Chapter 85 Thank You for Reminding Me
Grace's shoulders trembled.
Something about the man before her felt different from usual—more dangerous, more commanding.
"What do you want?" she whispered.
Alexander gripped her jaw tightly, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Do you enjoy hitting people?"
His presence radiated an imperial authority, born into him, cold pressure spreading through the air until it became suffocating.
Looking at his face, Grace could barely breathe. His overwhelming aura crushed her defiance, her clear eyes flickering with uncertainty. "I..."
Yes, she had hit Emily. She wouldn't deny it—she owned her actions.
But Emily had started it! She'd tried to forcibly take Liam away and humiliated Max. Grace had only fought back!
Besides, it was just one slap. It wasn't like she'd committed murder. Why was he defending Emily like this?
"Remember this—you will never hurt her again. Otherwise, I won't let you get away with it."
Grace clenched her fists, stubbornly retorting, "Says who?"
Alexander raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"I hit her. So what are you going to do about it?" Grace shot back.
She felt wronged and furious, her small hands gripping the bedsheets tightly, refusing to surrender.
"She was clearly in the wrong!" Grace protested. "I did nothing wrong!"
"Say 'yes.'" Alexander cut her off. "I'm not asking for your opinion. I'm warning you—you will not target her or hurt her again. Say 'yes.'"
Grace's face flushed red with anger, the bedsheets crumpling in her grip. "What gives you the right to order me around like this? She was the one who..."
"Say 'yes.'" Alexander's eyes narrowed dangerously, his fingers tightening on her jaw until she gasped in pain.
In their silent standoff, the threat in his eyes grew more menacing.
"How many times do I need to repeat myself?" His voice was ice-cold, his gaze predatory. "I don't have much patience with you, Grace."
Grace bit her lip, which began to tremble. A tear slipped from the corner of her eye, but she refused to make a sound, just holding her breath, breathing shakily...
Her stubborn expression caught him off guard.
"What gives you the right to bully me?" Grace clenched her fists and pounded them against his shoulder. "What gives you the right to bully me? Am I that easy to pick on? Is that why you and Emily both think you can walk all over me?"
Her voice grew more choked with each word.
Alexander found her unreasonable. "I'm bullying you?"
"Aren't you?" Grace's tears fell faster despite her efforts to hold them back. "You're threatening me..."
Perhaps the injustice was too much—she simply couldn't control the tears anymore.
"Is she so precious? Is she made of porcelain that'll shatter at the slightest touch?" It was just one slap! Had Emily been crippled by it?
Max had been hit and still insisted he was fine.
Was Emily really that delicate?
And what about her?
At the Foster family, she'd lived in humiliation, enduring treatment far worse than this—abuse, degradation—and no one had ever stood up for her.
Except Max and Liam.
That was why she was willing to risk everything to protect these two kids—the only people in her life who had ever shown her genuine kindness.
Was she wrong for that?
"If you feel so sorry for her, then hit me instead!" Grace trembled as she closed her eyes.
"You're being completely unreasonable!" Alexander ground out through clenched teeth.
Grace opened her eyes again, now filled with even more hurt and resentment. "Alexander! I hate you!"
She pounded her fists against his shoulders.
Alexander caught her hands and pinned them to the bed, forgetting that her hand had been dislocated recently and was still tender.
The sudden pain made Grace sob quietly.
Alexander froze completely.
He hated when women cried in front of him, but somehow, seeing her red-rimmed eyes and tear-stained cheeks, his heart softened.
"Why are you crying?"
Was she trying to appear pitiful and wronged to gain his sympathy?
Alexander found himself reaching out to wipe away her tears.
Instead, Grace suddenly grabbed his wrist and bit down hard on his finger.
She bit so forcefully that she broke the skin, drawing tiny beads of blood.
Alexander frowned slightly but didn't move or pull away. He seemed unfazed by the pain, just looking down at her as she clung to his finger, biting as if to release all her frustration.
"Do you feel that wronged?" His voice was low and calm, barely rippling with emotion.
She gradually loosened her grip, but her mood hadn't improved. Tears continued to fall.
Looking at her, Alexander found he couldn't say anything harsher.
Maybe her tears had touched something in him.
Before he realized it, he was leaning down to gently kiss away her tears.
When awareness returned, Grace was staring at him in equal shock.
What was he doing?
Looking at her face, Alexander felt himself teetering on the edge of losing control—especially when his gaze lingered on her reddened eyes, her nose pink from crying, her cheeks flushed like they'd been touched with rouge, and her eyes hazy and disoriented.
Her body temperature was warmer than his.
In that moment, he was pulled from his cold, isolated world back into the freezing reality.
This kiss was spiraling beyond his control.
Driven by primal instinct, he found himself greedily craving more.
Alexander cupped the back of her neck and leaned down, kissing away each tear from her eyes, then trailing gentle kisses over her nose, her jaw...
Grace finally realized what was happening and began to struggle.
"Let go of me."
She fought against him constantly. "Let go... Alexander."
In her shame and anger, Grace raised her hand to slap his face.
But Alexander caught her hand and pinned it down, looking at her with cold mockery in his eyes.
Only she had ever slapped his face.
That one time had been his carelessness.
But once was enough.
Though he knew he'd lost control and acted irrationally, he didn't need her to remind him this way.
"I'm going to marry Emily," Alexander said flatly.
Grace's eyes widened in shock.
"So I'm the one who arranged for her to pick up Liam—to build their relationship." Alexander's tone was matter-of-fact. "This kind of incident cannot happen again."
"If you want to marry her, that's your business. You don't need to tell me specifically," Grace replied.
"I don't want Liam to become too dependent on you. After all, you're not Liam's biological mother. You have no right to interfere in many things."
Grace opened her mouth but found herself speechless.
She wasn't Liam's biological mother. She truly had no right to interfere in many things.
"All this time, I've treated Liam as my own. I forgot he wasn't actually mine." Grace's voice was hollow. "Thank you for reminding me."