“Conrad.” She noticed something was wrong and followed him out of the playroom. But his pace quickened, like he was deliberately trying to leave her behind.
“Conrad!” she called out louder.
“Don’t come near me!” His voice was low and sharp.
It had been a long time since he’d spoken to her like that.
Lillian froze for a moment, just staring at him in disbelief.
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. “Don’t come near me… I need to be alone.”
Lillian lifted her gaze and suddenly remembered that dark room in his study – the one he’d shut himself in before, losing control and spiraling.
Her body moved faster than her thoughts. She reached out and grabbed his arm from behind.
The moment she touched him, she realized he was trembling all over.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, stepping closer.
“Don’t come any closer!” He gripped the railing tightly, every muscle straining as he fought to keep himself together – to stop himself from pulling her into his arms and destroying her completely.
His eyes, now bloodshot and wild, glinted with the unmistakable madness that always came before he lost control.
“I’m warning you,” his voice dropped to a guttural growl. “I’m not joking. I’ll tear you apart… I’ll take you for myself, no matter what it takes. These past few days… it was all just an act. I can’t keep pretending anymore, and I don’t want to lie to you either.”
His voice was low and menacing, like a demon whispering from the depths of hell.
“This is who I really am – a worthless man with every ugly flaw you despise. So while I can still hold myself back… don’t get in my way. When I’m better, I’ll come find you.”
He forced the words out, his face deathly pale as he staggered toward the stairs.
His fingers dug so tightly into the railing that his knuckles turned white, veins bulging beneath his skin.
Every step he took seemed like a battle raging inside him.
But Lillian still refused to back down. She followed him anyway.
“Didn’t you hear me?!” His voice rose, ragged and strained. “Go stay with Jasmine… maybe that’ll help me hold on a little longer.”
Lillian just stood there, looking at him.
Conrad stood at the bottom of the spiral staircase, the strands of hair on his forehead damp with sweat.
Her hand gently touched his face. “It’s been five years… I don’t think I’ve ever really looked at you properly.”
His pupils contracted, and his body tensed under her touch, his emotions spiraling even more.
Several times, his hand lifted only to fall again – a constant tug-of-war between self-control and impulse.
She traced his brow and eyes with her fingertips. “Have I ever told you… your eyes are really beautiful?”
Hearing her suddenly praise him caught Conrad off guard. He hesitated. “You think I’m… good-looking?”
“Yeah… otherwise, why do you think I grabbed you out of all those people back then?”
“Wasn’t it because I looked like I had the most money?”
“You were the best-looking one among the rich guys. That’s allowed, isn’t it?”
Their first meeting had been a tangled mess of power and money.
But who could say that fate hadn’t played a hand in bringing them together?
“I remember hearing once,” she murmured, “that people with eyebrows like yours are destined for power. Bold, dark… and when your eyes are bright, they’re like a panther’s in the jungle. When you stare at someone, it’s… intense. There were so many times I admired your eyes… but I never dared to look directly into them.”
“There was always something in your gaze – a hunger for power, a desire for wealth… and sometimes, a small glimpse of me.”
Her fingertips brushed over his eyelids. Strangely enough, with those soft words and gentle touch, his restless mind seemed to settle.
“And now?” he asked, watching her intently. “Do you still see yourself in them?”
“You’re not small,” he said quietly. “My heart’s not that big… but now it’s filled with you and Jasmine.”
He let out a small sigh, almost sounding aggrieved. “Even before… there wasn’t room for anyone else.”
Her fingers slid down to the bridge of his nose. “You have the best-looking nose I’ve ever seen,” she said softly. “Straight but not exaggerated, sharp yet refined… like a mountain peak.”
“You probably don’t know this, but once, on a rainy day, you came to find me. I told you I was stuck at the bubble tea shop. When you showed up, you deliberately brushed the raindrops from your nose onto mine. That’s when I started liking your nose the most.”
“Conrad,” she added gently, “we’ve had… quite a few memories worth holding on to.”
Before he could say anything, her fingers moved to his lips.
“They say men with thin lips are heartless,” she whispered.
“Is that so?” Conrad murmured, his voice low. “Maybe that’s because they only have enough love for one person… and none left to spare for anyone else.”
He spoke slowly, but then his lips pressed against her fingertip.
When she didn’t pull her hand away, he went a step further – parting his lips and gently biting down, holding her finger between his teeth.
It should have felt suggestive – a gesture laced with something deeper – but somehow, it didn’t.
Instead, it felt… primal. Like a creature’s way of showing affection, and seeking comfort.
Like he was silently begging the woman he loved to lower her gaze… to notice him… to love him back.
“Why were you upset just now?” she asked softly, noticing his body had stopped shaking.
“You were on the phone with Ethan,” he muttered. “It hurt.”
“It hurt so much I wanted to die… I was jealous. Just thinking about you… staying at another man’s house, living under his roof… I can’t even sleep at night.”
“And when I think about how much I love you… yet he doesn’t even put you first… and you still won’t come back to me… I just… I feel like I might as well be dead.”
His words left her silent.
Conrad sounded defeated. “I’ve ruined everything, haven’t I? I can’t say the right things, I can’t be a good man. I knew it… I knew I’d mess everything up.”
She sighed deeply. “You really are someone who makes others dislike you.”
Her words fell like a death sentence, sealing his fate.
Conrad closed his eyes, but just as he thought Lillian would leave, she sighed again and said, “I was just on the phone with him. I told him that when he gets back, I’d like to have a serious conversation with him.”
“About what?” His eyes never left her as he stared intently.
“About the future. About our relationship. So, until then, I’ll be here taking care of Jasmine and Quincy. You don’t need to worry so much, and you don’t need to be afraid. You’re scaring Jasmine… and you’re scaring me.”
Conrad was almost in disbelief. “You’ll stay?”
“Yeah, I’ll stay here until Ethan gets back.”
“What if he comes back?”
“We’ll deal with that when the time comes. Right now, I can’t give you a clear answer.”
“Does that mean I still have a chance?”
“Huh?”
Conrad felt his sluggish heart suddenly surge with life, like fresh blood had been pumped into his veins, and his body began to slowly regain its strength.
“Lillian, tell me.”
“I’m looking for that answer too, so let me think it over, okay?”