After the divorce, he begged

Chapter 177

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“What were you about to say?” Jessica asked Rebecca after they'd stepped away from all the chaos.

“Nothing,” Rebecca said, swallowing whatever she’d been about to say. “You didn’t get hit, did you?”

Even after checking, she still felt uneasy because of what Jeffrey said earlier.

“Nope, just gavea scare,” Jessica replied carelessly. She glanced over as security kicked the drunks out.

“Next time, let's just go straight to a private room. The crowd's fun, but you never know when someone’s going

to go crazy.”

Rebecca nodded. The two of them stayed at the bar for another half hour before heading out.

Before they left, Rebecca downed the untouched glass of lemon juice on the table, hoping the sourness would

wash away the lingering dread from Jeffrey's message.

“You-" Jessica stared at her, startled. “You're really tough.”

Rebecca set the glass down. “Let's go. I'll drive you home.”

Jessica followed her out. She’d had a few drinks, so she let Rebecca take the wheel.

On the ride back, Jessica glanced at Rebecca's serious face lit by the dashboard lights. Then she tapped out a

quick text to lan-saved as “Mr. Asshole” in her phone: [Got anything yet?]

lan replied almost instantly: [Easier said than done.]

So far, he still hadn't figured out which doctor Andrea had seen. All he had was a vague lead pointing to

Jelasburg University Hospital.

Jessica: [Rebecca’s not doing well. She didn’t tellwhat happened, but she chugged more than one glass of

fresh lemon juice.]

lan sent her a string of question marks.

Jessica: [Hurry up and find something. Stop slacking.]

lan: [Got it.]

Then he quickly added: [I'm not slacking.]

After they finished texting, Jessica tucked her phone away and, pretending to be careless, asked Rebecca, ‘So, is

all that lemon juice because Jeffrey’s been annoying you again?”

Rebecca brushed it off. “Hey, it's just us tonight-let’s not bring anyone else into our little world.

From that reaction alone, Jessica could pretty much guess what had gone down. But since Rebecca didn't to talk,

she wasn’t about to press.

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Chapter 177

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Half an hour later, after dropping Jessica off, Rebecca drove back hto Rebecca’s Manor

She got out of the car and headed straight upstairs to the study. When she pushed the door open, she saw

Jeffrey working on his laptop. He looked up from his screen and paused what he was doing, “Hey, you're back

Had a good time?”

Rebecca slammed her phone down on the desk, the screen showing the message he'd sent her earlier,

“What's this about?” Jeffrey asked.

“Did you set up that fight at the bar? Rebecca cut straight to the point.

Jeffrey didn’t deny it. “Yeah, | guess you could say that.

“Did you know that Jessica almost got hurt?” Rebecca snapped, her temper flaring at his indifference toward

other people’s safety. “She hasn't done anything to annoy you, so why did you have to pull something like that?”

Jeffrey's gaze stayed indifferent. “You know why.”

Rebecca felt a suffocating frustration. She could tell he truly didn’t care if Jessica got hurt.

“Normally, | deal with people the first tthey break the rules,” Jeffrey said slowly. “But you're different. | was

willing to give you tto adjust. And you?”

To him, since she had signed the agreement, she was bound to follow it.

“Chere,” Jeffrey said, his voice cool.

Rebecca stood her ground, forcing herself to hold back her anger.

“You're smart,” Jeffrey looked at her, his words like a knife against her throat. “You don’t want today’s accident

turning real, do you?”

That one sentence shattered the faint goodwill Rebecca had started to feel toward him. She gave a bitter laugh

inwardly before finally stepping toward him.

“As long as you stay by my side, | can give you anything you want.” Jeffrey pulled her onto his lap, taking her

cold hands in his.

Rebecca said nothing, but her silence didn’t bother him.

His gaze lingered on her distant, almost emotionless face, and as his hand slid to her waist, he asked, “May I?”

Rebecca couldn't even bring herself to answer. She knew she had no choice. If she went against him, he would

use her friends as leverage.

“If you don’t say anything, I'll take it as a yes.” Jeffrey’s warm fingertips traced up her skin while his other hand

held the back of her head. He leaned down and pressed a kiss on her lips.

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Chapter 177

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Jeffrey’s touch was gentle. He knew her body well, every casual move brushing against her sensitive spots.

But Rebecca resisted him so much that the moment his lips touched hers, she gagged reflexively.

She shot up from his lap almost instantly. Nothing cout, but the retching wouldn't stop.

Watching her bent over the trash can, gagging again and again, Jeffrey's eyes darkened. He hadn't expected her

to reject him like this.

“It's a physical reaction. | can’t control it,” Rebecca said flatly after the gagging subsided. “If you still want to

have sex, wait until I've dealt with it. | just hope you don’t hurt my friends.”

Her words struck something in Jeffrey. “In your eyes, am | really the kind of man who ignores your will?”

“Yes,” Rebecca replied without a second thought.

Before today, she might have been able to look past his mask and see the real him underneath. But now, that

side of him was completely gone to her.

All she knew now was his constant threats and how he always forced her into things, never giving a damn about

her own wishes, just to get what he wanted.

As for whatever kindness he had shown, it was nothing more than a means to an end. He only wanted her to

willingly cback to him and accept his original offer-to provide for Andrea with his money.

And if she refused, he would find a way to force her. Just like the threat today.

“Then go take a shower. Wait forin the bedroom afterward,” Jeffrey said. He wanted to see how far a

stubborn woman like her would go.

“I'll do what you ask, and | expect you to keep your word too.” Rebecca no longer cared. Sooner or later, she

would leave this place. “Don’t go back on your promise.”

Jeffrey's gaze darkened further. “If you keep your end, I'll keep mine.”

Rebecca nodded. “Alright.”

She left the room without another word.

Back in the master bedroom, she went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The moment the cold water

hit her skin, goosebumps rose all over her body.

The intimacy she once shared with Jeffrey when they were in love was nothing like this. Back then, she had

enjoyed it; now she despised it.

She forced down the disgust in her chest, trying to convince herself that Jeffrey was just a rent boy. Only with

that thought could she push through the nausea and endure what was coming.

But when the moment actually came, whether she could truly suppress the revulsion was another matter.

Meanwhile, in the study, Jeffrey was replaying his exchange with Rebecca. He rubbed his temples, feeling a

9:01 Tue, Sep 30

Chapter 177

twinge of regret for the mean words he had thrown at her.

192

55 vouchera

Their fragile relationship had barely begun to ease, and now it might have slid right back into a deadlock

because of what he'd said.

With that thought, he rose and headed to the master bedroom. Hearing the sound of running water, he stopped

at the door and knocked.

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