Chapter 21 Don’t Lie to Me Again

His expression was dark and brooding as Reynaldo said, “What did I tell you before I left on that business trip? Hmm?”

I remained silent.

And Reynaldo was truly pissed. His fingers gripped my chin so hard it hurt.

He snapped icily, “I warned you not to do anything that would piss me off. You promised me you wouldn’t. And what happened? Esmeralda, you really love to lie, don’t you?”

The shameful maid costume I wore crumpled under his grip.

I covered my chest, my eyes reddened. “Don’t do this!”

“Don’t do what?” His voice was laced with a frightening, violent edge. “You wore something like this and danced your heart out on stage to seduce some rich man. If I didn’t do this to you, those men out there would’ve done the same. What, they could do it, but not me?”

“That’s enough, Reynaldo!” I glared at him with rage and sorrow. “Do you even hear yourself right now?”

Reynaldo let out a bitter, angry laugh, “What? I’m just telling the truth. Esmeralda, I really didn’t think you’d stoop so low to wear this kind of outfit. I knew you lived a wild life, but I didn’t know you had no shame at all!”

“I have no shame?!” I screamed through my tears. The resentment in my chest exploded, especially when I thought about how he voted for Amelia. “You don’t know anything! I worked so hard to earn those votes! I was this close to winning first place and getting that prize money! Why did you have to interfere? Couldn’t you have just abstained and let me tie with Amelia? Why did you have to hurt me? Why?!”

“Let you win first place?” Reynaldo scoffed. “Then what? So they could put a price tag on you and auction you off to the highest bidder for a night?”

I froze. “What do you mean?”

“I told you it wasn’t some innocent dance competition. And I warned you, the people behind it are dirty. Stay away from their games. But you just wouldn’t listen.”

I shook my head, stunned. “No… that can’t be. Why didn’t Johnathan tell me this beforehand?”

He chuckled, “Everyone knew the rules of that game except you. Esmeralda, you never listen. You just need some punishment!”

That last sentence was especially cruel.

I clutched his arm, glaring at him through tears. “You’re an animal.”

Suddenly, I regretted it all. I regretted ever becoming his lover. His former gentleness was all an act. His true nature was far more cruel, far more vicious than I had imagined. This time, I hadn’t done anything wrong. I was just trying to make money on my own. I hadn’t betrayed him.

It was not fair. I pounded on his chest, sobbing, pushing him away. My voice was hoarse from crying. Only then did he finally bend down and pull me into his arms, whispering in a husky voice, “Are you gonna lie to me again?”

I curled up in his embrace, shaking my head. He kissed my tears, his touch finally softening. But after this, I was truly afraid of him. I could no longer connect this man with the obedient, quiet husband he used to be.

Reynaldo didn’t stop until after midnight. Half-conscious and still crying, I felt him hug me from behind. I tried to edge away, but he only pulled me back firmly into his arms, holding me tight. I cursed him bitterly under my breath, but I had no strength left to resist. Fine. Let him hold me if he wanted. At least now I knew never to judge a person by appearances. This man seemed so decent and restrained in public, but he was a wild animal in bed.

The next morning, I woke up thirsty. Reynaldo was already gone. I looked at the mess of tangled sheets and recalled the aggressive way he acted last night, anger and sorrow churning in my heart. I got out of bed to get a glass of water. But as soon as my feet touched the floor, my legs gave out, and I collapsed. I sat there on the floor, disheveled and miserable, unable to stand even after a long while. And just then, the door opened.

Reynaldo walked in. He was on the phone, probably talking to his first love, because his face held a rare trace of gentleness.

He cast me a glance indifferently. I awkwardly pulled the blanket from the bed to cover myself. He sneered, grabbed his suit jacket from the rack, and walked out. The whole time, not once did he look at me again. I clenched the carpet tightly, feeling awful.

After Reynaldo left, I dragged my sore body into the bathroom for a shower. But even afterward, my body still felt weak and drained. I drank a lot of water, yet my throat still burned painfully. I might’ve had a fever, because my whole body felt hot. Thinking of my dad’s gambling debt, I quickly plugged in my phone, which had been off, planning to check in with Quentin. As soon as it turned on, a flood of missed calls appeared on the screen. Some were from late last night, some from early this morning. The late-night ones were from Reynaldo. He called multiple times, right around the time I was being chased by that pervert.

I frowned as a question popped into my head, Why did Reynaldo show up in that alley last night? In all the fear, anger, and torment Reynaldo put me through, I had overlooked it last night. Did he come looking for me because he was worried?

No. No way! I forced that thought out of my head immediately. Reynaldo didn’t come for me out of concern. He came just to punish me harshly, because I disobeyed him, because I lied.

I told myself firmly not to be delusional. Shaking the thought, I checked Quentin’s call history. Quentin had called me multiple times early in the morning, and several more after that. Maybe because I never answered, he got worried and sent a few texts too, asking where I was and if something had happened. I hurriedly called Quentin back.

Quentin picked up almost instantly and asked anxiously, “Ralda, are you okay? Why didn’t you answer any of my calls?”

I smiled, “I’m fine. I fell asleep, and my phone died and shut off.”

Only then did Quentin finally sigh in relief. But he noticed how hoarse my voice was and quickly asked, “What’s wrong with your voice? Have you been crying?”

“No, just a little cold.”

“Then why did you call me in the middle of the night yesterday? Was it something urgent?”

I pursed my lips, then asked quietly, “Dad’s gambling debt…”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve scraped together over 500 thousand dollars. There’s about half left. I will get the rest.”

I was surprised. “How did you get that much in just one day?” Ever since our family went bankrupt, no one had been willing to lend us money. There was no way someone just lent Quentin that much. So if it wasn’t borrowed, how did he come up with so much in one day?

“Quentin, time to change your dressing… Don’t put weight on that leg yet.”