Chapter 3

I froze when I saw who it was, my breath catching for a moment.

Julian Sterling.

Liam Sterling’s uncle, the man who controlled half the economic lifelines of the city.

I had been married into the Sterling family for years, and I’d heard countless stories about his legendary achievements, but his whereabouts were always mysterious. I’d only briefly seen him once at my wedding with Owen.

How could a man who stood at the absolute pinnacle of society come on a blind date with me?

Looking at his flawless face, even though he didn't say a word and simply sat there, his noble and aloof aura exuded an intense sense of pressure.

I walked forward, involuntarily speaking with deference.

“Uncle Julian.”

In truth, Julian was only in his early thirties, not much older than me. By age, I should probably call him "Brother."

Hearing me call him, Julian looked up, his thin lips parting. “Sit.”

His voice was beautiful—deep, cool, rich, and magnetic, carrying a pleasantly tingling penetrative power.

I was genuinely curious how Mrs. Sterling had thought to set me up with him for a blind date.

Julian was as much a man of few words as the rumors claimed, but thankfully, he wasn't as cold as I’d imagined.

Being with him wasn’t as difficult as I’d thought; in fact, there was a strange sense of ease.

My tightly strung nerves relaxed considerably because of this comfort. I smiled and said, “The first time I saw you, Uncle Julian, I actually thought you were already married.”

After I spoke, Julian didn’t say anything for a long time. I looked up and saw his gaze fixed on my hand. Curious, I was about to ask when I suddenly heard him ask:

“What happened to your hand?”

My hand? I paused for a moment.

Realizing he was asking about the still-fading purple bruise on the back of my hand, I smiled. “I was sick earlier and had a blood flashback from an IV. It’ll be fine after a while.”

Julian glanced at me, his thin lips pressed together, lost in thought.

I was about to change the subject when a voice came from the doorway.

“What are you two chatting about? Sister-in-law is laughing so happily?”

The smile on my face froze. I turned and unexpectedly met Liam Sterling’s narrowed dark eyes. He was smiling, but it somehow sent a chill down my spine.

“Liam, you’re back! Come quickly and say hello to your Uncle Julian, you naughty boy.” Mrs. Sterling, who had disappeared somewhere, emerged when she heard the commotion.

Seeing Julian, Liam paused, then dutifully stepped forward to greet him. “Uncle Julian.”

Julian didn’t look at him, simply giving a faint hum.

Liam raised an eyebrow and brazenly sat down next to me, picking up his phone and starting to play on it.

With another person suddenly sitting down, the atmosphere in the living room became strangely awkward.

Julian and I didn’t know what to talk about for a moment. In the midst of the awkwardness,

Liam looked at me, his voice strangely demanding. “Sister-in-law, I want some fruit. Can you wash some for me?”

Seeing his dark expression and cold gaze.

After a few seconds of hesitation, I nodded and got up to go to the kitchen.

As soon as I took the fruit out of the refrigerator, I was suddenly grabbed from behind, my waist embraced, followed by an overwhelming, suffocating kiss.

In a panic, I forcefully pushed away Liam, who had a dark look on his face, and frowned. “There’s a guest outside, what are you doing?”

Liam raised an eyebrow, leaned down to hook my chin, his large hand caressing my waist, and said in a husky voice, “Wouldn’t it be even more exciting if he heard? Or have you fallen for him?”

I froze, realizing what he was trying to do. I instinctively wanted to push him away, but then Liam’s phone rang in his pocket.

I seized the opportunity to break free from him, grabbed the fruit, and hurried out of the kitchen.

But after a few steps, I remembered the fruit wasn’t washed, so I had to turn back to clean it.

“You better have something important to say, interrupting my good time,” Liam’s voice came from inside as he answered the phone. He had put it on speaker and was washing his hands.

On the other end were clearly his friends, who started teasing. “Good time? Bro, in broad daylight, you’re not getting intimate outdoors with our sister-in-law, are you?”

Before Liam could speak, another voice guessed, “Outdoors? Liam’s done that before. I bet they’re in the kitchen, and there’s definitely someone else outside. Didn’t Liam say he’s been wanting to see our sister-in-law’s submissive yet alluring silence for ages?”

“Enough with the nonsense. You’ve ruined everything. Get to the point,” it was Liam’s voice.

…

Just a door separated us. Listening to the voices inside, I clutched the fruit platter, biting my lip hard, my heart tearing into a million pieces.

Outdoors. Yes, under Liam’s persistent coaxing, we had done that before.

But how could he talk about such things with his friends?

And the kitchen…

Disgust, anger, heartache – all emotions swirling, almost suffocating me there and then.

Thankfully, it wasn’t too late. My heart could still be saved.

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