Mia Kane couldn’t pull her hand back right away, leaving it awkwardly resting on... a certain spot.

In that moment, she really wished she could just disappear.

"I just wanted to... see what your pecs are like, since you work out so often."

She said, feigning calmness, then slowly drew her hand back and gave his chest a couple of pats.

"Not bad. Very firm, and elastic too. Great."

Adrian Preston raised an eyebrow, watching her spout nonsense with a completely straight face.

"I’m going to go wash up."

Mia turned and left without a backward glance, but she could feel his intense gaze on her back like a physical weight.

Once inside the bathroom, she locked the door, feeling an urge to bang her head against the wall.

’How could it be such a coincidence?’

’Of all the times to wake up, why did it have to be then?’

When she came out after washing up, she happened to see Adrian taking off his pajamas and getting dressed.

He had already changed his pants and was now revealing a lean, solid back.

His body was covered in scars of all sizes. Some were from bullets, others from sharp weapons. They were all his medals of honor.

A pang of heartache bloomed in her chest.

He could have had a life of absolute comfort, but he had chosen a much harder path.

’Probably no one could understand Adrian’s choices. Even I find it hard to believe. A rich heir casting aside a vast fortune, giving up the easy life of a wealthy young master to do something so dangerous... and his family actually agreed to it.’

Adrian slipped on a black shirt and turned around, buttoning it up slowly and methodically.

"How much longer are you going to secretly watch me?"

Mia felt a little awkward. She’d been caught red-handed again.

"How is this secretly watching? I’m looking at my own man. What’s wrong with that?"

She said it with the brazen confidence of someone who felt they were completely in the right.

Her words made Adrian chuckle.

He strode over to her and pinched her chin.

"Then you should take your clothes off too, so I can look at my own woman."

The atmosphere instantly grew charged.

Mia’s breathing quickened. She knew he was just joking, but her heart still hammered uncontrollably.

"I dare to take them off. Do you dare to look?"

"Take them off, and you’ll find out whether I dare or not."

The tension climbed to its peak once more.

They stared at each other—he looking down from his height, she tilting her head up to meet his gaze, their eyes locking.

The air between them was thick with the sound of their mingled, charged breaths.

On a whim, Mia’s mind went blank. She actually started unbuttoning her pajama top, then slowly pulled it aside to reveal a luminous, fair shoulder.

Adrian watched her with a half-smile, clearly unimpressed by the visual impact.

His intense gaze fell upon her, making Mia feel a little flustered. She knew he was all talk and wouldn’t actually do anything, but she still felt the urge to back down.

The atmosphere was both steamy and deadlocked.

Finally, Adrian pulled her clothes back into place. "Get dressed properly. Don’t catch a cold. And next time, don’t sneak peeks. Just be open about it."

"Open about it? Look however I want? Touch however I want?"

She looked at him, confused.

"In any case, I’m your man now. Naturally, you can do whatever you want with me."

His words were incredibly seductive.

Mia couldn’t help but blush.

"I have to go to the Preston Group first. You rest at home for a couple of days. I’ll be busy today, so I’ll be back late."

After giving his instructions, he turned and left.

Mia went downstairs for breakfast, only then remembering she hadn’t asked about Mr. Chaucer. It wasn’t convenient to ask Adrian directly, so she called Theo Thorne.

"Mr. Chaucer had an accident yesterday. He fell down the stairs, suffered multiple fractures all over his body, and also injured... that certain area. I’m afraid he won’t be able to perform his manly duties anymore."

Theo Thorne put it very diplomatically.

Her heart skipped a beat. ’Adrian was that ruthless? He completely crippled the man.’

’Was he that angry at the time?’

She only cursed herself for being so useless, for fainting at the most critical moment and missing the sight of such an enraged Adrian.

"Mrs. Chaucer’s order is still on, by the way. The deposit should have been wired to your company’s account."

"The order is still on?"

"Yes, those were the boss’s instructions."

A strange feeling rose in Mia’s heart. Adrian knew what she wanted, and he wouldn’t let her suffer even the slightest loss.

’I don’t even have to take it too seriously. I can just half-ass it, and the Chaucer Family won’t dare to say a word.’

"Is there... anything else to this matter?"

"The boss said you don’t need to worry about it. He has it under control."

Hearing this, Mia instantly understood that things were definitely not that simple.

But since Adrian had spoken, she wouldn’t concern herself with it.

She rested at home. Whenever Shannon Preston saw her, she acted as if she wasn’t there, her attitude arrogant and disdainful.

Mia paid her no mind. Shannon had returned to the Preston Group to work as Adrian’s secretary. Everyone knew who she was; even Theo Thorne had to show her some deference.

「Two days later.」 The palm print on her cheek had completely faded, but a few bruises on her body still remained, which would take several more days to disappear.

She returned to her studio, and the moment Rosalyn Shield saw her, she burst into tears.

"What are you crying for? I’m fine, aren’t I?"

"It’s all my fault. I failed you at the critical moment. If only my stomach hadn’t hurt then... If I had gone with you, that bastard Chaucer wouldn’t have dared to do anything to you."

"Who could have known? It’s okay. I don’t blame you. I haven’t given it a second thought."

She comforted Rosalyn.

Rosalyn had been with her since she first started her company. Their relationship was more than just employer and employee; they were friends.

What happened that day was completely unexpected. It wasn’t her fault, so how could Mia possibly blame her?

"As long as you’re okay. Otherwise, I would have blamed myself for the rest of my life."

"Alright, stop crying. You follow up on Mrs. Chaucer’s order. You don’t need to report to me on it."

A few days later, she heard that Vivian Lynch had been cornered by a group of hooligans on her way home from work and was nearly molested.

Chase Lockwood had flown into a terrible rage, even losing control and getting into a physical fight at the police station.

Of course, the hooligans hadn’t actually managed to do anything to her, but the news spread through the upper-class circles as if it had grown wings.

And the rumors grew more and more outrageous as they spread.

Shayla Quinn told Mia what she had heard.

"Some people are saying Vivian was raped. By several men at once."

"Others say she wasn’t raped, but she was groped all over. It probably wasn’t that dramatic, though. They just harassed her and got physical before Chase Lockwood rushed over and stopped them. I was planning to spread some malicious gossip myself, but it looks like someone beat me to it."

After hearing this, Mia was silent for a long time.

’This is too much of a coincidence. Just a few days ago, I was nearly violated by Mr. Chaucer.’

’And now, something very similar has happened to Vivian.’

’With Chase Lockwood’s status, how could such gossip be allowed to spread? Unless someone was maliciously spreading it from behind the scenes.’

’Besides Adrian, I can’t think of a second person who could pull this off without Chase finding out.’

’So, what happened to me last time was related to Vivian, and Adrian was just giving her a taste of her own medicine.’

’What surprised me, though, was that Adrian... actually used such tactics. I thought that since he’d been a police officer, he’d disdain such despicable methods. His sense of justice shouldn’t have allowed it. But I never would have imagined his retaliation would be so direct.’

’Is he... bending his principles to protect me?’

At this thought, Mia felt a pang of pity. ’It’s not worth it, breaking your own principles and bottom line for someone like Vivian.’

At that moment, she wanted to see Adrian more than anything.

"Are you even listening? Mia?"

"I just remembered I have something to do. I’m hanging up. I’ll call you back later."

Mia hastily hung up the phone and drove to the Preston Group.

She saw Theo Thorne downstairs.

"Ah, you’re here. To see Adrian, I assume? He’s still in a meeting. I’ll take you up."

"He’s in a meeting, but you’re not with him?"

"Well, Miss Shannon is there, isn’t she?"

Theo Thorne said with a smile, leading her to the CEO’s office.

"It’ll probably be a while longer. You can go on in and wait."

Mia entered the office and noticed that the door to the private lounge inside was open. She thought Adrian had forgotten to close it properly when he left and was about to shut it when she glimpsed a figure inside.

Shannon Preston was placing a photo frame on the bedside table. It was a picture of her and her brother.

"This way, Brother can see me every day."

Shannon stroked the frame dejectedly, unable to stop herself from muttering.

"Brother, don’t you like me even a little bit? I don’t believe it. You’re so good to me. Could it be that you, like Shannon, also have... those kinds of feelings? Are you just holding back because of our status? But what does it matter? We’re not blood-related siblings. I’m just the Preston Family’s adopted daughter!"