Celeste Linden took out her phone and dialed Dominic Reynolds’ number.

The ringing sounded twice before it was answered. Dominic’s slightly tired voice came through, "Hey, honey."

"Dominic, why aren’t you home yet? Do you have to work late tonight?"

"Honey, the company ran into a tricky situation today, so I can’t come home on time. Sorry, I forgot to call and let you know." Despite his fatigue, Dominic’s voice remained gentle.

Celeste’s heart tightened, "What happened at the company?"

"We recently invested in a major project to build a large office building, but today an accident happened at the construction site: two workers fell from a height and died instantly."

"We always purchase insurance for the workers, but the people under me messed up this time. These two were new temporary workers, and they weren’t insured. Now that there’ve been deaths, the workers’ families are causing trouble."

Celeste frowned. She hadn’t expected the situation to be this bad and severe — Dominic’s company had stirred up two fatalities.

"We must actively handle this aftermath; all demands from the workers’ families should be met as much as possible. Have they asked for monetary compensation?"

"If only that were the case. The families don’t want any compensation; they want to hold us criminally accountable, demanding ’a life for a life.’

Celeste’s brow furrowed deeper; she faintly felt there was more to this, especially since she had just parted with Ethan Barnes, and now Dominic’s company had trouble — it was too coincidental.

Celeste knew Ethan’s ways too well — he’s a madman who could employ any means.

"Honey, don’t worry; it’s already in the hands of the lawyers. I’m driving home now."

"Okay, drive slowly and be careful on the road."

...

Dominic left the company, ended the call with Celeste, then got into his luxury car and drove home.

Halfway there, suddenly a black van charged out, heading straight for Dominic’s car.

The sharp sound of brakes screeched; Dominic quickly slammed on the brakes, narrowly avoiding an accident.

Dominic opened the driver’s door and got out, "Do you know how dangerous your driving is?"

The black van’s door slid open, and several burly men in black got out. They looked at Dominic, "Are you Dominic Reynolds?"

Dominic nodded, "Yes, I am."

Two men in black stepped forward and grabbed Dominic.

Dominic, familiar with the underworld, realized these men weren’t here for anything good and coldly, sternly said, "Who are you, the mob? Do you know this is illegal?"

"Illegal?" The men in black laughed arrogantly, "We know it’s illegal, so go ahead, arrest us, hahahaha!"

Saying this, one man in black poured a bucket of oil on Dominic’s luxury car while another lit a match and threw it onto the car.

With a bang, flames quickly ignited, and Dominic’s luxury car was engulfed in fire instantly.

Dominic’s pupils contracted, witnessing such brazen and malicious behavior for the first time, "Who are you, and what do you want?"

"Kid, we’re here to give you a warning — you’ve offended someone. Next time, this fire might be on... you!"

The men in black left him, swaggering away.

...

Celeste received news of Dominic’s incident at home and quickly rushed to the scene.

The police had already arrived and had arrested those men in black. Dominic was cooperating with them, making a statement.

"Dominic, are you okay? Are you hurt?" Celeste ran over, her face filled with concern for Dominic.

Dominic brushed Celeste’s long hair, "Honey, I’m fine. I told you not to come. It’s all sorted."

Celeste looked at Dominic’s luxury car, worth millions. It was his beloved car, now reduced to a pile of scrap metal.

Celeste’s gaze turned to the men in black who were handcuffed but showed no fear, instead laughing arrogantly, "Dominic, is this your wife? She’s pretty, but she wasn’t a virgin when she married you. Do you know her past? She was with other men before, you’re just a simp, you know?"

Dominic’s expression changed instantly, "What are you saying? Watch your mouth!"

Dominic rushed forward, wanting to hit those men in black.

But Celeste quickly grabbed Dominic, softly advising, "Let it go; those people are reckless thugs. Don’t mind what they say; they’re not worth it."

Dominic reluctantly held back his anger, embracing Celeste in his arms, "Okay, honey, let’s go home."

...

In the room, Dominic went to take a shower while Celeste lay in bed but couldn’t sleep.

She was almost sure these series of events were orchestrated by someone, and who else could it be besides Ethan Barnes, that madman?

Ethan had begun targeting the people around her. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Dominic finished his shower and lay beside Celeste, "Honey, got something on your mind?"

"Yeah, I’m worried about you."

"Silly, this is a man’s problem, nothing for you to worry about." Dominic leaned down, kissed Celeste’s forehead, "If you really can’t sleep, let’s do something fun, shall we?"

Dominic’s fingers moved down, resting on Celeste’s clothes.

At this point, Celeste reached out, stopping Dominic’s fingers.

Dominic paused and carefully asked, "Honey, am I still not allowed?"

Dominic and Celeste have been married for two years. To outsiders, they seem very loving, but no one knows they haven’t consummated their marriage.

Dominic had never touched Celeste.

Celeste’s face turned pale, her limbs grew cold. She looked at the man above her, took a deep breath, and composed herself, "I can do this; go ahead."

Dominic resumed unbuttoning Celeste’s clothes.

Celeste’s body stiffened entirely as she reminded herself repeatedly that she had moved past her past. Her husband now was Dominic, gentle and considerate, accepting all her history, leading her toward happiness.

These past three years have been joyous; accepting his proposal, she vowed to be a good wife.

Now she was fulfilling her marital duty, needing to do this, or it wouldn’t be fair to Dominic.

Celeste continued taking deep breaths, closing her eyes.