Chapter 2

Under the night sky, Alexander stood in a black suit, exuding an air of arrogance and nobility, his presence commanding and imposing. His deep black eyes, especially, were like stars in the darkness.

Perhaps due to his long career as a lawyer, just standing there doing nothing, he seemed to radiate sharpness.

My breath hitched; I never expected the person I was holding to be Alexander!

Since my marriage to Adrian, Alexander had always been distant with me. I thought he had a grudge against me and had never heard him speak to me so gently.

My hands were still around his neck, and our bodies were tightly pressed together...

My face burned with embarrassment. "Alexander, I'm sorry, I thought you were Adrian..."

Hastily, I pulled my hands back, trying to create some distance between us, but in my fluster, I backed straight into the railing behind me.

"Bang!" I yelped in pain and instinctively recoiled, only to crash right back into Alexander's arms, even closer than before!

I couldn't help but struggle, and Alexander's deep voice came from above, "Don't move!"

I froze in place, acutely aware of the hardness in Alexander's pants. The sensation where we touched was a tingling itch that Adrian had never given me.

Panic surged through me, making my words stumble. "I... I need to go back..."

Before I could move away from Alexander, Adrian's displeased voice came from the stairwell. "Bella, are you throwing another tantrum and not coming back?"

I instantly tensed up, sweating from nervousness, and hastily stepped away from Alexander.

Seeing the guilty look on my face, Adrian's displeasure deepened. "Come back with me. Running out here to catch a breeze in the middle of the night, making a fool of yourself in front of Alexander." His rebuke pierced my heart like a needle.

I couldn't help but clutch my clothes, feeling helpless and embarrassed.

At that moment, Alexander's indifferent voice cut through the tension. "Adrian, men of the Blackwood family never blame their women."

Adrian's expression faltered, replaced by a look of defeat. My nose stung with sudden emotion.

When Adrian was scolding me, I felt only humiliation and awkwardness. But Alexander's defense made my pent-up grievances spill over.

Adrian and I had walked down the aisle from our university days, admired by everyone as a model couple. How did it come to this?

Others defended me, while my husband only blamed me.

I cast a grateful glance at Alexander, but all I saw was his upright back as he walked away.

...

Back in the bedroom, Adrian went straight to the bathroom without sparing me a glance. The shattered bowl of medicine I had knocked over earlier still lay on the floor. The mess was a mocking reminder of our ridiculous marriage...

I knelt down to clean the floor.

After finally tidying up, a pair of hands suddenly wrapped around my waist from behind. Adrian urgently grabbed me and threw me onto the bed.

"Ah!"

The sense of falling made me yelp, and I turned to meet Adrian's angry eyes. Without a word or any foreplay, he started to ignite my body. My ears burned, and the places he touched began to heat up. The residual effect of the medicine made me unconsciously rub my thighs together, seeking something to fill the emptiness there.

But just as I wrapped my arms around Adrian's back muscles, his movements abruptly stopped. I opened my eyes in confusion to see Adrian's face pale, his eyes downcast, a flash of shame and anger crossing his features...

I didn't know what to feel,after all, this happened almost every day.

I tried to suppress my rising heat, softly comforting him. "It's okay, we can try again tomorrow."

But Adrian, as if struck where it hurt most, became even angrier. "If you had obediently drunk the medicine earlier, we might have succeeded by now!"

I was stunned by his harsh words. He used to never speak to me like this, always eager to please. If I asked for the stars, he wouldn't settle for just the moon.

Why had he changed so much, making me feel wrong no matter what I said?

Tears welled up uncontrollably in my eyes. "You weren't like this before..."

I had hoped Adrian would comfort me like he used to. But there was no response.

I wiped my own tears and buried myself under the covers.

The next second, Adrian's voice came from outside. "Maybe we should borrow Alexander's sperm."