Chapter 1

Large rocks tumbled down from the mountaintop unexpectedly.

It crashed into the bus, which Noelle Xanthos happened to be in, and the two cars ahead. The cars were buried beneath the rubble right away. Meanwhile, the bus got struck so hard that it jerked violently before flipping onto its side.

"Wren, we encountered a landslide! I'm going to die!" A woman on the bus bawled while shrieking into her phone.

With trembling hands, Noelle fished her phone out and sent Quentin Lowe a voice message. "I'm scared, Quentin… Can you come and get me?"

The shivering in her voice made it evident that she was crying.

Yet, there was no response from the other end.

Noelle sat near the window, so her head smashed into the glass when the bus flipped over. The girl sitting beside her also crashed into her. When everything finally stilled, Noelle could no longer move one of her arms.

Pain, chaos, stuffiness, fear, and helplessness overwhelmed the small, cramped space. Noelle felt as if she were drowning in a torturous sea of flames.

"Will you rescue me, Quentin?" she wondered while also feeling hopeful.

Alas, he never came.

Her heart grew heavy with disappointment as time passed from the start of the landslide to her arm dislocating and popping back into place.

She found herself foolish for texting him.

After all, everyone in Dragfort City knew about Quentin Lowe.

Quentin was the owner of Stille Industries. He was the most handsome and wealthiest man in Dragfort. Apart from work, he only cared about Xyla Cadwell.

…

It was already dusk when Noelle returned to Windsor District.

Quentin's tall, slender figure was in the living room by then. He sported a sleek hairstyle and had a chiseled jawline. Every feature on his face was close to perfection.

Even the dark sky couldn't dull the elegance radiating from him.

It seemed like he had just returned home. While undoing his shirt, he asked, "What were you afraid about? Sorry, I just saw your text."

He was gentle and polite.

Quentin didn't appear to know about this afternoon's incident, which had five casualties and over 30 injured people. He was unaware of the news that alarmed the internet and the government. On top of that, he had no clue about the trauma his wife had endured.

"It's nothing." Noelle shot him a blank stare. It had been five hours since the landslide. Her corpse would've already started stinking if she had died under the rubble.

Regardless, she didn't bring it up to Quentin.

Noelle supported her injured arm before turning on her heel to enter the kitchen. Yet, she stopped in the next second and turned her head around. She watched as a curious gleam flickered in Quentin's dark gaze.

He asked, "Is something the matter?"

Noelle replied, "Would you be sad if I died?"

The darkness of dusk had concealed her pale countenance. She stood before Quentin. Her build was tall and slim. Yet, something also felt off about her.

Quentin held her gaze, then smiled after a moment. His smile was strikingly beautiful. He strolled ahead, sat on the couch, and crossed one leg over the other. "Let's not beat around the bush. Tell me what you want!"

Three months ago, someone had captured a photo of him and Xyla leaving a villa in the western suburbs. The person claimed Quentin hid Xyla, whom they believed was his mistress, in that fancy villa.

Quentin bribed Noelle with a brand new, fancy house called Lindbarry Estate to prevent Noelle from telling the press anything. It was a lucrative property due to its good location in the south of the city. The house was around 2200 square feet and worth over ten million.

Since then, he always thought she was blackmailing him whenever she tried to talk.

Noelle lowered her gaze to conceal the bitterness she felt. Then, she blandly replied, "The villas in Crystal Bay Residential seem nice."

After that, she headed to the kitchen. Nobody knew that all she wanted was a little love from him.

Disdain filled Quentin's gaze as he fixed his gaze on her back. He soon took his phone and called his assistant. "Reserve a villa in Crystal Bay Residential!"

Those properties were all developed by Stille Industries, so it was easy for him to reserve a villa.

Noelle heard his contemptuous tone, which made her heart shrivel with irony even more. He was the one who swore to shower her with riches since he couldn't love her. Yet, he was now acting reluctant. It was as if he was forced to do it.

Noelle spent over half an hour cooking a creamy pasta. She tossed garlic, shrimp, bacon, some cheese, and butter together, allowing them to cook at the right temperature.

It was just the way Quentin liked it.

One could say that she poured all her love from the past three years of marriage into the pasta. On top of that, she had engraved the habit of caring for her husband's meals and daily needs deep into her bones.

However, she was almost at death's door today. She was too traumatized and worn out to make homemade pasta. So, she used boxed pasta instead.

Quentin was on a phone call when Noelle brought the creamy pasta out of the kitchen.

The living room's bright lights shined onto his tall frame as he spoke. "Yes, I was at the hospital the entire afternoon. Xy was hurt, so I accompanied her for her check-up."

His warm voice made its way to Noelle. She froze midstep. A sharp ache plunged deep into her heart just then. It turned out that Quentin had no time to check his phone because he was busy accompanying Xyla for her checkup.

It just so happened that Noelle was in dire straits while he was keeping Xyla company.

That upset Noelle, so she placed the creamy pasta on the table before heading upstairs.

Quentin eventually finished his phone call. He noticed the delicious creamy pasta on the dinner table, put away his phone, and headed over.

Alas, he couldn't stand eating the food after a few bites. It was the first time he had tasted such sickeningly sweet pasta. Plus, the pasta wasn't soft and didn't have a rich taste. It was different from homemade pasta.

He looked up at the stairs and bellowed, "Noelle!"

At that moment, Noelle was taking a shower in the bathroom. She was still deep in her depressed thoughts, so she didn't hear him shouting from downstairs. She also hadn't realized she was so depressed earlier when cooking that she mistook sugar for salt.

Quentin flung the bathroom door open just then.

Chills traveled down Noelle's spine as she jolted and whipped her head toward the door. There, she saw Quentin standing by the door with brows deeply furrowed into a stern frown.

Noelle instinctively crossed her arms around her chest.

Quentin's Adam's apple bobbed as he stormed inside. "We'll shower together!"

He wanted to question her awful cooking at first. However, the sudden sight of her irresistible body sparked his lust.

Quentin unbuttoned his shirt and revealed his firm muscles. He approached Noelle and towered over her. His frame was tall and broad.

Whenever it came to sex, he was always in control. He decided where and what position to use when having sex.

Noelle never resisted him. Even so, she wasn't up to having sex with Quentin today.

She turned her head the other way to dodge his incoming kiss. At the same time, she raised her knee to block him. "I'm unwell today, Quentin! You should go to Ms. Cadwell instead!"

Quentin paused and narrowed his eyes. To him, she was only saying that to provoke him. He stared into her stubborn eyes, clouded by the shower steam. He snarled, "Are you really alright with that?"

"Yes, I am. I'm very much alright with it!" Noelle instantly replied without giving it any thought.

Her words seemed to frustrate Quentin.

A frown marred Quentin's face while he exuded a threatening vibe. Immediately after that, he grabbed her thin waist and forced her to turn around. "We'll discuss it after I fuck you!"

…

Quentin plunged into her harder each time.

After an hour of sex, Noelle almost thought she'd die in that bathroom.

Quentin carried her limp body back to the bedroom before tossing a set of keys beside her.

Noelle glanced at it and vaguely saw the label, "Crystal Bay Residential." In the second, she fainted.

It was 9:00 a.m. when she awoke. By then, Quentin wasn't around anymore.

Her entire body was sore, and she felt like her waist was about to snap in two. She wondered, "How the hell does the rotten Quentin have the sexual stamina to fuck me and sleep with Xyla on the side? Isn't he afraid of getting kidney failure?"

Noelle mentally cursed him out. Then, she ignored her sore legs and aching waist to clean herself up before going to Harborview Retreat in the western suburbs.