Chapter 3

Rebecca had been charmed countless times by James' extraordinarily handsome face in the last three years. However, at that moment, there wasn't even a hint of guilt or regret on James' face. There was only cold indifference as he stood up for Penelope. Rebecca suddenly burst into laughter. She exhaled some smoke before ruthlessly pressing the cigarette to the back of James' hand. "It's been three years, James. I'll just pretend that I've been sleeping with a vibrator that I got for free all this time." She ignored James' muffled grunt and shoved him aside. "Get out of my sight. The two of us are over. Don't you understand?" However, it soon became clear that James had no intention of letting Rebecca go. He trapped her under him before tying her wrists together with his tie. "You don't get to decide when this game is over, Becca. You can ask your father. I gave him a project that's worth 30 billion dollars." Rebecca was momentarily stunned before she started struggling. She tried to kick him, but he yanked out the ribbon in her hair and tied her ankles together with it. "You're a shameless and despicable prick, James Heaton! Besides, anything that Justin Sawyer does has nothing to do with me! Penelope is right next door. Aren't you afraid that—" James' face darkened. He used his thumb to roughly rub against her lips, saying, "Listen here, Becca. I've been planning this for three years. I won't allow it to fail at the very last moment! I just have one condition—help me. I'll set you free the moment my family agrees to let me marry Penny." Rebecca couldn't believe how ridiculous the situation was. James only wanted to keep her around to highlight the differences between herself and Penelope's gentleness and gracefulness. Rebecca tried to break free from James' grasp again when a deafening boom suddenly resounded from downstairs. A few seconds later, a piercing alarm began blaring all throughout the club. "Oh no! The wine cabinets downstairs exploded and caught on fire!" someone shouted from the hallway. James immediately released Rebecca. He turned around and sprinted out of the room. In the split second before he ran through the door, she heard him mutter Penelope's name. Ignoring the suffocating feeling in her chest, Rebecca screamed, "Get back here, James! Untie me right now!" However, the only response she received was the door slamming shut behind him. Rebecca rolled off the couch onto the floor. She gritted her teeth as she struggled wildly. It was a herculean task, but she managed to wiggle her way toward the door and knocked it open. When she crawled out of the room, she spotted James in the hallway that was filled with thick smoke. James had one arm wrapped around Penelope. He was using a damp towel to carefully cover her nose and mouth. Penelope seemed to be rather disgruntled. She stood on her tip-toes and as she wriggled around in his arms. "You're hurting me, James. Just leave me alone. Your woman is lying on the floor behind us. You should show some concern for her instead!" James looked back at the long hallway and glanced at Rebecca. However, he swiftly averted his eyes. "She's not important. There's no other woman. You're the only one in my heart, Penny!" He then picked Penelope up before rushing downstairs. Rebecca stared at his retreating back. She let out a self-deprecating laugh, but she couldn't hold back the single tear that rolled down her cheek. The thick smoke had completely filled the hallway. In the end, she lost consciousness before she could struggle her way toward the stairwell. … Rebecca's throat felt sore when she woke up. As the nurse removed the needle from the back of her hand, she said, "You were hovering between life and death when the firefighter rushed you to the hospital last night, Ms. Sawyer. You were foaming at the mouth. The doctor said that it's best that you stay at the hospital for another day for monitoring." Rebecca had no interest in remaining longer than needed in the hospital. Once she regained some of her strength, she silently got off the bed. She then hailed a cab and returned to the Sawyer residence. Gentle laughter floated from the living room when she stepped into the Sawyer residence. "This wedding dress suits you so much, Mom. You're going to look stunning during the ceremony!" Rebecca halted her footsteps. She felt as if her blood had turned to ice in her veins. She didn't expect to see Penelope locking arms with the woman in the wedding dress—the woman who Justin was about to marry. At that moment, she couldn't shake the feeling that fate was playing a cosmic joke on her. It turned out that Penelope's mother and the woman who Justin was about to marry to be his third wife were one and the same—Wanda Lawson. It was no wonder Penelope had returned to Nurano. "Penny still has the best eye when it comes to these things. She even specially brought the red wine that we need for the ceremony with her. When you marry James, I'll also—" A loud crash echoed around the room before Justin could finish currying favor with Penelope. Rebecca had stormed into the room and swept the red wine on the table onto the floor.