Chapter 2

I waited five hours before Celeste finally returned to our room.

The dampness clinging to her, mingled with the scent of Jaxon Miller’s shower gel, felt both clammy and unsettling.

When she saw me still awake, she nearly jumped out of her skin.

A cold dread spread through me, but I forced a smile onto my face.

“Why such a strong reaction? Did you do something to betray me?”

Her face flickered through a range of emotions, her eyes darting away, unable to meet mine.

“Clients were demanding. Drank too much. Just rinsed off in the lounge.”

Her excuse was laughably flimsy.

Her moniker as the “Ice Queen” of the corporate world was well-earned; no one in their right mind would dare force her to drink until past midnight.

I couldn’t be bothered to expose her lie.

Instead, I slowly rolled up the sleeve of my silk pajamas.

A vast, hideous burn marked my arm, stark and alarming.

“Jaxon Miller did this.”

My voice was flat.

“Make him leave.”

Celeste’s gaze dropped to the wound. Her brow furrowed for a moment, but then quickly relaxed.

“It’s just a small cut. I’ll have the doctor bandage it tomorrow.”

“He’s just out of college, a bit clumsy. Go easy on him.”

She spoke as she unbuttoned her shirt.

“I’ll make him apologize to you later, and he’ll cover the medical expenses.”

I smiled.

Years ago, when her own mother merely called me a bastard, Celeste had immediately sent her back to her rural old house.

She hadn't even allowed her to pack her luggage properly.

In all our years of marriage, let alone a burn, if I so much as shed a few more hairs than usual on the floor, she would fire the entire care team.

Those were her exact words:

“Liam, your world is just me now, and I won’t let anyone or anything hurt you.”

But now, this angry, festering wound on my wrist was, in her words, “just a small cut.”

I pretended to be understanding, pulling my sleeve back down to cover the ugly mark.

“Got it. I won’t pick a fight with the kid.”

A “kid” the same age as me.

I pressed my temples, letting out a soft sigh.

“Headache.”

This was the real amnesia medicine at work.

I’d faked it for years, but this pain was brutally real.

“Still hurting?”

Her tone was thick with exhaustion.

“It’s been years, it should be fine by now. Liam, stop using that old headache as an excuse; you’re driving everyone crazy. And stop driving *me* crazy too. I have a transatlantic meeting first thing tomorrow, I’m exhausted.”

The room fell into a deathly silence.

The piercing pain spread from my brain to my heart.

I softly mumbled, “Okay.”

My fingertip brushed the cold metal of my ring finger.

Without even pulling hard, the wedding band, worn for so many years, slipped off.

It felt like countless needles were simultaneously piercing my brain, the pain so intense my vision blurred.

I bit my lip, forcing back the tears.

In my mind, the image of Celeste, eyes red-rimmed, slipping that ring onto my finger, shattered and peeled away, finally becoming indistinguishable.

At breakfast, Celeste couldn't find me. She frantically tore through the villa.

She even pulled every string she had, mobilizing a specialized search and rescue team.

Finally, they found me in the basement.

But beside me, coiled, was a highly venomous snake.

Its head suddenly darted forward.

“Don’t move!”

Celeste, without a second thought, lunged forward, shielding me tightly with her body.

The fangs sank into her neck, and her face instantly turned black and blue.

She was rushed into the ER.

It took a full day and night, and a complete blood transfusion, before she finally crawled back from the brink of death.

Dr. Reed’s face was thunderous as he pointed at Celeste’s assistant, scolding him.

“Why were you ten minutes late?! She was this close to dying!”