Chapter 5
“But I never said I’d marry Marlene. Ever since the beginning, Ethel is the only one I love.
“I rejected Ethel eight years ago because I didn’t want her to suffer with me. That’s why I asked Marlene to play along with me. She got carried. away with her own delusions. Don’t blame me for that!” Benson said while pointing at me.
Amidst everyone’s exclaim, he grabbed my collar and slapped me hard across my face.
“Remember this slap, Marlene. I’m the one who slaps you. Hate me as much as you want.
“Don’t bother Ethel ever again!
Purchase completed
My check instantly turned red and swollen, and he continued as he stared at me, his eyes turning bloodshot, “Mark my words, Marlene.
“Even if you were the last woman on earth, I’d never come anywhere near you again.
“Now, can you give up? Enough already!”
With that, he let go of my collar. As I slumped to the floor feebly, a hint of panic flashed across his eyes.
“I said, enough! Drop the act, Marlene!”
He kicked my already–injured ankle brutally, and the bone–snapping pain made me feel I’d pass out at any second.
1221
Chapter
Before unconsciousness washed over me, I saw a tall, beefy man rushing toward me.
“Marlene Lusk?” he asked me.
With the last bit of strength, I nodded weakly. Seeing this, he picked met
- up.
Then Benson stopped him. “Who the heck are you? Put her down.”
He shot Benson a cold glance and said, his voice devoid of any emotion, “I’m her fiance.”
Frowning, Benson sneered, “Who again? Marlene?
“You’re nuts, dude. Hey, you know what? She’s been sleeping with…”
Before he could finish speaking, the man elbowed him to the floor. In the next second, several bodyguards behind the man rushed forward.
They stopped Benson, who got up from the floor and kept shouting, “Let go of Marlene! Where are you taking her?”
Ethel stopped him, wrapping her arms around his. “Benson, are you OK?
“Calm down. Maybe Marlene hired all these people. She knew you were determined to leave her and pull this stunt.
“If you go after her and fall for her tricks, she’ll be convinced that you think she’s more important than me.
“Benson, if that’s true–if she’s the one you love, fine. I’ll leave now!”
Though she said so, she had no intention of leaving at all. It wasn’t until Benson pulled her into his arms that she flashed a triumphant smile.
Gritting his teeth, Benson said word by word with hatred, “Marlene
Back then, we didn’t have money to pay for a single room, so I had to stay in a shared ward. The second time I had my medication, Benson got the pills mixed, and I ended up having a neighboring patient’s blood- activating drugs. My blood soaked the entire mattress.
I shook my head, wanting to get rid of all those bad memories. After all, I had promised myself I’d let bygones be bygones. They no longer mattered
to me.
“You seem uncomfortable. Is it the pillow?”
Triston tucked the pillow behind me against my sore waist deftly. “You’ll feel better this way.”
When he withdrew his hand, its back brushed against my neck. Instantly, he blushed, which made me wonder if I was still looking at the man who had stayed perfectly composed under the doctor’s scolding.
We both blurted out, “Sorry,”
Then we both smiled.
“I’m sorry,” I smiled awkwardly.
“My father asked me to bring out my best. I guess I messed up.
“This is the first time we met, and I’m in such a sorry state, and…”
And I supposed he had heard Benson’s words. Why would the heir of the Hoyt family in Washington, D.C. marry a woman who was involved with another man?
I said, lowering my head, “I’ll tell my father the marriage is ruined because of me…”
He handed me a glass of water and said, his voice gentle, “Ms. Lusk, why do you wanna cancel the marriage? Is it because you think I’m disabled
and not good enough for you?”
99.36%,
