?Chapter 1646:


    William looked at her with open contempt, as though he were deliberately trying to provoke her. “Ste, do you even understand what a rtionship is? Since you’re so convinced there’s something between me and her, then I’ll show you what a real rtionship looks like.” He pulled out his phone, retrieved the slip of paper from his pocket, and dialed the number written on it.


    Ste froze. She hadn’t expected him to actually make the call.


    The line connected almost immediately. Alisha’s bright voice came through the speaker. “Hello?”


    William nced sideways at Ste, his voice cial. “It’s me.” He didn’t identify himself, yet Alisha recognized his voice at once. “You’re the man from the hospital earlier?”


    He gave a brief, indifferent sound, paying no attention to the color draining from Ste’s face. “Blue Note Club. Thirty minutes.”


    A brief pause — barely two seconds — before Alisha responded with clear excitement. “Okay! I’ll head there right away!”


    William ended the call and turned back to Ste, his eyes filled with deliberate provocation. “Want to watch me have dinner with another woman?”


    Ste’s face wentpletely pale. It felt as though an unseen hand had wrapped tightly around her heart, squeezing until it hurt to breathe. She drew in a slow breath, forcing herself to stayposed. “So you really are going to have dinner with her?”


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    William lifted an eyebrow. “Isn’t it clear? Ste, how much longer are you going to keep fooling yourself? Do you honestly believe I’m still the man who once couldn’t survive without you?”


    His icy words made tears gather in her eyes. After a moment, she said quietly, “You can go. I won’t stop you. I just hope that when youe back, you’ll exin what your rtionship with her actually is. That’s all I’m asking.”


    Silence settled heavily inside the car. William hadn’t expected her to cling to the issue so stubbornly. He turned his eyes away and said sharply to the driver, “Stop here.”


    The car eased to a gradual halt on the overpass. The driver didn’t dare say a word, only stealing a cautious nce at the back seat through the rearview mirror.


    William’s voice was t and cold. “Get lost.”


    Ste’s heart clenched. Her brows knitted faintly. “William, you—”


    “I said get lost!” he snapped, cutting her off as he turned his face away, unwilling to look at her. “I don’t want you near me.”


    Ste studied his distant profile, a sharp ache piercing her chest. She didn’t understand how he could turn so cold again so suddenly, but she couldn’t dismiss the possibility that his bipr disorder was ring up. If she continued to press the issue, she was afraid he would lose control entirely.


    After a long, heavy pause, she finally spoke. “All right. I’ll get lost.”


    She pushed the car door open and stepped out onto the overpass.


    The moment the door shut, the car sped off. Its taillights blended into the flow of traffic and disappeared in seconds.


    Inside the moving car, the driver nced back at William, unable to stop himself. “Mr. Briggs… should we really leave Ms. Russell there?” This was an overpass — it wouldn’t be easy for her to hail a cab, and the situation could be dangerous.


    William frowned, meeting the driver’s eyes in the mirror, his voice as cold as ever. “Leave her.”


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