Chapter 3

Even as slow as I was, I realized something was off.

I stood up and saw that the paper was completely blank, spotless as if it had never been used.

Instinctively, I tried to leave, but the next second I collided with a solid chest.

That familiar sense of pressure returned.

All the color drained from my face, and I didn’t dare look up at the person in front of me.

The lawyer’s voice came from behind.

[Mr. Cooper, you’re here.]

I looked up at the lawyer in disbelief. He was now bowing slightly toward Winson, his face full of flattery.

The comments erupted in cheers.

[Haha, didn’t expect that, huh? Your girl tried to send you to the police.]

[Wow, first meeting at a law firm. Real romantic, genius.]

[He’s a billionaire heir and she’s still complaining? Does she not know how good she has it?]

[I remember he fell in love with her at first sight, right? The novel described it so vividly. Winson couldn’t understand himself; he’d been with different women since he was fifteen, yet he couldn’t forget that woman from six years ago.

[The memory of her had sunk into his bones, making him think of her day and night. I love a reformed playboy arc.]

[Oh wow, not a virgin and still acting like the perfect male lead? Please.]

[This is realistic romance. You wouldn’t understand adult relationships.]

Seeing that comment made me feel sick, like I’d swallowed something rotten.

The author gave the male lead unrealistic power and status yet forced reality into something as personal as this.

I wanted to leave.

I admitted that I was a coward. I didn’t have the courage to stand against him.

Right now, I just wanted to escape.

But the next second, a hand grabbed my wrist tightly.

A low, husky voice sounded beside my ear.

“Running away the moment you see me, Miss Shaw?”

His warm breath brushed against my ear, and the faint scent of cold pine from his body drifted straight into my senses.

There was no doubt that Winson, as the male lead, possessed a face that could be called the most handsome in the world.

His features looked sculpted, sharp and clean-cut. His brows were thick and sharply angled, the faint lift at the ends giving him an air of arrogance and authority.

A face that made countless girls scream had become my nightmare.

How disgusting.

I tried to pull away, but his grip was far too strong.

His gaze never left me, like a damp, lurking serpent studying its prey. That sticky attention made my skin crawl.

I regretted it.

I didn’t regret reporting him; I regret not preparing myself for what would come after.

There was a noise at the door. It was my father.

Sweat still clung to his forehead, clearly having rushed all the way here.

The moment I saw him, my tears fell.

Finally, someone was here to stand up for me.

Winson’s voice turned cold and sinister.

“Do you think your father will stand up for you?”

I straightened my back and met his eyes without flinching.

“I’m his daughter.”

I was the only child in my family. Ever since my mother disappeared, all of my father’s love had been given to me.

When I was little, I once mumbled in my sleep that I wanted peaches. In the middle of the night, he went to several fruit shops just to find the best ones.

Every time I made a mistake, he would smile and pat my head.

“It’s alright. Whatever our Risa does is right.”

I thought, just like before, I would be met with a warm embrace, but instead, a sharp slap landed across my face.

The force of it sent me crashing to the ground.

What followed was a furious roar.

“You’ve got some nerve bringing this up. Do you even realize what you’ve done to this family? If you’re not ashamed, I am.”

Without sparing me another glance, he turned to Winson, his tone instantly turning flattering.

“Sorry to trouble you, Mr. Cooper. Risa’s just being foolish. Honestly, it’s her luck that you’ve taken an interest in her.”