"Victoria, I don't have time to waste on you and your little pity party."
Victoria looked up in astonishment at Elias's cold, handsome face, her lips pressed into a thin line. "You don't have to bother with me."
"Not bother with you? So you can use this as an opportunity to run to the old man and complain?"
At his words, Victoria opened her mouth to argue that she had no such intention, but then she thought better of it. Even if she said it, Elias wouldn't believe her. A heavy, helpless feeling lodged in her throat, leaving it tight and sore.
Elias watched her silent form, assuming his accusation had hit its mark and left her speechless. His patience worn thin, he grabbed her arm. "Victoria, I've warned you, cut the games—wait, you're hurt?"
The phone's flashlight illuminated Victoria's face, which was pale, almost translucent.
Victoria pulled her hand back but didn't speak, using the railing to slowly inch her way forward.
Elias's tug had aggravated the pain, which had just started to subside, and she no longer had the energy to respond.
"Victoria!" Elias stared at her slender back, his heart feeling as if it had been struck by a heavy blow. He instinctively grabbed her wrist. "If you were hurt, why didn't you say so from the beginning?"
Why didn't she say so?
Victoria stopped and glanced at the hand clamped around her wrist. She had no strength left, nor the will, to pull it away. She asked sarcastically, "If I had, would you have believed me?"
The answer was obvious.
Elias met her steady, clear gaze, the scorn in it impossible to miss.
His gaze darkened, and he released her.
Victoria hadn't expected an answer. Seeing him let go, she continued to shuffle down the stairs. But just as she took a step, she was lifted off the ground. Elias had moved in front of her and scooped her up into his arms.
His gaze drifted down to the woman in his arms, and he frowned.
Why was she so light? Had she been skipping meals?
"Elias, you—"
"Shut up. If you say one more word, I don't mind finishing what we started last night, right here and now," Elias said, his face dark. He felt an overwhelming irritation and didn't want to hear another sound from her.
The memory of being pinned to the sofa, humiliated, flashed through Victoria's mind. Her face paled. She didn't doubt for a second that he meant it. She clamped her lips shut and even quieted her breathing.
The Maybach pulled into the underground garage of The Imperial Crest Estates just as the rain began to let up.
The ride had been silent.
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