"Mrs.
rke, I''m so sorry! I didn''t mean to!"
Kaelyn hurried down the stairs, her face exaggeratedly worried.
“Maybe I can just put it all in a bag for now?” she added, hiding her disdain behind a sweet smile.
Kaelyn had always looked down on Allison, considering her nothing more than a poor country girl who had shamelessly taken a fancy to Colton in order to have a better life.
Colton frowned in frustration.
“You’re so clumsy!” he snapped, looking at the scattered clothes.
Allison''s suitcase contained very few clothes and hardly any jewelry.
She hadn''t even spent much of the money he had given her over the years.
She lived simply, frugally, and it was a reflection of how she had never tried to take advantage of her status.
But love could not be forced or faked.
“Mny’s luggage takes priority.
Put Allison’s stuff in a storage bag,” Colton added dismissively, eyeing the torn suitcase.
“I’ll have the housekeeper buy you a new one tomorrow.
”
Allison gave a slight, bitter smile.
“That suitcase was the one I stole from the kidnappers when we were fleeing to safety.
If it hadn’t been for it, we would have drowned then.
”
For years, she had cared for that suitcase, just as she had cared for her marriage.
And now, like her rtionship, it was in tatters.
Colton gave a coldugh.
“That story may fool my grandfather, but it doesn’t work on me.
”
The memory of being kidnapped as a child was too vague, and he always doubted that Allison had been with him during that time.
Turning to Kaelyn, Colton raised his voice.
“Hurry up and get her things!”
“Yes, sir.
” Kaelyn excitedly began to pick up Allison’s clothes, but deliberately stepped on them, dirtying them in the process.
In a sickly sweet tone, she sneered, “Miss rke, Mr.
Stevens’ grandmother always says that people are like clothes.
Once a person’s clothes are stained, it doesn’t matter how much you wash them; the marks never truly go away.
”
Allison had always been nice to Kaelyn, even when she didn''t have to be.
After all, Kaelyn was a distant rtive of Colton''s grandmother.
Years ago, when Kaelyn had made a mistake that nearly pitted the Stevens family against Ken Lloyd, the eldest son of the Lloyd family, it had been Allison who had smoothed things over.
She had brokered a deal with the paralyzed Ken, securing crucialnd for the Stevens’ business venture.
At the time, Kaelyn had been grateful, almost humiliated.
But now, emboldened by the winds of change within the Stevens family, Kaelyn acted as if she had never bent the knee.
It all came down to one thing: Colton''s grandmother''s favor had strayed, and with it, so had the family''s attitude.
“If clothes get dirty, you’re right,” Allison said, her eyes fixed on Colton, “they’re impossible to get clean.
” She shrugged, a casual finality in her voice.
“So I won’t need them anymore.
”
He had never liked such insipid, shapeless things anyway.
They had never suited him.
“But when people screw up,” he continued, his voice cold and unfamiliar, “they have to face the consequences.
”
The air in the room changed.
For the first time, Colton looked at Allison as if he were seeing her through a new lens—his usual softness had been reced by a sharp edge.
Even Kaelyn sensed the change, but she quickly put on an innocent mask, as if slipping into a role she had perfected.
“I only serve the Stevens family, Miss rke,” Kaelyn said, her voice tinged with sweetness.
“And since you’re divorced…”
A p!
Kaelyn didn''t get a chance to finish.
Allison''s palm hit her left cheek with such force that the sound echoed through the room.
Kaelyn''s eyes widened in disbelief.
“How dare you hit me?”
"Because I felt like it.
"
"If Mrs.
Stevens finds out.
.
.
"
A p!
Another p, this time harder, sent Kaelyn reeling back.
Both of her cheeks were now red and swollen, a perfect mirror of each other.
The second blow knocked Kaelyn off bnce, and as she fell to the ground, she twisted her ankle.
She screamed in pain, her face one of humiliation and fury.
Tears welled up in Kaelyn’s eyes, spilling over as she moaned, “Mr.
Stevens, you’ve gone too far!”
But before Kaelyn could let out any moreints, Allison was on her again, her hand gripping Kaelyn''s throat as she ripped the cor off her neck.
"That''s for the suitcase and the clothes.
"
Kaelyn''s face flushed as Allison gripped her tighter, choking her words back into sobs.
"And now I give you back what never belonged to you.
"
The ne was a modest piece, an emerald pendant surrounded by diamonds, but its value was not what mattered.
The engraving on the back made it clear that it had never been Kaelyn''s.
“You… aremitting assault!” Kaelyn croaked, panting.
In her panic, she didn’t even notice when her dder gave way.
As Allison''s grip threatened to suffocate her, Kaelyn''s mind finally cleared and she realized with terrifying rity that Allison was not only capable of hurting her, she could kill her if she wanted to.
But Allison, without hesitation or dy, broke the chain from her ne and walked away, unhurriedly, as if the encounter had no importance to her.
Kaelyn stood up, desperate, and turned to Colton, pleading, “Lord, this is all a misunderstanding, please…”
"Out!"
Colton''s patience snapped as his boot mmed into Kaelyn''s side, knocking her off her feet once more.
The pungent, acrid smell of urine hit his nose, and his already-ring temper boiled over.
"The Stevens family has no ce for someone with sticky fingers.
"
Meanwhile, Allison had already left the vi, phone in hand, and dialed a familiar number.
When the call connected, her voice was calm, almost light.
“Reba, I’m divorced and have moved out of your vi.
My house and car are still in Vrining.
Do you mind if I stay overnight at your ce?”
On the other end of the line, Reba Green went from silence to squealing with joy in a matter of seconds.
?Fuck! You finally divorced that jerk! Forget about sleeping over, you''re going to a party! A singles party.
?
Even from a distance, Allison could hear Reba’s exaggeratedughter bubbling through the phone.
“If the people at Cobweb find out the founder is back, the servers will blow up!”