She was treating him like a chauffeur, not even sitting in the front passenger seat.


    But as long as she got in the car, he wouldn''t argue. If she wanted him to be her driver, so be it.


    As they neared the house, Sebastian reminded her, his voice a low threat, "Stay away from Marshall in the future."


    His voice snapped Natalie out of her trance, and her anger red instantly. "Are you threatening me again? You threatened me with Wayne, and I gave in. But I have a partnership with Marshall. You can''t just lock me up here forever, can you?"


    "Sebastian, I''ve told you before, there''s no future for us."


    "Years of your coldness and emotional abuse have extinguished any love I ever had for you."


    "All your favoritism and shamelessness have destroyed my heart. I would rather love someone else than ever love you again."


    Sebastian mmed on the brakes and turned to face her, his deep, unreadable eyes cold as ice. "Natalie, I dare you to say that again."


    He could always ignite her anger so easily.


    Sometimes, he felt an impulse to just kill her.


    "And then what? You''ll kick me out of the car again? Make me walk home in the snow?"


    Natalie gave a coldugh, her clear eyes meeting his. "You''ve already done it three times. If you throw me out again tonight and I get sick, I don''t mind taking you down with me. Seriously. I have nothing left to live for except revenge."


    "Sebastian, you can test me if you don''t believe me. A person with nothing to lose is capable of anything."


    Natalie''s hatred peaked in that moment, her words sharp and extreme. She had died in the dead of winter, and weather like this filled her with a primal fear.


    Sebastian saw the pure hatred in her eyes, and his heart clenched. He was a fool. He had made a mistake, and he would spend the rest of his life making it up to her. She hated him to his very core.


    Sebastian took a deep breath. "I was


    wrong before. I was blind and


    foolish, unable to see Joanna''s true


    colors. I won''t hurt you again. From now on,


    Weret''s go back to how we


    were a couple of years ago apd peacefully."


    Sebastian drove into the vi''s driveway. Natalie couldn''t be bothered to respond.


    She simply closed her eyes and remained silent.


    Sebastian watched her silence, feeling helpless.


    She used to be so vibrant, her smile dazzling. But now, in his presence, she was covered in sharp thorns.


    Every past incident, every cruel act, had really happened.


    Natalie had saved him and cared for him for two years. Did that mean nothingpared to Joanna''s repeated deceptions?


    When people are biased, they act on their preconceived notions, naturally siding with the person they care about.


    He, Sebastian Griffith, hadmitted that same folly.


    As soon as the car stopped, Natalie opened the door and got out.


    Sebastian watched her cold, lonely figure disappear into the frigid wind. He remembered that year when he couldn''t see, on a snowy day just like this, she would push his wheelchair outside for a walk and tell him jokes. Back then, lost in his own despan, he had barely paid attention to what


    she said.


    They had been happy together once. The love in her eyes had always been so open and unconcealed.


    Now, her eyes held only a strange, deep-seated hatred that cut him like a knife.


    The more he thought about it, the more unwilling he was to ept this. He chased after her into the house and, once in the room, grabbed her hand and pinned Her against the wall. He wrapped bone arm around her waist and used the other to cup the back of her head, leaving her no room to escape. He lowered his head and crushed his lips against hers.