Chapter 2

"It was Vonnie who stood outside Zachary Lawson's house in the pouring rain for three days and nights, begging him to let me off," Yale said. "She was the one who went around pitching my products to potential clients and convinced them to place orders. I wouldn't be where I am today without her."

As he spoke, Yale turned toward Yvonne, his eyes brimming with tenderness.

Yvonne let out a soft sigh. "Don't be so hard on Lauren, Yale. Maybe she was just joking. Can you imagine someone as proud as her begging anyone for help? She can't even come up with a believable lie."

Lauren drew a deep breath. Of course. How could someone like her, once the belle of Juniper Falls, ever lower herself to beg?

Yet that was exactly what she'd done for Yale.

"If Lauren doesn't want to apologize, just let it go," Yvonne continued gently. "She's always been the one humiliating other people. How could someone like her possibly kneel and apologize to someone like me?"

A vein throbbed at Yale's temple as memories of the past came flooding back. He suddenly seized Lauren and threw her down at Yvonne's feet.

The hospital's number was already on his phone, ready to dial.

Lauren knew there was nothing she could say to make him believe her anymore. He hated her with every fiber of his being.

Just as his finger moved toward the call button, she lowered her head. Her clenched fists were so tight that her knuckles had turned white. Slowly, she folded in on herself, her once-proud posture giving way.

"I'm sorry."

Yale grabbed a fistful of her hair and forced her to look up, taking his time savoring her humiliation.

"Look at you now, Lauren! When you humiliated me, dumped me because I was poor, and got engaged to another man, did you ever think you'd end up like this? Do you regret what you did?"

He tightened his grip. "Remember when you wanted boba? You made me stand in line for two hours to get it, only to pour it over my head. And that scarf you demanded I knit for you? After I finished it, you cut it to pieces just for fun!"

Lauren's eyes shifted dully.

Did she regret it?

Not at all.

From the moment she'd first laid eyes on Yale, she'd known he had to be hers. She'd used her family's power and influence to close off every other path available to him until he had no choice but to be with her.

Whether a relationship could survive being forced into existence was something she'd have to find out for herself.

As for the boba, Yale had indeed stood in line to buy it for her. But he'd handed the first cup to Yvonne, who'd been watching eagerly. Furious, Lauren had poured the boba over his head in front of everyone.

And while Lauren had asked him to knit her a scarf, an identical one had appeared around Yvonne's neck the day before he gave Lauren hers.

Anything Lauren Scott wanted had to belong to her and her alone. She'd never stoop to demanding explanations or getting into arguments. If something wasn't exclusively hers, she'd rather destroy it.

"Lauren, when you told me you'd gotten bored with me, did you ever imagine you'd end up like this?"

Yale studied the woman before him. She was every bit as stunning as he remembered, and even her cold expression was identical to the one she'd worn when she abandoned him.

Lauren gave a bitter smile.

Five years ago, her family had arranged for her to marry Henry Hartwell, the only son of the Hartwells, a family the Scotts had been close to for generations.

Lauren refused the engagement that afternoon. By that evening, the brake line from Yale's car had been delivered to her in a gift box.

It was a warning from her father.

That was how the Scott family had always handled things.

Lauren had never been one to pursue a man, not even when she'd set her sights on Yale. Loving him hadn't made her any gentler with her words, either. When she was angry, she lashed out rather than asking questions.

So when she was forced to break up with him, she couldn't bring herself to explain her feelings. Instead, she'd simply said, "I'm bored with you."

Then she'd given him a large sum of money and sent him away.

Sometime afterward, her best friend, Yasmin Shaw, had accompanied her to see a therapist.

The therapist told Lauren she had a disorder that made it difficult for her to express her emotions.

When Lauren remained silent, Yale seized her arm viciously.

"Starting today, you're going to work as a maid in my house until you've paid off your debt."

He leaned closer, each word deliberate.

"And I'll make sure you're very well taken care of."

He practically spat out those last words through gritted teeth.