“Let go of me,” Dolores exclaimed, widening her eyes and pressing her hands against Matthew’s chest to halt his advance.
“Let go?” Matthew repeated, dragging out the words with a hint of ridicule in his tone. He had been furious just moments ago when she had tried to break things off with him. Now, she chose to believe in her son’s innocence and doubted him instead.
His anger flared up once again.
Dolores averted her gaze, unable to meet his eyes. She could feel the heat radiating from his powerful body, his breath familiar and intoxicating. She closed her eyes, her heart pounding. “My son is only five years old,” she whispered.
It was impossible for him to be involved in such matters.
As Dolores tilted her head, exposing her graceful swan-like neck with faint blue veins, her nervous breath quickened and became uneven, creating an enchanting melody. Matthew had initially intended to frighten her, but observing her reactions, his blood started to boil.
He lowered his head and planted a kiss on her neck.
His lips were soft and slightly cool.
In a panic, Dolores pushed him away with all her strength. “Let go of me! Don’t be so shameless!”
“Shameless?” Matthew murmured, his head still hovering near her neck. “I felt quite shameless when your son embarrassed me just now. But why should I feel shameless now?”
He was captivated by the scent of her body, a scent he knew well and had become obsessed with.
“Tell me, are you a witch?” he asked. How else could she make him transform into a different person every time they were together?
Dolores didn’t reply, but tears streamed down her cheeks, disappearing into her hair.
Matthew sensed her trembling sobs. He lifted his head, cupping her face and forcing her to meet his gaze. “I merely kissed you. Why do you look so aggrieved?”
Dolores gently opened her eyes, her trembling eyelashes betraying the lingering tears. Her voice cracked as she replied, “Am I an easy woman in your eyes? Will you think I sleep with men casually?”
Matthew was taken aback. “I have never thought that.”
“But you did. You never showed me respect,” Dolores choked out. She had tried to hold back her tears, but now they flowed freely. “I slept with a man when I was eighteen and became pregnant with his child. You believed I was promiscuous. I am not that kind of woman! I am not the woman you imagine me to be! I had no choice back then.”
Matthew felt an inexplicable agitation and wiped away her tears. He had to admit that he had indeed held such thoughts before.
Dolores turned her head, evading his touch.
Matthew’s hand hesitated near her ear, and then he gently tucked her disheveled strands of hair behind her ears. “I won’t mention your past again. Please forget about it as well.”
“What do you want?” Dolores struggled to suppress her overwhelming emotions.
“I’ve told you. I want you to return to where you belong…”
“And what about my children? Will you be their stepfather?” Dolores interrupted him.
Deep down, she knew that Matthew was an arrogant man.
Accepting her past was already pushing his boundaries, and he would never accept children from another man.
“You are an arrogant man. Can you handle being called ‘father’ by someone else’s children? Will you raise them?” Dolores challenged.
Matthew’s patience reached its limit. He suddenly stood up.
In truth, Matthew had only intended to persuade Dolores to come back to him, without considering the arrangements for her children.
Dolores was right. Accepting her past was already his limit.
But he had never thought about becoming a stepfather or raising someone else’s children.
He couldn’t do it!
Dolores sat up, straightening her disheveled clothes, and fixed her gaze on Matthew, who stood with his back turned to her. “Divorcing and returning to our original positions would be a wise decision.”
“Do you know what the wise choice is?” he asked in a somber voice, his mood worsening.
Dolores stood up, replying, “I don’t know. But I know my own feelings very well. I don’t love you, and you can’t accept my children. Ending our relationship is the best choice.”
Her words, “I know my feelings very well. I don’t love you,” echoed in Matthew’s mind.
She didn’t love him?
Matthew sneered.
She didn’t love him?
Abruptly, he turned around and grabbed her collar. “Dare you say those words again?”
Dolores felt a sharp pain in her neck.
With a swift motion, Matthew lifted her off the ground. Yet, Dolores didn’t flinch, even as she met his gaze with her red eyes. She managed to squeeze out a sentence, “I don’t love you. Do you want me to lie? But you can’t bear a lie, can you?”
Although Dolores hadn’t known him for long, she understood him well.
He was too proud to accept a lie from anyone.
However, Matthew felt an overwhelming sense of unhappiness.
He was on the verge of losing control.
Dolores remained silent. She didn’t struggle or provoke him further.
Despite the pain in her neck, she endured it with all her might.
Her face flushed red from the suffocation, struggling to breathe as Matthew held her collar tightly.
In a fit of rage, Matthew flung her to the ground. “Don’t think you’re clever,” he seethed.
Dolores landed on the floor, clutching her chest, taking deep breaths to regain her composure. Finally, after a long while, she picked herself up from the ground and declared, “When you make up your mind, have your assistant Abbott come to me.”
With those words, she turned toward the door. As she glanced at the piano by the French windows, she paused and added without looking back, “Thank you for not discarding my belongings. I will come to retrieve them as soon as possible.”
Finishing her statement, she continued toward the exit.
She had feigned strength moments ago, but as soon as she stepped out of the villa, she could no longer maintain her facade.
She instinctively covered her chest with her other hand and leaned against the wall, trying to ease the pain in her heart.
“Ms. Flores, are you alright?” Abbott, who had been engrossed in his phone while leaning against the car, rushed over as soon as he saw Dolores leaving the villa.
Dolores shook her head. “I’m fine.”
“Alright then. Get in the car. I’ll take you home,” Abbott said, gesturing towards the passenger seat and opening the door for her.
Dolores thanked him and got into the car.
As they drove, Abbott glanced at her through the rear-view mirror and asked, “You don’t look well. Did you have an argument with Mr. Nelson?”
Dolores lifted her head to look at him and suddenly remembered the news article that Matthew had shown her. She took out her phone and quickly found the “social news” section of the headlines. To her surprise, she found the news article there. Furrowing her brows, she showed the article to Abbott and asked, “Were you there when this happened?”
Abbott took a quick glance at it. In fact, he had seen the news article while playing with his phone earlier.
But it was only now that he understood why Matthew had stopped him from intervening when the assistant was secretly taking photos.
The photos would never be published if Matthew didn’t want the world to know.
Now that the news was out, it meant that Matthew had intended for it to happen.
Abbott suspected that the reasons behind Matthew’s actions must be connected to Dolores.
Nodding, Abbott replied, “Mr. Nelson and Mr. Powell from SD Corporation were discussing business matters when your son barged in. He said the condoms accidentally fell out of Mr. Nelson’s possession while he was handling them.”
Dolores tightly gripped her phone and asked, “Does Matthew always carry condoms with him?”
She felt a wave of weakness wash over her as she asked the question. Who would be so irrational as to carry condoms with them at all times?
Even if he needed them, he wouldn’t carry them around constantly.
It was not something a normal person would do.
And Matthew was obviously a normal man.
Abbott hesitated for a moment before responding, “I’m not sure.” Upon careful consideration, Abbott realized that it didn’t match Matthew’s character.
When Matthew admitted that the condoms were his, Abbott was just as shocked.
Dolores took her phone back and knew she had to investigate this matter further.
Samuel was only five years old, and if he really…
She placed her hand on her forehead, feeling a deep sense of distress.
After a short while, the car arrived at her residence. Dolores hastily opened the door and got out of the car. In her urgency to uncover the truth, she didn’t say goodbye to Abbott.
Upon entering the house, she found Jessica packing their belongings.
“Where’s Samuel?” Dolores asked anxiously.
“He’s in the bedroom.” Jessica noticed Dolores’ distressed expression and inquired, “Are you feeling alright?”
“No,” Dolores replied curtly. She had to get to the bottom of things immediately. She headed towards the bedroom and pushed open the door.