Gray smoke poured from beneath the door.Derek’s expression hardened. He grabbed the extinguisher from the wall, and drove his boot into the lock.Bang! The door flew inward.Flames crawled across the motel bed. They had not spread far yet, but give them another few minutes, and the entire room would go up.Derek pulled the safety pin from the extinguisher and started forward.Then he stopped. There was a woman sitting on the burning bed.She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, with striking features and long, wavy hair. A loose white bathrobe was wrapped around her body.Instead of running, she sat there with a glass in one hand, staring dreamily into the flames. Before Derek could speak, she tilted her wrist and poured the remaining liquid onto the burning sheets.The flames surged upward.“What the hell are you doing?” Derek crossed the room in two strides, caught her by the arm, and dragged her away from the bed.“Ow!” She twisted around. “You’re hurting me! Who are you?”Derek

By the time Erin arrived at U9 Private Karaoke Club, the place was already out of control. Bass thundered through the building, smoke clouded the lights, and the floor stank of spilled liquor and cheap perfume.Erin stepped out red Ferrari, and every nearby gaze immediately shifted toward her.A fitted black bodysuit traced every curve of her figure, its plunging neckline revealing just enough to invite attention. A dangerously short skirt showed off her long, slender legs beneath the flashing lights of the club’s entrance.Erin had always known exactly what effect she had on men. Tonight, she intended to use it.With one arm linked through Mike’s, she entered the club surrounded by a group of wealthy young men who proudly called themselves the city’s elite.Mike could feel the warmth of her body pressed against his arm. His throat moved as he swallowed. A barely concealed desire gradually appeared in his eyes.The group was quickly escorted into U9’s most luxurious private room. Erin

The corridor was narrow and poorly lit, the kind of deliberate design choice that made things easier to deny afterward.Two burly men had Erin by the arms, moving her with the unhurried efficiency of people who believed they had time. The music from the main floor muffled now, a dull pulse through the walls.Kitty chased after them, ignoring the pain burning across her swollen cheek and the fear tightening around her chest.“Mrs. Moss! Stop! Don't go in there!” Her voice breaking into sobs.Erin gave no response. She hung between the two men like a puppet with its strings cut, her heels scraping unevenly across the floor.All She wanted was to ruin herself. To take revenge on the man who had dared to say the word "divorce."Before Kitty could enter the corridor, a third man stepped into her path.“Get out of my way!” Kitty took an instinctive step backward. Tears blurred her vision.Suddenly, a notification sounded from her phone.Like a drowning woman clutching at a lifeline, her tre

The corridor seemed to swallow them whole, silent but for the wet slap of Derek’s shoes and Erin’s ragged breathing.She sagged against his chest, one arm looped tight around his neck as if she feared the ground might reach up and drag her away.Every jarring step sent pain shooting through her ribs, yet it also pressed her closer to him, into the warmth of his body and the steady, familiar rhythm of his heart.“Derek...” she murmured. “I knew it. I knew you would come to see me.”Her voice was soft, almost relieved.Derek looked down at her flawless face, flushed from alcohol and pain.He felt nothing.No joy. No tenderness. Not even the anger that had once burned inside him.They crossed the parking lot toward Erin’s car. City lights shimmered through the rain, smearing the world beyond them into a watercolor of neon and mist.Derek opened the passenger door and carefully helped her inside, taking care not to touch the bruises along her ribs.Then he straightened and turned away.Bef

Maybe Erin’s patience had finally reached its limit.Every word she said seemed deliberately chosen to provoke Derek, as if she were trying to drag him into one huge argument.Because if they fought, then afterward, there would still be a reason to talk. A chance to make up.But that so-called chance had only ever existed because Derek was always the one who gave in.“Get some rest, will you?”With that, Derek turned and walked out of the office.Erin remained frozen in front of the window, staring desperately down at the street below.But there was nothing left to see. Derek had already disappeared into the night.Tears began rolling down her cheeks. Against the glittering city lights outside, her reflection stood out clearly in the glass. Only then did Erin realize that her face was already soaked with tears.Her chest hurt. But it had nothing to do with the injuries from earlier. This pain came from somewhere much deeper. It felt as if someone had driven a knife straight into her