Chapter 2

Brooklyn looked at the man. He didn't know whether it was because of the latter's pheromones or presence, but he couldn't help feeling a little scared. He backed up.

Dimitri Wood tried to wheel himself into the room. Seemingly finding it a little hard, he said to Brooklyn, "Could you help push me inside?"

Brooklyn was taken aback. Then, he hurried over to wheel Dimitri into the room.

"Thanks." Dimitri placed a hand on Brooklyn's and coughed while asking, "Do you not like me, Zachary?"

"Huh?" Brooklyn was confused. He didn't understand this. Why was Dimitri calling him "Zachary"?

He looked around the room, not seeing anyone else around. Did Dimitri have the wrong guy?

Brooklyn asked tentatively, "Are you talking to me?"

"Who else could I be talking to?" Dimitri held his hand and looked at him tenderly. "I might be crippled, Zachary, but I promise I'll treat you well."

"Wait, no." Brooklyn hurriedly waved his free hand. "I'm not this Zachary you speak of."

"You're repulsed by me, aren't you?" Dimitri sounded pitiful. "That's why you ran away, right?"

"What?" Only then did the realization dawn on Brooklyn—the guy who'd rammed into him last night was called Zachary Hart. Zachary didn't like that Dimitri was crippled, so he'd made a run for it!

That didn't explain why those men had captured Brooklyn, though. He wasn't Zachary—were they blind or something?

"I'm really not Zachary. My name is Brooklyn York," he hurriedly explained. However, Dimitri tightened his grip. Brooklyn couldn't even pull away if he wanted.

Dimitri moved his hand from Brooklyn's over his wrist, his actions cautious yet arousing.

"Don't do this." Brooklyn flushed a little. He stopped Dimitri's hand with his other and said, "I'm not your husband."

Dimitri smiled faintly when he heard that. Then, he tugged Brooklyn into his arms and said affectionately, "Not yet. We're not married yet, after all."

Brooklyn wanted to push him away but found that he couldn't. Dimitri was crippled, but he had a strong grip. The former couldn't break free at all.

"Listen to me." Brooklyn stammered, "I-I'm really not Zachary. You can't not recognize your husband, right? We don't even look the same."

Dimitri chuckled and released him. Then, with a smile, he said, "You are Zachary. You're just like in your photos."

Brooklyn felt a chill run down his spine when he heard that. Then, he watched as Dimitri pulled up several photos on his phone. They showed a man in an expensive suit, his arm linked with another man he didn't recognize.

This was a life that had nothing to do with Brooklyn, but their faces were identical.

"This—" Brooklyn wanted to continue denying it, but he sounded less firm now. "This isn't me."

Dimitri smiled bitterly and showed Brooklyn a few more photos. Then, he said helplessly, "Are you that against marrying me? Do you have to keep denying that this is you?"

"No, I—This really isn't me!" Brooklyn didn't know what else he could say. "My name is Brooklyn York, and I live in the underground level. I have a grandmother with Alzheimer's—her name is Liza Stone, and she's waiting for me to head home to care for her."

"Is that so?" Dimitri smiled faintly when he asked that. However, the look in his eyes made Brooklyn shudder.