After what felt like an eternity of chatting and laughter, the group had indulged in quite a few drinks.
Derek, ever the cautious one, had managed to hold back, but even he felt like he was floating on his
way out.
Yasmine, who had never been one to hold her liquor, had craftily dodged a few rounds, but still ended
up in a dizzy whirl.
And Nick, he was utterly plastered.
Yasmine instructed Derek to help Nick, directing them straight to the hotel. Whether Nick was a
lightweight or not was beside the point. Relationships needed to be cemented. The suite at the hotel
was her way of showing goodwill.
People said Nick was easily swayed, and that was largely true. Get on his good side, and he was putty
in your hands. That was something worth praising, after all.d2
No matter how domineering his mother was, the family business was eventually going to be his.
On the way to the hotel, whether it was the drinks or motion sickness, Yasmine felt nauseous. As soon
as they arrived, she dashed out of the car and bent over at the roadside to vomit.
“You okay?” Derek asked, pulling Nick out of the car and looking helplessly between him and Yasmine.
Yasmine waved him off, “Go on in. I’ll be there in a bit.”
Derek suggested, “You know, you might as well not go back tonight. Let’s just get a couple more rooms
and stay here.”
“Sure.” Yasmine agreed, feeling like she couldn’t take much more. Alcohol really wasn’t her friend.
After purging what she could, Yasmine straightened up, wiped her mouth, and walked into the hotel
lobby. She asked the front desk for a glass of water, rinsed her mouth, and then collapsed onto a table
in the lobby’s sitting area. Her head was pounding, and she dreaded standing up, fearing the world
would spin out of control.
When Boyd returned to the hotel and saw a familiar figure slumped over a table in the lounge, he
staggered over. He knew her too well. Touching her flushed face, he softly called, “Yasmine…”
The receptionist handed Boyd his ID with a suspicious glance at the scene unfolding before them. “Do
you know her, sir?”
Boyd smiled faintly, “Yes, she’s… she’s my girlfriend, and the mother of my child.”
The receptionist looked doubtfully at the pair of young adults before her. After Boyd picked Yasmine up
in his arms.
Yasmine furrowed her brows and lifted her gaze to glance at him, her eyes filled with confusion.
“Boyd?”
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt“Yeah… it’s me…”
It had been a long time since she called him by his name. Boyd couldn’t help but kiss her forehead
gently. “I’ll take you to rest.”
The receptionist, seeing the ID matched the name Yasmine had murmured, handed it over without
further question.
Yasmine, though groggy, instinctively resisted Boyd’s embrace, but her strength was no match for his.
“Don’t touch me.”
Boyd just held her closer, kissing her hair in the elevator.
“Yasmine, you can’t leave me. Don’t be mad anymore. You can hit me, yell at me, anything.”
Yasmine felt a surge of anger and pushed harder against him. “Let go…”
But Boyd pressed his body against hers, sealing her lips with a kiss. No matter how she struggled, she
couldn’t break free from his embrace.
This was all too familiar territory for both of them, a kind of automatic ignition when they were together,
each knowing exactly how to entice the other.
By the third time, Yasmine was painfully aware of what had transpired. Boyd kept taking without end,
incessantly calling her name.
She tried to push him away multiple times, yet each time he stopped her in his own way. She felt as if
she were being pulled into another world, sinking and then resurfacing.
When it was finally over, the dawn was breaking. Pushing away the sleeping man, Yasmine got out of
bed, found her clothes, and dressed shakily. Her legs felt like jelly as she stood.
Before leaving, she glanced back at Boyd with an expressionless face and left the room. As she
opened the door, she came face-to-face with Serana standing in the hallway. Serana’s smile, tinged
with surprise, froze when she saw Yasmine. “What are you doing here?” Serana glanced at the room
number and bit her lip.
Yasmine’s eyes briefly swept over Serana’s slightly protruding belly. “Is this hotel yours?” Clearly, it
wasn’t.
Yasmine, feeling miserable and not in the mood for conversation, simply walked past, her clothes
disheveled and her shirt buttons undone.
Serana blinked, diverting her gaze.
“Have you forgiven him?” Serana suddenly asked.
Yasmine paused, her eyes fixed on the empty corridor ahead, then slowly turned around. Her casual
smile carried a deadly sting. “No.”
Serana’s tense gaze relaxed a bit. “Someone was investigating Boyd, looking into his past, and it led
them to me. If I’m not mistaken, that person is Boyd’s biological brother. He’s determined to take Boyd
back to B Country. I believe Boyd has met him. I think going back would be best for him. Everyone’s life
has parts that belong to their family. They’ve missed out on many years. Besides, his family has
responsibilities that he needs to take on.”
Yasmine looked at her calmly, “So?”
“I don’t think he’ll agree to go back, and the likely reason is that he can’t let go of you. Either forgive
him and go to B Country with him, or if you can’t forgive him, don’t give him hope. Stay away from him.”
Yasmine’s eyes narrowed slightly, staring at the carpet for a long moment. “Will you go back to B
Country with him?”
Serana hesitated, unable to answer right away. Ever since Boyd asked her whether she wanted to
keep the baby three months ago in the hospital, Boyd hadn’t shown his face to her again. If it weren’t
for that detective digging around and finding her, she was certain that Boyd would’ve quietly slipped
away with him and not even given her a heads up.
Serana’s silence was met with a cold, mocking laugh from Yasmine. “Look, I don’t owe you an
explanation about me and him, but let me make one thing crystal clear—I will never forgive him. Never.
You want to be with him? Fine, be with him. But Serana, just know this: happiness will always be out of
reach for you two.
“At least a guy like him, I bet he’ll never have the chance to have his own kids with another woman.
How could he? He’s taken that right away from me. How could he even think about being a dad again
after what he’s done? And then there’s the thought of facing your kid—what’s going to go through his
mind when he looks at them?”
Serana’s face drained of color, and her body shook uncontrollably. “You…”
“Don’t get so worked up, Serana. I’m just stating the facts. Honestly, who’s got it worse in this twisted
triangle?
“Sure, I might look like a tragedy right now, but it’s all about mindset. I could start fresh, find a new guy,
get married, and even have more kids because my conscience is clear. But what about you two? As
long as I don’t forgive Boyd, he’ll be living with guilt forever, and you—well, you’ll just be living in pain.”
With that, Yasmine’s face broke into a triumphant, mocking smile, as if she’d just won a battle. Her
words were like daggers, each one striking Serana’s most vulnerable spots.
Serana knew Boyd just as well as Yasmine did. And she knew that what Yasmine had said was true.
Once upon a time, she had rejoiced over Boyd’s decision to protect her at Yasmine’s expense, even to
the point of causing Yasmine to lose their baby. She thought Yasmine, with her fiery temperament,
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmwould never entangle with Boyd again.
Yasmine was determined to kick her out of Boyd’s life, but in the end, it was them who had to face a
future as strangers.
In Serana’s mind, that was probably for the best. But Yasmine was right. Yasmine was hurt, but Serana
and Boyd would suffer for a lifetime. How cruel.
“You… you loved him, didn’t you? Yasmine, how can you bear…”
“As if this whole mess was my doing,” Yasmine said coolly. “Did I force you to put yourself in danger, or
did I make Boyd pull the trigger? Does my love for him justify him hurting me without a second thought?
I can love him, and I can stop loving him. You think you can hurt someone and just walk away scot-
free? Please.”Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates…
“I’m actually relieved to see him find his family. Honestly, it would be best if he took you with him and
left town. The mere thought of you two together turns my stomach.” With those final words, Yasmine
turned and walked to the room next door, pausing before taking out her key card and opening the door.
Serana stood there, pale and trembling, Yasmine’s words spinning chaos in her mind. Even if Boyd
really took her away, he wouldn’t care for her like before. Besides, Boyd seemed utterly indifferent to
her now.
The door Yasmine left through remained ajar. Serana walked through it slowly and softly shut it.
The man on the bed was still asleep, his brow furrowed but showing no sign of waking. The crumpled
sheets were a testament to the turmoil of the night. Just thinking about what might’ve happened
between the man and woman in that room made her feel suffocated.
Her hand instinctively went to her slightly rounded belly. Over the past few months, she had pondered
why Boyd had asked if she wanted to keep the baby, and why he hadn’t come to see her since. The
only conclusion she could come to was that he wanted nothing to do with her. He was blaming her. So
even if Boyd really did go back to B Country, he might not take her with him.
She bit her lip hard, looking at Boyd, her fist clenching the fabric of her shirt over her stomach. She had
waited so long for Boyd to part ways with Yasmine. If she didn’t seize this moment, when would she get
another chance?
She was selfish. She wanted to be with him, to be cared for by him.
He might feel guilty about Yasmine, but was he really going to let that bind him forever?
No. She wouldn’t allow it.
Now that things had come this far, she had to fight for what she wanted one more time. She couldn’t
erase Boyd’s guilt towards Yasmine, but what if she could make him feel guilty towards her as well?