chapter 5

Steve was currently drowning his sorrows at one of his family's chain hotels.

His face was flushed from drinking as he muttered to himself.

"She's just a woman. She doesn't matter."

But a profound sense of longing, which he himself failed to recognize, welled up in his eyes, leaving his expression bleak.

"If I, Mr. Jekyll, snap my fingers, I can have any woman I want. There's no way I'm hung up on her..."

Steve drank glass after glass, his knuckles turning white as he gripped his phone.

The screen showed a photo of the two of them taken in their old apartment—a happy couple locked in a tight embrace, both smiling sweetly.

The door swung open, and Abby strode in, followed by a train of his sycophantic buddies. The room grew noisy as they settled in.

The phone screen went dark. Steve caught Abby as she flung herself into his arms and met her crimson-painted lips.

There wasn't a problem in the world that couldn't be solved by rough, mindless sex.

That was Steve's creed.

So he grabbed Abby, and they kissed fiercely, the wet, lewd sounds filling the air.

Yet, even this couldn't erase that innocent face from his mind.

Damn it!

Steve shoved Abby away and swept all the bottles off the table with a crash.

Sam kicked a shard of glass away from his foot and asked, puzzled, "My dear cousin, don't tell me you're drowning your sorrows over that trashy girl?"

Steve jumped up as if he'd been scalded.

"Of course not! What is she to me? If it weren't for her blind devotion, she wouldn't even be fit to shine my shoes!"

Sam clapped him on the shoulder and nodded.

"True. She was willing to do anything for you. A truly loyal dog."

"She'll be back crying and begging for your forgiveness in a few days, guaranteed."

A flicker of guilt passed through Steve's eyes, but it was quickly hidden. He sank back into the leather sofa.

Then, he reached out and pulled Abby's slender waist onto his lap.

"After too many rich meals, a light salad makes for a nice change. She was just a dog. Abby here has far more… flavor."

Abby's family wasn't particularly powerful, but she had been Steve's designated side piece since they were kids.

Everyone knew she was deeply in love with him, and it was generally accepted that she held a special place in his heart.

She had been frantic lately, thinking Steve had cast her aside.

Now, praised by the man she loved, she felt dizzy with triumph, tracing circles on his chest with her fingertip.

Eager to claim credit, she simpered.

"I knew it! I knew you couldn't really like her. How dare she be so disrespectful to my Mr. Jekyll!"

"I had her apartment burned down. Had her stripped naked so all her neighbors could see what a slut she is! I did well, didn't I?"

Sam also wore a look begging for praise.

"Cousin, her disrespecting you means she's an enemy of our whole family. I'll make sure she's driven into a corner with no way out!"

But instead of the expected approval, Steve's expression grew colder.

Abby looked up, anticipating praise, but was met with a hard slap across the face.

She stared at him in shock, her hand on her cheek, and when she spoke, her voice trembled.

"I… I did it for you! How could you hit me?"

Steve clenched his fists, his eyes burning with rage.

"Who gave you permission to touch her?! She's my woman! Who the hell are you to teach her a lesson?!"

He then turned and punched Sam squarely in the face. Blood spurted.

"You're just my cousin. Don't think that makes you a real Jekyll. Since when do you get to decide what happens to my woman?! Know your damn place!"

With that, he ran out of the hotel in a panic.

Steve could no longer lie to himself. His mind was completely filled with Beverly's fragile expression.

His heart ached so sharply he could barely breathe.

Frantically, he pulled out his phone and dialed the number he hadn't had the courage to call.

"The number you have dialed is not in service..."

His hand fell limply to his side. He immediately summoned his driver and headed to the old apartment they had shared.

But when he opened the door, it was empty, filled only with darkness that threatened to swallow him whole.

Steve leaned weakly against the doorframe and slowly slid to the floor, his eyes reddening.

Memories of their sweet times together flashed before his eyes. He realized, with devastating clarity, that he truly regretted it.

He had genuinely fallen in love with Beverly. He needed her!

Grabbing his phone, Steve called his assistant.

"Find out where Beverly is right now! I—"

"Sir! We were just about to contact you! Ms. Beverly is in the hospital! She suffered burns and is severely unconscious! She's in the ICU!"

The phone clattered to the ground, shattering. Steve scrambled to his feet and rushed out, his hands shaking so badly he could barely open the car door.

Ignoring his driver's protests, he took the wheel himself.

He slammed the accelerator to the floor, running red lights, and driving like a man possessed to get to the hospital.

His bloodshot eyes were fixed wide on the road ahead, his nerves stretched to the breaking point.

Steve realized he couldn't bear the possibility of losing her.

"Wait for me… Beverly… Wait for me!!!"