Chapter 1

As the pampered youngest son of the Rimmer family, Stephen Rimmer had always been a troublemaker. When he was still a little boy, he had set his house on fire and even desecrated his family's ancestral grave. His father, Andrew Rimmer, beat him senseless as punishment. But the fire in Stephen's eyes never went out, and he continued being wild and unruly. As he grew older, he became a total menace, a wild, unstoppable tyrant that no one in Denvale dared to mess with—that was, until he met their maid's daughter, Crystal Hoffman. He did a complete one-eighty, tucking away his wild side and acting as docile as a puppy around her. When Crystal said she liked neat-looking guys, he endured excruciating pain to remove all of his tattoos. When she said she hated the smell of cigarette smoke, Stephen, a chain smoker, chewed gum until he gagged and even destroyed the million dollars' worth of tobacco he had stockpiled at home. Once, he got caught trying to kiss her, and to apologize, he burned his own lips with a hot iron and survived on a liquid diet for a whole month. For 20 years, if Crystal said jump, he'd ask how high. Even Andrew could only shake his head in disbelief as he realized only Crystal could handle his wild, mischievous son. Finally, after years of being together, they were just a month away from getting married. But now, for a woman who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, Stephen kicked Crystal on the back of her knee. "Kneel and apologize to Amy!" He shielded Amy Knott behind him, his cold eyes full of disgust. Ever since Stephen met Amy, everything had changed. He became a feral beast, claiming he needed one last hurrah before marriage. As such, he tossed his career and family aside to stir up trouble with Amy every day. Under Amy's encouragement that day, Stephen drove drunk at breakneck speed, hitting a pedestrian and leaving their life hanging by a thread. This was the 99th time that month Crystal had come to clean up after him. All it took was her saying to stay away from Amy for Stephen to turn on her immediately. "You want me to kneel and apologize for someone like her? Stephen, are you out of your mind?" Crystal collapsed to the ground, bruising her knees and scraping her hands in the process, her eyes wide with disbelief. When she was five, her mother, Marlene Whitfield, had brought her to the Rimmer residence after being hired as a live-in maid. When she was being punished for getting caught sneaking pastries by the butler, she was suddenly protected by the mischievous little Stephen, who scolded her in a babyish voice for being dumb and told her to stand up for herself. When she was 25, Andrew tried to arrange a marriage for Stephen. Stephen blew up at him, grabbed Crystal's hand, and declared he would never marry anyone but her. Over the course of 20 years, Stephen had used his care and attention to help the timid and insecure Crystal come out of her shell. And yet, just as they were about to finally tie the knot, he was forcing her to kneel for another woman, burning her dignity to ashes. A harsh, icy voice snapped Crystal back to reality. "Someone like her? Are you serious, Crystal? Amy may come from a lowly background, but you're just the daughter of a maid! Who do you think you are, acting all high and mighty? "I'm your boyfriend, not your son! Can't I have friends without you breathing down my neck? It was only after meeting Amy that I realized what true freedom is and what it feels like to be alive! "I'm already going to be stuck following the rules and spending the rest of my life with you anyway. Can't I at least have this one last month to do whatever I want?" The barrage of words crashed over Crystal, making her feel dizzy and overwhelmed. Stephen saw her as a controlling mother when all she did was guide him toward the right path, but he was actually grateful to Amy for leading him toward ruin. So this was what he really thought. Crystal felt a bitter sense of emptiness. If he hated the thought of being in her future, why should she cling to him? Why should they even be married? Crystal closed her eyes in disappointment, feeling her love for Stephen slowly die. "Stephen, I'm not wrong. I refuse to apologize!" She rubbed her bruised knees and stood, her voice calm but resolute. Stephen nearly lost it. He couldn't understand why, after 20 years of obeying her every word, she wouldn't allow him to let loose this one time. "Crystal, have you forgotten that everything you have was handed to you by me? Clearly, I've spoiled you way too much. Since you want to act all high and mighty and refuse to apologize, you can kneel here naked all night! Think long and hard about who's really in charge!" Stephen shouted in a rage, intending to teach her a lesson. No sooner had he spoken than his bodyguards closed in, forcibly removing Crystal's clothes until she was left in nothing but her underwear. Stephen was attempting to make her give in by leveraging her virtue. In the middle of the crowded city streets, Crystal was pinned to the ground, half-naked. Humiliation and fury instantly consumed her. "Stephen Rimmer, I hate you!" Crystal's heart-wrenching screams were lost among the shocked stares and whispers of the passersby. Stephen didn't even notice the lifeless look in her eyes. No one knew what she went through that night. As the first light of day touched the ground, the trembling Crystal finally staggered to her feet. She had no idea how she had made it back to the Rimmer residence, but she found herself knocking on Andrew's door. "Mr. Rimmer, I'm calling off the engagement. I want to take my mother somewhere Stephen can never find us," Crystal said hoarsely. Andrew looked up, surprised. Even though she wasn't married to Stephen yet, he already treated her like his daughter-in-law. Andrew asked in a caring voice, "What happened, Crystal? Did Stephen give you a hard time? I'll make him regret it!" Before she could answer, a dashcam video suddenly popped up and auto-played on her phone. "What do you think, Stephen? Doesn't it feel great without that old woman around?" Over the sound of a roaring engine, she could hear Amy speaking with a thick accent. Crystal could even see Amy's yellowed teeth from years of smoking in the video, yet Stephen didn't care at all, responding with a wild, passionate kiss. The next second, the steering wheel suddenly went haywire. A loud crash followed, making Crystal's heart drop. So this was the real cause of the car accident last night. Stephen had been betraying her all along! It was clear who had sent the video. Nevertheless, Crystal still couldn't wrap her head around it. Why was it that, after 20 years of loving and respecting each other and finally marrying, he acted as if she were his mortal enemy and needed to hook up with other women to blow off steam and vent his frustrations? But really, she didn't have to make sense of it. It was enough for her to know that this wasn't a man she wanted. "That ingrate!" Andrew roared as he sent the stationery beside his hand flying, ink splattering everywhere. Crystal, on the other hand, was calm. After all, her relationship with Stephen had already ended. Once he calmed down, Andrew wanted to dissuade her from making any rash decisions. But he knew it was already too late upon noticing Crystal's resolve and remembering Stephen's reckless behavior. He could only sigh helplessly. "Crystal, you're a good woman. After all these years, I've always considered you my daughter-in-law, but I never expected him to do something this outrageous! "The Rimmer family has wronged you. Since you've decided to go, I'll book your flight in two weeks and make sure Stephen doesn't know about it. I'll always see you as family, and I hope you can find happiness."