Chapter 4

Zachary first had Quinton send Lexi back to Flowerhill Estate.

Once Lexi got into the car, she looked through the window and saw Zachary hugging Yvonne. He seemed to be comforting her.

The corners of Lexi's lips curved upward with a hint of bitterness yet relief.

When she asked Mary to invite Yvonne out last night, she knew Mary would rat her out to Zachary. None of this was surprising to her. Everything had gone according to her plan.

Quinton soon drove ahead. Upon stopping for a red light, he turned around to look at Lexi. "You're intelligent, Ms. Loyle. Why did you have to upset Boss?"

He and Lexi had worked together for five years, so he witnessed how Lexi looked after Zachary with the utmost care.

Lexi even took cooking classes every night after work to better care for Zachary's stomach. She trained her cooking skills until they were comparable to an award-winning chef's.

She looked after Zachary with great attentiveness.

Lexi tucked her loose strands of hair behind her ears and rested her arm against the car window frame. Her eyes glistened with clarity like never before.

After all, why insist on winning over a man's affections when he never loved her?

She tilted her head while shooting a playful wink at Quinton. "It's because I'm incredibly intelligent, Mr. Shaw."

That rendered Quinton speechless, but he soon scoffed. "How can you be in the mood to joke around at a moment like this?"

What he meant by that was, "How can you still joke around when Zachary's already pissed off?"

A soft chuckle came from Lexi, who was in a good mood.

Then, the two no longer spoke.

…

There were bodyguards stationed outside Flowerhill Estate. Because of that, Lexi couldn't flee even if she wanted to.

Quinton dropped Lexi off at Flowerhill Estate before driving off.

Lexi couldn't leave the villa in the estate if Zachary didn't allow it.

She fell asleep on the couch for the rest of the night. Meanwhile, the living room television was tuned to a boring channel.

Zachary stared down at the slumbering Lexi when he came home. There was a relaxed, welcoming energy to her when she was asleep. It was unlike her aloof demeanor when she was his secretary in the daytime.

Zachary's forehead creased as he frowned. He bent forward.

Lexi awoke from her sleep when she felt someone pinching her chin.

Zachary had used brute force when doing it, so Lexi was in immense pain. It struck her hard and snapped her out of her bleary state. She was more alert now.

Her eyes opened wide to see a cold Zachary staring at her. She could even smell Yvonne's perfume lingering on him.

Lexi's forehead creased, and her stomach turned in disgust.

The lights inside the villa weren't on, save for one desk lamp and the light from the television. Those light sources faintly illuminated the darkness.

Half of Zachary's attractive face was hidden in the darkness. Only an icy tone rang out when he spoke. "Who gave you the nerve to blabber nonsense to Yvonne, Lexi?"

Lexi was lying on the couch, and she lowered her gaze. She did not say anything because anything she said would be wrong.

"Did a cat get your tongue? Speak!" He gripped her chin without mercy.

He exerted so much strength that he forced Lexi's slender neck to curve as he made her look at him.

Lexi was forced to raise her head. Her striking eyes soon settled on his cold expression.

Her jaw hurt so badly that tears naturally flowed from her eyes. Still, she responded calmly, "I only told her the truth. You and I are indeed legally married. Did I say anything wrong?"

Zachary held her chin in a tight grip while spouting venomous words. "It's only a marriage certificate, Lexi. Have you forgotten about our marriage contract? You were despicable enough to sign the contract just because you needed money."

Lexi knew she likely looked pale then. She blinked while processing his words. So, he thought she was despicable, huh?

She soon gritted her teeth, snorted, and spoke up. "I'm not despicable. It's that we were both only using each other."

Sheer loathing echoed in Zachary's voice. "What silver tongue you have, Ms. Loyle. Only you could do something as vile as bartering your body off."

"What do you mean by 'barter'?" A frown marred Lexi's face.

Zachary let out a low chuckle. He drew a strong finger from her chin to her slim, frail neck and continued downward.

Lexi froze at once.

"You've got a decent body. It's no wonder that bastard, Xavier, wanted to lure you to his company with a high salary," he said with a low growl. Then, he lifted the hem of her top and reached beneath it.

That took Lexi by surprise. She held his hand in place and prevented it from advancing.

Zachary suddenly pinched her plump skin, causing her to glare at him with red eyes.

An uncaring look came from Zachary.

Lexi noticed that his other hand was also moving downwards. She looked at him with a dark expression but spoke sardonically. "For you to be interested in my body means you don't love Yvonne as deeply as I thought."

It was hard to discern the meaning behind Zachary's smile just then. With a scoff, he commented, "You think too highly of yourself. I'm uninterested in your body. I wouldn't have fucked you if I hadn't had a fever and been drunk that night."

Zachary's hand still lingered on Lexi's skin. His eyes narrowed with hatred but also confusion. They supposedly had sex for the first time two months ago, but he couldn't remember it at all. He figured it could have been because his fever left him delirious, and Lexi seized the chance to have sex with him.

Regardless, the way he spoke about it now sounded like he was utterly repulsed by that night.

Lexi's chest tightened, causing her to take a deep breath. She stood, linked an arm around his neck, and leaned into his ear while chuckling lightly. "But you seemed very into me that night. You fucked me again after we were done with the first round."

She brazenly traced one of her fingers around his leather belt.

Zachary's expression soured while his gaze deepened with even more detestation. He pried Lexi's arm off his neck and stood. "Don't waste your time doing unnecessary things, Lexi. If Grandma didn't like you so much, I wouldn't mind giving you to Xavier after the stunt you pulled today."

Upon hearing that, Lexi felt like a true and complete failure.

Since Zachary could say something as cruel as giving her away to someone, it meant he never once had feelings for her these past few years. "Remember to visit Grandma at the hospital tomorrow. Don't tell her anything you shouldn't."

Zachary coldly straightened his shirt before glaring daggers at Lexi and hurrying off.

…

Martha beamed brilliantly when her precious grandson and granddaughter-in-law held hands and entered the hospital. "Come and sit here with me, my darling Lex."

Only a gentle look filled her eyes as she gazed at Zachary. "I dreamt you two gave me an adorable great-grandbaby last night, Zachary. It was the cutest little baby."

Zachary gave her a faint smile. It was a rare moment when he tried to cheer Martha up. "I promise we're trying hard, Grandma."

Martha's cancer cells had begun spreading in her body, so she only had one to two years left to live.

Zachary usually let his grandma down when it came to topics like marriage and children. So, he'd always tell white lies to appease her.

"You two have been married for two years! Why hasn't there been any good news yet?" Martha was inexplicably obsessed with getting a great-grandchild before her death.

Lexi didn't say a word and only lowered her head while pretending to be shy.

Martha only nagged at Zachary briefly before turning to comfort Lexi. "There's no need to worry, Lex. I'm only bringing it up casually. God has decided it's not time for us to meet your future baby yet. You two are still young, after all."

"I know, Grandma." Lexi suddenly felt uncomfortable. Her expression shifted as she sprinted to the bathroom to puke.

Excitement coursed through Martha's veins when she heard the sounds of Lexi hurling. She held Zachary's hands at once, asking, "Could Lexi be… pregnant?"

A light snort came from Zachary while his gaze darkened. "She's just having an upset stomach, Grandma."