LOGINAfter watching Navia enter the conference room, Marcus Morgan finally headed toward the lounge area.
He checked the time on his watch.Truthfully, he had no intention of actually enforcing the thirty-minute limit.Everything Navia was doing was pointless anyway.Rather than drag her out half an hour later and watch her break down crying, he’d rather let her figure out on her own that the outcome was already decided.He might not be a gentleman, but he wasn&rsquoNavia flinched, startled by the sudden outburst.Leonel's expression darkened immediately.One hand came to rest against the small of Navia's back in silent reassurance before he slowly rose to his feet and fixed Victor with a cold stare."Victor," he said evenly, "what exactly are you trying to say?"Victor snapped."Do you even consider me your brother anymore? No—not just me. Do you even have any respect left for Father?""He told you to settle down and get married, and this is the woman you bring home?"He pointed at Navia without the slightest restraint."Last night was Father's birthday gala—a celebration for the entire family. Instead of showing him respect, you stood in front of everyone and announced your relationship with her.""Do you even know who she is? She was Liam's fiancée. She manipulated him, nearly ruined him on their wedding day, and publicly embarrassed our entire family."
By the time everything finally ended, Navia was so exhausted she couldn’t even lift a finger.Leonel carried her out of the bathroom afterward and patiently dressed her piece by piece, his expression absurdly focused and indulgent.He even took time coordinating her outfit like he was styling a fashion doll.Only after he was satisfied did he move on to drying her long, damp hair.Using a towel first, he carefully soaked up the excess water before switching on the hair dryer at a medium setting, his movements unexpectedly gentle.Because Navia still needed to take care of her pregnancy, the servants had already prepared her medicine downstairs.When one of the maids entered with the tray, she froze at the sight before her.The terrifyingly cold and untouchable Leonel Crawford was carefully drying his wife’s hair with astonishing patience and tenderness.The servants of the Crawford Family had known Leonel far longer than they knew
The mattress dipped beneath her weight.A flicker of surprise flashed across the man’s eyes, but Leonel Crawford reacted quickly. Instead of falling on top of Navia Harrison, he braced one arm on either side of her body.He frowned slightly. “Navia, stop messing around.”There was a trace of reprimand in his voice.But Navia didn’t care in the slightest. Biting her lip, she reached up and cupped his face.“What if I insist that you stay and sleep with me tonight?”Leonel froze for a moment, finally understanding what she meant.“No.” He restrained himself as he gently pulled her hands away. “You need proper rest right now.”“But I can’t sleep.”Navia was stubborn and shamelessly clingy tonight. The moment he removed her hands, she wrapped herself around his lean waist again.“I seriously can’t sleep at all. So instead of lyin
After soaking a little longer, Navia finally climbed out of the tub and wrapped herself in a towel.The moment she stepped into the bedroom, however—Leonel was nowhere in sight.Navia frowned.Wait.Had this man seriously fled the room because of her?Just as she was about to go looking for him—A dark shape suddenly streaked across the floor.Every drop of blood in her body seemed to freeze.Meanwhile, downstairs, Leonel had just entered the kitchen."Is her medicine ready?" he asked."Yes, sir," one of the staff members replied immediately. "We were just about to bring it upstairs.""Good."Leonel rubbed the bridge of his nose."And send up a few glasses of ice water."The staff member blinked."Ice water?"At this hour?Before Leonel could answer—A sharp scream echoed from upstairs.His expression changed instantly.
Navia eyed him suspiciously.Not a single word out of his mouth sounded believable.What was that saying again?Quick to admit fault.Never willing to change.That was Leonel Crawford in a nutshell.The man had absolutely no shame."I don't believe you for a second."She nearly blurted out something harsher before catching herself at the last moment."You're hopeless."Leonel calmly rubbed her back in a soothing gesture."Some habits are harder to break than others."Then he gave her a meaningful look."Especially when beautiful women are involved."He paused."I'm not a saint, Navia. Surely I'm allowed to show my true colors once in a while."Navia nearly choked.The annoying part was...A tiny piece of her actually thought his argument made sense.Which only made her more irritated."Stop talking. You're not helping."Watching her brist
Navia slowly looked around the room.Everything was exactly the same as their bedroom at Hillside Villa.Every detail.Every piece of furniture.Everything had been recreated perfectly.And yet, beyond the windows and outside the door, she was still in the unfamiliar Crawford Estate.A strange warmth spread through her chest.Yes, she was a little particular about sleeping in unfamiliar places, but not to the point where it seriously affected her. It was the kind of thing she could easily adjust to after a night or two.And yet...This man had quietly arranged all of this for her without ever mentioning it.Navia bit her lip before looking over at him."Leonel...""Hm?" He raised an eyebrow."Come here for a second."Her voice dropped conspiratorially."I have something to tell you."Leonel narrowed his eyes slightly.Clearly, he suspected she was up to something ag
Having made up her mind, Navia turned and headed toward the VIP entrance of the Grand Hotel.Leonel watched her quietly for a moment before following behind.Because she used the private VIP elevator, Navia wasn’t too worried about people seeing them together.The elevator do
For some reason, the moment he met Navia’s icy gaze, a terrible feeling crept up his spine.Without another word, Navia pulled out her phone.“You said I humiliated you. Humiliated the Crawford family too, right?” she said calmly. “Well, there’s a say
Navia’s voice remained perfectly calm.“Respect isn’t something other people hand to you. You earn it yourself.”“If you can’t even recognize where the stairs are, what’s the point of someone offering you a way down?”She looked at hi
“Miss?” the hotel employee called carefully. “Shall we head upstairs?”Navia nodded and followed him toward the elevator.The VIP suite was luxurious without being overly flashy. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows stretched the breathtaking night view of Summerl







