Chapter 2: I Am Willing to Marry You

The sound of Julia’s slap was loud and clear.

Vivien was caught off-guard. Her wide and terrified eyes stared at Julia.

However, this was not over yet.

Julia raised her hand again. All of a sudden, another slap landed on Vivien’s cheek.

“Ah!” Vivien screamed in pain. Julia’s slap was heavier than the first one. Vivien couldn’t bear it anymore, and she covered her swollen face as she cried in pain.

“Vivien!” Carter called, looking at her helplessly. He then transferred his eyes to Julia, angry. He fisted his hands and imagined torturing her.

“Julia! Stop it! Stop it for me!”

Julia stopped. Her head turned toward Carter, raising her brow. She looked at him briefly before slapping Vivien’s face again.

She wanted to see how long Vivien would be able to endure it. She wanted to know how long she could keep her façade.

“Julia! Stop it. You’re hurting me. I’m begging you—Ouch!”

Vivien’s cries fell on deaf ears. Julia continued hitting her, increasing the strength of her slaps every time. Vivien couldn’t even feel her face anymore.

Her face was red and swollen, but she kept her lips shut and lay on the bed, not wanting to fall into Julai’s trap.

Julia inwardly shook her head. She might have underestimated Vivien. The latter was not stupid and weak. No wonder her innocent façade fooled a lot of people and victimized Julia.

“Vivien, what will happen if your innocent face gets ruined? Do you think Carter will still like you?” Julia sweetly asked. Then, she grabbed the fruit knife from the fruit basket and waved it in front of Vivien’s face.

Vivien’s eyes bulged out, mortified.

“You’re crazy! You’re a psychopath, Julia!”

Julia looked at Vivien with a smile and muttered, “Yes. I’m crazy. Now, watch me carve a beautiful flower on your delicate skin.”

Vivien let out a wild scream. She was so scared that she rolled over from the bed and fell to the floor.

“Ouch!” she groaned as she rubbed her buttocks in pain.

“Where are you going, Vivien? Didn’t you ask me to save you?” Julia mocked as she walked closer to her. The fruit knife hung on her fingers. “How will I be able to save you if you run?”

“No! Don’t go near me!” Vivien shouted desperately and started crawling toward the door.

‘You want to escape?’ Julia thought. ‘No freaking way!’

Julia dashed toward her, making the latter panic. Vivien couldn’t open the door, so she rushed in a different direction.

Vivien ran around while Julia chased after her.

“Stop it, Julia! Someone, help! Carter! Help me!” Vivien cried.

“V-Vivien,” Carter whispered as he watched the scene in front of him. His eyes were red from anger and desperation. This time, his urge to skin Julia alive intensified.

Fortunately, the medical staff came to his view and opened the door with a key.

Vivien seized the moment and stumbled toward the door. She then ran to Carter.

“Vivien!” Carter said and embraced her with a tight hug. “Are you okay?”

Vivien sobbed, her body trembling. “Carter, I…”

“She’s okay,” Julia interrupted.

“Carter, haven’t you seen the way she moved around the room? Massive hemorrhage? I highly doubt it,” Julia scoffed and chuckled. “Since when did a pregnant woman with a massive hemorrhage move actively? If you still believe her, then you’re not blind. You’re clearly aware she’s pretending, and you’re willing to cooperate with her.”

Carter’s lips parted in shock. He was so worried about Vivien and the baby’s safety that he didn’t realize this immediately. He remembered how Vivien looked like she was about to die before. She was so weak that she couldn’t speak anymore. He suddenly recalled how Vivien ran around the hospital room.

‘How could she run so fast when she couldn’t even move earlier?’

Vivien's eyes watered as she watched the changes in Carter’s expression. Her heart beat faster from nervousness.

All of a sudden, Vivien fell into Carter’s arms, weak and trembling.

Carter’s suspicion grew even more. But seeing Vivien fall into his arms, he couldn’t help but still hold her close to him. It felt like a reflex.

In just a snap, Vivien’s sick and weak appearance returned. “Carter, I-I may not… be able to save our c-child. Our baby… I’m… I’m sorry,” she said in a shaky voice.

“This smell…” Julia trailed and sniffed. She slowly walked to the bedside. As soon as she flipped the pillows, her gaze landed on the two blood bags. She picked them up and turned to Vivien, who was still acting her heart out.

‘Massive bleeding, huh?’

Carter’s dark gaze stayed on the blood bags. He clenched his jaw and took a deep breath before looking at the woman in his arms.

Vivien saw the rage in Carter’s eyes, startling her. She swallowed hard, and slowly, tears flowed down her cheeks.

“Carter… I-I’m sorry. I was wrong. I shouldn’t have done this, but I was left with no choice. I love you so much! I can’t just stand there and watch you get married. Believe it or not, without you, I really can’t live,” she sobbed. “I’m sorry. Forgive me, please.”

She cried profusely in front of him. Deep down, her head was filled with curses for Julia.

‘Why is this woman so nosy? How did she find out about the blood bags?’ She couldn’t find a place where to hide them, so she put them under her pillows out of panic. Now, Julia was casually waving it in front of Carter’s face!

Carter looked at Vivien. There was a painful tug in his heart, especially upon seeing her sad expression and listening to her words. He heaved a deep sigh.

“I should be the one to say sorry. I wasn’t able to stop my engagement as early as I could. You got stressed about it. You acted out of desperation and disappointment. I don’t blame you. I will never blame you, Vivien.”

Julia watched the two quietly. ‘Julia, is the man who you truly loved? He’s nothing but a jerk who loved someone else. It’s not worth dying for this kind of man.”

“Fine. I’ll make things easier for you two,” Julia spoke. The two watched her remove the engagement ring from her finger and shake it before Vivien.

“Didn’t you always want this?” Julia asked her. “Here. I’ll give this to you.” With a flick of her finger, the ring flew and landed inside the garbage can.

“Pick up the garbage that I don’t want.”

Without waiting for their replies, Julia walked out of the ward and never looked back.

Carter’s jaw dropped. He stared at Julia’s retreating form, confused. She was completely different from the Julia he had known before!

But the good news was, she was finally gone. He didn’t want to see this woman again. He despised her!

All heads turned to Julia as she walked out of the hospital. When she passed by a wall with a full-length mirror, she finally realized why.

She looked at her reflection. Her wedding dress was ruined all over. The stains of mascara from her tears spread on her cheeks.

No wonder she attracted so much attention.

Julia continued walking outside until her gaze caught the man standing at the entrance of the courtroom.

The man was breathtaking. He looked like one of those models straight out of a magazine.

‘Is that… Jared Brooks? The CEO of Brooks Corporation?’ she thought. She stared at him longer, until she realized it was really him!

In her previous life, her last mission was related to the Brooks family. Unfortunately, her subordinates betrayed her before she could even finish the mission.

It was Julia’s frustration. She wasn’t able to complete the task!

But now that she saw him, perhaps it was God’s sign. If she didn’t take the opportunity now to complete her mission, she wouldn’t forgive herself.

With this thought in mind, Julia quietly walked towards the courtroom.

Beside Jared was a young man in a wheelchair. He and Jared looked quite the same. However, the younger man was a bit more handsome than Jared's chiseled facial features.

Julia suddenly recalled some information about Jared. The latter had a younger brother.

‘He must be Shiloh Brooks,’ she thought.

‘What are they doing in the courtroom?’

Julia tilted her head and thought about it. To her luck, she heard the two men talking with each other.

“Jared, we’ve been here for an hour. I don’t think the Scott family’s daughter will come,” Shiloh muttered in an upset tone. “Grandma is just crazy about wanting to have a grandchild. Before she died, she arranged you with this woman and warned you that you must get married this year. If not, she would not die in peace. She’s just overreacting.”

Jared raised a brow. His dark and hooded eyes were filled with unfathomable wisdom.

“It’s not like she’ll willingly do this. After all, no matter what business affair it is, I never usually show up. According to rumors, which spread like wildfire, I’m ugly as hell, violent, and impatient. Some say I’m a bald person who's over fifty years old. Who would marry such a person?”

“I will.”

Jared and Shiloh turned their heads. A woman with a messy face in a ruined wedding dress appeared.

“I’m willing to marry you.”