LOGINChristian's displeasure boiled over. "What's so great about Quentin? He's got women all over the place. Talia, what do you even see in him?""Christian, just because he has a reputation, it doesn't mean that he's actually unfaithful," Talia said."And just the same, just because you claim to be devoted to Nancy, it doesn't mean you actually are. You two aren't even in the same league. There's no point comparing the two of you."Christian listened, his eyes slowly falling shut. He tried to swallow the rage churning inside him, but no matter how hard he pushed it down, it wouldn't go.Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. His eyes snapped open, bloodshot and burning, and he rounded on her. "No point comparing? How good is he exactly? One hour? Three? Or does he just go deeper than I do?"He advanced on her with every question.Talia backed away instinctively until her back hit the wall, leaving her nowhere else to go. She raised her hands against his chest to keep him at a distance
The ringtone startled Talia, but when she pulled out her phone and saw the name on the screen, she froze. It was Garrett.A wave of dread washed over her.She glanced up at Christian, and the anger inside her surged so fast that she couldn't contain it. Before she could think, her hand swung up and connected with the side of his face.She hadn't put much force behind it, but the slap still cracked sharply through the room.Christian pressed his hand to his cheek and stared at her in open shock.Talia glared at him through her tears. "Christian, you're insane."Garrett had told her that if she went back to Christian, they would be done with her. So what was she supposed to do now?Christian lowered his hand from his face and looked down into her eyes, his jaw clenched. "Yeah, I am. So don't provoke me, because there's nothing I won't do."Talia held his stare without saying a single word, tears streaming silently down her face. She hadn't answered Garrett's call, so it rang out
Christian's chest ached fiercely, yet in the next breath, he shrugged it off with practiced indifference. "So what if you don't love me? That's never been something I cared about."There was a time when Talia would have tried to read between Christian's lines, would have dug into what he really meant. But she didn't have the energy for that anymore, and she didn't want to. What he was thinking had stopped mattering to her.No matter what he said, she let it wash over her without flinching. She turned and started up the stairs.Out of habit, she moved toward the guest room, but Christian, who had been following close behind, steered her into the master bedroom instead.He flicked on the lights. Talia glanced around and realized everything looked the same as it always had. She hesitated, caught off guard.Christian sensed her surprise. "Nothing's changed in here since you left."The familiar furniture and layout pulled old memories to the surface, and Talia could almost see the nai
Talia didn't respond to Christian's remark about her getting bold. They sat in silence, locked in a quiet standoff.Christian broke first. He searched her eyes and found nothing, not a trace of the love or longing that used to be there. The way she looked at him now was ice-cold, chilling enough to swallow a person whole."Get out," he said, and stepped out of the car.Maybe it was habit from being with Quentin, but Talia instinctively waited for him to come around and open her door.But Christian wasn't Quentin. He never would be. He walked straight toward Elmwood Estate without looking back.Talia stared at his retreating figure, the realization catching up to her a beat too late. This was Christian, not Quentin.A bitter smile tugged at her lips, and she pushed the door open herself.Christian had already reached the front entrance when he noticed Talia hadn't caught up. He paused and glanced back over his shoulder. When he saw her coming, he said nothing and waited until she
A man as proud as Christian would never bring himself to touch a woman who'd already been with another man.What Quentin had said served two purposes. One was to remind Talia that he would never let her go easily, and the other was to make sure Christian knew that they had slept together.Christian walked out of the Henderson residence with a stony expression and found Talia still waiting by the car.It was freezing outside, and her face had gone red from the cold. Even so, she was still gripping Quentin's silver handgun. Whether it was because it belonged to Quentin or because she wanted it for her own protection, it was hard to say.Christian didn't ask. He walked up to her, glanced at her flushed cheeks, and asked, "Why didn't you get in the car?"Talia didn't spare him an ounce of politeness. "You know why."Christian looked amused. "Are you worried I'd kill him?""He's not as weak as you think," Talia said without a shred of doubt. "And you're not as strong as you think you
Only after Quentin agreed did Talia slowly lower the gun.She turned without hesitation and walked over to Christian. They locked eyes for a moment before she spoke. "Let's go. We're leaving."Christian holstered his gun. His gaze lingered on the flush still coloring Talia's cheeks, and a wave of discomfort twisted through him, though he forced it down.When he spoke, his voice was so hoarse that it barely sounded like him. "Did you make things clear with him?"Talia looked at Christian and narrowed her eyes slightly, then let out a dry, humorless laugh. "It's done."Christian stared at her in cold silence, saying nothing more.Talia tilted her head. "What else do you want?"He was quiet for a long time before he finally said, "Come here and kiss me."Talia thought she'd misheard him. "What?""Kiss me," he repeated.Talia bit her lip and stared at him as tears spilled down her cheeks. The look in her eyes was a tangled mess of emotions, but none of them held the fierce love t
If memory served Henry right, he recalled Talia posting an update on social media that Yvonne had made her a birthday card.Yvonne shook her head in confusion. "No."Henry grew flustered, nearly letting slip the thing about the birthday card.Talia understood what Henry was hinting at. But she no
Now, Talia was just a low-level pediatric surgeon who didn't even have the qualifications to perform surgery. She was moved and said no more.Just then, two young ladies in the distance waved at Cecilia. "Cecilia, come dance with us!"Cecilia called back loudly, "Coming!"With that, she looked do
During the entire exchange, none of the Stewarts looked Christian in the eye. His attitude was already quite good, yet not one of the Stewarts acknowledged him.Christian didn't push for anything. He simply turned to look at Talia again and said warmly, "I'll make it up to you when I have time. I n
Soon after that, Christian called Talia back. She hurriedly answered and anxiously asked, "Christian, where are you?"On the other end of the line, Lionel's voice came. "Mrs. Lane, something came up at Lane Group. Mr. Lane had to call an emergency meeting. He asked me to tell you that the signing o







