?Chapter 1685:


    Ste gave a strained smile, forcing her voice to sound steadier than she felt. “He’s been doing bettertely. There haven’t been any more episodes.” Even as the words left her lips, she couldn’t stop herself from wondering whether Alisha had something to do with it. Whenever William was around her, his condition did seem calmer — almost too calm.


    Lance paused, uncertain whether Ste was putting on a brave front again. “Ste, this won’tst forever. Everything will fall into ce. He’ll remember how much he cared about you, how deeply he trusted you. When that happens, things will change.”


    Ste’s chest tightened, hope stirring quietly inside her. She wanted to believe him. “Yes,” she replied softly. “I believe that too.”


    Because William didn’t know she had a phone, she kept her voice barely above a whisper, worried he might hear her from outside the room. After a few more words with Lance, she prepared to end the call.


    She had just said goodbye and hadn’t yet concealed the phone when the sound of a door opening echoed from the hallway. Almost immediately, her bedroom door flew open and William walked in without hesitation.


    Ste’s breath hitched. The phone was still clutched in her hand, fully exposed, leaving her no chance to hide it.


    William fixed her with a frigid stare, his expressionced with contempt. “Who were you talking to just now?”


    Ste stiffened. She blinked once and answered, “No one.”


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    Her evasion only deepened his mistrust. He closed the distance between them and extended his hand. “Give me the phone.”


    Ste pressed her lips together and didn’t move.


    William continued forward until she was forced back against the wall, his presence looming over her. “Do you really think I can’t see or hear? You were smiling. Laughing. Who gets you that happy? That guy from campus earlier?”


    Her face hardened instantly. “William, you’ve got it wrong.”


    “Have I?” His voice was t, all warmth gone. “You’re hiding in your roomte at night, whispering on the phone, smiling like that. I’ve only asked you one thing. Why are you so on edge?”


    His sharp, sarcastic tone finally pushed her past her limit. “I already told you I wasn’t talking to Rufus. And why are you interrogating me like this? You openly agreed to go on campus tours with Alisha right in front of me. Do you really think you have the right to question me after that?”


    She couldn’t deny anymore that Alisha’s presence unsettled her deeply. Since being with William, this was the first time she had ever felt such strong vignce toward another woman — and even she didn’t fully understand why. Maybe it was simply because the William standing before her was no longer the man whose world had revolved entirely around her.


    At her words, William’s pupils shrank abruptly, as though something sharp had struck a nerve. Almost instantly, he masked the reaction, his face going cold. “I don’t recall ever giving you a phone that can make calls. Where did ite from? Did the guy you met today give you one on your very first day?”


    Ste didn’t respond. Her silence sent his thoughts spiraling further, and with every assumption he made, a deeper chill crept through her.


    “Can you just stop being so irrational?” she finally asked.


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