Chapter 5: Rules

​"First of all, you have to remember that you are mine. You can't be close to other men, and obviously, you cannot have a special relationship with any of them. You can't talk alone with another man for more than a minute."

​Ashley's eyes widened when she heard that.

​"One minute?" she repeated in disbelief.

​She couldn't believe this rule, but she nodded anyway.

​Wow, my brother is so possessive, she thought.

​"That's right. If you violate these rules, I will ensure that whoever is involved pays dearly." His tone was firm; he wasn't kidding.

​She nodded again, this time afraid she might say the wrong thing.

​"Secondly, you are going to sleep in my room from now on." He then buried his face in Ashley's neck, making her giggle with amusement.

​"Haha... okay, Bubba."

​After going over a few more guidelines, they quickly got ready to start the day.

​Ashley headed off to school while Sirius returned to work.

​Sirius insisted on driving Ashley himself.

​When she was about to step out of the car, he looked at her blankly as she accidentally pulled her hand away from his grip.

​"Don't forget something, baby," he said flatly.

​Ashley slapped her forehead lightly, then immediately leaned over and kissed both of his cheeks.

​"I'll go first, Bubba," she said, blinking her eyes playfully.

​Sirius nodded and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

​Ashley walked down the hallway with a bright smile.

​Kissing him on both cheeks and his forehead had become their new routine for greeting and saying goodbye.

​It was a new rule she was more than happy to follow.

​According to him, for now, it was just kisses on the cheeks and forehead. Later, after she turned eighteen, those kisses would be replaced on the lips.

​Oh my God! She blushed just thinking about her first real kiss with Bubba.

​Ashley met up with some of her friends, chatting happily until they entered the classroom and took their seats.

​The lecture hall was spacious and filled with students, and Ashley was excited for the class to begin.

​Suddenly, a young man approached her desk and sat down right in front of her, cutting off her conversation and drawing everyone's attention.

​It turned out to be Victor, the son of the college rector.

​Victor was undeniably handsome, and his age wasn't far from hers.

​However, Ashley disliked him intensely because Victor was notorious for his terrible treatment of women.

​He loved to toy with people's emotions and manipulate various girls on campus.

​Many students who fell into Victor's traps ended up heartbroken and deeply hurt.

​"Hey, beautiful. Are you busy this weekend?" he asked in a confident, presumptuous tone.

​He was entirely certain he could charm Ashley into bed, assuming she was just like any other woman he had pursued.

​He believed women were easily swayed by money and power, and that dangling easy cash or guaranteed passing grades would be enough to get what he wanted.

​Unfortunately for him, Ashley was nothing like the women Victor was used to.

​She had no interest in anyone else because Sirius had held her heart for a long time.

​"I already have plans for the weekend," she replied coldly and flatly.

​She really didn't want to waste any breath on him.

​Her friends didn't dare say a word to intervene, terrified of offending him because of his father's immense influence over the institution.

​Ashley, however, felt no fear toward him whatsoever, knowing full well that Sirius possessed far more power than Victor's father ever would.

​"Oh yeah? How about you cancel whatever plans you have and come have some fun with me instead? I guarantee you'll enjoy it."

​Victor raised his eyebrows and licked his lips, his gaze drifting hungrily toward her chest.

​His friends in the corner of the classroom chuckled, eager to see their leader conquer the most beautiful and sought-after girl on campus.

​Disgust washed over Ashley. She lost whatever shred of respect she had left for such a vile person.

​How could he harass her so brazenly in front of everyone? Her brows furrowed, showing her deep anger.

​"No. I don't want to, and I have zero interest! Stop bothering me!" she snapped, folding her arms firmly across her chest.

​Victor, who had never faced such absolute rejection before, stood frozen in shock.

​His expression quickly twisted into an ugly sneer.

​"You... playing hard to get, huh? Alright, I'll play your game. We'll see how long you can keep that up, my dear."

​He chuckled darkly and reached out a hand to touch her face.

​Deftly, Ashley slapped his hand away.

​That public humiliation only fueled his fury.

​He turned on his heel and walked away, muttering curses under his breath.

​Ashley breathed a sigh of relief once he was gone and resumed chatting with her friends, who were still trembling at her boldness in standing up to him.

​Yet, they couldn't help but wonder if Ashley had someone extremely powerful backing her up to give her the courage to defy Victor so openly.

​Unbeknownst to anyone in the room, one of Sirius's bodyguards—disguised as a student—had secretly recorded the entire incident and forwarded the video straight to Sirius.

​Sirius was reviewing documents when the notification chimed.

​Instantly, his aura turned dark and chilling. His dark eyes flashed with a murderous glint.

​"Heh, how dare you disturb my baby," he muttered softly.

​His tone was calm, but his men knew that the person captured in that video was destined for a very miserable fate.

​Later that afternoon, it was time for Ashley to head home.

​She waited briefly for her assigned driver before climbing into the car.

​Trailing closely behind her vehicle was another car carrying two bodyguards disguised as her college peers.

​While acting as her bodyguard might have seemed like a simple assignment on paper, Sirius's men knew it was actually one of the most perilous jobs in the organization.

​The instructions were simple: keep her safe. But if Ashley was ever bothered or harmed even slightly, their lives were immediately on the line.

​Working for the mafia king came with immense financial rewards, but it meant living permanently on the edge.

​If she ever felt uncomfortable around them, the penalty would be severe.

​Meanwhile, Ashley sat in the moving car, busy typing a text message to Sirius, completely unaware that another vehicle was trailing them from behind.

​That second car was driven by Victor and his cronies.

​Unaware of the danger closing in around her, Ashley arrived home safely thanks to the swift intervention of Sirius's security team.

​At the same time, Victor and his friends had fallen right into a trap set by Sirius's men, entirely convinced they were still following Ashley's vehicle.

​Their original intention was to intercept her, abduct her, and take compromising photos as trophies to brag about.

​Blinded by arrogance, Victor never stopped to think things through.

​Relying on his father's political cover, he assumed Ashley came from an ordinary wealthy family and that any trouble could easily be swept under the rug.

​This time, however, he was disastrously mistaken.

​As their car followed the decoy vehicle deeper and deeper into a heavily wooded area, one of his friends grew uneasy.

​"Victor, are you sure this is the right way? It doesn't look right," the friend pointed out.

​Victor, gripping the steering wheel, hesitated for a moment before brushing off the concern.

​"If you wanted to complain, you shouldn't have come. Just shut up and get out when we arrive," Victor snapped, his arrogance blinding him to any warning.

​Ahead of them, a woman whose outfit vaguely resembled Ashley's stepped out of the decoy car.

​Smiling triumphantly, Victor threw his car into park and hopped out, striding toward her.

​As he drew closer, however, his confident smile faltered.

​He stared at her retreating figure with a deep frown.

​She was noticeably taller, and her hair was shorter and lighter brown.

​Ashley's hair, by contrast, was midnight black and flowed gracefully down to her waist.

​"She's not that girl," his friend whispered anxiously from behind him.

​Victor didn't need the reminder; he already realized something was terribly wrong.

​"Hey! Who are you? Where is Ashley?" Victor demanded, confronting the woman as she turned around to face them.

​She was stunning, but she was definitely not Ashley.

​"Tsk, your own stupidity has brought disaster right to your doorstep," the woman said coldly.

​Those were the last words Victor and his friends heard before darkness consumed them and they collapsed unconscious onto the ground.