Chapter 7

Nina froze. Looking at the undisguised love and determination in Tristan's eyes, she gave a helpless, affectionate smile and ruffled his hair. "You silly thing."

Tristan, the rebellious, domineering heir to the Boyle family who always had his way, seemed like a giant dog tamed by its owner. He lowered his head and obediently let Nina stroke his hair, the tips of his ears still flushed red.

Watching them, Margot felt as though her heart were being torn apart.

Tristan had once told her that he hated people touching his head. He took it as a sign of provocation and disrespect.

So it wasn't that he hated being touched. He just hated being touched by someone he didn't love.

For the rest of the party, Margot couldn't help noticing that Tristan's eyes followed Nina wherever she went.

When he saw her chatting happily with a charming man and even letting him lean in to whisper in her ear, Tristan's expression hardened.

He downed a glass of liquor, then refilled it and gripped it so tightly that his knuckles turned white. A second later, a sharp crack echoed through the room as the glass shattered in his hand. Liquor mixed with blood dripped down his fingers.

Yet he seemed completely numb to the pain. He sprang to his feet and stormed out of the banquet hall without even sparing Margot a glance.

Margot had no desire to stay either, so she got up and went to the restroom.

When she came out, she found Tristan leaning heavily against the wall in the hallway, visibly drunk. His eyes were hazy, and his cheeks were unnaturally flushed.

Margot lowered her head, trying to pretend she hadn't seen him. But as she walked by, Tristan suddenly reached out and pulled her into a tight embrace. He buried his face in her neck, breathing hotly against her skin. His breath reeked of alcohol.

"Nina..." he rasped, his voice thick and muffled as he mistook Margot for Nina. "Don't smile at him like that. It's driving me crazy..."

Margot's body went rigid. Something inside her seemed to split open.

"Ten years..." He tightened his arms around her, holding on as if he were afraid she would disappear. His voice was full of pain and frustration he'd been holding back for far too long.

"For ten fucking years, I've been an idiot, watching you flirt with one man after another. Every time you come close to me and talk to me, I get so hard it hurts...

"But all I can do is behave myself and act like a little brother to you... Just now... I really wanted to kill him and lock you away... somewhere only I could see you..."

There was something almost obsessive in his voice, yet he sounded so vulnerable it was heartbreaking.

"Just wait a little longer for me, okay? Soon... I'll confess my feelings to you. Then we'll be together forever... okay?"

Every word cut into Margot like a poisoned blade, twisting deeper than the last.

So this was the overwhelming, consuming love he'd been hiding deep inside. All his unusual behavior, all his moments of losing control, had been because of Nina.

Then what was she to him?

Battling the dizziness and heartbreak threatening to overwhelm her, Margot summoned every ounce of strength she had and shoved him away. Then she stumbled toward the hotel exit and ran as fast as she could.

The moment she burst out of the hotel and into the garden, she heard someone scream near the ornamental pond.

"Someone fell in!"

Margot looked over and saw Nina thrashing helplessly in the water.

Despite the crushing pain in her heart, Margot couldn't just stand by and watch someone drown. She knew how to swim, and pure instinct took over. Kicking off her heels, she plunged into the icy water.

Margot swam hard toward Nina, grabbed her from behind, and dragged her toward the shore.

She had barely managed to get Nina to the edge and help her grab hold when a sharp cramp seized her calf.

"H-help! Someone help me!"

Her leg gave out, and she swallowed several mouthfuls of water. Before Nina could climb all the way out, they both sank beneath the surface again. Margot thrashed desperately, screaming for help.

A familiar figure came sprinting toward the pond. It was Tristan.

But the moment he scanned the water, he plunged in and swam straight toward Nina without a second's hesitation. He grabbed her firmly and hauled her to safety.

Not once did he look at Margot, who was still struggling desperately in the water, on the verge of drowning. Icy water flooded her nose and mouth, making it impossible to breathe.

She watched as Tristan carefully laid Nina on the ground and bent over her, urgently performing CPR. He was so focused, so frantic with worry.

Margot couldn't hold on any longer. Her strength gave out, and everything went black.