Chapter 99
Elizabeth's POV
Aiden was being completely unreasonable, just as domineering as he'd been back at the Smith family estate.
Though I could understand it to some extent, kids like Aiden, raised with everything handed to them on a silver platter, had no idea what hardship even meant.
Because I used to be the same. As the only daughter of the Spencer family, I'd grown up getting whatever I wanted, never experiencing a single moment of grievance.
Everything had always gone my way, as if the entire world revolved around me.
But when the Spencer family fell apart, and we went bankrupt, all those people who used to dote on me and love me just vanished.
The brutal contrast made me cling to anyone nearby like a drowning person grabbing a lifeline. And it was precisely because I'd depended too much on others that Aiden had been able to push me around like this.
Even now, when I thought I'd finally escaped him, he could still brazenly kidnap me and drag me here.
Aiden finally released me, looking down at me from his superior position. "Elizabeth, stop making up stories. Alexander doesn't care about you at all—otherwise, why hasn't he sent anyone to find you yet?"
I looked up at him, my brow furrowing involuntarily.
He was right. Someone as capable as Alexander—how could he possibly not find me?
And now it was clearly dark outside, which left only one possibility.
After learning I'd disappeared, Alexander simply hadn't sent anyone to look for me.
I stared at Aiden, feeling sharp pangs of pain radiating from somewhere deep in my chest.
But I didn't let it show. If anything, I forced myself to seem stronger.
"Trying to drive a wedge between Alexander and me won't work," I said.
Whatever Aiden's reasons for keeping me prisoner here, my trump card was the baby in my belly. Even if Alexander hadn't come looking for me tonight, for the sake of this child, he'd definitely send someone tomorrow. Or the day after.
Aiden's gaze slowly traveled downward, settling on my abdomen, his eyes narrowing. "You only got close to him because of that belly, didn't you?"
As he spoke, he moved toward me.
I shifted warily to the side, keeping my expression as calm as possible.
Was Aiden planning to hurt my baby?
After all, he didn't seem to dare hurt me directly.
"Aiden!" Finally, as he closed in, I raised my voice.
I locked eyes with him. "Do you dare touch my child? If you so much as lay a finger on this baby, Alexander will never let you get away with it."
But Aiden suddenly stopped. He smiled at me with amusement. "So you do care about this baby, don't you? Alexander's only with you because of this child, right?"
"So what if he is? We have real feelings now. Even if it started because of the baby, from now on it's about me as a person."
Aiden's expression grew more pronounced. "Then why hasn't he come looking for you yet?"
I frowned, a flicker of frustration in my eyes.
I had no idea how to answer that question. The result was already painfully obvious.
If Alexander wasn't coming to find me, there was nothing I could do about it.
I wasn't familiar with this place—it looked like a house Aiden had recently bought.
If I tried to escape on my own, I'd have to wait until daylight at the very least.
Right now, I was exhausted and starving, with no physical strength left to spare.
"I don't want to discuss this with you. Let me go. Now."
Aiden sat down on the edge of the bed, staring at my face for a long moment. "You're actually very beautiful. It's just your temperament that's the problem."
I almost laughed out loud. "My temperament's the problem?"
What exactly did "good temperament" mean to Aiden? When I'd been with him before, I'd already restrained myself considerably, practically bending over backward to accommodate him. Even that version of me—so compliant—had a bad temperament in his eyes?
Bianca was even gentler than I'd been. What kind of woman did Aiden actually want?
He reached out as if to touch my face. I dodged skillfully, my whole body radiating rejection.
Right now, even the slightest contact with Aiden made me feel sick.
"You haven't eaten in so long. Aren't you hungry?" Aiden suddenly changed the subject, though his gaze remained fixed on my belly.
I didn't want to give him any leverage, so I kept my mouth shut.
I was starving, actually. But if Aiden was the one offering me food, I didn't dare eat it.
"Elizabeth, you not trusting me like this really hurts my feelings."
Aiden grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to meet his eyes.
"Elizabeth, I'm not joking around with you. Stay by my side and behave, and I won't let anything bad happen to you."
Aiden's expression was so earnest that for a split second, I almost believed he meant it.
But what was the point of keeping me trapped by his side?
Aiden was pursuing me again, pestering me, while simultaneously being with Bianca—what was his endgame?
After all this talk, I still couldn't glean any useful information from what he'd said.
"Aiden, if you have something to say, just say it. Stop doing all these pointless things." I decided to lay everything out in the open, hoping to force an answer out of him.
Aiden acted as if he hadn't understood me at all, abruptly changing the subject again.
"I've prepared a nutritious dinner for you in the dining room. You can go eat whenever you want."
After saying that, he turned and left the room without any further contact.
I sat on the bed, stunned for several seconds before gradually realizing Aiden had actually left.
And nothing had happened?
This was completely unexpected.
In fact, just moments ago, I'd been mentally preparing how to deal with him.
Now, not only had he left, but he'd even kindly mentioned there was dinner in the dining room.
And from the sound of it, he wasn't even restricting my freedom.
Everything Aiden was doing left me completely confused.
Tentatively, I got off the bed and walked toward the door. Sure enough, it opened immediately—Aiden hadn't locked it at all.
Once outside, I discovered this was just an ordinary apartment. I found the dining room easily enough.
The table was laid with an abundance of food. I didn't immediately start eating, instead conducting a series of checks.
I couldn't simply assume Aiden wasn't using this tactic to make me let my guard down. Better to stay cautious.
I looked deeper into the apartment.
Something didn't add up.
Aiden was in one of those rooms, so he was just letting me come out here and eat dinner like this?
Wasn't he afraid I'd take this opportunity to escape?
The more I thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
I was just about to test whether I could leave when a door opened from deeper in the apartment.
Aiden's voice drifted over, "Elizabeth, you'd better behave yourself."