I was left at the barn until almost midnight, or more, I guess. The room was dark, with only a small window that helped me guess the time.
My whole body is exhausted and tired. My whole body was disheveled from sweat and dirt. The swelling in the ankle seemed to throb again. My phone and bag were stolen, so I couldn't call anyone for help.
Both thirsty and hungry, I became exhausted. No one in this Joan family cares about me, maybe they're just waiting for me to give up and beg them. However, I have made up my mind, I will not sign that property transfer paper. I also want to be selfish for myself, and for my poor mother.
Mom is waiting for me at home, she must be very worried.
My mother, Rowan Ambar, was an outstanding ballerina. Her background is not really good, so she always aspires to fall in love with a talented and rich man. And indeed she found the man she longed for. My mother gave her love and her body to my father, but what she received in return was abandonment, contempt, and loneliness.
Are all women that stupid? Me and my mom both love bad guys.
I burst out laughing in the silence of the room.
Waiting is not a good way. I needed to find a way to free myself from this hellish dark place.
I scrambled to my feet and fumbled in the dark room. Luckily for me, I found something useful. As a child raised in the countryside, I know more tricks than the noble lady and young master.
After struggling for a while, I managed to open the window and climb out. The basement was on the first floor so it was pretty easy for me to sneak out. The feeling of running away in the middle of Joan's vast mansion made me both nervous and excited.
I ran as fast as I could towards a fence to climb in.
"Hey, who's climbing the wall over there?"
"Damn it!" I curse. I didn't expect Joan's bodyguard to find out about me so soon.
The only thought in my mind right now is that I must not be caught and locked up again.
I used almost all of my strength, gritted my teeth, and climbed over the wall and jumped to the ground. Joan's mansion is located in a secluded area, so no one passes through here. I can't ask anyone for help but myself. Despite the sharp pain in my ankle, I ran away. I faintly heard screams chasing after me, but I didn't care that much. As long as I can run out into the crowded place, I'll definitely have a chance to escape.
The midnight street was quiet and no one passed. I almost ran away in despair as the footsteps got closer.
I turned into a small alley and came across a bar that was still open, the LED lights flashing like a light of hope for me.
The sound of music blaring, the lights flickering and dimming, people dancing and drinking. No one noticed a strange girl running away in a hurry.
In a panic, I entered a room.
I sat on the ground, gasping for breath.
I guess... I escaped?
After regaining my composure, I observed the room I was sitting in. A rather luxurious room, with food and drinks available on the table. I was too tired to even think why the food was prepared, and so I grabbed the bread and ate it. I opened the bottle of wine and gulped. Looking at me now is like a homeless person about to starve.
"Eh..." I let out a breath.
After eating and drinking, I lay down on the bed. If I had been sober enough, I would have thought about finding a way to call the police and go home with my mother as soon as possible. But my eyelids were heavy and sleepiness hit me without knowing it.
Just like that, I fell asleep on the soft bed.
In my deep sleep, I heard the voices of several people, apparently men. They are talking about something. I'm afraid those guys are Joan's bodyguards coming to arrest me. But my body was so tired and exhausted that I couldn't move. I tried to open my eyes to see, but my eyes could only half-open.
"Really sorry sir, this was our negligence. We didn't expect someone to know you were here and sneak into your room. I'll call the police immediately, don't worry." A man's whisper and soft voice came out.
"..." The other man said nothing.
"As for the food and drink, we'll quickly prepare it for you. You don't have to worry."
"..." The man continued to remain silent.
From the brief conversation between the two men, I guessed who they were. The man talking in a whisper seems to be the manager of this bar. The silent man must have been the guest who was enraged by my strange appearance in his room.
The other manager displayed a reticent and submissive attitude, using every means to please his guest, which proves that the man who booked this room must be a powerful person.
If possible, I would definitely leave this room immediately, say sorry to the guest and leave a phone number to pay him for the meal and the reservation. Unfortunately, that can't happen. Because I was so drunk and almost passed out in bed.
"Okay, you can go out now." The mysterious guest finally spoke up.
"But... but this girl? Do you need me to call my subordinates to drag her away?" The manager trembled and asked again.
"No."
"Are you sure, sir?"
"..."
The man didn't answer anymore. He's so uncommunicative. Then I heard the door close. A light minty scent wafts through. Looks like the perfume of the mysterious man. He was right next to me, and he seemed to be... watching me.
I felt my chin being grabbed by him. The man's fingers are quite rough and rough, he stroked my cheek lightly, then his finger gradually went down my neck. The strange feeling made me shiver.
What is he doing?
I felt a bit jittery, my brows furrowed.
"We met again."
The man's voice was hoarse but so manly, I could even feel the man's breath on my face. Looks like he's been drinking too. I wonder why he said we had met before. But even if I tried to move my lips to speak, it would be too difficult.
Suddenly, a man's hand was on my chest. Then he slowly squeezed gently. I heard the man's gasp, and my own heart pounding.
I'm over 20 years old, and I know what's going to happen. I'm going to have a one night stand with a stranger!
Perhaps because of the effects of alcohol, my body was also lightheaded and out of control. I couldn't see this man's face and body clearly, but somehow I still had the feeling that he was strangely attractive."Girl, I know you hear what I say." The man leaned close to my ear and whispered.I frowned slightly and moved my body. It seemed he took it as a response from me, so he continued speaking."I'm a businessman, so I'm always concerned with losses and profits. You sneaked in here and made me lose an evening of rest. So, you need to compensate me proportionately for what I lost.""Compensation... what?" I woke up a little, and whispered back."You."I heard the sound of his belt being undone. Looks like he's stripping his clothes. I slowly opened my eyes, this time, I got a better look at him. A tall man... very tall... he wears a black suit... now he wears nothing... very nice and muscular body. I guess he must have been working out regularly. I wish I could see this man's face c
The bright light in my eyes woke me up from my long sleep. My mind was blank and completely in a state of confusion. I opened my eyes slightly, blinked a few times, then observed everything around me. A rather luxurious room, the mattress is soft, the curtains are half ajar.My body ached as if I had just been through a terrible fight, just twisting my body makes me feel tired."What's this?"I pulled up the blanket and found myself naked, a few red hickeys that made my mind even more chaotic. Just before I could get up, I heard running water in the bathroom. Is someone else in this room too?I fell into a panic and didn't know what to do. This is the first time I've been in this weird situation. I frantically searched for my underwear but couldn't find it, instead a new set of clothes was placed at the end of the bed.Without thinking much, I grabbed the suit and hurriedly put it on. Unfortunately, before he could finish dressing, the person in the bathroom stepped out.In my life, t
Following the instructions of the nurse, I was taken to my mother's hospital room. The doctor's instructions were still ringing in my ears, making it impossible for me to concentrate."Patient Rowan Ambar has terminal breast cancer. Based on the patient's health condition, perhaps the patient has only a year to live. The patient needs radiation therapy as soon as possible."I sighed, holding my mother's hand. My mother is in a coma in bed, looking very tired. She looked much older than her actual age, perhaps because she had been miserable all her life.My mother, whose full name is Rowan Ambar, is an accomplished ballerina. She has been invited to perform at government guest houses and major national ceremonies. People used to call her "White Angel". My mother used to be a beauty icon and a woman loved by everyone, until she fell in love with my father.She gave up ballet and became an ordinary woman. Her only desire was to become a member of Joan's family, to become my father's wife
I heard the phone ring and woke up. My mother was still fast asleep in bed, her ventilator making a soft noise. I glanced at the clock on the wall and realized that I had been asleep for five hours. It is evening now, and my head is still aching and dizzy.I clicked on the phone screen without even paying attention to who the caller was. My father's loud voice rang out."Esther, you, bitch. Where are you? Go back to Joan's mansion, I have something to talk to you about, not about inheritance.""I'm not going back there. You locked me there like you're putting me in a prison, and yet you think I'll go back there? Never."Was he angry and yelling at me? I'm the one who should be angry. Immediately, I hung up the phone and turned off the power. I don't want him to contact me, and I also want to cut ties with Joan's family. I hate my own name.At first, I thought of leaving the inheritance money to them and only taking a little to take care of my and my mother's difficult life. However, t
Dominic felt the meeting was pointless. His purpose is to go to Joan's mansion to meet Esther and give her a surprise. But she wasn't there, so he didn't need to waste time with boring people.Kaylin was completely taken aback by Dominic's behavior. In fact, she had heard some rumors about Dominic, that his personality was scary and cold, and that he was also quite erratic. Dominic Arnold is the manager of the entire Arnold family business on behalf of his father, including more than 30 large and small companies, hundreds of manufacturing factories and even secret jobs that others do not know.Dominic is a rich, powerful man, attractive in appearance, but his coldness and indifference make people fear and respect, even Kaylin. She fell in love with this man from the first meeting because Dominic was undoubtedly the most outstanding man she had ever met. However, before she could do anything, Dominic left."Sorry, maybe we need to make another appointment to discuss this. Sorry Miss Ka
Everyone turned their gazes to me. There was surprise, there was doubt, there was anger, and there was Dominic Arnold's teasing look.Right now, I felt how right it was to tear the check and throw it in his face. He is truly a trouble maker. I bet he knew I was his fiancée, that's why he was teasing me like that."Are you mistaken? I don't remember we ever met. I guess you must have mistaken me for someone else." I tried to smile wryly and replied to him."No. I remember very well. I saw you lying there, and then...""Wait... wait."I can't believe he actually told us about our one-night stand. This man doesn't seem shy at all. I'm seriously questioning the "Cold and Scary Dominic Arnold" rumor. They should call him "Crazy and shameless Dominic Arnold"."Um, Dominic, don't tell me you're going to tell everyone?" I tried tactfully reminding him."Why not?""That's embarrassing." I stressed the fact that."Oh yeah. It's a bit embarrassing for you, indeed. You fell right in front of my c
By the agreement of Dominic and I, I became Dominic's fiancée for three months. My father got really angry and threatened me after I broke his word to him. However, now Dominic Arnold has become my strong shield, protecting me from my own father, so I don't need to fear him anymore.Kaylin Joan didn't show any extreme emotion, she was unusually quiet. I feel this is not very similar to Kaylin's personality.True to Dominic's promise to me, he invited the best foreign doctor to treat my mother. My mother is recovering well, although she still hasn't regained consciousness.My focus now is entirely on practicing ballet at Malibu academy. It's been a week since admission. My disappearance without permission made the ballet instructor very angry. I was forced to clean the dance studio after every class.Well, at least I didn't get kicked out of this dream academy, so cleaning wasn't such a bad thing.Things are getting back to the way they were, and my classmates and I are preparing for t
"Thank you." I told the man."Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?" The man seemed quite worried about me.That made me feel a bit confused. And he seemed to notice the surprise on my face too, so he introduced himself."I'm Garrick Harvey, five years ago I met you at Kaylin's birthday party at Joan's mansion."I pondered for a moment, repeating the name Garrick Harvey in my head a few times and then remembered him.Garrick Harvey is the eldest son of the Harvey family. He is a well-known ballet dancer and has been Kaylin's partner in many ballet performances."Oh, it's so lucky to meet you by chance. I didn't expect you to still miss me."According to my bad memory, I only appeared briefly on Kaylin's birthday, because she didn't like my appearance. Great-grandfather Joan invited me to attend, but Kaylin kicked me out of the party shortly after. But the young master of the Harvey family still remembers me, which makes me happy."Of course I remember you. I have an excellent memor