Anna instinctively retreated, stunned by the cold fury in Julian's eyes. While he slept, he appeared fragile, but awake, he radiated the silent threat of a predator.

Mrs. Miller quietly closed the door and offered Anna a reassuring look while Anna stood motionless, like a hunted animal.

"Do not be afraid, Ms. Anna. Master Julian has only just returned to consciousness. He needs time to recover. For tonight, please rest in the guest room. We shall see tomorrow. And keep in mind: Hilary holds you in high esteem. You are not without support."

Despite the gentle words, Anna's thoughts raced. She had prepared herself for the possibility of Julian's death, not for his sudden return to life.

"My things are still in his room..." she whispered, uncertain if she should retrieve her possessions.

Julian's hostility had already convinced her she might never belong in this house. She wondered if it was best to leave before being cast out.

Mrs. Miller responded with a tired sigh.

"Leave them for now. I'll collect them and bring them to you tomorrow."

Anna simply nodded, weighed down by a sense of dread.

"Are you frightened by him?" she asked abruptly.

"I have served him for many years," Mrs. Miller replied. "He can be intimidating, yes, but he has never done me harm."

Anna did not answer. She wore his ring, but in truth, this was the first time they truly faced each other. It was only natural for her to feel distant.

Anna barely slept that night. Julian's unexpected awakening had upended everything she had prepared for.

The following day, Mrs. Miller came at eight and handed Anna her belongings.

"It's time for breakfast," she announced. "Master Julian is already at the table. You should join him."

"I doubt he wants me there," Anna replied, unable to hide her bitterness.

"Come anyway. When I mentioned Hilary's fondness for you, he didn't object. Maybe today he'll show some willingness to accept you."

With no other choice, Anna made her way to the dining room. Julian waited, seated in a wheelchair, posture upright and frame imposing despite his condition.

Anna sat down quietly, nerves on edge, as silence lingered between them. At last, he lifted his dark, unreadable gaze to meet hers.

"Morning, Julian. I am... I'm Anna Hart," she managed to say, her voice unsteady.

Julian lifted his coffee and took a slow sip before speaking in a voice as cold as ice. "I've been told you may be carrying my child."

Anna's stomach twisted into a tight knot.

"Which do you prefer? A surgical procedure or medication for the abortion?"

He delivered the words with chilling detachment, and the impact left Anna pale and speechless.

Mrs. Miller quickly stepped in, her tone gentle but firm. "Master Julian, this was all your mother's idea. Anna had no part in the decision."

"Don't use my mother as a tool to sway me," he snapped, shutting down the explanation.

He turned on Anna just as she tried to respond.

"Who said you could use my name?"

"Would you rather I call you 'darling'?" She tried to deflect, half in irony, half in desperation.

Anger flashed in his eyes. Anna, realizing her mistake, rushed to clarify.

"I'm not pregnant. My period started this morning. If you don't believe me, you can ask Mrs. Fisher, the housekeeper."

Julian offered no reply. He simply took another drink of his coffee.

Anna finished her breakfast in silence and stood up, the oppressive atmosphere in the house pressing in on her from all sides.

"Get the paperwork ready. We'll be getting a divorce soon," Julian said coldly.

She halted, unsurprised by the announcement.

"When will it happen?" she asked.

"In a few days," he answered. "Not until my mother's health improves."

"All right. Just let me know," she replied, then quietly returned to her room.

A short while later, she gathered her bag and headed downstairs... only to find Noah standing awkwardly in the foyer.

The young man approached Julian's chair, as tense as a child caught misbehaving.

"Uncle Julian," he said, forcing a respectful tone, "my parents are with Grandma at the hospital. Dad asked me to check in on you. I brought some supplements."

Without a word, Julian gestured to his bodyguard, who accepted the box and promptly tossed it into the trash.

"Uncle Julian!" Noah protested. "Those are high-quality products! If you don't want them, I can bring something else..."

A vicious strike to Noah's legs sent him crashing to his knees.

The sound startled Anna, who flinched in alarm.

Julian, holding a cigarette between his fingers, gazed down at his nephew with icy detachment.

"Are you disappointed to see that I survived?" he asked.

Noah began to tremble.

"N-no, of course not! I'm actually relieved..."

"So you're contradicting me now? Julian interrupted, his tone deceptively calm but dripping with menace. "Do you also deny paying off my lawyer?"

He let the ash from his cigarette fall, watching as it landed on Noah's pale face.

"Leave. If you test my patience again, I'll feed you to the dogs."

Panic seized Noah and he staggered out of the manor in terror.

Anna, left reeling by the harsh encounter, felt a wave of fear sweep through her. Even someone as repugnant as Noah had become utterly powerless before Julian. She silently vowed never to draw his wrath.

Clutching her bag, Anna hurried out of the house.

At the hospital, she confessed to her doctor that her period had been late and oddly light. The doctor ordered an ultrasound for her.

An hour later, Anna received the results.

There was no sign of uterine bleeding, but the ultrasound revealed a gestational sac.

Anna stared at the screen, frozen in disbelief.

She was pregnant.

The diagnosis struck her like a blow: since she had experienced some bleeding, steps needed to be taken to safeguard the pregnancy.

"Doctor, what if I don't want to keep the baby?" she asked, panicked.

The prospect horrified her. With divorce looming, the idea of carrying Julian's child felt like the worst possible outcome.

The doctor fixed her with a serious look.

"Do you know how many women long for a pregnancy and never get the chance? Why would you turn away from what life has given you?"

Anna lowered her gaze, at a loss for words.

"Where is your husband?" the doctor pressed. "Even if you don't want the child, you should discuss it with him."

Anna's brow furrowed in frustration.

"You're only twenty-one," the doctor continued, glancing at her file. "Are you not married?"

"I'd rather not be," she whispered under her breath.

"In any case, an abortion is never a trivial procedure," the doctor said calmly. "You need to think very carefully before deciding. No matter what your relationship with the father may be, the child is innocent."

He handed her the medical file and concluded, "With this bleeding, the outcome of the pregnancy is still uncertain. If you wish to protect the baby, I can prescribe treatment. However, you will need to remain on bed rest for an entire week and then return for a follow-up examination."

Anna hesitated, her heartbeat thundering in her ears.

"What do I need to do to save them?" she finally asked.

The doctor allowed himself a faint smile.

"That sounds like a change of heart. You're young and healthy, and your child will likely be just as strong. Take the medication, get plenty of rest, and we'll see how things progress."

Beneath the harsh glare of the sun, Anna stepped out of the hospital, drained and soaked in cold sweat. She wandered without direction, her thoughts in chaos. One truth settled heavily in her mind: Julian could never find out about the pregnancy. If he did, he would not hesitate to force her onto an operating table.

She took a taxi to her Uncle Morgan's house. After her parents' divorce, her mother, Ambre Garcia, had moved in with her brother.

Zoé, Morgan's wife, met Anna at the door. Her welcoming smile vanished the instant she noticed Anna had arrived empty-handed.

"Really? Not even a small present?" Zoé scoffed. "I heard you spoiled your father with expensive gifts, but you show up here with nothing?"

Anna's cheeks burned with embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Zoé. I'll bring something next time."

"There's no need!" Zoé snapped, her voice cold. "The Ashfords must have cast you out. If Julian actually cared about you, you wouldn't be running back here for shelter."

Ambre quickly stepped in to defend her daughter. "Even if Anna left that family, that's no excuse to humiliate her!"

Zoé shot back, "Oh, spare me, Ambre. You're living in my roof. If you're not happy, the door is open."

Ambre's face flushed with anger, but she kept quiet. Anna, distressed by the argument, leaned close to her mother.

"Mom, maybe it's time for you to find a place of your own. I have some money saved..."

Ambre didn't hesitate. "Alright. I'll start packing my bags now."

Within half an hour, the two of them had left the house and climbed into a taxi.

"Don't worry about me, Anna," Ambre said bitterly as they rode away. "I've got some savings put aside. The only reason I stayed there was because your grandmother wanted someone to care for her. Otherwise, I would have left ages ago."

Anna stared down at her hands.

"Aunt Zoé wasn't completely wrong. I'll be divorcing Julian in a few days."

Ambre looked stunned for a moment, then gently squeezed her daughter's hand.

"It's not the end of the world. You still have your studies. Once the divorce is final, you can focus on your degree."

Anna nodded. "Yes. And I'm not going back to the Harts. From now on, it will just be us—living together."

Anna kept her pregnancy secret, determined not to burden her mother with any more worries.

When she returned to Ashford Manor that evening, she found the house shrouded in a strange, oppressive quiet. Mrs. Miller emerged unexpectedly from the shadows, causing Anna to jump in surprise.

"Have you had dinner, Ms. Anna? I left some food out for you. I also brought you a few tampons, just in case."

"Thank you. I've already eaten. Why is it so quiet tonight? Isn't Julian here?"

Mrs. Miller shook her head. "No, he's not. The doctor told him to rest, but as usual, he ignored the advice. No one can control him."

Anna nodded, already well aware of Julian's stubborn pride and refusal to listen to anyone. Any sympathy she once felt for him had long since vanished.

That night, she lay awake, turning over thoughts of the child inside her. Her worry only grew deeper.

The next morning, Anna avoided leaving her room, afraid she might run into Julian. At half past nine, Mrs. Miller came to her door and knocked gently.

"He just left, Ms. Anna. You can come down for breakfast now," Mrs. Miller informed her.

Anna couldn't help but smile, grateful for the housekeeper's kindness.

After eating, she received a call from a classmate who needed an urgent translation. The payment was generous, but the job had to be finished by noon. Anna accepted without hesitation.

By eleven thirty, she had completed the work, reviewed the file, and was about to send it off. Suddenly, her laptop froze, the screen flashed blue, then faded to black. The entire system crashed.

Luckily, Anna had saved the document on a USB stick. All she needed was access to another computer.

She hurried to Mrs. Miller and explained, "My computer just broke. Is there another one I could use in the house?"

"Yes, but it's Master Julian's," Mrs. Miller replied.

Anna's heart went cold at the thought.

"It will only take a minute to send it. I doubt he'd mind if it's just for a moment." The housekeeper tried to reassure her, sensing her distress. "You're pressed for time, aren't you?"

Anna glanced at the clock—eleven fifty.

Determined, Anna climbed to Julian's office. The room had been left undisturbed, locked away throughout all the months of his coma. Her hands shook as she powered on the computer.

To her astonishment, it didn't ask for a password. The screen flickered to life right away.

The computer, unlocked and unprotected, powered up without hesitation. Anna's pulse quickened.

She took a steadying breath, inserted her USB drive, opened her email, and sent the file. Everything went far more smoothly than she expected, and by noon, her work was already delivered.

Relief washed over her as she reached to power down the computer. However, her trembling fingers accidentally brushed a folder on the desktop. The screen filled with documents she had never meant to see. Anna's breath caught and eyes widened in shock as she glimpsed at the screen.

Five minutes later, she left Julian's office, struggling to steady her breathing.

"You see?" Mrs. Miller said with a gentle smile when Anna reappeared. "I told you Master Julian wouldn't be back for a while."

Anna couldn't shake the feeling of fear. It felt as though she had stumbled onto a side of Julian she was never meant to discover, a secret she wished she hadn't seen.

"Are there cameras in his office?" she asked, her voice unsteady.

"No, only outside," the housekeeper replied.

A chill crept down Anna's spine. Julian would know she had been in the room.

Mrs. Miller attempted to calm her down as she reassured her.

"Just be honest with him. You were only there for a few minutes. I doubt he'll be angry with you."

Right then, Anna's phone buzzed. Her classmate had sent three hundred and twenty dollars as payment. The amount astonished her; two hours of work for such a sum! For a brief moment, the money eased her nerves, but the memory of that open folder lingered at the edge of her thoughts.

After lunch, Anna retreated to her room. Sitting before the dressing table, she rested a hand on her belly and whispered, "Little one... I don't want to let you go, but if I bring you into this world, your path will be even harder than mine."

Exhausted, Anna finally drifted into sleep.

Suddenly, footsteps echoed in the hallway. The door burst open—Mrs. Miller hurried in, her face pale with alarm.

"Ms. Anna, did you use Master Julian's computer?"

Anna's heart jumped.

"Is he back? Has he found out?"

"You told me you only needed to send a file!" Mrs. Miller whispered, her voice trembling. "But he says you opened something else. He's furious—I've never seen him like this..."

Anna's face went pale, her eyes filling with tears.

"I didn't do it on purpose. I was trying to shut the computer down, and my hand slipped. I swear, I barely saw anything!"

Mrs. Miller believed her but still shook her head in despair.

"I'm going to lose my job because of this..."

Anna bit her lip, unwilling to let the housekeeper take the blame. She decided to face Julian herself.

She waited in the lobby as the elevator doors slid open. Julian's wheelchair appeared, pushed by his bodyguard. His expression was as cold as stone, his anger unmistakable.

Anna forced herself to step forward, her whole body trembling.

"I'm sorry, Julian. My computer broke down, so I used yours. Mrs. Miller had nothing to do with it, I ignored her warnings...

Anna took responsibility for everything.

Julian stopped directly in front of her, his eyes blazing with fury.

"You saw it all, didn't you?"

he demanded, his voice dangerously low. His hands gripped the armrests so tightly his knuckles turned white. If he still had full use of his legs, he might have lashed out already.

Anna shook her head desperately.

"I barely glanced! I didn't pay any attention, I promise..."

"Enough!" Julian barked, cutting her off with a fierce scowl. "Go to your room. You are not to leave until the divorce is finalized."

Choking back tears, Anna did as she was told. Behind the closed door, his brutal rejection cut as sharply as a knife.

Out in the living room, Julian tried to steady himself.

"No food for her," he ordered coldly.

Mrs. Miller pressed her lips together in silent sympathy for Anna, but no one dared defy Julian. In this house, Julian's word was final.

Two days later, Hilary was finally released from the hospital, her health much improved. Without delay, she returned to the manor.

"My son, how are you? What did the doctor say? When will you be able to walk again?" she asked eagerly with a hopeful smile.

"He told me I'm recovering," Julian replied, his tone neutral. "But, Mom, we need to talk."

The hope faded a little from Hilary's expression.

"This is about Anna, isn't it? I'm the one who arranged your marriage. She's a good girl, and I've always liked her a lot... Please tell me you haven't sent her away."

"No," Julian answered shortly. He then motioned to Mrs. Miller.

Understanding his signal, Mrs. Miller made her way upstairs to Anna's room. For the past two days, Anna had eaten almost nothing, and the housekeeper worried she might find her completely drained.

Standing in the doorway, Hilary caught sight of Anna curled up against the wall, arms hugging her knees. Her hair was unkempt, falling over a face drained of color, and she looked especially small and fragile in the oversized room.

When Hilary called her name anxiously, Anna lifted her head, her eyes clouded and bewildered, as though she were still lost in a fog.

"Anna! What happened to you?" Hilary cried, horrified. The sight before her made her chest tighten. Anna's skin was unnaturally pale, her lips cracked and dry, and her frame looked alarmingly thinner, as though the strength had been drained from her.

Mrs. Miller stepped forward with a glass of warm milk, offering it carefully.

"Drink a little, Ms. Anna. There's no need to be afraid... Now that Mrs. Hilary is here, you can eat."

Hilary spun around, her anger flaring.

"What is the meaning of this?" she demanded. "Has Julian forbidden her from eating? Is he trying to starve her?"

Without waiting for an answer, she stormed into the living room, where Julian sat waiting.

"Julian! Anna is the woman I chose for you," she snapped. "How do you expect me to accept this if you treat her so cruelly?"

Julian met her fury with a cold gaze.

"She made a mistake, Mother," he replied evenly. "Without you, do you truly believe I would have allowed her to stay here at all?"

To him, withholding food for two days had been nothing more than a mild punishment.

"A mistake? What kind of mistake could ever justify treating her this way?" Hilary demanded, her voice trembling.

Julian said nothing. His lips pressed into a hard line, shutting her out. After a moment, Hilary's tone softened, the anger giving way to something close to desperation.

"I know why you've always rejected marriage and children... But you can't go on like this. Even if you feel nothing for Anna, you must keep her by your side. Stay together, if only in name..."

Tears welled in her eyes, and her breathing grew uneven. Before Julian could reply, her body swayed. Half a minute later, she collapsed onto the sofa.

The elderly Mrs. Ashford, barely discharged from the hospital that very morning, was rushed back in an emergency. Watching the chaos unfold, Julian realized grimly that casting Anna aside would not be as simple as he had intended.

In the guest room, Anna managed a few sips of warm milk, strength slowly returning to her. She had heard every word of the confrontation.

"As long as Mrs. Hilary remains here, he won't force you out," Mrs. Miller murmured, gently running a comb through Anna's hair.

Anna shook her head, her gaze steady and resolute.

"I want a divorce," she said quietly. "Whether he agrees or not, I'm leaving."

She no longer wanted to endure a single moment in that hell.

When Julian appeared at the doorway, his cold stare fixed on her without wavering. Anna calmly set her bowl aside, reached for the suitcase she had packed two days earlier, and spoke with quiet resolve.

"Let's get a divorce, Julian. Go and marry someone you actually love."

Julian narrowed his eyes, a dangerous edge flashing across his rigid features.

"Do you despise me that much?" he asked. "Don't you think you were the one in the wrong?"

"Yes," Anna answered evenly. "I was wrong to touch your computer. But I've already paid for that mistake. We're even now. Give me the divorce papers, and this will finally end."

A heavy silence settled between them. Then Julian spoke, his tone merciless.

"Who said your punishment was finished?"

The words drained the strength from Anna's body, as if she had been struck without warning.

"If staying with me feels like such a burden... then you will remain Mrs. Ashford," he continued coldly. "The divorce will happen, but not right now."

He spun his wheelchair and left Anna standing there, trembling with anger and disgust.

A week later, Anna visited the hospital, convinced the baby could not have survived after those days without food.

"Doctor, is my child gone?" she asked, her voice breaking.

"What makes you think that?" the doctor replied.

"I didn't eat for two days... and my health has always been fragile."

The doctor offered a reassuring smile.

"Two days without food isn't unusual. Some pregnant women can't keep eat anything for weeks."

Anna hardly dared breathe.

"So... my baby?"

The doctor's face brightened. "Congratulations. You're not carrying just one child. You're having twins."

Anna's heart missed a beat as shock and disbelief washed over her.

The previous week, the ultrasound had revealed only one gestational sac. Now, Anna gazed at the screen, transfixed, as two distinct forms became visible inside her womb.

Two lives. Two children.

Afterward, she sat in the hospital corridor, holding the ultrasound image tightly, unable to fully comprehend what had happened. The doctor had explained that twin pregnancies were rare and warned her that if she chose to terminate this one, she might never have the chance to carry twins again.

A bitter laugh escaped her lips. It made sense now. None of this had happened by accident. The Ashford family's private doctors had orchestrated it all. When they implanted the embryos, they never bothered to tell her. To them, she had been nothing but a vessel, valued only for her ability to bear children.

Suddenly, her phone vibrated in her bag. She answered, her mind still numb.

"Anna, your father is dying! Come home quickly!"

The voice belonged to her mother, trembling with grief.

Anna's entire world seemed to collapse around her. Dad... dying? How could that be? She knew he had been hospitalized after his company's bankruptcy, but she had never imagined his condition was this dire.

The Hart house descended into chaos and sorrow the moment Anna crossed the threshold. Amber hurried her into the main bedroom.

Adam Hart lay in bed, his breaths shallow and his eyelids heavy. When he saw his daughter, he managed to lift a trembling hand. Tears welled in Anna's eyes as she took hold of it.

"Dad, why didn't you go to the hospital?"

Alice's cold voice answered in his place, "With what money? Did you think the Ashfords gave enough to pay for proper medical care? Every cent went to the debts. Either way, he's incurable. The sooner he's gone, the better!"

Her words, as sharp as knives, lingered in the room before she slammed the door and left.

Anna remained by her father's side, clutching his hand tightly.

"Don't listen to her... Dad, I want you to live. Please, I'm begging you..."

Adam did not reply. His tear-filled eyes stayed fixed on her, and his lips quivered.

"Anna... my daughter... I've betrayed your mother... I'll find you in the afterlife..."

His grip slackened without warning, and his arm dropped, lifeless.

A wail cut through the house. Anna felt her heart shatter.

Three days later, as rain poured down, Adam Hart was buried. Only a handful of people attended; the downfall of the Harts had scattered both friends and acquaintances.

At the cemetery, only Ambre and Anna remained after everyone else had left.

"Do you still hate him, Mom?" Anna asked, her gaze fixed on the tombstone.

Ambre's eyes lowered.

"Yes. Even in death, I won't forgive him."

"Then why are you crying?" Anna whispered.

Ambre let out a weary sigh.

"Because I loved him. Love and hate don't always exist separately. Sometimes, they live side by side—and it's unbearable."

Worn out, Anna finally returned to Ashford Manor. Three days had slipped by since her father's death, yet no one from the Ashford family had reached out to her.

As she stepped through the gate, Anna noticed the brilliant lights spilling from the living room. The house buzzed with guests, glasses of wine in hand, laughing and chatting in a lively, festive atmosphere.

Mrs. Miller spotted her first and hurried over.

"Ms. Anna! Please, come inside—it's raining."

Anna slipped off her black coat and accepted the slippers the housekeeper offered. But when she glanced toward the living room, her heart tightened.

All the guests turned to her, watching as if she were some unusual spectacle. Julian sat in the center of the sofa, a cigarette resting between his fingers, a cold haze of smoke swirling around him. Next to him sat a striking woman, her long black hair cascading over a fitted white dress.

They sat so close, no one could mistake the intimacy between them.

The woman rose and walked over, a provocative smile playing on her lips.

"You must be Anna Hart, right? The wife Mrs. Hilary selected..." She looked Anna over with a critical eye. "You're quite pretty, but a bit... frail. I mean your figure, not your age."

Anna met her gaze.

"You're beautiful, you have curves, and in every way, you surpass me. So tell me, when will Julian marry you?"

Anna's sharp, even tone made the woman's confident mask falter.

"How dare you? Even if you are his wife, if I slapped you now, Julian wouldn't so much as lift a finger!"

She raised her hand, poised to strike.

Before she could get close, a sudden crash rang out. Anna had just brought the wine bottle down hard against the coffee table, shattering it with a violent crash. Fragments of broken glass caught the light as she closed her hand tightly around them.

With bloodshot eyes, she aimed a jagged shard at the intruder.

"You want to hit me? Then do it! If you dare lay a hand on me, I'll kill you!"

The entire room fell silent. The guests stared in disbelief at the young woman they had always thought timid and compliant.

From his seat, Julian watched her closely. Smoke drifted from his lips as his eyes flashed with something strange—a blend of anger, admiration, and emotions he refused to reveal.

A heavy silence settled over the living room, so thick that even a heartbeat seemed loud.

Anna hurried upstairs and slammed her door shut behind her. The sharp sound echoed through the manor, as loud as an explosion.

In this household, almost no one dared challenge Julian Ashford's authority. Still, he remained calm, looking completely unbothered, as though nothing unusual had happened. Those close to him knew that even the slightest disturbance could irritate him. Yet, the noise of Anna's door slamming thundered through the house, far surpassing ordinary outbursts.

As if things weren't already tense enough, Anna had just shattered a thirty-thousand-dollar bottle of wine—showing not the slightest trace of remorse.

At last, a quiet murmur cut through the heavy silence. "I heard that Miss Hart's father died recently... She must have just come from the funeral."

The speaker, Jessy Merrick—elegant in a white dress—managed public relations for the Sterling group. It was her birthday, and she had gathered a few of Julian's closest friends to help celebrate both her special day and his return to good health. Yet Anna's outburst had cast a shadow over the evening Jessy hoped would shine.

Mindful of Julian's reputation for volatility, Jessy approached him with care and spoke in a low, measured tone. "Please forgive me, Julian. I didn't know her father had passed away."

Julian crushed his cigarette, lifted his glass, and drained it in a single motion. Then he spoke, his voice grave but gentle. "Happy birthday."

Color rose in Jessy's cheeks as she murmured, "Thank you."

But he quickly added, straightening his collar as a chill crept into his eyes, "No matter what happens, Anna Hart is not someone to be mistreated. Even if she were nothing more than a pet in the Ashford household, I alone would have the right to rebuke her."

Jessy's posture stiffened.

"But you're on the verge of divorce..." she whispered. "Very soon, she may not matter at all."

A chill swept through Julian's eyes.

"Even what I throw away, I will not allow anyone else to humiliate it."

At that moment, Mrs. Miller appeared, carrying a rag and a bucket to gather the shards of glass and clean the wine-soaked carpet. Someone poured another glass for Julian.

A guest tried to ease the tension as they said, "Don't be too harsh, Julian. Jessy didn't do anything wrong. She'd never lay a hand on Miss Hart."

Another guest joined in, teasing, "Come on, Jessy, three drinks in a row to make up for it!"

Jessy nodded and prepared to drink, everyone's eyes on her. Before she could start, Julian signaled to his bodyguard, then stood and left the room in silence. Jessy watched him go, her eyes growing red, and then finished her three drinks.

"Well, there goes the guest of honor... Shall we keep the party going?" someone remarked.

"Of course! Jessy still thinks she'll become Mrs. Ashford one day."

Regardless of her hopes, Julian was openly discussing divorce. Anna was difficult, they said. How could he stand living with a woman like that?

...

In the guest room, Anna curled up with her knees pulled close to her chest. Tears streamed down her face, finally breaking the dam she had maintained for three days. Her father's last words of regret echoed in her mind, dissolving every trace of resentment she had held against him. Exhausted from crying, she eventually drifted into sleep.

The next morning, her eyelids burned and felt heavy. She put on a clean nightgown and went downstairs, driven by a sharp, aching hunger. But when she saw Julian already seated in the dining room, her steps faltered.

"Breakfast is ready, Ms. Anna. Please, come!" Mrs. Miller announced.

In the past, Anna would have avoided him at all costs. But since he had kept postponing the divorce, a strange sense of courage had taken root inside her. She sat at the far end of the table. Just as she raised her fork to her lips, Julian's flat voice cut through the quiet:

"The bottle you broke yesterday cost thirty thousand dollars."

Anna's face went pale. That much—for a single bottle of wine? Did he expect her to repay him? Her empty stomach twisted painfully.

Then Julian spoke again, his tone razor-sharp. "Consider this a warning. If you break anything else, you'll pay for every cent of it."

Oddly enough, his words chased away her anxiety and brought back her appetite. Yet, when the meat was served, a wave of nausea swept over her and she pushed her plate aside.

"Is something wrong, Ms. Anna?" Mrs. Miller asked with concern.

"No... I just feel like eating vegetarian food," Anna replied.

After breakfast, she changed clothes to meet with Adam's lawyer, as they had arranged to meet at ten. On her way out, she bumped into Julian, who was also leaving with his bodyguard.

She hurried toward the road, but the cold wind—a remnant of last night's rain—made her stomach churn. She stopped and leaned over a trash can, fighting a surge of nausea.

A silver sedan approached and slowed down.

"Isn't that Mrs. Anna?" the driver asked, glancing at her as the car drew closer.

In the back seat, Julian stirred awake and immediately opened his eyes.

"She's throwing up, Mr. Ashford," the driver added.

Still rattled by her dry heaves, Anna straightened and met Julian's piercing gaze through the lowered window. Sunlight glinted off the car's body, and his cold eyes seemed to see straight through her.

Blushing, she bent forward and stammered, "I think I just ate too much at breakfast."