"William…"

"I'm sorry I was late," William murmured.

Elise frowned, wondering if her senses were deceiving her.

This version of William felt entirely different from his usual detached self.

He seemed capable of genuine human emotion now.

She squirmed in his embrace, utterly confused by his behavior.

"Did you come to the wrong apartment? Release me…"

Ignoring her resistance, William whispered against her ear, "From now on, I'll always be here for you."

His words carried the weight of a solemn vow.

"Listen, just… ah!"

Elise gasped sharply as William suddenly lifted her into his arms.

Did this man have some peculiar obsession with carrying people?!

"You injured your leg," William murmured softly near her ear.

Elise fell silent.

She had assumed he was completely drunk, yet he'd noticed her foot injury…

So he wasn't intoxicated after all?!

The realization struck her, and she immediately began struggling violently!

Though not drunk, William's senses felt slightly blurred. Carrying her was manageable, but her frantic movements made it challenging.

"Stop," he commanded, his voice restrained yet threatening.

"Put me down. I can walk by myself," Elise protested stubbornly.

She despised this intimacy—hadn't he previously assured her he wasn't the type to mess around?!

Liar!

Naturally, she disregarded his words and continued writhing against his hold.

William exerted considerable effort to carry Elise into her bedroom, but just as they neared her bed, she shoved him so forcefully that he stumbled.

"Ah!" Elise cried out again, feeling dizzy as they collapsed onto the mattress.

The man above her felt like solid concrete—immovable and inescapable.

William growled menacingly, "Please don't test my patience, Ms. Scott."

He was breathing heavily, his voice strained with unspoken tension.

Elise finally stilled.

Adults always understood when to relent.

"Finally giving up?" William observed, watching her quiet submission in his arms.

A faint blush colored her fair cheeks—was that something he should feel pleased about?

Yet he couldn't even find an excuse to tease her now.

"Let me go," Elise protested weakly.

"Just give me a moment to catch my breath," William said quietly.

Understanding the implication, Elise bit her lip and remained still.

William took several deep breaths before finally releasing her.

The room felt charged with unspoken energy, the temperature seeming to rise rather than fall.

Elise rolled over and reached for her air conditioning remote from the bedside drawer.

"Achoo!" William sneezed—it was only early spring, and the nights remained chilly.

The blast of cold air from the conditioner, combined with his alcohol consumption, made his stomach churn.

Clutching his mouth, he asked Elise, "Where's the bathroom?"

Elise pointed to the right, and William rushed toward it. Soon, she heard unmistakable sounds of vomiting.

Elise froze. Had she actually made him sick?!

However, the bathroom soon fell silent, yet William didn't emerge.

Elise quickly got out of bed—she'd recently read news about someone drinking themselves to death, and she certainly didn't need a corpse in her apartment!

Just as she reached the doorway, she heard the toilet flushing, and William turned toward the sound of the opening door…

He had been relieving himself.

Their eyes met, Elise blinked slowly, then quietly closed the door.

William glanced downward, assessing himself.

Was it really that unimpressive?!

After a moment, he stepped out and explained, "I needed to go urgently."

"Yeah," Elise said, before adding sternly, "Goodbye, Mr. Levine."

William wanted to say more, but ultimately remained silent and left, closing her front door behind him.

Elise didn't watch him depart.

Her hands remained clenched into fists for a long time before finally relaxing.

She needed eye bleach. It would take at least a month to erase that image from her memory!

Elise woke the next morning with prominent dark circles beneath her eyes.

She'd always been prone to insomnia, and William's midnight disturbance had made it worse than usual.

She did a double take upon opening her bedroom door—William was working in her kitchen, her pink apron tied around his waist.

Noticing her arrival, he calmly greeted, "Good morning."

For a moment, Elise wondered if she was still dreaming!

She stood staring as William placed a delicious-looking breakfast on the table, asking, "Try it. See if it suits your taste."

"Why are you still here?" she asked, her tone displeased as she regained her composure.

"I'll be leaving right away," William replied matter-of-factly, removing the apron to reveal his wrinkled suit.

At the door, he paused and said, "Please enjoy your breakfast. It's to make up for last night."

With that, he was gone, leaving Elise feeling thoroughly annoyed.

It had been a while since she'd lost her temper with anyone, but William was becoming far too familiar with her!

Nevertheless, she ate the breakfast anyway—she hated wasting food.

After her meal, Elise left her apartment—she needed to visit Mitchell Corp to settle some matters. However, just outside her building, a man approached her respectfully. "Good morning, Ms. Scott. I'm Robert—Mr. Levine sent me to be your chauffeur."

Elise found herself speechless, but got into the car with him.

Upon arrival, as she stepped out, Robert handed her a business card. "My number is on it, Ms. Scott. You can call me anytime you need transportation—Mr. Levine instructed that I'll be your full-time chauffeur starting today."

Elise was rendered speechless again. Did she even get a choice in the matter?

Still, she accepted the card and entered the building, immediately drawing stares from everyone present.

Remaining indifferent, she limped toward the elevator on her crutches. Everyone above ground floor was watching her too.

She headed straight to her office and opened the door to find Sophia in her seat, kissing Samuel as he sat at her desk.

The scene made everything click into place—now she understood why everyone had been looking at her so strangely.

Although her wedding with Samuel had been canceled due to that fire, they'd never officially announced their breakup… because Sophia had already taken her place!

Naturally, Elise's entrance interrupted them, and Samuel immediately glowered. "Why didn't you knock—"

He cut himself off, his expression darkening when he saw Elise.

Simultaneously, Sophia panicked and hid behind Samuel, adopting the demeanor of a victim as if fearing Elise might rush forward and strike her.

She was certainly putting on quite the performance.