Mason pinched her delicate chin before she could react and said, “Are you going to prostitute yourself?”Zoe was trembling, but she could not deny what he said. He leaned in close and muttered as if they were lovers. “Who’s going to buy your service? Everyone in Brookesville knows you’re my wife. Who would dare lay their fingers on you? “Moreover, are you sure you can bear the touch of another man? Men who frequent prostitutes go right into the main action, much as how we did it on the night we got married. It was so painful for you. Did you forget about it already? ”Zoe paled. She could never forget how tough he was with her. He was taking revenge on her. She almost died that night. Mason stopped when he saw that his intimidation had done its job. He released her and fondled her cheeks gently. “Return to me. We can go back to the way things were.” Zoe’s neck stiffened. She saw a brand new violin in the bookshelf across the room. She recalled the news saying that he spent twen

Zoe was good-looking and she played the violin very well. The person in charge paid her three hundred dollars for each show. He would ask her to play for three or four shows every day if business was good. That resulted in her playing violin for six hours a day. Calluses and blisters formed on her fingers from it.It was a hard life and she was occupied all the time, but she had never regretted her actions. She never gave a call to Mason, nor did he call her. From time to time, she would read news about him attending banquets and acquiring other companies.He looked stunning and arrogant in these events. She used to accompany him to such events in the past, her heart leaping from glancing at his dashing looks. Be that as it may, all she felt now was distant and strange.…It was evening. Zoe sat quietly on the top floor of the hospital. A can of iced Coke stood next to her. She rarely used to drink sodas because it was not exactly healthy, but she would drink one from time to time

The window was lowered halfway and Mason’s arrogant face could be seen. He wore a black and white suit, as though he had attended a formal function. He looked very relaxed, which made Zoe look worse in comparison.They locked gazes silently on the rainy night. Zoe’s lips were trembling from the cold. She wrapped her hands around her violin tightly as if it were the last glimmer of hope in her otherwise bleak life. It was clear Mason was giving her an opportunity. All she had to do now was to yield and get in his car. Then, she would get a clean towel and a cup of hot water. She would not need to perform in a supermarket tomorrow morning. She could sleep on the grand, soft bed until she woke up. She could be his wife again.However, she did not want that!Zoe stood in the rain and looked at him wordlessly. The rain got heavier. It dripped on their eyelids and blurred their visions. After about a minute, Zoe shielded her head with a hand and started running in the rain.She ran and

Zoe thought it was quite inappropriate. She was about to reject him when he took out a food container from the passenger seat. “This is some homemade pizza and your favorite Caesar salad. My mom made these and asked me to take them to you.”She was kind of surprised. “Your mom remembered!” Cecil flashed her a gentle smile and opened the car door for her, “Come on. Your place is on my way anyway.” It was hard for Zoe to reject him now. So, she got in the car and buckled up.“Thanks for your help.”Cecil had his hands on the steering wheel and looked at her cheerfully, “Go ahead and eat it if you’re hungry. They’re still hot.” She did not want to act as if they were very close. Also, she did not want to make his car dirty. So, she shook her head. “I’ll eat them when I’m back home.”He did not push her. Cecil started driving away and said after a while, “It’s perfectly fine to eat them at home so you can take your time with them!” With that, his white BMW drove off into the distan

Zoe’s legs were shaking when she left Mason’s car. She tried her best to not let him notice it. She did not want to be embarrassed further.What was the big deal, really?It was just sex. Mason had done it with her in countless embarrassing positions in the past three years. It was merely one more embarrassing moment to add to the pile. Moreover, they did not even go through with it in the end!It was still pitch black on the staircase. She could almost smell the erotic odor of when they intertwined with each other. Zoe picked up the food container and her violin. She shuffled back home. She was about to open the door when someone called her, “Zoe!”The light at the staircase came on all of a sudden. She saw someone she knew and muttered, “Ella.” Zoe came back to her senses after a while, “How did you find your way here?”“I went to the hospital and got your address from Mia.” Ella lifted her chin. “I came here as soon as I got off the plane. Hurry up and make me some food. I’ve