LOGINMargaret's displeasure was immediate. "If Talia's your wife, then what's the point of bringing her here?""To make sure you know that she's still my woman." Every single word out of Christian's mouth carried a clear warning.Margaret let out a dry laugh. "Well, you've said your piece. You can both leave now."But Christian didn't leave. Instead, he took Talia by the arm and brought her further into the living room.Talia blinked in surprise, momentarily caught off guard, before finding her voice. "I'll go make lunch."She turned and headed for the kitchen without waiting for a response. She'd rather be stuck doing grunt work over a stove than standing in the middle of that awkward standoff.Margaret watched Talia disappear into the kitchen and rolled her eyes."Tramp," she muttered under her breath.Christian stiffened. He kept his voice low, but there was a sharp edge to it. "That's vulgar."Margaret looked up at him, her eyes narrowing. "Excuse me?"He met her gaze head-on.
Talia turned and started walking toward the front door. Her first few steps were quick and sharp, but after a couple of strides she slowed down.By the time she reached the doorway, Christian still hadn't called after her.She finally stopped, unable to take it anymore, and spun around. "Christian, can you just save Henry first?"Christian set his spoon down and looked up at her, his gaze perfectly level. "See, this is exactly what I mean. The second I lose this leverage, do you really think you'll still stand there and talk to me this calmly?"Talia was desperate, but she had nowhere to turn. "Christian, for once, can't you just do the right thing for once?"He lowered his eyes, and his voice came out with a finality that left no room for negotiation. "This isn't up for discussion."Talia could see that his mind was made up. So, she had no choice but to give in. "Fine. Let's go.""Where?""To the Lane residence," she said, her voice drained.He smiled at her response. "Good."
Talia had never been like this before. She used to be gentle, obedient, and considerate. She would put Christian before everything else. So, when had she become so aggressive?Talia softened her tone. "I'm not here to argue with you."Christian studied her for a moment. "Then tell me what exactly you think you're doing right now."She didn't look at him or answer, because she knew the truth. The only reason she'd come back was that she needed something from him.After a stretch of silence, Christian spoke again, his voice carrying a quiet warning. "Talia, don't forget. Whether Henry lives or dies is entirely up to me."The threat made her look up, her eyes blazing with something fierce. "Christian, if you keep dragging your feet like this, he'll already be gone before you even..."But she couldn't bring herself to finish that thought out loud.Christian picked up right where she left off. "So think carefully about what you should be doing."Talia stared into his eyes and said t
The momentum of Julian throwing himself at her sent Nancy stumbling forward several steps before she managed to find her footing."Julian, what are you doing? Let go of me!" She struggled against him, her voice sharp and demanding.But Julian only held her tighter. "No. I'm not letting go. You gave me your first time, and I'm going to do right by you. Nancy, I promise you, there will never be another woman for me. I'll spend the rest of my life treating you well."Nancy closed her eyes briefly before she said, "Julian, I don't need you to do right by me. Last night, if I'm being honest, I was using you too. A woman my age who's never been with anyone is rare enough, and I just wanted to know what it felt like."I enjoyed last night. We both did, and that should be enough. Being together and spending forever with someone—all of that is just talk. Don't read too much into what happened."She meant every single word, and it showed.Julian listened, and the anger building inside him
Talia 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
Quentin paused before smiling. "It's good that it's gone. I'm not interested in being a stepfather anyway."Talia hadn't expected him to say that. After a brief pause, she asked, "Can I go back to sleep now?"Quentin mirrored her question. "So after your dinner tomorrow, will you come meet my moth
Henry called for an Uber to take Talia back to the Stewart residence. Neither of them spoke during the drive, sitting in silence.As the car crossed the Second Street Bridge, Talia turned to look at the opposite lanes. Traffic was completely gridlocked, and a crowd had gathered along one section of
Outside the private dining room, Quentin sat in the restaurant's lounge area, working through emails on his phone. He had neglected his work these past few days to stay with Talia, and the backlog was piling up. Now that he had some free time, he wanted to tackle what he could.While typing out a r
As soon as Christian called, Connor's hoarse voice came through. "Chris, I got beaten up."Christian frowned as he asked in disbelief, "Where are you? Who did this?"Before Connor could respond, Quentin set down his coffee cup. He turned his head slightly and said to Christian in an offhand tone,







