Chapter 1 Apparently, He Did Not Remember Her

After finishing up the last slide of her Powerpoint presentation, Natalie Snowden turned off her laptop and lifted her left wrist to look at her watch. The hands of the dial pointed to 9 in the morning.

Daylight had come without her noticing it!

She had been working for so long but she had not bothered to take even a single bite of her dinner from last night.

After shaking her lovely head slightly, a bitter smile appeared on Natalie’s pretty face. At this moment, the door of the clinic’s consulting room was violently and loudly kicked open.

Before she could figure out what was going on, her vision went blurry and she was hoisted up by her collar. When her back came into contact with the cold surface of the table, she was confronted by a pair of sharp eyes.

“You…” Bastard!

Right as she was about to spit out the last word, she was stunned by the sight of her assailant’s face.

The man in front of her was tall and handsome. Even being completely clad in black could not hide his outstanding looks.

His features were chiseled and so sharp they almost had a cold glint—his eyes in particular, which were amber in color and as beautiful as the purest natural agate. However, the way he eyed her was like a hungry wolf.

Was it him?

After so many years, Natalie had not expected to see John Winters ever again—particularly under such ‘surprising’ circumstances…

“Your expression…”

There was a hint of mockery in the man’s cool voice. His cold eyes squinted slightly. “Does that mean you know me?”

What did he mean?

Natalie was dazed; without realizing it she looked into his eyes. Both his gaze and his expression held no hint of recognition at all.

Apparently, he did not remember her at all.

Then again, even though they had been in the most intimate contact eight years ago, the circumstances had been so chaotic it was not surprising he might not be able to recall what she looked like.

At this point in her thoughts, she could not help saying icily, “In Hua City, who dares not to be familiar with Mr. Winters?”

The man could detect the sarcasm in the words ‘Mr. Winters’. He lifted his eyebrows. “You’re not scared of me?”

Natalie Snowden did not flinch. She answered lightly, “I am a surgeon…” In other words, she was not afraid of cutting into a human being; she was not going to be afraid of a living, breathing man.

Upon hearing that the man narrowed his eagle-sharp black eyes and inspected this feisty woman before him.

He looked into her shining eyes, which were clear and bright as a multitude of stars.

Her full red lips had a natural upward curve. It gave one the impression that she might very well be smiling naturally, even when she was not.

Her small dainty nose sat elegantly on her innocent yet alluring face, and her complexion was very fair. He could barely see the skin pores on her face despite being so close to her.

With such a face, it was no wonder his ascetic grandfather had fallen for her.

The man’s gaze grew colder. “I heard that my grandfather popped your cherry on this table?”

Old Master Winters was almost 70 years old. He had one foot in the coffin, yet he still was embroiled in a lot of sex scandals. The leading lady of the scandal this time was the innocent-looking woman in front of him. She looked as pure as a dove.

John had heard that his grandfather was so infatuated with this woman, he even planned to marry her.

When he heard this news, John exploded in anger. As soon as he returned from overseas, he had immediately come to this place.

He lifted her pointed chin roughly with one hand, his gaze as cutting as twin blades. “Do you think you can be Mrs. Winters just because you have a pretty face?”

As he spoke, the man moved his hand slightly, roughly pulling up Natalie’s knee-length skirt.

In that instant, she felt goosebumps over her entire body!

Since he had her body trapped, Natalie could not retaliate. However, there was unmistakable rebellion in her clear eyes as she stared at him. “A wise man does not believe in rumors.”

“Are you saying you don’t want to be Mrs. Winters and that my grandfather has never touched you?”

John chuckled mirthlessly at her words and his gaze became even colder. “Since you’re so sure, are you brave enough to let me check?”

Check?

Natalie’s expression changed. In that instant of fright, John had already reached forward to scoop her up by the waist, lifting her with his other hand. He forced her legs apart and wrapped them around his waist.

“No!”

Usually, Natalie was calm. This time, however, she could not help inhaling a cold breath and began struggling with all her might. An instant later, her hands were pinned behind her back and she could not move…

John moved his face close to hers. His eyes glittered with an undercurrent of hatred, the sort that would only cease with death. “Good girl; it won’t be too late to scream after I check you thoroughly!”

After saying this, he pressed his strong chest down against her…

Natalie pressed her lips together, her entire expression one of disgust. She held in her breath and shouted accusingly, “Bastard! Put me down now if you’re a man!”

Reverse psychology?

He was definitely not going to fall for this.

The man squinted his piercing eyes, the corners of his mouth quirked up in a smirk. Natalie shivered when she saw the darkness in his eyes.

Right now he looked exactly like he did eight years ago, even if he did not recognize her.

His metal belt buckle rubbed against the soft skin inside of her thigh. The cold hard feel of it traveled up Natalie’s skin all the way to her scalp.

Her brain refused to work!

Normally, she wore pants to work. Unfortunately, she had chosen to wear a skirt yesterday…

Looking at her terrified expression, John leaned down and brought his lips close to her ear. “See? You’re scared aren’t you?” he spat out softly.

After saying this, his hand—accustomed to wielding a pistol—suddenly landed on the thin fabric covering her private parts. “Are you a virgin, woman?”

Natalie flinched and she froze.

What happened that night eight years ago flashed before her eyes. Her face was pale as she slapped him hard across the face.

John was caught off-guard!

The slap landed squarely on his face. It did not hurt a lot, but it was enough to infuriate him.

“How dare you slap me!”

John’s brows set in cold hard lines; he was furious. His hostility did not dissipate; it was as dense as a hurricane. “Then be prepared for the consequences.”

At that moment, the shadows in the outpatient department were intertwined…

Under the dim lights, the man’s amber-colored eyes shone brighter than stars. They looked like they could swallow someone whole.

Natalie could not see the true emotions on his face as he was standing with his back to the light. However, her heart could not stop pounding hard as she sensed the icy aura emanating from him.

John did not give her a chance to open her mouth. He squinted his amber-colored eyes and he smirked. “Which finger do you want? I’ll let you choose.”

What?

Was he going to use his finger to check her body?

When she thought about that, Natalie took a deep, cold breath. A faint sheen of sweat gradually appeared on her palms.

If this had been anyone else, she could pretend that they were just intimidating her.

However, this was John Winters…

This man was the eldest son of the Winters, the most prominent aristocrats in Hua City. He had formerly been the youngest air vice-marshal in the Huaxia Air Force. He was also the only man who had received the medal of highest honor in Huaxia before he was thirty years old, and had been given the formidable nickname ‘Ares of the army’.

He had been discharged from military service, but it was said that after he took over Winters Corporation, it had become a public listed company in less than two years. Not only that, but their total assets also quadrupled and quintupled. Moreover, this was in a financial sector that already had several generations of established financial magnates.

As a result, John Winters was a legend in the business world.

In addition, he was born into a military family, so he was brazen and recalcitrant. There was nothing he was afraid of doing once he had set his mind on it. So, when he said he wanted to check her body, he was definitely not joking.

"No! No, you can't…”

As she was protesting, John’s finger traveled upwards. In a blink of an eye, before Natalie could feel embarrassed, he had already…

He only touched her for a split second. When he retracted his finger, he took a piece of tissue and wiped his hand slowly.

“No.”

He spat out that single word through thin lips. After saying this, the man’s eyes grew even darker and unfathomable.

It was just one word, but when he said it, Natalie felt as if she had been slapped hard.

Words could no longer describe the pain she felt.

Her humiliation turned into anger. She did not care how ambiguous their positions looked right now. She lifted one long leg and kicked him with all her might.

Who was John Winters though?

How could he let her get the better of him again after he was caught unawares the first time? He reached out his hand and grabbed her leg as she kicked at him.

After securely catching her leg, he forced it down to one side…