How wonderful! It turned out he had found the love of his life.”
And I was on the receiving end of a scolding phone call from my advisor.
“Do you want to delay graduation? Do you even know which big shot is coming to hear your thesis defense?“}
“You’re not off dating again, are you? Everyone’s saying you’ve latched onto some sugar daddy. What kind of man would need you to cling to him personally?“}
I didn’t even know how I made it through the call. All I could feel was the fever burning through me.
I booked a hotel room for myself, then asked the front desk to send up some medicine.>
When I opened the door to get the medicine, there she was, Liam’s fiancée.§
She was just like him, flawless, elegant, every strand of hair in place. Even in her simplicity, she radiated an untouchable nobility.
As Liam opened the door, she threw herself into his arms.
He held her close, then shot me a cold, impatient glance. The message was clear: Why haven’t you left yet?}
My fever clouded my mind and hot tears streamed down my face.”
I would leave.
I would leave so far away, no trace left behind.}
I would follow my advisor’s instructions and never again let myself be tangled in anything to do with Liam.}
The waiter who had brought me the medicine nervously asked where it hurt and if I needed to go to the hospital.
But Liam didn’t say a word, as though whether I lived or died was of no consequence to him.}
Even his fiancée asked quietly, “What’s wrong with that young lady? She looks really unwell.”} Liam pulled her into the room and answered flatly, “Don’t worry about her.”>
That indifference cut deeper than anything else.
****
After taking the medicine, I curled up against the cold.
I dreamt of Liam again.”
Even in my fevered state, he wouldn’t let me go.
I had been adopted by a couple who couldn’t have children, but when they later had a son, they saw raising me as nothing more than a way to eventually sell me for a bride price.
I couldn’t accept that fate, so I ran away, seeking help from the government, from anyone who would listen.§
By some strange twist, I ended up receiving financial aid from Liam.»
He even added me on WhatsApp, though he never sent a single message until my adoptive parents created a scene in front of him. They claimed I was just a toy he had been keeping.}
They said he had ruined their daughter and demanded compensation!
They threw tantrums, rolling on the ground.
Liam looked at them with pure disgust. I felt my face burn with shame, wanting nothing more than to disappear.
Liam paid them a so-called bride price and, in the end, had them arrested for extortion.
That was the first time I met him face–to–face.}
My clothes were torn, ripped by my parents as they dragged and hit me.}
Liam stood there, untouched by the chaos surrounding us.
He took off his suit jacket and draped it over me.>
“It’s handled. Go back and focus on your studies.”
Tears welled up in my eyes.”
I liked him, but I was too afraid to admit it.”
That was why I couldn’t refuse him when he was drunk.”
My dreams swirled with those hazy, lustful four years.
He seemed to truly enjoy my body, to want me in a way that felt like he couldn’t live without me.}
He promised me forever and said he wanted me by his side for life.
And I believed him.}
But now, looking back, how could I have ever believed anything a man said in bed?
Then, the truth hit me.
Liam was getting married.”
He didn’t need me anymore.
I opened my eyes; the fever was finally gone and I was clear–headed.
This fleeting entanglement, this dream, was finally over.
Chapter
22
1000
Right now, I am interning at Liam’s company.”
I submitted my resignation to HR and they informed me that I would need to undergo a three–day handover process.
No one at the company knew about my past with Liam.
He seemed to take extra care of people like me, those who might try to latch onto him.
Suddenly, my phone buzzed with a WhatsApp message from him. [Come over.]]
Had he found out about my resignation?
Nervously, I went to his office and knocked on the door.
But when the door opened, it was his fiancée who stood there.
That sweet, delicate girl was wearing one of Liam’s dress shirts. “Hi, I’m Salome Amadeo. You left something in our room.”§
In her hand was my employee ID badge.
Liam glanced at me, his eyes cold and indifferent.
It was a look I knew all too well, the same one he had given my shameless parents.{} He thought I had deliberately left my ID in his room.
