Chapter 97: The Issue of a Man's Face

"Do you like him?" Darian narrowed his eyes dangerously, "Nicole, are you being open about it now?" 

"You're overthinking it," Nicole felt uncomfortable under his gaze, wanting to retort back. 

He firmly grabbed her hand and pressed on, "Wasn't it your support that made him so brazen just now?" 

Nicole couldn't fight his domineering aura, biting her lip as she softly defended, "You were the one being relentless with your words first." 

"Are you siding with him?" 

"It's the truth." 

"Nicole!" he was furious. "Have you forgotten that you're my wife?" 

Nicole couldn't stand his unreasonable temper, questioning him in exasperation, "What do you mean by that? Did I say anything when you were with Rebecca?" 

She was on the verge of losing her temper. 

He really thought of her as a doormat! 

"What do you mean I was with her? If you didn't leave, she wouldn't have had the opportunity." 

"If you didn't give her hope, she wouldn't have approached you like that." 

"I already sent her away." 

"That's your issue!" 

The sudden silence was the most frightening. 

Nicole's chest heaved, her heart racing. A wave of fear reduced in cold sweat running down her back. 

Darian's sinister gaze made her uncomfortable all over, prompting her to quickly shake off his hand and step back. 

Words should never be spoken in haste, but since she already did so, she had to stand her ground. 

"What did you say?" 

Nicole felt like the air in the room was thinning, struggling to breathe. 

He was furious. Nicole stepped back, regaining her composure. 

Arguing with him would only turn right into wrong, and provoking him wouldn't benefit anybody. She was now more afraid he'd take it out on Mike. 

She lowered her head, adjusting her emotions before asking him, "Are you hungry? I'll get you something to eat." 

"I am hungry," Darian felt very angry. 

No man can tolerate being called incompetent or incapable by others. 

It's a matter of their pride; something very important. 

Whether it was true or not was one thing, but being called out like that would hurt his pride. 

Nicole sighed in relief. "What do you want to eat? I'll go get it for you." 

Hastily escaping this hellish abyss, she feared that any delay would lead to a disastrous outcome. 

"Come here and I'll tell you," Darian's voice suddenly weakened. 

Nicole hesitated for a moment, then moved closer. 

In an instant, he pushed her onto the bed, tearing her clothes off. 

"What are you doing? Let go of me! This is a hospital!" she struggled. 

Last night's events seamlessly connected to the present moment. 

Darian was so enraged that he couldn't think of anything else, determined to have his way with her. He wanted to prove he was capable and show her who was in charge. 

Nicole's clothes were torn, her face flushed. 

She couldn't resist him even with all her might. Although he was a patient, his strength was overwhelming. 

Nicole tried to reach for the bedside table, but there was nothing there. 

She cried and struggled, writhing until she had no strength left. "You can't treat me like this." 

"You're my wife, so who else can I do this to? Mike?" His hand pressed against her waist, his eyes bloodshot and terrifying. "You've known each other for six years, and shared loneliness abroad. What, did you sleep with him?" 

Nicole slapped him hard. 

With red eyes and clenched lips, she stared at him fiercely. 

Darian's face turned from the hit. He licked the side of his face that had numbed, his gaze dark and ominous while his hand on her waist was already moving. 

He had to make her understand who she belonged to. 

Nicole was too weak to resist, and the slap had drained all her strength. 

Her eyes filled with pain and disgust. "What you're doing now is no different from a beast in heat; devoid of humanity. You can satisfy your ridiculous pride and vanity, but you will never get genuine love. If you want this body, then take it; it's just a shell, so consider me unlucky." 

She tried to remember how many times this had happened. 

Her resistance grew weaker each time, knowing that such a thing would happen sooner or later. 

She was tired. 

She didn't have the strength to reason with someone she didn't love, who used every means to keep her by his side. She'd just live like this for the rest of her life. 

In this world, there we're always some unlucky people. 

She was just one of them. 

She lay there, tears silently streaming down her face as she stared at the ceiling. 

Seeing her tears, Darian felt even more uncomfortable. 

How many times had this happened already? Moreover, she looked like this each time.

If it were Mike, she wouldn't be so agitated. 

Even if he never touched her again, he wouldn't let her have her way. 

He had completely lost his desire, pinching her chin as he harshly said, "Do you think I'd really touch you? I don't love you; even if you beg me, I won't touch you. But listen to me, if you dare to do something behind my back, your loved ones will pay the price for your actions!" 

Nicole expected such a warning from him, having gone through this not once or twice. She was used to it. 

She didn't care, hoarsely asking, "Are you sure you don't want it anymore?" 

She didn't want to go through this again next time. 

Darian squinted at her, annoyed by her seemingly-lifeless appearance. 

He threw off the covers, put on a mask, and left.

When Nicole heard the door close, she finally relaxed. 

Wiping away her tears, she sat up and put on her clothes, her waist red from his grip. 

This wasn't the first time she had experienced this, and she was calmer than before. 

Her hand still hurt a bit, the slap earlier a response to his words. 

She washed her face in the bathroom, her eyes red but otherwise fine. 

Afterward, she left the ward and ran into Araminta. 

He glanced at her and asked, "Where's my brother?" 

Nicole didn't want to see anyone from the Blaze family and ignored him. 

He didn't stop her. He pushed open the ward door, finding it empty. 

He quickly took out his phone and watched the video, his eyes slightly widening. 

Rebecca was completely out of the picture, and Nicole wouldn't be around for much longer. 

Araminta put away his phone, smiling smugly as he left the ward. 

Nicole ignored Darian, thinking of going to Sophia's place, however, she was worried she might be concerned, so she went to a hotel instead. She took a shower and slept until morning. 

She had many dreams that night, none of which she could remember. However, she knew Darian's fierce demeanor was in them. 

After breakfast, she took a taxi to Bright Horizons Medical Center, where the director called her into the office.