Chapter 2

The car radio was broadcasting a blizzard warning and a severe cold advisory. Nadia gripped the steering wheel and drove along the empty road toward Summit Ridge.

The heat was blasting inside the car, but she still felt cold all over, as if the chill had seeped into her bones.

It felt just like the night eight years ago, when her father was arrested, the court seized their home, and she and her mother were forced out.

The snow had been so heavy that night.

And in Nadia’s heart, that snow had kept falling for seven whole years.

Until one year ago, when she married Quinton.

Quinton had treated her very well.

For an entire year, he had slept on the daybed by the master bedroom window, just so no one else would find out about her psychological trauma.

Whenever his mother made things difficult for her, he would step in and defend her, even when his mother accused him of being an ungrateful son.

On every anniversary, he would take her out and give her jewelry.

He had done so many things like that.

Nadia wasn’t made of stone. She had picked up her floral shears again only to help him through a difficult time. Yet the truth she received in return was almost too much to bear.

Those sickening images and sounds flashed through her mind again.

Her gaze fell on the passenger seat, where a bright bouquet of red roses lay.

Compared with the elegant blue-and-white arrangement in the back seat, the roses looked far less refined.

But Nadia had never disliked how bold and ordinary red roses could be, because Quinton had given them to her.

Now, however, their scent was so cloying it made her sick, and their color looked painfully bright.

She picked up the red roses, threw them into a roadside trash can, then returned to the car and pressed hard on the gas, driving toward Summit Ridge Resort.

On the way, she made a call.

“Is this CelebWatch? I have a tip. Xena Jasper, who just won Most Popular Actress last month, is vacationing with her boyfriend at Summit Ridge Ski Resort right now.”

Without waiting for the person on the other end to ask anything else, Nadia hung up.

She knew very well that if she dragged Quinton into it now, no media outlet in Harbor City would dare report the story.

She could only lure the reporters there first and let them capture the two of them with their own cameras.

As for the video on her phone, that was her bargaining chip for her talk with Quinton.

Not long after she hung up, her phone rang.

Looking at the caller ID flashing on the screen, Nadia felt another wave of nausea rise in her chest.

She answered the call. A familiar voice came through the line. It was the same voice from the video, and it made her stomach turn.

“Dia.”

Quinton called her by that soft little nickname, gentle as ever.

But through the phone, Nadia heard the strain in his breathing.

When she thought about what he and that woman might still be doing at that very moment, Nadia clenched her jaw and barely managed to hold down the nausea.

“What is it?”

Her voice was cold.

If Quinton had cared, he would have heard the indifference and disgust in her tone. But at that moment, he had no attention to spare for any of that.

Xena had nearly worn him out.

A low breath slipped out before he could stop it. In Nadia’s reddened eyes, only hatred remained.

“What was that sound?”

She asked even though she already knew.

The other end of the line went quiet for a moment. Then Quinton cleared his throat.

“I’ve been exhausted lately because of the board situation. My throat has been bothering me.”

He made up a careless excuse, then quickly moved on to the real reason for his call.

“Mom told me you went to Mrs. Lucas’s banquet today. Dia, thank you for doing so much for me. I know it must have been hard on you.”

Then his tone shifted.

“Summit Ridge Ski Resort is having a bonfire party tonight. It should be lively. I’ll have the driver pick you up. We can celebrate our anniversary early. I even prepared a gift for you.”

“A gift.”

Nadia murmured the words softly, her eyes filled with mockery.

“What a coincidence. I arranged a gift for you too. There’s no need to trouble the driver. I’ll come by myself.”

On the other end, Quinton finally breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that Nadia had agreed to come.

“I’ll wait for you.”

After hanging up, Nadia started the car again and drove toward the hotel.

“How did it go? Did Mrs. Zeller agree to come?”

Xena leaned against Quinton’s chest, her fingers tracing restless circles over him, stirring up the desire he had only just managed to suppress.

Quinton tossed his phone aside and caught her wandering hand.

“Stop it. Dia will be here soon. Put your clothes on and take your things with you. Don’t let her see anything.”

At those words, a flash of humiliation crossed Xena’s sweet, pretty face.

But she quickly hid it and only pouted.

“So now you’re chasing me away? Who was the one clinging to me last night in the hot spring?”

Quinton pinched Xena’s cheek affectionately, lifted her chin, and kissed her.

“I’m telling you to leave for your own good. If those reporters come up later and see you with me, your career will be affected.”

At that, a vicious look crossed Quinton’s face.

“I don’t know where those paparazzi got their tip. If I find out, I won’t let them get away with it.”

Xena guiltily avoided Quinton’s gaze, then wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Quin, I’m willing to give up my career for you. I only want to stay with you. Besides, I’m carrying your child now. I don’t want to be separated from the baby.”

“Xena Jasper!”

Quinton’s expression turned cold at once, and he pulled her away.

“We already discussed the child. That is the best, and the only arrangement. If you can’t accept it, I’ll arrange for a doctor to end the pregnancy.”

Xena stood barefoot on the floor.

The room was clearly warm, but she felt as if she had fallen into an icy lake.

She lowered her head, looking obedient and submissive as she hid the resentment in her eyes.

“Don’t be angry, Quin. I’ll listen to you. I’ll leave right now. Please don’t be angry.”

She picked up her clothes from the floor in a pitiful state and dressed with trembling hands in front of him.

Quinton couldn’t stand seeing her like this. He sighed, stepped forward, and pulled her into his arms.

“Be good. Don’t cry. I’m doing this for your sake too. A woman should have her own career. You can’t let a child ruin your future.”

Xena obediently leaned against his shoulder.

Her warm tears soaked into his shirt, making his heart ache even more.

But he had no idea that the woman in his arms, though her eyes were full of tears, felt no sadness at all.

All that remained in her eyes was twisted jealousy and hatred.

Nadia drove to the resort hotel. By the time she arrived, quite a few reporters had already gathered at the entrance.

So many reporters?

Were they all from CelebWatch?

Or had the media stopped fighting over exclusives and started sharing leads with one another?

Nadia didn’t dwell on it. The more reporters there were, the better it was for her.

She opened the door and was about to get out when someone came forward to meet her.

It was Quinton’s assistant, Gavin Walker.

“Mrs. Zeller, there are a lot of people here. Mr. Zeller asked me to come get you.”

As he spoke, he led Nadia toward the VIP entrance on the other side.

Xena, who had just been escorted downstairs, was sitting in another van nearby.

Through the car window, Xena’s eyes were already burning with resentment.

Nadia wasn’t even better off than her now.

So why did the title of Mrs. Zeller still belong only to Nadia?