Chapter 140

A sudden chill woke her as Cedric pulled the blanket off her. His hand, with its calloused palm, rested on her waist, his fingers gently brushing against the soft skin of her lower back. The light touch sent a shiver through her.

She forced her eyes open and saw him sitting on the edge of the bed, holding the small pill bottle. The birth control pills.

She was wide awake now, a sharp pain piercing her heart. She pushed herself up, tipped a pill from the bottle into her palm, put it in her mouth, and washed it down with the water from the nightstand. The whole time, her eyes were fixed on Cedric, and his cold, indifferent gaze was on her. Neither of them looked at the pill.

She had been obedient. Cedric put the bottle back and went to his study. Liliana had noticed he was busier lately. Whenever Mirabelle was out of the country on business, the time difference meant Cedric had more late-night video conferences.

The pill had chased away all her sleepiness. She got up, took a quick shower, and got back into bed. It took a long time for her to feel drowsy again. Just as she was about to drift off, her phone rang. She instinctively reached for it, pulling it out from under the adjacent pillow and answering without looking.

"Cedric..."

"Hello...?"

They both spoke at the same time. The voice on the other end was Sylvia's, soft and weak. In the dead of night, it had a seductive quality. Liliana's own voice was hoarse and gravelly, the sound of someone who had just been thoroughly... used.

A dead silence fell over the line.

Liliana opened her eyes and realized she had answered Cedric's phone.

The bedroom door clicked open. Cedric walked in and saw her with his phone.

His expression changed instantly. He strode over and snatched the phone from her hand. "How dare you answer my phone?"

He pulled so hard that she was yanked forward, landing face down on the bed. Her hair fell around her, a messy tangle. She looked up at him, stunned. Why was he so angry? As if her answering the phone could somehow break up him and Sylvia.

Or maybe... he was afraid of upsetting Sylvia. A bitter, silent laugh escaped her, a laugh directed at herself.

Cedric's eyes were blazing with fury. He shot Liliana a warning look before walking out of the room with the phone to his ear. "Let me explain..."

Explain what? Did he need to explain to Sylvia why he was sleeping with his own wife? Liliana closed her eyes, a thousand unspoken words caught in her throat. She turned over and went to sleep.

The moment Cedric stepped out of the bedroom, Sylvia's voice came through the phone. "Cedric, I have an urgent document..."

"Vice President Woods?" Cedric stopped, looked at his phone screen, and realized

it was Sylvia who had called.

Sylvia paused, then continued, "I have a document that needs your digital signature."

Cedric pinched the bridge of his nose, a vein throbbing in his forehead. "You could

have just sent it to me. You didn't need to call."

He hung up. The phone immediately

rang again. This was the call he kad been waiting for. He answered it quickly. "Sorry about that, I had to take another call, Thank you for Waiting."

A strong, clear voice replied, "Not at all, Mr. Forrest. We understand you're a busy man."

When Liliana woke up on Saturday morning, Cedric was already gone. She had plans to see a movie with Juniper, a perfect excuse to try out her new car it was true what they said you get what you pay for. The car was much more powerful and had better visibility than her old one.

She had just parked in the movie theater lot when someone tapped on her window. She rolled it down. The bright sunlight illuminated her face, making her cheeks glow.

Juniper leaned against the door. "All it takes is a car from him to get you this thrilled? Looks like you're still head over heels for that jerk. Are you ever going to get over him?"