Time passed just like that, without grand parties. Alice's life was actually quite normal, except for the fact that after work, she had to endure being "tortured" by Louis every night.
Ever since the charity gala, it was unclear what had gotten into Louis, but he had suddenly become much more aggressive than usual. Alice even thought she wouldn't survive that night! What was he, a breeding stallion?
Alice rubbed her waist, cursing Louis silently in her heart.
"What's wrong?" The voice of the "stallion" suddenly rang out.
Alice looked at him, pursed her lips, and said nothing, as if sulking.
Seeing her like this, Louis found her a little adorable. He pinched Alice's cheek, leaned down to her ear, and whispered softly, "Don't tell me you're still not satisfied?" As he spoke, his large hand started to rub Alice's waist.
Alice's entire face turned crimson, her eyes hazy, and her waist so soft she could barely sit upright. But her legs were still trembling—there was no way she could let Louis continue his indulgence!
In a soft voice, Alice said, "Please spare me. I have to work tomorrow."
"Quit your job. I can take care of you," Louis replied. He didn't really know what Alice did for a living, but he figured she was probably a university lecturer—nothing more than that.
Alice shook her head, her eyes pleading.
Little did she know that every time she begged softly for mercy, Louis only felt a stronger urge to make her cry, to see a mix of pain and pleasure on her face.
Just as Louis's gaze darkened, the ringtone of his phone suddenly broke the moment. With a scowl, he answered the call, his voice low: "Curtis, this better be important."
On the other end, Curtis shuddered, suddenly feeling as though Louis wanted to kill him. Why did it feel that way? It must be his imagination!
Curtis thought this to himself before cheerfully saying, "Of course it's important! Maya's back! We're having a party at MidNight right now—come quickly!"
"Maya's back? Why didn't she call me?" Louis frowned.
Curtis shrugged. "How should I know? Just come over quickly—and bring Alice!"
Louis frowned slightly, puzzled as to why Alice needed to come to their gathering.
Louis had always secretly admired Maya but never dared to pursue her. He married Alice because she reminded him of Maya. However, now that he thought about it, he couldn't quite recall what about Alice resembled Maya. In fact, the memory of Maya in his mind seemed to have grown blurry.
This realization made Louis furrow his brows deeply. How could he forget Maya? It must be because they hadn't seen each other in so long!
With this thought, Louis didn't bother consulting Alice and directly ordered the driver to head toward MidNight.
On the way, Louis stayed silent, and so did Alice, who only stared intently at his face.
Feeling Alice's gaze the whole way, Louis felt both secretly pleased and annoyed. Alice was so deeply in love with him—what would happen when they divorced? After all, their contract was nearing its end, and he didn't want Alice clinging to him endlessly.
The two quickly arrived on the third floor.
"I'm going to the restroom," Alice said.
Louis waved her off dismissively and strode into the room.
The sound of running water echoed as Alice gently washed her fingers. At that moment, a soft voice sounded: "You're Alice, right?"
Alice looked up. In the mirror, she saw the speaker: a beautiful woman with a gentle expression, as though no matter what happened, her face would always carry that gentleness.
Maya, on the other hand, got a full view of Alice's face. Instantly, jealousy filled her eyes.
Through the mirror, it was hard to see where the two women looked alike. Alice's beauty utterly overshadowed Maya's.
"Yes." Alice replied indifferently, then turned to leave.
Just as she was about to reach the door, the girl's voice rang out again, soft yet laced with venom: "I'm Maya, Louis's childhood best friend. I know Louis married you because of me. Now that I'm back, it's time for you to leave, don't you think?"
Alice remained silent. Maya assumed she was hurt and smiled even more triumphantly as she continued: "But if you don't want a divorce, that's fine too. Now that I'm back, what do you think will happen? Louis will come to me, and you—you'll be thrown out like trash!"
Alice turned to look at Maya and sincerely asked, "Does Louis know you're like this?"
Maya shrugged. "What, are you planning to tattle on me? Do you think Louis would believe you?"
Alice thought silently to herself, Louis really is just a stupid dog.
Ignoring Maya, Alice made her way back to the private room. Maya quickly caught up, and the two entered the room together.
The lively atmosphere in the room froze upon their entrance. Louis's expression was unreadable; he truly didn't know whether to worry about Alice discovering Maya's existence or Maya discovering Alice's.
"Come on now, why's everyone frozen? Louis, hurry up and welcome Maya!" Curtis broke the awkward silence, standing up and ushering Maya to sit next to Louis. Alice, meanwhile, slowly made her way to the only empty seat—next to Silas.
Her face was emotionless, making it impossible to discern what she was thinking. Watching Alice sit beside Silas, Louis furrowed his brows, a strange irritation bubbling within him. He couldn't tell whether he was upset that Alice sat next to Silas or that she wore such an indifferent expression.
What was with Alice's attitude? She loved him—wasn't she afraid of losing him?
Frustrated, Louis draped an arm over Maya's shoulders and forced a smile. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming back? I would've picked you up."
No one noticed the stiffness in his smile or the rigidness of his hand.
Maya lowered her head shyly and said, "I wanted to surprise you."
Unbeknownst to her, Louis's mind was elsewhere. He questioned his feelings for Maya—did he truly love her as much as he thought? Why, then, did holding Maya in his arms leave his heart feeling empty and restless? No, it must be because they'd been apart for so long. He couldn't possibly have a change of heart!
Louis tried to convince himself.
"By the way, how did Alice and Maya end up entering the room together?" Robert asked, breaking the silence.
Maya smiled gently. "We met in the restroom and came back together, but it seems Sister Alice is rather cold." Her voice softened toward the end, making her appear demure and sweet.
She wanted to make it seem like Alice had an attitude problem, but she didn't realize that everyone here was already accustomed to Alice's aloofness. The only person Alice ever showed emotion for was Louis!
This thought made Louis feel slightly better.
Noticing that Louis seemed to relax a bit, Maya hesitated, then said nervously, "Louis, are we really okay sitting like this? I heard Alice is your wife..."
At her words, the room fell silent. Louis frowned and replied without hesitation, "Just baseless rumors. Don't pay them any mind."
Maya lowered her head, a smug smile tugging at her lips as she glanced mockingly at Alice.
The others turned their expectant gazes toward Alice, eagerly awaiting her reaction.
Only Silas frowned slightly. He looked at Alice and spoke gently, "Don't mind him. I'll have a talk with Louis—he's really gone too far."
Alice shook her head. "It's fine." Her tone was steady, as though unaffected.
Silas, however, felt she was merely hiding her sadness. On instinct, he raised a hand and gently patted her head as if to comfort her.
Alice's eyes widened in surprise. Before she could react, a loud crash shattered the air—the sound of a wine bottle smashing onto the ground!
"That's enough!" Louis slammed the table and stood up, ignoring everyone's stares as he strode over, grabbing Alice's hand and pulling her out of the room with force!
The anger in his every step was palpable, leaving the others unsure of Alice's fate.