Chapter 9

When Xavier woke up, he found himself in a hospital bed. His left hand was hooked up to an IV. Reina was sitting by his side with a complicated expression. He turned his face away and asked indifferently, "What now? Still not satisfied? Want to punish me by making me peel oranges for Hugo again?" Reina's face flickered with discomfort. Frowning, she said, "If you hadn't hurt Hugo, I wouldn't have had to punish you. I understand that you acted impulsively yesterday, but don't let it happen again. It won't be good for you if word gets out." "If you can't stand me, just say so," Xavier said flatly with his eyes still closed. "I'm poor, I used to work as a male escort at a bar, and I'm four years older than you. I'm not worthy of someone as distinguished as you." "Don't say that. I've never looked down on you." Reina's eyes were filled with pain. "You were unconscious for two days. I was worried sick..." "Well, you should be." Xavier's gaze lingered on her swollen lips. With a cold smile, he added, "After all, if I die, I doubt Ms. Hammond will still agree to sign that billion-dollar deal with you." "What are you talking about?" Reina's face turned bright red with anger. She wrapped her soft arms around his neck and asked in a trembling voice, "Don't you know how much I care about you? I was so scared you might die!" Xavier pushed her away and put on a half-smile. "Isn't my death exactly what you want? You'd be free to marry the man you love and live happily ever after." Reina's face turned pale at once. "Don't think like that. There's nothing between Hugo and me." Xavier didn't call her out on her lie. He simply reached for his phone. He had received a message from Kieran. It read, "I'll take you to the airport in an hour." Xavier replied with a simple "okay" before turning back to Reina. "You go ahead with whatever you need to do. I'll be fine on my own." Reina noticed how he didn't pay any attention to her. Guilt and unease crept up on her. She opened a lunchbox and said, "I made beef stew. You should eat some." Xavier closed his eyes, unwilling to watch her put on a show of fake concern. "Just leave. I want to sleep for a bit." Reina hesitated, but before she could speak, her phone rang. A few seconds into the call, her expression turned serious. "Xavier, there's an urgent issue at work. I'll come back to see you after I take care of it." "Reina," Xavier called out as she rushed out. "Goodbye." As Reina looked at the sorrow in his eyes, she felt a twinge of unease. But she quickly composed herself and softened her tone. "I'll be back soon." Even though Xavier was still angry at her for making him peel oranges for Hugo, she knew that if she just placated him a little, he would smile and go back to being the considerate husband he had always been. They would go back to their peaceful life. As soon as Reina left, Xavier pulled the IV out and signed the discharge papers. Then, he grabbed his suitcase and went downstairs, only to run into Hugo. Hugo looked smug. "So, the fake Yarrow son-in-law is finally packing up and leaving? What a shame. You've been in love with Reina for eight years, slept with her, and now you're leaving with nothing. Not even a penny in compensation. I almost feel sorry for you." "You think you've won?" Xavier sneered. "Let's see about that." Recalling how Reina had stayed by Xavier's side for the past two days, Hugo clenched his fists in anger. "You want to leave? Dream on!" He ordered his bodyguard, "Take him to the car and force-feed him a jug of orange juice!" Xavier froze in shock. Forgetting about his suitcase, he ran toward the hospital entrance while quickly dialing Reina's number. It rang for a long time before she finally answered. "What's wrong, Xavier?" "Reina, you need to come to the hospital. Someone—" Before he could finish, she interrupted, "I've got an important client on the line. I need to hang up now. I'll be back soon." "Xavier, your wife's on the phone with me." Hugo waved his phone in front of Xavier. He covered the phone's speaker and coldly ordered, "Reina will come back soon. You'd better hurry and finish him off. Then dump his body in the sea!" Xavier's face turned pale. He gritted his teeth and fought off the black-clad man who charged at him, desperately trying to break free. But his strength was draining, and he was forced into the car. The orange juice was forced into his throat, making it impossible for him to breathe. Xavier glared at Hugo, who was laughing triumphantly outside the car. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Hugo... just you wait. I… won't… spare you!" "You're just a bottom-dwelling nobody. You think you can do anything to me?" Hugo placed his hand on his abdomen and laughed heartily. "Even if Reina finds out about today, she won't say a word to me. Because she doesn't love you. Got it? She might even be secretly happy that I solved the problem for her!" Xavier struggled to breathe and shut his eyes in despair. Suddenly, the car was violently jolted as if it had been hit by something heavy. Xavier looked out the window and saw a man running toward them. A wave of hope flooded through him. He croaked, "Mr. Wexler, help me!" There was a loud crack as the car window shattered. Kieran kicked the black-clad man away and pulled Xavier into his car. He then said sternly, "Mr. Caldwell, your allergic reaction is really serious. You need emergency treatment right now. I'm arranging for you to fly out on Madam Yarrow's private jet." Xavier weakly nodded. "By the way, help me send Reina a birthday gift next Friday." He was ushered onto the private jet. His phone vibrated nonstop with countless calls and messages from Reina. Soon after, he received the PIN number for a bank card from Kieran. As the plane took off into the sky, Xavier took his SIM card out of his phone and gazed at the clear blue sky outside. His eyes sparkled with newfound resolve. "I'm finally starting over!" All the suffering was behind him. He would pick up his dreams again and live a brilliant, exciting life!