Silence returned.Noah stood there for a moment.Then turned, walking back toward Miranda’s room.He pushed the door open slightly.Just enough to check.She was still asleep.“How can she be so cute even in her sleep?” he muttered to himself, smiling. Then he suddenly realized what he was doing. “Damn! Noah. That’s Miranda. Your friend’s sister is your sister as well,” he mumbled. “Is she?” he again countered himself. “Oh, please, stop it, Noah.” He immediately closed the door quietly and hurried to the living room.
"What does that mean?” Miranda asked, her voice weak but steady enough to carry the question.Noah held her gaze for a moment longer.“It means,” he said calmly, “you’re under my care.”A beat.“No arguments. No running back to that house. Not tonight.”Miranda blinked slowly, trying to process it.“Noah…”He didn’t let her finish.“Nate, drive.”The command was firm.Nate didn’t hesitate.The engine came alive, headlights cutting through the rain as the car pulled away from the curb.Outside, Adrian stood still, watching the car disappear into the night.His jaw clenched.His fingers tightened into fists at his sides.Something inside him snapped.Violently.He turned sharply and stormed back into the house, slamming the door so hard the walls seemed to shake.He started grumbling, fuming in anger, the moment he got back inside. The silence didn’t last.Adrian paced once.Twice.Then his hand went straight to the nearest object… A vase.Crash.It shattered against the wall.“Damn i
The rain didn’t slow.If anything, it came harder… like the sky itself had decided to bear witness to the atrocities committed against Miranda.“Didn’t I tell you not to leave?” Adrian barked again. Noah turned fully this time.And the moment his eyes landed on Adrian, something shifted.Recognition.Adrian saw it too.His gaze narrowed slightly, scanning Noah from head to toe, irritation flickering into something more calculated.“This is your husband?” Noah muttered in disbelief. “This is the idiot that did this to you?” He wasn’t even asking to get a response from Miranda. Just words of confirmation. “Well,” Adrian muttered, stepping forward under the shelter of the doorway. “This is interesting.”His lips curved faintly.“I didn’t expect you to be one of her bedwarmers."Noah didn’t answer immediately.His grip on Miranda tightened slightly, steadying her as her weight leaned into him.“You know him?” Nate asked under his breath.Noah didn’t look away from Adrian.“Oh, I do,”
Adrian’s whisper lingered against her ear like a threat dressed as logic.Then he stepped back.Miranda didn’t move.Didn’t blink.But something inside her shifted.Adrian straightened, taking a slow sip from his coffee as if the conversation had bored him.“Since you clearly don’t understand boundaries,” he said casually, “let me make this simple.”He gestured toward the spot right in front of the door.“You stay here as I’ve said.”Miranda’s eyes narrowed slightly.“Adrian…”“I said stay,” he cut in, his tone dropping just enough to silence any argument. “You don’t leave. You don’t move. And you definitely don’t step into this house.”The door behind him stood like a wall between them.A line he had drawn.And dared her to cross.Miranda inhaled slowly, clearly frustrated. “Why?”The question came out quietly.But it stopped him.Adrian didn’t turn.“What do you really want?” she asked.That made him turn. “You’re the one who married me,” she continued. “And yet you never treated
The voice didn’t just interrupt.It cut.Aunt Felicia froze instantly.Miranda didn’t need to look to know who it was.But she did anyway.Adrian stood a few steps behind Aunt Felicia, his expression unreadable but his eyes…His eyes were dark.Aunt Felicia swallowed hard. “Sir, I was just…”“Just what?” Adrian cut in coldly. “Advising her? Taking sides again?”His tone dropped.More threatening.“I’ve warned you before, Aunt Felicia,” he continued. “Stop meddling in my business. If not for old time's sake, you know what I’d have done to you by now.”A beat.“This is the last time I’ll say it… if you keep interfering, I won’t forgive you again.”Aunt Felicia lowered her gaze immediately.“Yes, sir.”The fear in her voice was real.Palpable.Miranda’s fingers curled slightly at her sides.But she said nothing.Adrian’s gaze shifted to her.Locked in.Unblinking.“Since you’re already here,” he said flatly, “come to the door.”A pause.His lips curled slightly.“Unless you plan on sneak
The words settled in the room like a quiet verdict.Colin stared at Miranda for a long second, searching her face for hesitation… doubt… anything that suggested she wasn’t ready for what she was implying.He found none.Just calm.Cold, calculated calm.He exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair.“You’re going to drive me crazy. How do I explain this to Dad? Mom will tear me in half if she ever gets to know that I allow all of these to happen to you.” Miranda blinked continuously, pleading with her eyes for him to be patient. “Fine,” he said at last. “Three days is such a long time. But fine. Dad and mom returns then too. I won’t listen to any excuse after then.”Miranda didn’t react.But her eyes softened… just a fraction.Because she knew what that agreement meant.He wasn’t going to interfere.Not yet.But he wasn’t going to leave her unprotected either.Colin turned sharply toward the door. “Nate.”The door opened almost immediately.His assistant stepped in… efficient,







