Chapter 22

Cynthia scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. “You two knew my situation three years ago, didn't you? But you still stabbed me in the back. What I did was nothing compared to that.”

Filip’s expression hardened. “Cynthia, your current situation is entirely your own fault. You betrayed me first.”

His eyes locked onto hers, burning with unresolved anger. “What really happened that summer during our freshman year? Don't you dare lie to me.”

Cynthia’s face blanched. How did Filip know?

Seeing her pale face, Filip felt a wave of disbelief. Even in her panic, Cynthia was strikingly beautiful. “So, who did you give your virginity to?” he asked angrily.

“Shut up!” Cynthia jumped to her feet, her eyes flashing with icy fury.

Filip smirked. “Embarrassed? Let's be real, Cynthia. You're a cheap, two-faced wretch. Why did you marry me? Because you couldn't return to the Jones family, right? If you were still their princess, would you have chosen me?”

“Right now, you're madly in love with me only because you're terrified of losing your last chance, afraid of losing the luxury of being my wife. Tell me, what makes you think I’d want to pick up the pieces of your life? Do you think I'm a fool? A woman as hypocritical and vile as you is worth less than a strand of Lilian’s hair.”

“That’s enough, Filip!” Cynthia shouted, her fingers trembling.

Deep down, she harbored a secret. She’d never shared it, convincing herself it was a nightmare. She thought she’d erased the incident from her memory, believing no one would ever discover it. But now, she realized Filip had known all along.

Was this why his attitude toward me changed? Cynthia wondered, but she didn’t dwell on it. In truth, aside from a few scars and physical reminders, her mind was blank regarding those memories.

Panicked, she stormed toward the door. Flinging it open, she found Lilian standing there. Their eyes locked for a moment, and without a word, Cynthia rushed past her.

Not long after, Filip also stepped out.

“Filip, what did you say to Cynthia? She looked really upset,” Lilian asked, feigning concern.

“Nothing much, just talked about that incident,” Filip replied casually.

Lilian’s expression changed. “You promised me you wouldn't bring it up in front of her.”

“I didn’t want to, but she’s been pushing too hard. It’s time to put her in her place, so she won’t bully you. Honestly, Lilian, you’re far too kind, even caring about her right now.”

Cynthia will definitely suspect something, won’t she? Lilian frowned, worry evident in her eyes.

Cynthia drove away, her car aimlessly cruising the highway, her mind racing back to that summer during her freshman year when everything changed.

That summer, she had been assaulted. The details of that day were blurry, like a foggy nightmare. It felt as if she had been drugged and passed out. When she woke up, she found herself in a hotel room—her clothes missing and an overwhelming sense that something was terribly wrong.

Later, a trip to the hospital confirmed her worst fears. Her hymen was broken, but because of the drugs, she couldn’t remember what happened. With no evidence, reporting it felt pointless.

No one knew about this, and Cynthia had never told anyone, not even Naomi or Lilian. She’d simply acted as if it never happened.

But… how did Filip find out? It seemed like he already knew. Lilian must have told him at summer camp, and that might explain why Filip came back acting so differently.

There could only be one answer—it all linked back to her. Lilian, if you really did this, I won’t let it go. Cynthia tightened her grip on the steering wheel, fueled by determination.

She drove in a daze and, before she could think, found herself at Greenfield Villa. To her surprise, the bedroom lights were on. Without hesitation, she drove into the driveway, parked, and went inside.

Jonathan heard the car pull up. Just as he reached the stairs, he spotted Cynthia ascending.

He’d just stepped out of the shower, wearing a simple gray pajama set that would have looked plain on anyone else. But somehow, he carried it off effortlessly. He stood casually, hands in his pockets.

As he watched Cynthia climb the stairs, he couldn’t resist teasing her, “I thought you were too proud to come looking for me again.”

Cynthia didn’t answer; her face was unreadable as she ascended the stairs in her high heels. The sharp click of her shoes against the polished gemstone echoed in the quiet house.

As she drew closer, Jonathan felt every step resonate in his chest, making his heart race. Damn, she’s absolutely stunning.

But something was off. Cynthia’s face was pale, but her eyes blazed with anger, as if she wanted to burn everything to the ground. Yet, that intensity made her seem even more alive, like a flower blooming in spring.

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “Rough day? No need to look like you want to kill me just because you were embarrassed earlier.”

Cynthia stepped onto a stair and suddenly hooked her arm around his shoulder. With her other hand gripping the back of his neck, she pulled him down and kissed him. It was fierce and almost desperate, completely overwhelming him.

Jonathan froze for a moment. In their three years together, he was always the one to initiate that kind of passion. This was the first time she’d thrown herself at him like this. He blinked, quickly regaining his composure, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her back with equal intensity.

Her high heels tumbled down the stairs as they got lost in kisses, stumbling toward the bedroom.

With a firm grip on her waist, Jonathan lifted her. Cynthia instinctively wrapped her long legs around him, her skirt pushed up to her waist as his hands roamed freely. They were lost in their desires, kissing against the door as if time stood still. Finally, Jonathan carried her and placed her onto the soft bed…

I've removed the extraneous formatting and line breaks, corrected grammatical errors and punctuation, and improved sentence flow and word choice for clarity. I also replaced the vague "violated" with the more precise "assaulted" given the context of the later description. The italicized sections were originally marked with single quotation marks and were assumed to be internal monologues, so I have italicized them for better formatting.