ered most

ing as if pierced by countless fine needles, a

had already become the

Adrian remove the jade piece he always wor

eep it close, and no one will

with emotion as she th

or, the world spun viol

to receive that jade had to pass eighteen trials, a ritu

cretly attempted thos

al-pain, humiliation, and punishme

ad collapsed and

y. He pulled her into his arms, his voice shaking. "Celine, who told yo

indeed kept

dding and a kind of de

lared before everyone, "Celine, in t

t rested effortlessly aro

ed with damp cotton, suffocating

" had only ever

e. She turned and rushed into t

ead, she realized Lydia had f

e way here? I'll make this clear. The one Adrian loves now

"I've never seen someone so pr

ia suddenly snapped, her voice rising. "Adrian said you're nothing but wo

ething that intimate. It felt as if her he

sal surgery. His parents have been dying for a grandchild. If it weren't for you, wh

o are you

d voice suddenly

d Lydia's face, but she q

look and sneered, "Let's

hard and screamed, "Don't come

What hap

kicked the door op

he impact, her lower back slamming into the s

dn't even look up. He didn't

what h

"It's all my fault. I made her u

his head and notice Celi

ollowe

eryone already knows you threw a fit over a woman. It'l

es," Adrian snappe

d at Celine for a long momen

and added, "On paper, Lydia is still my assistant. Taking c

g a s

e tugged at C

round him would make her uneasy, he had

d Lydia against all expectati

aying she was jus

hing at all. She was completely, utterly don

y, watched Lydia glance back at he

a piece of her heart had been slowly peeled away.