Callie widened her eyes, her hand hidden under her sleeve already clenched into a tight fist.
Luckily, she had prepared for this.
As expected, Shane was secretly monitoring her.
She had only been to the hospital for an hour, and he already knew?
"I caught a cold, went to get some medicine," she replied, avoiding Shane's gaze.
She had only gone to the hospital for an ultrasound. She had spoken with the doctor to erase the record; it wasn't a surgery that required mandatory documentation.
To cover her tracks, she had taken some cold medicine.
Now, it seemed her thorough thinking had paid off.
Otherwise… She instinctively covered her stomach.
Shane noticed her movement and asked, "You have a cold, and your stomach hurts too?"
Callie quickly removed her hands. "I-I have a cold. Can't my stomach hurt too?"
She tried to maintain her composure.
Shane Robinson paused for a moment, considering. "I suppose that's possible."
"You better not be lying. If the investigators find out you weren't sick and you deceived me, you know I will make your life a living hell."
With that, he turned to leave.
Callie called after him, "Where are you going?"
"I have a meeting with someone at K. I won't be home for dinner tonight." As he spoke, he glanced back at Callie.
Then, he strode out the door.
...
After finishing his business, Shane encountered Belinda at the entrance as he was leaving.
She was dressed to the nines. It was obvious she had come deliberately. "What a coincidence!" Belinda smiled gently.
Shane Robinson's face turned ashen. Morning, evening...
She always manage to appear at such "coincidental" times, and he didn't believe in coincidences.
"Miss Ayers, it seems you didn't take my words to heart. Are you stalking me?" Shane's expression was gloomy, his voice sharp as a blade. "It looks like I've been too kind to you."
"Secretary, find out who's been giving her my whereabouts."
"Yes, sir."
The secretary replied, "I'll look into it right away."
Belinda hadn't expected Shane to be so ruthless, not leaving her even a bit of hope.
"You know I once carried your child. Even though the baby is gone, I am still your woman. Why are you treating me like this?" Belinda was extremely aggrieved. She stepped forward and grabbed the hem of Shane Robinson's coat. "Why are you so heartless to me? Please, give me a chance."
Shane stared at her hand, his voice cold. "Let go!"
Belinda reluctantly released her grip. "Are you really going to abandon a woman who truly loves you?"
"Love me?" Shane found it laughable.
If you don't like someone, everything about them seems wrong.
Besides, Shane had personally seen Belinda sitting in another man's lap.
He couldn't muster any affection for her anymore.
"Remember that night we..."
"Shut up." Just looking at her made Shane feel disgusted about that night.
The last bit of goodness had been ruined by her.
"Miss Ayers, you can give yourself to a stranger you don't even know. Do you think you're some pure, conservative, modest woman? If you need money, I can agree to that, but if you bring up that night again, don't blame me for being ruthless."
With that, Shane strode out of the room.
Belinda knew there was no way to win Shane back like this.
He had made up his mind.
Her hands, hanging by her sides, clenched into tight fists.
"Shane, don't you want to know how I found out about your whereabouts?"
Shane heard her words but didn't stop walking. He assumed she was just trying to keep him there with some trick.
Belinda Ayers, who couldn't have Shane Robinson for herself, didn't want Callie Norris to have him either. "It was Callie Norris!"
"Callie told me about your schedule!" Belinda shouted loudly, disregarding her image.
When Shane heard that it was Callie who had informed Belinda of his whereabouts, he finally halted.
He quietly instructed his secretary, "Bring her here."
The secretary turned and walked over to Belinda. "President Robinson wants to see you."
Belinda knew that mentioning Callie's name would pique Shane's interest. But he would also be very angry, wouldn't he?
She felt a bit smug inside. Since she was having a hard time, she decided everyone should suffer too.
Betraying Callie was never her intention. Her collaboration with Callie was solely to get close to Shane. Now that the plan had fallen apart, there was no reason to keep Callie's secret any longer.
She walked up to Shane, pulled out her phone, and showed him the text messages between her and Callie Norris. The messages were clear, detailing the exact time and place.
"Why would she tell you all this?" Shane asked, though he already had his suspicion. He just didn't want to believe it. He didn't want to believe that the woman he cared about was pushing him towards someone else.
"She wants me to reconcile with you so that you'll let her go, and she can leave," Belinda explained, seizing the opportunity to tarnish Callie's reputation further. "The reason she wants to leave is because she has a lover waiting for her. Her personal life is a mess. Even in the hospital, she used her looks to flirt with all the male doctors."
Belinda's words were like venom, poisoning Shane's thoughts. He stood there, his mind swirling with doubt and anger, unable to process the betrayal he felt.
Shane was convinced that Callie was planning to run away.
He also believed there was another man in her heart.
Using her looks to seduce men? Callie certainly had that ability.
After all, she had seduced him too.
No matter how angry he was with Callie, he never let Belinda see even a hint of it.
With a cold, hard expression, he asked mockingly, "Did we ever have anything?"
A dull sound came from his chest. "You're not much better than Callie." With that, he turned and got into his car, driving away.
...
Back in the villa, everyone was already asleep.
The place was eerily quiet. He walked up the stairs.
Pushing open the bedroom door, a sliver of moonlight streamed in from outside.
He walked in, using the moonlight to guide him, and closed the door behind him.
Callie was already asleep.
She didn't sleep soundly, curled up at the edge of the bed.
Her black hair spread out like seaweed on the pillow.
Half of her delicate, petite face was exposed.
Shane stood by the bed, taking off his suit jacket and tossing it carelessly on the floor. Then, he began unbuttoning his shirt, one button at a time.
His face was cast in a shadow, hidden from the light.
Callie stirred, sensing a dark figure by the bed as she turned over. She half-opened her eyes.
Someone was there.
She rubbed her eyes, trying to see clearly.
Soon, she saw a tall figure.
A white shirt slipped off his body.
Callie Norris instantly sobered up.
"Shane, what are you doing?"
She sat up, wrapping herself in the blanket.
Shane didn't reply, staring at her like a predator eyeing its prey.
"Are you going to take it off yourself, or should I do it for you?"
His voice was devoid of any warmth. Only endless coldness.
Callie was dumbfounded.
"Did you drink too much at the party?"
"I'll count to three. One, two..."
"Shane, have you lost your mind?"
Callie felt a surge of fear. Shane's emotions seemed completely off.
"Three!"
Shane yanked the blanket off her!
Callie curled up on the bed, hugging her legs, her eyes blazing with anger. "Shane, if you dare touch me, I will never forgive you!"
Shane's expression was as if he had heard a joke, dark and sinister.
The next second, he pinned her down on the bed!
Callie Norris struggled desperately. "Shane Robinson, let me go!"
Her strength was no match for Shane Robinson's, especially when he was this furious.
He easily pinned Callie's hands above her head, holding them tightly.
She tried to kick Shane off, but he anticipated her move and quickly used his legs to pin hers down.
Callie was completely immobilized.
Fear gripped her heart.
This wasn't her first time with a man.
But this was entirely different.
That night, the man had been gentle with her.
But...
Shane Robinson was insane!
"If you dare touch me, I'll report you for assault!" she threatened.
Shane grabbed her chin, his grip so tight it felt like he might dislocate her jaw, crushing her bones.
His face twisted with anger and sarcasm. "You can try, but let's see if you can win."
As he spoke, he tore open Callie's nightgown.
A chill hit her chest.
Tears streamed down Callie's face instantly.
Her body trembled slightly beneath him.
What did he take her for?
"Callie Norris, are you still that pure girl? You've had men, carried a child, and now all that's left is a dirty, broken body. Do you think I care?" he sneered, his voice dripping with disdain. "I just want to see you humiliated. Do you know how happy it makes me to see you cry? Hmm?"
Callie bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears.
She didn't want him to see her as weak.
She didn't want to be humiliated by him.
But the tears betrayed her, falling in large drops from the corners of her eyes. She stubbornly lifted her head, "Shane Robinson, what kind of man are you? You only know how to bully women. You're nothing but scum, a lowlife!"
"I'm scum, a lowlife? Then what are you?" Shane's voice was mocking and sarcastic. "Are you an unfaithful wife, a whore for anyone?"
Callie's pupils trembled.
In his eyes...
She was... a whore?
Maybe he wasn't entirely wrong.
She had indeed betrayed her marriage.
Even if there was no love between them.
She hadn't kept her loyalty to the marriage.
But somehow, being insulted with such filthy words by him...
It made her chest tighten, her heart ache.
It hurt so much!
"I won't deny it," she rasped, her voice hoarse. "If you despise me so much, then let me go!"
"Dream on!" Shane Robinson suddenly stood up, towering over her. He looked down at her exposed upper body, with only her pants still intact.
From his lofty position, he sneered, "Look at yourself."
Callie Norris didn't move an inch, nor did she try to cover herself.
He probably wanted to see her flustered and scrambling, right?
But she was stubborn. She sat up, disheveled but defiant, her gaze drifting down to his lower body. "You wouldn't be interested in a woman like me, would you?"
She then added mockingly, "You're not much yourself!"
Shane Robinson had indeed intended only to humiliate her, but once again, he underestimated her allure.
"Seems like you can't go a moment without a man!"
Suddenly, Shane leaned down, grabbing her throat and crushing her lips with his.
Pain!
The only thing Callie Norris felt was pain.
The taste of blood filled her mouth.
It was her own lip, bitten and bleeding from his assault.
Callie Norris slowly closed her eyes.
At that moment, she felt a wave of despair.
A tear rolled down her cheek, dripping onto Shane Robinson's hand.
Perhaps that single tear was too hot to handle.
Shane Robinson's hand trembled for a moment before he let go of Callie Norris.
He grabbed his clothes and left!
Callie Norris was stunned, her thoughts slowly coming back to her.
She pulled the bedsheet around herself, wrapping it tightly.
At that moment, her heart ached deeply.
It felt as if someone had stabbed her heart with a sharp knife...
...
Shane Robinson drove away, his mood sinking to the lowest point.
He couldn't accept it. Callie Norris had tried to push him towards Belinda Ayers just to get away from him.
That woman had a heart of stone.
That woman had a heart of stone.
No matter how much he tried to warm it, her heart remained cold.
He needed to vent; he felt like he was suffocating!
It was almost laughable.
When Callie Norris went to the office to inquire about his schedule, he thought she cared about him... but in reality, she just wanted to hand him over to Belinda Ayers.
So, it was all just his wishful thinking?!
When he thought the dumplings Callie Norris made for him that night were a sign of her affection, he even ate so much that he needed antacids for the first time in his life.
Was Callie Norris laughing at him then? Mocking him?!
Shane Robinson had never felt so defeated.
Embarrassed!
Angry!
He had never been toyed with by a woman like this before!
The car stopped at the bar.
He walked in.
He booked a private room.
And drank alone, brooding.
Suddenly, his phone rang in his pocket.
Feeling irritated, he downed another glass of liquor before answering the call, trying to suppress his anger.
It was someone reporting on Callie Norris's hospital visit.
"She went to the hospital to get cold medicine."
Shane Robinson grunted in acknowledgment and hung up.
The more that woman annoyed him, the more he seemed to hear about her.
It was like the universe was conspiring against him!
He tossed his phone aside.
Suddenly, he remembered what Belinda Ayers had said.
Belinda Ayers mentioned that Callie Norris was desperate to leave him because there was another man waiting for her?
Who was that man?
Gabriel Byrne was close to Callie Norris.
Maybe Gabriel Byrne knew?
With that thought, he picked up the phone and dialed Gabriel Byrne's number.
The phone was quickly answered. On the other end, he simply said, "It's me," followed by an address. "Get here quickly."
With that, he hung up.
Gabriel Byrne found Shane Robinson's call quite baffling.
But hearing it was a bar, he didn't dare delay.
He rushed over and found Shane Robinson drinking alone.
Gabriel was stunned.
Shane Robinson was not known for being a drinker.
He was usually very restrained.
What was going on today? Something seemed off.
Gabriel closed the door to the private room and walked in, asking, "What's wrong? Are you feeling down?"
Shane handed him a glass and filled it with alcohol. "Come have a drink with me."
Gabriel wasn't much of a drinker.
But at this moment, he knew he couldn't refuse.
So he said, "Alright!"
He sat down and clinked glasses with Shane.
The alcohol burned his throat.
"Drinking to drown your sorrows only makes them worse," Gabriel tried to advise.
Shane lazily leaned back on the sofa, his collar open, revealing his delicate collarbone.
His gaze was distant. "You're close with Callie Norris. You should know who her man is, right? Tell me."
Gabriel Byrne was left speechless. "..."
A life-or-death question right off the bat?
How could he possibly know about a man that Callie Norris herself didn't even know?
"You called me here just for this..."
"Cut the crap and spit it out," Shane Robinson interrupted impatiently.
Gabriel Byrne looked troubled.
Shane's face darkened instantly. "What, are you trying to cover for her?"
"No, no," Gabriel quickly explained. "It's because Callie herself doesn't know who that man is!"
"So, I really don't know. I wasn't trying to hide it from you."
Gabriel would have told Shane if he knew! Maybe then, Shane would let go of Callie Norris. "You're angry because of this?" he asked.
Shane stared coldly at him. "Gabriel Byrne, do you think I'm an idiot? She doesn't know who her own man is? Now, to reunite with her lover, she's been spying on me, pushing me into Belinda' arms, and using every trick in the book. And you say she doesn't know who her man is?"
Gabriel listened to Shane's words and realized he had a point. How could Callie not know who her man was?
So why was she hiding it from him? Was she afraid he would tell Shane?
"I get it now," Gabriel said, slapping his thigh.
He looked at Shane. "This Callie Norris, she's even wary of me, you know? When she ran away this time, she didn't let a single word slip to me. She knows about my relationship with you and is afraid I'd tell you. She told me she doesn't know who her man is because she was deliberately hiding it from me, fearing I'd tell you."
The more Gabriel thought about it, the more it made sense to him.
"I've been so considerate to her, yet she still guards against me.
It's truly heartbreaking."
"Do you think she's some kind of saint?" Shane sneered. "She doesn't have a heart."
Gabriel fell silent, carefully observing Shane.
"Are you drinking because she set you up with Belinda?" Gabriel knew that Callie and Shane were impossible.
Callie not only had a man but also a child.
"Actually, I think Belinda suits you better than Callie ..."
Shane's lips curved into a sharp, blade-like smile. His voice was low, ready to explode at any moment. "Gabriel Byrne, do you really understand my preferences? I don't even know if Belinda Ayers and I are a good match, but you do?"
Gabriel Byrne met his icy gaze and instinctively shrank back a little.
"Hurry up and explain. I think Belinda Ayers is the woman you were involved with..."
"We were never involved."
"Then you slept with her," Gabriel Byrne said.
Shane Robinson was instantly at a loss for words.
He irritably tugged at his collar.
Gabriel continued, "At least Belinda Ayers gave herself to you, but Callie Norris gave herself to another man. So, think about it,
isn't Belinda Ayers better?"
Didn't he understand this logic?
"You're talking nonsense!"
Shane stood up.
His mind was muddled.
Discussing feelings with a man who had no experience in relationships was a complete mess.
If he liked Belinda Ayers, he would have been with her already.
Why would he be entangled with Callie Norris?
Thinking of Callie Norris's face made him feel cold again.
In the private room.
After Shane left, Gabriel immediately called Callie Norris, wanting to ask her what was going on.
However, no one answered the phone.
Callie Norris sat on the floor, hugging the bed, wrapped in a bedsheet, her eyes unfocused as she stared out the window.
The phone vibrated on the table.
It was as if she didn't hear it.
Or maybe she did, but just didn't want to answer.
Perhaps she didn't feel like talking right now.
The phone rang twice before it finally stopped.
Callie Norris spent the entire night on the floor.
When she went downstairs in the morning, she had dark circles under her eyes, and there were red marks on her neck from where Shane had grabbed her.
She sat at the table eating breakfast. Shane was there too.
Neither of them looked at each other.
They just ate their own food.
Shane finished first and got up.
From start to finish, he didn't glance at Callie even once, as if she didn't exist.
He completely ignored her.
The sound of the door closing made Callie Norris pause slightly as she scooped her porridge.
But she quickly resumed.
She continued eating her porridge in big spoonfuls.
Mrs. Ford walked over and asked quietly, "Why did you two argue again?"
Callie Norris remained silent.
Mrs. Ford saw the marks on her neck and let out a heavy sigh.
She was just a servant, so it wasn't her place to interfere.
Quietly, she went about her work.
She focused on doing her job well.
Callie Norris had breakfast and then left the house.
She headed to the dance studio for her lessons.
She had three classes that morning.
At noon, Principal Lopez invited her to lunch.
While they were eating, Principal Lopez noticed the red mark on her neck.
""Did someone hit you?" Principal Lopez asked cautiously.
Callie quickly covered her neck, realizing the mark was visible.
"You've been teaching all morning, and the foundation you used to cover it has worn off. You can't hide it. Tell me who did this to you, and I'll make sure they pay," Principal Lopez insisted.
Callie lowered her eyes. "It's nothing. I just bumped into something."
"What could you possibly bump into that would leave a mark on your neck?" Principal Lopez clearly didn't believe her.
No one would believe that explanation!
Callie remained silent, obviously not wanting to discuss the matter.
Principal Lopez, sensing her reluctance, didn't press further.
After work, Callie went straight home.
These days, her life was basically a routine of going back and forth between two places.
In the evenings, Callie Norris rarely saw Shane.
He would come back very late.
Even in the mornings, they would ignore each other if they happened to cross paths.
It was as if overnight, they had become strangers.
One morning, as Callie was getting ready for work, the house phone rang. Mrs. Ford answered it.
After a brief conversation, during which Mrs. Ford nodded repeatedly, she hung up and called out to Callie, "It was Butler Imani. He asked you and Mr. Robinson to visit the old house tonight."
Callie simply nodded and left for work.
At 7 pm, Shane returned home.
He must have received the call from the old house as well; otherwise, he wouldn't have come back at this hour.
Lately, he had been coming home very late.
Callie could sense that he was deliberately avoiding her.
His voice was cold and distant, "Did you get the call?"
Callie nodded, "Yes."
"Let's go."
He turned and walked ahead.
When they got into the car, Callie sat in the back.
Shane didn't say anything.
He drove in silence.
When they arrived at the old mansion, the dining room was filled with a large spread of dishes prepared by the servants.
Old Master Robinson waved them over. "You two, come here."
Shane and Callie walked over and sat down, one after the other.
"I realized it's been a while since I've seen you both, so I called you over to have a meal together," Old Master Robinson said, his gaze settling on Callie. "How have you been lately?"
Callie nodded. "I've been fine."
"That's good. Let's eat then!"
Callie Norris kept her head down the entire time.
The food tasted like nothing.
It was like chewing on wax.
Suddenly, Shane stood up. "Grandpa, I'm done eating. You all continue."
With that, he walked out of the dining room.
The atmosphere between the two of them was off.
Old Master Robinson waited until Shane Robinson was out of earshot before asking, "Are you two having a disagreement?"
Callie didn't deny it.
"Yes."
Old Master Robinson sighed. "He has a difficult temperament. You need to be more patient with him, as I've told you before."
Callie moved her lips, wanting to say something, but in the end, she remained silent.
Old Master Robinson noticed Callie's pale face and guessed that her days with Shane hadn't been easy. He didn't press further and simply said, "Eat more, you need to take care of yourself."
After dinner, Old Master Robinson kept her for a chat before letting her go.
"Go find Shane," he instructed.
Callie nodded in response.
She had no idea where Shane Robinson was, nor did she want to find him.
Instead, she wandered alone to the backyard.
There, by the rock garden, she spotted Shane standing by the pond!