"Relax."

The man behind her spoke in a low, almost hypnotic voice. But instead of calming Chloe Ashford down, it only made every nerve in her body tighten harder.

Then she heard his muffled groan, deep and rough. The next second, her body was slammed even more fiercely against the glass wall.

From here, the city outside was blazing with light.

In the building across from them, people were still walking back and forth...

Shame crawled all over her skin. She just wanted it to end, fast, but she couldn't break free at all.

Because the one holding control in this game had always been him, never her.

What he wanted was simple.

To torment her.

And stupidly, pathetically, she still kept hoping that somewhere in all this cruelty, he might grow the tiniest bit of feeling for her...

She didn't know how much time had passed. The man on top of her trembled for a moment, then finally let go. He turned over and lay back on the bed, casually untying the ropes around her wrists and ankles.

She let out a shaky breath, like she'd just been dragged back from drowning. Her legs moved stiffly, numb and weak. It took her a long while to get even a little feeling back before she could slowly lower them from the table.

Then she shrank into herself and grabbed the blanket nearby, wrapping herself up tight like a ball.

Most days, she slept in the guest room. Only when he wanted her would she be allowed onto this bed.

And once he was done, she had to leave immediately.

But today, she had something to ask of him.

She didn't want to go.

Ethan Mercer went into the bathroom and splashed water on his face. When he turned back and saw Chloe Ashford still sitting on the bed, his face instantly darkened.

"You still need something?"

Chloe Ashford hurriedly nodded and quickly pulled on her long shirt before getting out of bed.

He hated seeing her in underwear, so every time, she could only throw on a loose long shirt, something easy for him to take off.

Seeing her standing there, hesitant and unable to get the words out, Ethan Mercer was already losing patience. After washing his hands, he tossed the towel straight at her and asked coldly, "What is it?"

"Yeah..." Chloe Ashford swallowed hard, her voice small and shaky. "I... I want to borrow one million from you... is that okay?"

Ethan Mercer was halfway out of his shirt, about to take a shower. The second he heard that, his whole body paused. He turned his head, eyes full of mockery.

"Chloe Ashford, are you seriously overestimating yourself? You open your mouth and ask for a million? Even the top girl on Jinfang Street doesn’t charge as much as you."

Jinfang Street?

Wasn’t that... that kind of club district?

So in his eyes, what was she supposed to be?

Chloe’s face went white in an instant. She just stood there staring at him, stunned. A dense, prickling pain spread through her chest, so sharp she almost couldn’t breathe, let alone answer him.

Ethan was already irritated by the way she looked at him. He stepped over and grabbed her by the shoulder.

"You—"

Chloe instinctively struggled.

In the struggle, the collar of her clothes shifted, exposing a stretch of pale skin at her neck.

The man’s gaze brushed over it, and something dark flickered in his eyes. Desire rose fast, heavy and dangerous, filling his stare as he looked at her.

She looked terrified, like a startled fawn, eyes shaking, face drained of color.

But to him, it all looked fake as hell.

A woman who would stop at nothing to climb up, who could drug him and crawl into his bed for status—what was there to pity? What was there to cherish?

The next second, he suddenly shoved her hard, pinning her against the sink.

His lips curled coldly. "Chloe Ashford, back then you climbed into my bed and forced me to marry you. And after the wedding, you started acting all pure and above it all? Wow. You want to be a bitch and still keep a saint’s reputation? Fine. Since you love money that much, please me. I’d really like to see just how far you can go for cash."

"No... that’s not true... I didn’t..."

Chloe frowned faintly and bit her lip. Her eyes burned. But when the words reached her throat, she forced them back down.

She had explained it to him countless times. Back then, she had never climbed into his bed.

But he didn’t believe her. He was never going to believe her.

What mattered now was getting the money. Her grandmother truly couldn’t wait any longer.

She clenched her teeth, shut her eyes hard, then slowly rose on tiptoe and leaned toward him, trying to kiss Ethan Mercer.

But he caught her face in one hand, fingers tight on her jaw, and stared at her with naked disgust.

"Take. Off. Your. Clothes."

Chloe Ashford bit her lip in humiliation, tears trembling in her eyes. She looked at him, squeezed her eyes shut for a second, then slowly moved her hand to the waistband of his pants...

The bathroom light was dim and blurry, the water just warm enough. Her smooth body rose and sank with the soft slosh of the bathwater, like a leaf being tossed around.

This was something Chloe had never gone through before. Her body had already been pushed too far by his ruthless taking, and now, with this kind of pain crashing over her again, she simply couldn’t handle it. Her whole body shook as she begged in a broken voice.

But the man beneath her had zero intention of easing up. Instead, he gripped her slim waist and said coldly, "Remember what you came for, Chloe Ashford. If you’re selling, then at least act like it."

Chloe trembled from the pain. Still, she had no choice but to hold back her tears, force herself to relax, and lower her waist a little. The moment she dropped her head, a tear that had been hanging in her lashes fell without warning...

After it was over, Chloe was still too limp to get up, her whole body weak and boneless. The man had already stepped out of the bathroom. Drops of water still slid down from his forehead, the smell of alcohol on him mostly faded, and the usual cold sharpness had returned to his face.

Then, casually, he threw a bank card with one million on it straight at her face.

They had been married for three years. Before that, they had been university classmates for four. Back then, she really had liked him in secret. But that quiet crush had always been buried deep in her heart, never spoken aloud...

Until the graduation ball that night. He had been drugged. She had been drugged too. In that dazed, messed-up state, they spent one night together. And he had decided the drug was her doing... Then she got pregnant...

After that, everything flipped upside down.

He was forced to marry her.

And she, in a haze of confusion, became his wife.

Three years.

Life had felt like swallowing ice water every single day. How cold it was, only she knew.

Her face was pale as paper, and her whole body was trembling. Her lower abdomen, which he had hurt just now, felt like it was being stabbed with needles.

But for her grandmother, she still had to bow her head. In a hoarse voice, she said, "I’ll pay this money back... At the beginning of next month, I’ll return part of it first..."

Ethan Mercer couldn’t even be bothered to respond. He got into bed, turned off the light, and went to sleep.

Seeing that he ignored her completely, Chloe bit her lip again, carefully switched off the lights for him, closed the door softly, and went back to the guest bedroom by herself.

Only after she got back into her own bed did she finally loosen up a little. But the ache in her chest became even sharper.

He had probably always seen her as the kind of woman who worshipped money and chased vanity at all costs. But she hadn’t drugged him. And marrying him had only happened because she was pregnant back then...

She slowly lay down, curled into herself, hugged the blanket tightly to her chest, and drifted off to sleep bit by bit...

Early the next morning, the dull ache in her lower belly still hadn’t gone away, but Chloe Ashford still made two breakfasts like she always did.

When she went to knock on the door, she found Ethan Mercer had already left.

A bitter smile tugged at her lips.

Right. They’d been married for three years. When had he ever told her where he was going, or when he was leaving?

She rushed all the way to the hospital without stopping. Only after paying the fees at the first-floor billing hall did she finally let out a small breath of relief. But the second she reached the ward door, she saw a young nurse running out in a panic.

"Ms. Ashford? You’re here! I was just about to call you. Your grandmother had another episode. She needs emergency surgery right now. The doctor already took her into the operating room. You need to sign this, quick!"

For a second, it felt like a bolt from the blue had slammed straight into Chloe’s head.

Her hand shook so badly she could barely hold the pen as she signed her name. Then she staggered after the nurse toward the operating room, only to be stopped outside the door.

The red light above the operating room was glaring, painfully bright.

It stabbed at her eyes until they started burning again.

She had always only had her grandmother.

They had depended on each other for so many years...

If her grandmother was gone...

Then in this whole world... she really wouldn’t have anywhere left to go.

It felt like countless needles were jabbing into her chest all at once. The swelling pain in her heart, mixed with that wave of fear, rushed over her in an instant. Even her eyes felt hot, sore, and unbearably swollen. Big tears spilled down her face before she could stop them.

Her vision blurred from crying. In her panic, she almost instinctively grabbed her phone and dialed that number.

The ringtone rang again and again.

Every second felt brutal.

Finally, the call connected.

"What is it?!"

The man’s voice was as cold as ever.

Cold enough to make people think of an iceberg that never melted, no matter the season.

And she had actually been stupid enough to think she could get warmth, or even a little sense of safety, from an iceberg.

Her mind understood it in that instant, but her emotions were already breaking loose. Her voice came out trembling, thick with tears. "Ethan... I-I’m scared... Grandma... she—"

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Before she could even finish, the call was cut off.

How ridiculous.

She knew perfectly well how much he hated her, so why had she still...

Chloe Ashford collapsed onto the chair, curling in on herself, trying her best to make her body smaller, tighter, like if she shrank into a ball hard enough, she might feel even a little warmer.