He gave Khloe a brief look, pulling the suit jacket tighter around her, his gaze growing darker.
Khloe let out a light chuckle, her voice playful. “Henrik, are you jealous?”
Henrik met her gaze with a serious look, his eyes burning with intensity. “Yes, I am jealous.”
Khloe was taken by surprise; she hadn’t expected Henrik to be so open about it.
Under the cool night breeze, their eyes locked, and for a moment, it felt like time itself had paused.
Khloe’s heart pounded in her chest, and instinctively, she clasped Henrik’s fingers, trying to mask the emotions swirling inside her.
“Okay, I get it. You’re here to support me. The Evans family is no challenge, but Eric, being the heir to the Watson family, is a different story. Eliminating him could lead to serious complications.” A playful smile curled on Khloe’s lips as she reassured him. “I’ll make things difficult for them, but I won’t let them push me around.”
Noticing Henrik’s brow crease slightly, Khloe shook his hand, trying to lighten the mood.
“Don’t worry; if things get out of hand, I won’t hesitate to ask for your help. It’s freezing out here. Where’s your car?” she inquired, glancing around.
Henrik leaned down and wrapped his arms around her. He whispered in her ear, “You’re not alone anymore. I’ll always be here for you.”
His words melted away the coldness that had gripped her after leaving the banquet, filling her with a wave of warmth.
“Mm.” Khloe embraced Henrik in return, her smile growing more genuine and sweet.
With him at her side, she knew she would have the strength and confidence to pursue her vengeance without hesitation or fear.
“Thank you, Henrik,” she whispered softly, her heart swelling with gratitude.
In that instant, Khloe no longer saw herself as just Henrik’s fake fiancee.
She simply savored the warmth of his embrace, feeling the coldness inside her slowly dissolve.
At that moment, Khloe had no idea what Henrik’s words truly meant-a burning passion poised to erupt, with an intensity and unpredictability as deep as the ocean.
The Evans family mansion blazed with light, its grandeur casting a stark contrast to the tension that simmered inside.
In Sloane’s room, Lorraine carefully eased her dazed daughter onto the bed, gently removing her clothes and shoes.
Sloane’s body was a patchwork of brutal bruises, with a bloody gash marring her foot-all inflicted by Khloe’s attack earlier that day.
Lorraine glanced at the injuries, her breath quickening with barely contained fury. “That bitch! Khloe, you’ll regret this.”
At the mention of Khloe’s name, Sloane snapped back to reality, her face crumpling as tears flowed. “Mom, what do we do now? Everyone knows I was the other woman, the one trying to seduce Eric to climb the ladder! My reputation, my image-everything is ruined!”
Lorraine’s anger flared. “You idiot! What does your online image even matter right now? You should be focused on why Harold defended Khloe today!”
Sloane’s body stiffened, confusion clouding her eyes. “What do you mean, Mom? Are you saying Harold protected her not because I was caught framing Khloe?”
Lorraine’s patience snapped. “That old fox wouldn’t embarrass you just because of some petty scandal. You’re engaged to his son now. Making you look bad benefits no one, least of all the Watson family, especially on a live stream.”
A cold glint flashed in Lorraine’s eyes. Harold had ignored Khloe’s wrongful imprisonment back then, so there must be another reason for his sudden support.
It was likely that Khloe held something that piqued his interest.
Lorraine shared her suspicions with Sloane, her voice laced with cold calculation.
“What do we do now?” Sloane’s beautiful face twisted with a mix of resentment and jealousy as she listened to Lorraine’s words. “Why does she always get so lucky? I’ve done everything to ruin her, to isolate her, and yet she always manages to come out on top. I won’t let her win this time!”
In a fit of rage, Sloane started hurling objects around the room.
Lorraine remained unshaken, her voice cold as ice. “Breaking things won’t help. We need a strategy, something that will turn this around. If you win Eric’s heart, Khloe will be nothing more than a shadow in the background.”
Her eyes narrowed as she reached for a medical kit beside the bed. Gripping Sloane’s arm tightly, she continued, “We need to deal with Khloe, and I have a plan.”
Soon, word of Sloane’s severe injuries and her refusal to see a doctor reached Eric.
He was desperate to go to her, but his father’s advice to focus on Khloe stayed in his mind.
Though he knew he should distance himself from Sloane, the memory of her gentle and understanding nature made it hard to ignore her. He hesitated for a while.
Finally, his compassion for Sloane won out, and he stepped out with a determined look.
As Eric approached the Evans family, he overheard Sloane’s soft, pained sobs from inside.
“Mom, I’ve been awful. I shouldn’t have treated Khloe like that. I was wrong! I don’t know what got into me. When I saw how beautiful she was, I panicked, thinking Eric would fall for her again and forget all about me. I couldn’t help it; I was so jealous!” Her voice was filled with remorse and an overwhelming love for Eric.
Lorraine’s voice followed, filled with frustration. “Sloane, don’t blame yourself. What you did to Khloe’s necklace was wrong, yes, but that’s just an object. You’re a living person. Look at what Khloe did to you-she nearly crippled you! I’ll make sure your father hears about this.”
“No, Mom, it’s my fault. Khloe must have changed so much after everything she went through in prison.”
“Silly girl, you’re still worried about her! But what about her? She doesn’t see you as family in the slightest.”
Eric’s heart tightened. Sloane truly was kind-hearted. If she hadn’t loved him so deeply, she never would have acted so out of character towards Khloe.
And now, to pursue Khloe, he had to ignore Sloane, knowing it would inevitably shatter her heart.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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