Five years after we broke up, I heard Julian Albright was getting married. So, I finally felt safe enough to come home. But the moment I landed, he had me pinned against the airport wall. “Fake news. Just bait to lure you back.” “But I’m already married!” I declared, flashing my diamond ring, trying to sound tougher than I felt. He stared at the ring, then let out a low chuckle. “Then we’ll just live as three.” My jaw dropped. *What?!* Julian was getting married. When I heard the news, I was so happy I couldn’t sleep a wink. I booked a flight and was back the very next day. “Ugh, I’m finally back home!” The moment I landed, I called my best friend, practically wailing, “This foreign food was killing me! I’ve been dreaming of spicy crawfish, BBQ, hotpot, snail noodles, malatang, and bubble tea…” Just as I was excitedly telling Chloe, “This time, I’m reclaiming all my favorite foods!” a hand suddenly wrapped around mine. The next thing I knew, I was slammed against the wall. My phone clattered to the floor. I stared at the man in front of me, a head taller, radiating a cold, aristocratic aura. His bone structure was impeccable, his face so stunning it was almost ethereal. My mind went blank. Then, Chloe’s anxious voice came through the fallen phone. “Aria, stop rattling off food names! The news about Julian getting married… it’s fake! Run!” Me: … *Why didn’t you tell me before I walked into this?!*
I wanted to run, but Julian’s grip was shockingly strong. He wasn’t even using much force, yet I couldn’t break free. So, I just hunkered down, head bowed like a scared little bird, not daring to speak. I secretly peeked around, looking for an escape route. After all, when we broke up, Julian had sworn he’d kill me if he ever saw me again. I’d just managed to come back home! I hadn’t even had a bite of the food I’d been dreaming about for five years. I really didn’t want to die! “Nothing you want to say to me?” Seeing my silence, Julian gently lifted my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. I was trapped, staring into Julian’s deep, beautiful eyes, now shimmering with unshed tears. My heart clenched, and my throat was thick with bitterness. I fought back the urge to cry, forcing the tears back, then turned my face away. My voice was cold and hard. “No.” With that, I struggled again, trying to push him away. “No?” Julian tightened his hold on me, his voice hoarse, with an almost imperceptible catch in it. “You truly are heartless.” Before I could react, he grabbed my jaw and kissed me, completely ignoring the people passing by. The moment our lips met, my eyes widened in shock. Julian’s kiss wasn’t gentle at all. It was punishing, almost vengeful, and I couldn’t break free. My tongue felt numb from the sheer intensity. In a fit of anger, I suddenly spotted someone in the distance pulling out their phone, about to record us. Almost instinctively, I bit Julian. He was unprepared, and his lip bled slightly. He looked momentarily stunned. That’s when I pushed him away and slapped him across the face. “Are you insane?!” I glared at Julian, reminding him, “You’re about to get married!” I’d put a good amount of force into that slap. Julian’s head snapped to the side. He ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek, touched his bruised face, then pressed his bitten lip. He let out a low, soft chuckle. “It was just fake news to get you back.” I was completely dumbfounded. *Fake news?! So what was all this for? Had I just walked straight into his trap?!* I was too shocked to notice the flicker of twisted satisfaction and pleasure in his eyes after I’d slapped him. Then, Julian took my hand, kissed my palm tenderly, and asked if I was hurt. Me: *What?!* I’d slapped *him*, and he was asking if *my hand* hurt?! Something felt very wrong here! But I couldn’t think about that. My mind was consumed with avoiding a repeat of what happened five years ago. In a flash, I saw the diamond ring on my left hand. I collected myself and spoke again. “But I’m married.” The air instantly froze. Julian lowered his gaze, staring intently at the diamond ring on my finger, silent. Just as a chill ran down my spine under his intense gaze, Julian suddenly let out a low chuckle. “Then we’ll just live as three,” he said calmly, as if stating a perfectly reasonable solution. I was so startled I almost bit my tongue. “Are you out of your mind?!” *What did he mean, “live as three”?! Did he even know what he was saying?!* Still reeling from the shock, Julian effortlessly scooped me up into his arms.
Julian tossed me into the back seat of his Maybach and told the driver to drive. “Julian, this is illegal detainment!” My heart pounded faster as I watched him tell the driver to raise the privacy partition. Ignoring the fact the car was moving, I fumbled with the door handle, ready to jump out and run. But Julian was too quick. He grabbed my wrist, pulling me back. The car screeched to a halt. The sudden stop sent my body lunging forward, almost hitting the partition, but Julian swiftly caught me, pulling me back into his arms. “Are you trying to kill yourself?!” Julian held me tight, his arms trembling slightly, clearly shaken. His warm, familiar embrace made me momentarily lose myself. Memories flooded back, but immediately followed by the words of Julian’s mother. I closed my eyes, suppressing all the emotions welling up. Taking a deep breath, I pushed Julian away with all my might and sat in the furthest corner from him. Then, I deliberately twisted the knife. “Don’t hold me so tight. My husband will get jealous!” With that, I deliberately displayed the diamond ring on my finger. Julian’s eyes flashed with a momentary ruthlessness when he saw the ring, but it was so fleeting, I thought I’d imagined it. “Where’s he from?” Julian took a cold beer from the car fridge, opened it, and chugged it down, as if making idle conversation. “What?” I hadn’t registered the question at first. “I asked where your husband is from.” Julian crushed the beer can in his hand as he spoke. “Oh, right.” I caught on, thought for a moment, and said, “He’s French.” “Hmm, good. How old is he?” Julian casually pulled off the beaded bracelet from his wrist, fiddling with it as he asked, seemingly offhand. “Twenty-nine.” I replied, a little absentmindedly. *Was I imagining things earlier? I swear I saw a lot of scars on Julian’s wrist.* “Is he in good shape? How tall is he, how much does he weigh?” Julian pressed on. My thoughts were pulled back. “He’s in great shape. Six feet tall, and… about 165 pounds.” I was still a bit distracted and didn’t notice the increased urgency in Julian’s tone. “How did you two meet?” Julian followed up instantly. I racked my brain, paused for a few seconds, and continued to spin my tale. “He lost his wallet, and I lent him some cash, and then…” I hadn’t finished speaking when Julian cut me off. “Who else is in his family?” “…He has a mom and dad, and a younger sister…” My answers were starting to falter. Julian’s intense interrogation was making me incredibly nervous. He asked me seven or eight more questions: What does he like to eat? Where was your first date? What movie did you watch on your first date? Where do you usually like to hang out? What are his hobbies, what’s his favorite position, and so on. His questions were getting increasingly tricky. As I grew more and more anxious, Julian asked, “How old is he?” “Twenty-eight!” I blurted out. “And his height and weight?” Julian’s voice was rapid-fire. “Six-one! One-forty pounds!” The words tumbled out. As they did, I saw Julian’s fingers, which had been fiddling with his bracelet, still. He chuckled softly, raising an eyebrow. “Hmm, sounds like he’s in great shape.” My mind raced. Wait, something wasn’t right. What was going on?! **截断点** As I struggled to figure it out, Julian gently took my hand, slipped off my ring, and with lightning speed, replaced it with a cushion-cut pink diamond—it looked like it was easily over ten carats.
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