Chapter 16

“Wait!” Alex quickly stopped Caroline as she was about to end the call.

He calmly lied, “Reuben can’t make it due to some issues.”

Silence enveloped Caroline before she responded, “Alright, send me the address.”

Twenty minutes later, Caroline stepped out of the car at the entrance of Wild Sides.

Both Alex and Lucas were waiting at the club’s entrance, supporting Evan, whose head was hanging low.

Caroline furrowed her brow as she approached. When she noticed the peculiar redness on Evan’s handsome face, she confirmed that he was indeed drunk.

However, she was just 170 centimeters tall. How could she support Evan, who stood at 190 centimeters?

Alex pushed Evan into her arms and asked, “Ms. Shenton, did you meet the woman Evan has been searching for?”

Lowering her gaze, Caroline replied, “Yes, I did.”

Alex smiled and said, “It’s likely because of her that Evan resorted to drinking tonight, though I’m uncertain of the exact reason. Please take him home and take good care of him.”

Suddenly, Caroline’s heart was filled with excruciating pain.

However, that pain seemed slightly less prominent than before.

She offered a faint smile to Alex before she struggled to leave with Evan.

Once they were a distance away, Lucas immediately exclaimed, “Alex, have you lost your mind?”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “What’s the matter?”

Lucas indignantly pointed at Caroline’s retreating figure. “You know very well that Evan drank because of Ms. Shenton, yet you claimed it was because of his first love.”

Alex chuckled. “A little suffering will do Evan some good.”

Lucas became puzzled. “How will he benefit from suffering?”

Alex explained, “Chill. You’ll find out in the future.”

Lucas was left speechless.

*

Upon returning to Villa Rosa, Caroline exerted herself to bring Evan back to his master bedroom.

As a result, she was so drained that she weakly collapsed at the edge of the bed.

Looking up, she carefully examined his flawless face.

His short hair was slightly disheveled, partially covering his forehead.

His captivating eyes were tightly shut. The thin lips beneath his prominent nose were firmly pressed together, indicating his discomfort.

As she observed him, an impulse surged within her. She felt an urge to smoothen the space between his eyebrows.

However, Evan suddenly opened his eyes the moment her fingertips touched his face. He grabbed her wrist.

His sudden movement startled Caroline. She attempted to retract her hand, but he didn’t give her the opportunity.

“Why didn’t you run away when you had the chance?” Evan demanded coldly.

Caroline answered insincerely, “I won’t get any money if I run away.”

Evan’s expression turned frigid as he tightened his grip on her wrist.

“What else do you care about apart from money?” he asked.

She pretended to ponder. “According to a certain someone, it seems that I also care about other men.”

Wasn’t that the answer Evan desired? Well, she would give him exactly what he wanted.

As anticipated, a deep sense of disgust manifested in his dark eyes.

“Our contract isn’t over yet. Act as a mistress should,” he bellowed.

His outburst caused her heart excruciating pain, to the point where she felt suffocated.

He could shamelessly engage intimately with his first love, while she was deemed so inferior that she could only be his concealed mistress, too shameful to be acknowledged.

She was unwilling to accept such a role.

Therefore, she suppressed her bitterness and took a deep breath.

She gazed up at him. “Evan, let’s put an end to this relationship, alright?”

Suddenly, his breathing became erratic. In the next moment, he grabbed her chin tightly and declared fiercely, “Caroline, I always have the final say in this arrangement. You don’t have the right to terminate it!

“From this day forward, you are not allowed to leave Villa Rosa without my permission!”

*

Caroline couldn’t comprehend how she had managed to walk out of Evan’s room.

Following his cruel warning, he ruthlessly violated her dignity and slept with her.

If she could turn back time, she would retract her previous words. That way, she could still attend to her job at the company and visit her mother at the hospital, maintaining some semblance of her former life.

However, now she was reduced to being merely his pet, someone he could toy with and discard at his whim.

*

Caroline endured an entire week of confinement.

She busied herself with the design drafts in her hands.

Once she received the payment for the commission, she promptly transferred it to Katie’s bank account.

As she was about to log off from social media, her good friend Paige sent her a message.

[Caroline, Ylesir is organizing an online fashion design event. Are you interested in participating?]

Caroline was taken aback for a moment. [Could you please send me the qualifications and participation requirements?]

Paige quickly sent her a link, and Caroline clicked on it to review the website. She found that she met the necessary criteria to enter the competition.

The competition spanned three months and comprised three rounds.

The cash prize for the champion amounted to an impressive 700,000 dollars.

That sum of money would be sufficient to cover her mother’s medical expenses, and it would also give her the confidence to leave Evan.

Caroline replied, [Thank you. This means a lot to me.]

Paige responded, [You’re welcome. Just treat me to a meal when you have some free time.]

Caroline agreed to the proposition.

Just as she was done filling out the application form, Lily knocked on her door, informing her food was ready.

Caroline promptly closed her laptop and headed downstairs.