The man took off his jacket, his devilish eyes fixed on the woman without blinking.

The woman’s lips turned pale with fear, but she refused to back down. "Jason Lockwood, you’d better not try anything, or I swear I’ll cripple you!"

Jason Lockwood suppressed a laugh and continued to unbuckle his belt, pulling it free from the loops.

This time, Jasmine Warren was genuinely terrified.

’Is he going to beat a confession out of me???’

’Oh my God, I must have been out of my mind to provoke a man as terrifying as the devil himself.’

Holding the belt in one hand, Jason Lockwood moved toward the bed. Jasmine Warren squeezed her eyes shut and scrambled backward.

Suddenly, Jason Lockwood straightened up. He stared at the woman huddled and trembling on the bed, the smile at the corners of his mouth deepening. "Tomboy, don’t tell me you thought I was going to... do *that* to you, did you?"

"Huh?" Jasmine Warren’s eyes flew open in shock.

Jason Lockwood simply smiled, not saying a word. He picked up his jacket from the bed and walked to the door. Just before he reached it, he said with a wicked smirk, "Tomboy, remember what I said. Don’t insult my taste, and don’t question my intelligence. I’m not as desperate as you are."

With that, the man left the room, laughing heartily.

It suddenly dawned on Jasmine Warren. ’I’m the one who just got played by that plastic-faced jerk????’

She snatched a pillow from the bed and hurled it at the door.

"You bastard! Go to hell!"

After leaving the lounge, Jason Lockwood straightened his clothes before exiting the main office.

He locked the office door, a smirk playing on his lips.

He put the key in his pocket and walked away.

’Closing time?’

’Let’s just see how she plans to get out of here with no clothes...’

*****

It was already past ten o’clock at night.

Silas Kent didn’t know how he had managed to get through the entire afternoon and evening.

He must have glanced at the clock on the wall at least a hundred times.

He’d picked up his phone several times, wanting to call her, but had forced himself to wait.

「Newcroft District, Villa Area.」

Seeing that Kiki was fast asleep, Mika Summers stretched a little before carefully getting out of bed.

When Tristan Grayson saw her get up, he immediately sat up too.

Mika Summers shot him a cold glance, grabbed her purse from the table, and headed for the bedroom door.

’She could tolerate building a better relationship with Kiki while Tristan Grayson was present, but that didn’t mean she was going to live under the same roof as him.’

Watching her head for the door, Tristan Grayson threw back the covers and got out of bed, following right behind her.

By then, she had already gone downstairs. She took out her phone, about to make a call.

Seeing this, Tristan Grayson frowned deeply. "You’re leaving?"

"Tristan Grayson, I don’t want to leave, but as long as you’re here, I have to." ’She had only just been reunited with Kiki; of course she didn’t want to leave him.’

"So it was all a lie? When you agreed earlier today that we’d live together as a family?"

"Tristan Grayson, I don’t recall ever agreeing to that."

Tristan Grayson’s eyes darkened, his brow furrowed. ’That’s right. She never actually agreed to live here with me.’

’And yet, he’d been secretly happy about it all afternoon. Looking back on it now, it was just pathetic...’

Mika Summers gave Tristan Grayson an indifferent look, then looked down and called Silas Kent.

"Silas, can you come pick me up? ...Okay. See you then. Bye."

Hearing her words and seeing the smile on her lips, Tristan Grayson felt a pang of fury. He strode over and snatched the phone from her hand.

"What if Kiki wakes up and can’t find you?"