"Well, well. If it isn't the former princess of the Scott family in Juniper Falls. Look at that body! She's smoking hot, and she's clearly not shy about showing it off!"
"Lucky you, Yale. Having a woman like that in your bed..."
Yale Sutton's brow twitched. A moment later, his suit jacket landed over Lauren Scott's head, covering her up.
"Lauren, is there anything you won't do for money? Have you no shame?"
Lauren turned to face him, her eyes as sharp and defiant as ever. "I guess I don't have your pride."
How times had changed. She was no longer the privileged Scott heiress who had once looked down on everyone, just as Yale was no longer the penniless college heartthrob she'd fallen for at first sight, claimed as her own, and forced to stay by her side before eventually casting him aside.
When the Scott family went bankrupt, Lauren had been left with debts exceeding a hundred million. She sold everything she owned and, with nowhere else to turn, resorted to selling liquor to make ends meet. That was when Yale approached her with a master-servant contract, leaving her no choice but to sign.
He made her spend every night on her knees praying for forgiveness, then write out a prayer a thousand times by hand. Each time she completed the punishment, he knocked a hundred thousand off her debt.
He also made her entertain his clients, offering to deduct two hundred thousand for every bottle of liquor she finished. She forced down five bottles and ended up in the hospital, fighting for her life.
Then there was the time he demanded that she donate a full liter of blood to one of his relatives in exchange for half a million off her debt. She lost consciousness immediately after the blood was drawn and remained unconscious for three days.
The humiliation and outrage she'd felt at first had gradually given way to numb obedience. By now, Lauren had learned to do whatever Yale demanded without protest.
But today was different. Sitting beside him was his ex-girlfriend, Yvonne Quinn.
"Miss Scott, a woman should have some self-respect. How could you take your clothes off in front of everyone just for money?"
Yale wrapped an arm around Yvonne and carefully adjusted the strap of her dress, which had slipped off her shoulder.
His voice was thick with contempt as he said, "Back then, she used money to force you to leave me. Now I'm giving her a taste of what it's like to be humiliated with money."
Lauren let out a derisive laugh. "Yvonne, you know perfectly well whether you were forced to leave or willingly took the money to study abroad."
Yale's expression darkened. Before Lauren could say another word, he hurled his wineglass at the floor beside her feet. It shattered, sending shards of glass into her skin. She doubled over in pain, only for Yale to seize her and haul her upright.
"Vonnie is innocent and honest. There's no way she would've taken that money! Stop twisting the truth. You think everyone is as snobbish and two-faced as you?"
His anger only grew as he continued, "If you hadn't used your family's power to force Vonnie to go abroad and tear us apart, we wouldn't have lost all those years together!"
Lauren could no longer tell whether her body or her heart hurt more. The sudden movement left her dizzy, and she staggered sideways, but Yale caught her before she could fall.
"Miss Scott, I'm begging you. Could you please stop making up lies about me?"
Yvonne covered her mouth, her eyes brimming with tears. Yale's face immediately hardened, and he released Lauren, leaving her to collapse to her knees in pain.
A flicker of triumph crossed Yvonne's eyes. Still pleading with Lauren, she moved closer until one of her high heels came down on Lauren's left hand. Lauren instinctively reached out with her right hand to push her away.
Yvonne took the opportunity to fall backward, scraping her elbow against the floor.
"Yale, it hurts!"
Pain and concern filled his eyes as he looked at Yvonne, then turned on Lauren through gritted teeth.
"Lauren, you still dare to bully Vonnie? You really have no idea where you stand, do you?" "Apologize to her."
Lauren fought to hold back her tears. "I didn't do anything wrong. Why should I apologize? She's the one who..."
Yvonne's sobs grew louder, and Yale cut Lauren off before she could finish.
"Apologize. I'm not going to say it again."
When Lauren still refused, he gave a cold laugh and took out his phone. A few taps brought up surveillance footage showing a man lying in a hospital bed.
It was Lauren's father.
"Tell me something. If I withdrew all the money you've deposited in the hospital account and put it toward your debt, how many minutes do you think your father would survive?"
Lauren bit down hard on her lip. When she looked up at Yale, her voice trembled slightly.
"Yale Sutton, I've never done anything to wrong you.
"Remember when you beat the son of the Lawson family, the richest family in the city, so badly he ended up in the hospital? All because of Yvonne? I was the one who got down on my knees, poured him a drink, and apologized until he agreed to let it go.
"And those orders you landed when you first started your company? I used the Scott family's connections behind your back to secure every single one of them. I drank with clients until my stomach bled, all to win those contracts for you!"
Knowing how fiercely proud Yale was, Lauren had never told him what she'd done.
But now, with her father's life at stake, she couldn't afford to stay silent.
Yale looked stunned for a moment. Then his eyes darkened, and the disgust in his gaze deepened as he stared at her.
"Lauren, you really are full of lies, aren't you?"
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