"Denise, don't be so full of yourself. You really think you can threaten me? Take a look at this," Jason said, pulling a memory card out of his pocket.

Denise's face turned pale the moment she saw it. "W-Why do you still have it?!"

Wasn't that card the one she had tossed out already?

"You thought I didn't back it up? Seriously? If you dare run your mouth to Samantha about us, this video's going viral in seconds."

What a sly bastard.

Denise clenched her teeth. "Then I'll just tell everyone in Seaville that the guy in that video is you!"

Jason sneered. "And you think they'll actually buy it?"

"You..." Denise started to feel the pressure now-this guy wasn't easy to deal with.

"So, what now? Ready to back off? Still trying to mess with me? Please, you're way out of your league," Jason said smugly, clearly enjoying watching her squirm.

Suddenly, Denise burst into tears.

Jason froze. Wait, what? Why the sudden waterworks?

"Hey, aren't you a little too old to be crying like this?" Jason asked, scratching the back of his neck.

"I'm only nineteen, still a freshman! Crying isn't against the law," she huffed through tears.

Jason: "..."

Nineteen? He was literally ten years older than her. Great, now he felt ancient... and she's still a student?

But then Denise sobbed even harder. "Everyone's bullying me... My own dad wants to sell me off to some random guy, my stepmom's always coming at me, even my sister picks on me-and now you too! You're all terrible to me..."

Jason frowned. Her dad was trying to pawn her off to another man? Could that have been related to last night?

She could totally be acting... still, even Jason couldn't help but feel a little bad seeing her like this.

"Alright, alright. I'll take you to the hospital, okay?" he said helplessly.

"Yay! Thanks, Jason!" Denise perked up instantly.

Knew it-fake crying. This girl was a handful, but she was way more lively than her sister. Honestly... kinda more likeable.

At the hospital, the doctor checked her over-nothing major, just bruises and scratches. Cleaned up and bandaged, she was fine.

Jason couldn't help but furrow his brows seeing the injuries on her back. Arthur and Vivian had totally downplayed it. This wasn't discipline-this was abuse.

The bruises looked brutal. For some reason, Jason suddenly felt unsettled. What kind of life was she even living at that house?

Stepping out into the hallway, he grabbed his phone and called Ben. "Run a full check on the Montgomerys' second daughter-Denise. Now."

Back inside, Denise lay on her stomach in bed, the doctor having finished treating her.

"Keep the area dry for a week," the doctor reminded her.

"Thanks for earlier, Jason. If you hadn't shown up, Arthur might've really beaten me to death."

"Oh, so that's how you're thanking me?" Jason raised a brow and pulled out the IOU slip.

Denise froze, clearly caught off guard.

"Denise, you better explain yourself. Is that really all I'm worth to you?" Jason asked, holding the paper up dramatically.

"This... I've never hired a guy before, so I seriously have no clue what the going rate is. How much do you want?" Denise pouted. She was being honest!

Jason practically flared his nostrils in anger-talking about market prices? Did she think he was for sale?

"Denise!" he growled through clenched teeth.

Seeing he was mad, Denise quickly tiptoed and kissed him on the lips, then gave a cheeky grin. "Come on, Jason, don't be mad. I'm just a broke student here. Two hundred's all I've got left after budgeting my living expenses."

Jason's temples started throbbing. Was this girl for real? But after that one little kiss, all his anger somehow vanished.

"Denise, do you even realize what you're starting? You know what happens if you mess with me, right?" he said seriously, his voice low.

Of course he saw through her little act.

"But Jason, didn't you kind of enjoy it too? You didn't exactly push me away when I kissed you." Denise leaned in closer, her fingers suddenly slipping under his shirt.

"Denise!" Jason warned again, voice tight.

"Oh please, stop pretending. After all that went down yesterday-everything that was seen and touched... and now you're putting on this noble act?" Denise threw his own words from earlier right back at him, with a smirk.

Jason was completely at a loss with this cunning little fox.

After they left the hospital, Jason told Denise to make her own way home. He had work at the office. Besides, if he dropped her off personally, who knows what the Montgomery family would think.

Once Jason left, Denise dropped the playful front. Her smile vanished, and her eyes were filled with cold hatred.

She was getting close to Jason on purpose. Her goal? Steal Samantha's fiancé and hit them where it hurt most.

Just as Denise was about to head off, someone called out behind her-Justin Montgomery.

"Hey sis, I heard you got hit again. Are you okay?" Justin asked anxiously. He had just heard what happened.

"I'm fine. It's not a big deal anymore."

But when Justin saw how pale and worn-out she looked, he exploded. "I'm going to make them pay for this!"

"Justin, no! Don't go. I'll deal with them when the time is right," Denise quickly blocked his path, terrified he'd do something reckless.

He wasn't strong enough yet to take them on.

Since they were kids, she and Justin had only had each other. He was her only family now.

"Don't worry, sis. I'm already sixteen now. I'll protect you." There was determination in Justin's eyes.

Denise looked at her little brother-over 1.7 meters tall already. He was turning into a real man. Yeah, he was growing up fast.

Back at the Harrington Corporation, Jason sat down in his chair as Ben handed him a folder.

"Sir, these are all the details we could find on Denise."

Jason took the file and flipped through it. Ben's efficiency never disappointed. It hadn't taken long at all to gather this info.

The report said Denise's mother, Grace Wilson, was Arthur's mistress back in Seaville-not his legal wife. Later, the legal wife, Vivian, showed up with two kids-Samantha and Alexander Montgomery-and had been suppressing Grace ever since. Eventually, Grace fell ill and died, leaving behind Denise and an adopted son, Justin.

Samantha's biological brother, Alexander, was currently studying abroad. Arthur doted on him and was clearly grooming him to take over the family business someday.

As for Justin, he was the adopted son Grace brought home out of pity. Now that she was gone, Arthur naturally had no reason to care for someone who wasn't even his blood.

Life at the Montgomerys was rough for both Denise and Justin. In fact, hardly anyone in Seaville even knew these two existed in the family.

That last time Denise barged into his room? That was actually Arthur trying to curry favor with Mr. Donovan by offering up his own daughter.

If not for the documents laid out in front of him, Jason would've thought Denise was just playing some manipulative little trick to get close to him. Turns out last night? Pure accident.

Now, Jason looked at Arthur in a whole new light. This guy was actually willing to hand over his own daughter just to get ahead? That's cold. People say even the fiercest beasts don't harm their young-guess that doesn't apply to him.

...

When Denise and Justin got back to the Montgomery house, they were caught off guard by Arthur's sudden shift in attitude. Not only did he not scold Denise for letting Jason take her away, he even spoke to them calmly.

"Denise, don't act out anymore. And stay away from Jason. He's going to be your future brother-in-law-it's just not proper. If you two behave from now on, I will treat you better," he said.

Denise and Justin traded glances-this total 180 from Arthur? Definitely suspicious.

White-faced and silent, Vivian and Samantha sat stiffly nearby. But the daggers in Samantha's eyes made Denise uneasy. That hatred was real.

"I got it, Dad," Denise replied, knowing now wasn't the time to go against him.

She went back to her room soon after, but could still pick up bits of the conversation happening downstairs.

"Dad, why didn't you let me teach that girl a lesson? She actually dared to seduce my Jason!" Samantha fumed. She'd been waiting eagerly to put Denise in her place, only for Arthur to hold her back.

"You don't get it," Arthur replied. "Jason just called me. He didn't come right out and say anything, but clearly, we can't piss Denise off right now. You're about to marry into the Harrington family, and they care a lot about manners and appearances. So you need to act like the perfect sister. Only then will Jason see you as the ideal wife."

Samantha was still about to argue when Vivian stepped in and tugged her sleeve. "Listen to your father-he's right."

Upstairs, Denise smirked. So Jason had already given Arthur a heads-up. No wonder the old man suddenly did a full turnaround. Seemed like her future brother-in-law wasn't all that bad after all.

Next morning, Laura Smith had breakfast ready and was waiting for Denise and Justin to come down. Since they weren't really considered part of the family, they usually ate separately from Arthur and the others.

"Denise, come on down. I made pancakes and scrambled eggs for you. And Justin, your favorite orange juice is ready too," Laura beamed kindly.

"Thanks, Ms. Smith."

In this whole house, only Ms. Smith treated them kindly. She had been working in the household ever since Grace married into the Montgomery family. Grace had treated her well, and after her death, Laura made it her duty to care for the two siblings.

"Oh right, Mr. Montgomery said after breakfast you should go pack up a little. You've got lunch with the Harringtons today," Laura said to Denise.