LOGINTalia was scrolling through her message history with Quentin when she noticed the words "typing" appear beneath his name.Her heart leaped into her throat, but more than anything, she felt a deep sadness. Quentin loved her that much, yet she'd done something unforgivably cruel to him.But the message never came through. Talia gripped her phone and stared at the screen, and even through the glass, she could sense how torn he was feeling right now. Maybe he was thinking the same thing she was, that sending a message wouldn't change anything.In the end, neither of them reached out.Before putting her phone down, Talia sent Garrett a quick text. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."Then she muted her phone and set it aside.It had been a long time since she'd stayed at Elmwood Estate, and the place felt strangely unfamiliar now. Lying in the guest room bed, everything around her felt foreign, like she didn't belong there at all. She'd always been the type who couldn't sleep well in a
After Nancy left the gates of Elmwood Estate, Christian made his way back upstairs to the second floor.By the time he reached the bedroom, Talia was already lying in bed with her eyes closed, ready to sleep. The sound of his footsteps made her open her eyes again. When she turned to look at him, her expression was completely flat, not a trace of a smile on her face.Christian looked at her as he walked over slowly and sat on the edge of the bed. "Go to sleep."Talia wasn't surprised in the slightest. She raised an eyebrow. "What happened? You saw Ms. York and changed your mind?"Christian didn't bother explaining. He just gave a vague, noncommittal answer. "I'm not in the mood tonight. Another time."Talia almost laughed. "Not in the mood? Or are you just worried that you won't last as long as Quentin?"Every single word was a deliberate hit, aimed straight at his ego without a shred of hesitation.Christian stared at her in disbelief. "Do you really have to go for the throat e
Christian hadn't said a single word, but Talia could still sense that something in him had shifted.He stood at the window for a long moment before turning back to her. "It's Nancy. I'll go down and talk to her, then I'll be right back."Talia sat up quickly. "Christian, are you really going to be this cruel? You stood up in front of all those people and acknowledged her as your wife. Now, right when you're supposed to be going through with the wedding, you're just going to toss her aside? How is that fair to her?"Christian's steps faltered, and a beat of silence passed before he answered. "All I know is that I'm following my heart."Deep down, he knew the person he wanted by his side was Talia.He left the bedroom without looking back. Talia lay there staring at the halo of light blurring around the ceiling lamp, too stunned to move.It didn't take long for Christian to reach the front entrance of Elmwood Estate. The moment Nancy saw him come out, the sadness in her eyes was sw
Talia finally opened her eyes. Her dark gaze locked onto Christian's, steady and unblinking. She said, "I already showered. There's no need for another one."Christian's fingers stilled against the back of her hand, and his voice dropped low. "Go wash up again."There was a faint edge of command in his tone that was hard to miss.Talia didn't comply. Instead, she almost laughed. "You're that eager to get me into the shower? You do think I'm dirty, don't you?"Christian looked away without answering. "Just go."This time, there was nothing faint about the command. It was blunt and undisguised.Talia didn't argue. She sat up in bed and gave him a curt nod. "Fine. I'll go."She pushed the covers aside and got out of bed. As she walked toward the bathroom, Christian lifted his head almost without thinking, his gaze following her retreating figure.A faint red mark marred the back of her neck, fresh and unmistakable. It could only have been left by Quentin moments earlier.The sigh
Quentin's eyes were red and swollen, clearly from crying, but he had himself under tight control now. When he answered Garrett's question, his voice came out low and steady. "I know."But beneath that composure, the sadness in his voice was impossible to miss.Garrett noticed the shift in him, and his grip on Quentin's collar slowly loosened. When he spoke again, his tone had softened considerably. "If you knew she was in danger, why are you here and not out looking for her?"Quentin flinched and pinched the bridge of his nose before answering, his voice barely above a whisper. "She went back with Christian on her own."That was all it took to set Garrett off. "So she said she wanted to go back to him and you just let her?"Quentin dropped his gaze. "I tried everything I could to stop her, but her mind was made up. Nothing I said was going to change it."Garrett swallowed the urge to hit Quentin and stepped past him instead. "If you won't look out for her, then I will. That's wha
Every single word out of Talia's mouth dripped with cold contempt, and the way she looked at Christian was nothing short of pure disdain.Christian watched her in silence. Then, in the next moment, something in him snapped. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her toward him, pulling her right up against him. He leaned in close, his voice barely above a murmur. "You want to try me?"Every single word came out low and ground between his teeth.Pain shot through Talia's arm, but she didn't make a sound. She tilted her face up to meet his gaze and gave him an almost amused smile. "Go ahead."There wasn't an ounce of sincerity in her voice. If anything, she was testing him.Before Christian could respond, she spoke again. "If you don't mind how dirty I am, then sure, let's give it a go. But let's be honest, all those other times weren't exactly impressive either, were they?"The more she mocked him, the more desperate he became to prove her wrong. His grip on her wrist tightened until his
After talking himself into it, Quentin rolled around under the covers, deciding on his own to warm Talia's bed for her.He figured that when she came back and finished showering, she could slip straight into a warm bed and fall asleep.But Quentin kept waiting. He waited long enough to nearly fini
Christian glanced at Nancy's smiling face and returned a faint smile. "Julian and William are at the VIP booth. You can find them there. I need to go."Seeing him about to leave, Nancy couldn't help but say, "But Chris, Yvonne said she wants to see you."Since the fall field trip, Christian had ra
Quentin's words left Talia frozen in shock. She looked down at him and saw nothing but genuine sincerity in his eyes. For a brief moment, she wavered again.She thought perhaps she really could leave with him and live the life she wanted. But the absurd notion lasted only a few seconds.Whatever k
As soon as the words left Talia's mouth, not only was Margaret shocked, but even Quentin, who had been watching the drama unfold, was stunned.He had thought that Talia might say they were friends, or that they didn't know each other. He never expected her to declare so brazenly that he was her lov







