Chapter 10

Elijah remained silent for a few seconds before he said in a low voice, "Sebastian ran away from home by jumping out of the window." Selena felt her heart plummet into her gut. "Jumped out of the window? Did he get hurt? How is he now?" she asked anxiously. Elijah softened his tone when he noticed the panic in her eyes, saying comfortingly, "Don't worry. Sebastian must have gone to one of my other properties. He always hides there whenever he makes a mistake. He'll be back in a few days." Although the tension within Selena loosened a little, Elijah's reassuring words did nothing to dispel the worry in her heart. "But he jumped out of the window to run away. What if he's hurt?" Regret flickered in her eyes. If she hadn't forced Sebastian to write an apology letter, perhaps he wouldn't have resorted to running away. If anything happened to him, she would never forgive herself. Elijah glanced at Selena from the corner of his eye, noticing the way her eyes had reddened. He cleared his throat before saying, "Selena, Sebastian's not a child anymore. If he's hurt, he'll figure out a way to take care of it. "He crossed the line today. Even if you didn't punish him, I would have dealt with him after we returned home." Elijah rarely comforted another person, so he had already reached his limit with those few short sentences. Selena didn't respond, for she was too engrossed in her own thoughts. She locked herself in her room after they arrived at the manor. Later that night, Elijah was feeling thirsty after finishing his work and planned to head downstairs for some water. However, when he passed by Selena's room, he heard a wine bottle clatter to the floor. "Selena?" Elijah stood outside her door and called out to her, but he received no response. Worried that she might do something foolish, he barged into the room, only to see Selena curled up on the floor. Two empty wine bottles were knocked over at her feet. Her face was stained an unnatural shade of red, and her eyes were hazy as she muttered unintelligibly. "Selena?" Elijah walked over to her. He was about to touch her shoulder when she batted his hand away. "Who are you?" Selena squinted at him, looking like she was trying to figure out his identity. When she realized who he was, she let out a miserable laugh. "Aren't I such a massive failure, Elijah? My relationship with Sebastian was finally improving, but I went ahead and ruined it!" Elijah remained silent. He didn't know how to respond. His silence led Selena to believe that he was agreeing with her. Her troubled feelings intensified as tears began to stream down her face. "All of you hate and resent me, but I have no idea what happened in the past. For some reason, my memory stopped when I turned 20. One day, I'm celebrating my birthday, and the next day, I'm suddenly a mother to three kids, who all loathe me with every fiber of their being. "You… You hate me too! I'm not fit to be a mother! I'm suffering a lot too!" Selena wiped her tears away before grabbing the bottle on the floor and taking a big gulp. Elijah's heart was in turmoil at the sight of Selena's intoxicated state. He frowned as he snatched the bottle away from her. "Stop drinking. You're drunk," he said in an inexplicably tender tone. Selena had a death grip on the bottle, so when Elijah forcefully took it away from her, she collided headfirst into his chest. Her warm breath fanned across Elijah's neck, smelling wine-sweet. The skin-on-skin contact made his heart skip a beat. Selena rested in his embrace contentedly for a few seconds before she suddenly shouted, "Elijah Cole! Have you disliked me for a long time?" Elijah was still utterly confused over Selena's sudden outburst when she grabbed his wrist and whipped her head up to look at him. There was a hint of stubbornness in her hazy eyes when she glared at him. "I had a crush on one of my seniors when I was in high school. He was a really amazing guy! I told myself I would confess to him when he got first place again in his entire year, but he only ever got second place after that. And it's all because of you!" Elijah had no idea such a thing had happened. The corner of his lips curved up into a small smile as he looked at Selena helplessly, feeling a little amused. He assumed that she would calm down soon after her drunken outburst, but she showed no signs of stopping. "When we were in university, I wanted to join the roller-skating club. I don't know which buffoon spread the news that you were joining, but it prompted all the women who had a crush on you to sign up, too. I didn't get a spot in the club that year because of that!" Selena got more and more emotional as she ranted. She freed herself from Elijah's embrace and staggered to her feet. She clapped a hand over her mouth suddenly as her face turned green. "What's wrong? Are you going to throw up?" Elijah had just gotten up to his feet and was about to usher Selena to the bathroom when she threw up all over the floor. The vomit splattered everywhere, soiling her clothes. Selena started sobbing. "I can't believe it's bullying me too! The alcohol is bullying me!" She was dazed after being forced to empty her stomach. Her eyes reddened as she looked at the filth clinging to her clothes. She was only able to maintain her composure for a few more seconds before she reached her breaking point and started wailing loudly. Elijah could feel a headache coming on as he watched Selena throw a tantrum. He sighed before speaking to her softly as if he was coaxing a child, "It's alright. Stop crying. I'll help you change out of your clothes. The alcohol won't be able to bully you anymore once you have clean clothes on, okay?" He was about to help her remove her dirtied clothes when he suddenly remembered the current predicament they were in. It didn't matter whether he was dealing with the 20-year-old Selena, who hadn't married him yet, or the 36-year-old Selena, who was demanding a divorce. He wasn't intimate enough with either Selena, so it would be inappropriate for him to help her change out of her clothes. The affection on Elijah's face disappeared, replaced by a dark, frosty expression. He rose to his feet and told Cynthia to help Selena. He then returned to his room and went to bed. When Selena woke up the next morning, she felt like her head was splitting apart. She remained in a daze for several seconds as she stared at the unfamiliar pajamas she was wearing. She tried to recall what had transpired last night but could only remember Elijah's face, causing rage to boil within her. "Elijah, that bastard!" she thought furiously to herself. "How dare he take advantage of me when I was sleeping? I'm going to teach him a lesson!" Gritting her teeth, Selena leapt up from the bed and dashed toward Elijah's bedroom. She didn't even manage to get a word out before she was stunned in place by the sight that greeted her. Steam wafted out from the open bathroom door. Elijah was completely naked as he stepped out, having just taken a shower. The water droplets cruised down his broad shoulders, tracing the defined lines of his muscles. Water dripped from the tips of his fringe, soaking the corners of his eyes and bringing out the alluring blush that stained his skin. Selena's mind went blank at the shocking sight, and she was frozen in place. Elijah also didn't expect her to barge into his room. He was stunned momentarily before he languidly grabbed the towel next to him and secured it around his waist. As if nothing out of the ordinary was happening, he stalked over to where she was standing. Despite how he was closing in on her, Selena realized that she couldn't move. Her lips quivered slightly. Elijah was already standing before her before she managed to figure out what to say. His warm breath fanned across her ear when he leaned down, making a strange tingling sensation spread through her heart. "Selena," he called softly, intentionally lowering his voice and allowing a hint of teasing to color his tone. Selena felt herself falling under the spell of his voice, subconsciously murmuring a response. His image was reflected in her eyes as he shortened the distance between them. It was as if the entire world had fallen silent at the moment, leaving only the deafening sounds of her thundering heart roaring in her ears. "Selena, do you remember what you did last night?"