Chapter 2

"Is something wrong?" Kirk looked at her.

Caroline's red lips parted. She was unsure how to explain but was afraid he would overthink things. "No. Let's go."

It had to be done sooner or later.

On the way over, she received a call from Eddy.

Upon seeing the flashing screen, Caroline's expression froze. She was reminded of how she'd behaved in the past eight years—she used to be the one who called Eddy, asking about his day. But Eddy had never called her.

She wouldn't have received an ounce of concern even if she were in the hospital undergoing surgery. But now, Eddy was calling Caroline for Layla's sake.

There was no way Caroline could compare to Layla.

"Aren't you going to take that?" Kirk looked out of the window. He had been resting his eyes.

Caroline looked at his perfect face. Although she couldn't see his expression, she felt like he was annoyed.

She hesitated for a moment before finally picking up.

Before she could even speak, Eddy's angry voice came from the speaker. "Caroline! Get the fuck to the hospital now! Do you know how many specialists are waiting? Do you know how bad Layla feels? How can you be so selfish? I've already agreed to fucking marry you. What else do you fucking want?"

Caroline smiled bitterly. Although she knew that Eddy didn't like her, she never would have known how lowly he thought of her.

If that was the case …

"Don't you know what I want?" Caroline's gaze grew cold. "I want your love. Can you give it to me?"

"You're fucking shameless," he mocked. "I would never fall for a woman like you! Get your ass here now, Caroline, and you might still be Mrs. Morrison. If you're late, you'll get nothing!"

Caroline looked up. She felt like even her heart was crying. "I'm already married," she said.

Then, she hung up.

This was the first time she ever did that.

How nice it felt not to have to wait in misery.

On the other end of the call, Eddy trembled in hatred. Then, he sneered.

Married? Caroline only wanted to marry him. How could she marry someone else?

Her scheming was becoming more and more absurd. She wanted to fake a marriage to negotiate with him!

How scary she was!

…

After she hung up, the car lapsed into silence.

Kirk, who was looking out the window in annoyance, massaged his temples. The call had been too loud. He could hear everything without trying. On top of that, the man sounded familiar. He'd heard it somewhere before.

"It's no wonder that you don't like men," he said, his charming voice filling the entire car.

The sudden feeling of being understood made Caroline's tears fall like a river. She raised her head and tried to hold back her sobs. She said, gnashing her teeth, "Men are all fucking dogs!"

Kirk did not object. He merely glanced at her.

She was trembling all over. Her fingers gripped the steering wheel hard, and her knuckles were white. She was outraged. But despite that, her crystal eyes were determined, as if she had risen from the dead. She looked unafraid of what life could throw at her and was ready to break free of her chains and soar with her wings.

Something stirred in Kirk's heart. "I'll drive."

Caroline stopped sobbing.

Kirk didn't dare to look into her eyes. "I don't want to die."

Caroline was wordless. They swapped seats and went straight to Caroline's home without sharing a word between them.

Reaching the entrance, Caroline had finally gathered her emotions. She looked at herself in the rearview mirror. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her lips looked pale and bloodless. Her skin was already fair to begin with, and she looked like a broken porcelain doll.

She put on some eyeshadow and lipstick and inspected herself before turning to Kirk. "I'm done."

Caroline looked like a different person with makeup on. Her beautiful eyes were bright, full of calmness and gentleness. Her lips were cherry red, seductive, and alluring.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" Caroline looked into the mirror again.

Kirk looked away, smirking. "I didn't think you would look this good."

It sounded different after he said it out loud. Caroline couldn't be bothered to argue with him and anxiously looked at the villa, clutching her shirt. She took a deep breath and mustered up her courage before saying, "Let's go."

Kirk looked at the way she entered her own home like she was walking to her execution and raised an eyebrow. Then, he followed behind her in amusement.

"Mom, Dad! I'm home!" Caroline pushed the door open and looked into the living room.

Dan Evans pushed up his glasses in surprise when he saw her and welcomed her. "Why are you back, Caroline?"

After she came of age, she had moved to the city to take better care of Eddy.

When she saw the wrinkles on her father's face, Caroline's eyes watered. She'd spent all her time and energy on Eddy and hadn't noticed how old her parents had become.

Thank goodness she'd realized who she really should be caring for in time.

"Dad …"

"And this is?" Dan instantly noticed Kirk, who was standing behind Caroline. With his sharp instincts, he knew there was more to this man than what was on the surface.

Caroline said in hesitation, "He's my …"

"Carrie, you're back!" There was a gleeful exclamation. A red figure rushed toward Caroline from the second floor. "Eddy called me and said that you're going to get married. Is this true?"

Caroline was stunned. "What?"

Eddy had gone ahead with the marriage by himself.

Dan didn't notice his daughter's reaction and asked his wife excitedly, "Is that true? Has Eddy finally agreed to marry Carrie?"

They'd been waiting for this moment for over a decade.

When she saw how happy her parents were, she bit her lip.

How despicable. Eddy had guessed accurately that she would not go against her parents and was using them to coerce her! He would use every tactic in the book to achieve his goal.

When Caroline felt like she was about to suffocate, Kirk rested his hand on her shoulder. His deep, charismatic voice sounded from above her head. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. I'm Carrie's husband. It's nice to meet you."