When Julian Sterling was blind, I took him in. He liked to bite my ear and whisper that he was my good dog. In the dead of night, he loved to measure my body with his hands, over and over, claiming he could map out exactly what I looked like. Later, his vision was restored. It turned out he was the missing heir to the Sterling empire, and he already had a lifelong sweetheart. Before he ever saw my face, I left behind a forged death certificate and vanished without a trace. I hid for five years. I only dared to resurface when I heard he was getting married. But the moment my plane landed, I was surrounded by a wall of men in black suits at the airport. Julian held a custom-made wedding dress, his smile gentle yet terrifyingly obsessive. "Fiancée, the measurements I took five years ago aren't accurate anymore. "Be a good girl. Let me measure you again." 01 My manager dragged me to the door of the private VIP room, but I froze, too terrified to step inside. Because Julian Sterling, the heir to the Sterling empire, was sitting right in there. Through the crack in the heavy mahogany door, I heard someone flattering him: "Mr. Sterling, I heard that when you went missing years ago, you actually lost your sight for a while? That must have been an incredibly difficult time." Julian let out a low, scoffing laugh. "I wouldn't call it difficult. I had someone taking care of my every need. Honestly, life was easier then than it is now." "That must have been your fiancée, right? Now that is true love through adversity. Congratulations, it's wonderful to see true love win in the end..." "No." Julian cut him off, his voice chillingly detached. "She is right here." I jumped, my head snapping up in panic. Through the crack, I saw Julian pointing a long finger directly at the floor beneath him. "Buried right here." Oh, right. I was "dead." Five years ago, Julian had personally signed the paperwork confirming my death certificate. My manager, eavesdropping beside me, whispered: "That girl was so unlucky. If she hadn't died, she'd probably be living like a queen right now..." I forced a smile. "Unlikely." My manager disagreed. "Why are you so sure?" "If she got the heir to the Sterling empire to agree to her being his live-in caretaker, she must have had some serious tricks up her sleeve. Her seduction skills were probably top-tier!" I lowered my eyes, hiding my overwhelming guilt. Sometimes, even I couldn't tell who seduced who the first time Julian and I slept together. Back then, because he was blind, his hearing was abnormally sharp. I merely whispered something quietly in his ear, but to him, the sound was like a bomb going off, sending a shiver straight to his core. I was incredibly naive back then, and I genuinely asked him, "What does a climax actually feel like?" While he was explaining it, he reached out to touch my heart. But his hand slipped a little too low. Instantly, the veins in his neck bulged, and he went completely stiff. Seeing him freeze up like a statue, I thought he was having a heart attack. Crying, I threw myself onto him, trying to give him CPR. He flipped us over, pinning me down, and sealed my lips with his... Just as I was lost in the memory, a waiter pushing a cart accidentally bumped into me. Instinctively, I let out a sharp "Ah!" The slightly ajar door swung wide open from the impact. Sitting in the seat facing the door, Julian slowly lifted his eyes and looked straight at me. 02 Julian and I locked eyes. In that split second, the blood in my veins turned to ice. I was so paralyzed I couldn't even turn around to run. But the panic only lasted a few seconds. Thank God for the brutal reality of surviving the last five years; it had trained me to plaster on a flawless, fake smile in an instant. It was almost funny. Even though Julian and I had shared a bed for two years... Even though his hands had mapped every inch of my face and body more times than my own hands had... To him, I was just a ghost whose face he had never actually seen. So what if we slept together? How could a blind man recognize a face he had never looked at? Exactly as I predicted, Julian didn't recognize me. When our wine glasses clinked later in the evening, his gaze was deep but entirely indifferent. Yet, when his eyes landed on me, a phantom shiver still ran down my spine. It felt exactly like the very first time I saw him. It was a stormy night, thunder crashing and lightning splitting the sky. My mother had just passed away in the hospital. Crying uncontrollably on my way home, I tripped and fell in a dark, narrow alleyway. Julian was slumped against the brick wall, soaked to the bone, barely clinging to life, looking utterly wretched. Under the flickering, dim streetlamp, the side of his face was covered in brutal cuts and bruises, yet he was still breathtakingly handsome. His dark eyes were bleeding, but his gaze was filled with a chilling, ruthless desolation. I was terrified. I wanted to run. But then I thought of my mother. She had been in so much agony in her hospital bed. I always wished someone, anyone, could have saved her... In the end, I dragged Julian back to my rundown, low-rent apartment and spent every penny of my meager savings to treat his wounds. At the time, I was completely ignorant. I was too poor to recognize that his shredded clothes were worth a fortune. I genuinely thought he was just another homeless, lost soul like me. I even convinced myself that my mother, watching from heaven, felt sorry for me and sent him so I wouldn't be so devastatingly alone. I thought I finally had a family again. Someone to care for. Suddenly, my manager pinched the back of my hand. "What are you daydreaming about? Why are you smiling like that?" I snapped back to reality, the smile on my lips freezing. Seeing my reaction, my manager suddenly leaned in and whispered: "Chloe, don't tell me you've got your eyes on Julian Sterling? Let me warn you, he is notoriously ruthless when it comes to women. Anyone who tries to seduce him ends up completely destroyed. "Word is his fiancée is his childhood sweetheart, the golden princess of the New York elite. They are deeply in love. "Don't let his looks fool you. He's way out of our league. One wrong move, and you'll offend him permanently." Offend him? Uh, well about that... When I finally decided to leave Julian, I tied him to a cheap, hundred-dollar mattress. And rode him ruthlessly for three straight hours. While doing it, I casually informed him that I only kept him around because I was lonely and bored. He was just a fun little toy. But now, a rich sugar daddy wanted to keep me, so I didn't need him anymore. Julian's veins popped, his face contorted in rage, and he roared hoarsely: "Chloe Vance, you better pray I never catch you! Because when I do, I will f*cking ride you until your voice gives out!" I’m pretty sure that in all his life as a billionaire heir, even being blind hadn't been as humiliating as that moment. As far as offending him went, I had already crossed the point of no return. Luckily, I was legally "dead." I guess I should thank his fiancée for that. Anyway, once the toasts were over tonight, there was zero chance Julian and I would ever cross paths again. With that comforting thought, I casually strolled out into the hotel's garden for some fresh air. I looked up, only to see a tall, imposing silhouette standing there, a cigarette pinched between his long fingers. It was Julian. He turned his head and looked right at me. Just as my brain was frantically calculating an escape route, he suddenly called out: "Resurrect." I jumped. Resurrect?! Did he recognize me?! 03 Fortunately, before I completely lost my mind and accidentally confessed everything... A small dog suddenly darted out from behind him and affectionately rubbed against my leg. It was the little mutt I used to have! Because I was so indecisive, I had never officially given it a name. Julian actually adopted it? And he named it "Resurrect"?! Resurrect what? ...Resurrect his "dead" ex-girlfriend?! A cold shiver violently racked my body. If he ever found out I wasn't dead, that I had played him for a fool... The consequences would be unimaginable. "Resurrect, stop it." Julian put out his cigarette and waved the dog over. But the little dog hadn't seen me in so long, it was practically doing backflips of joy around my ankles. "It seems my dog really likes you." Julian's gaze landed on my face, calm but impossibly deep. I forced myself to stay calm. I was actually grateful the dog was going crazy at my feet, giving me a perfect excuse for the blatant panic I couldn't hide on my face. "I'm sorry. It might be because I smell like meat. Some steak juice splashed on my dress earlier. "I should get back inside. Have a good evening, Mr. Sterling." But before I could take a single step, Julian suddenly spoke again: "Being a dog must be nice." I froze. "...Excuse me?" "Being a dog. As long as you're obedient, your master rewards you. There's nothing wrong with being a good dog." Years ago, in the heat of passion, Julian would hover over me, biting my ear, and whisper: "I am Chloe's good dog." My heart skyrocketed into my throat. I clenched my fists tight. "I apologize, Mr. Sterling, but I'm human. I don't know much about dogs." My blunt, literal response caused the atmosphere to instantly flatline. I desperately wanted an excuse to leave, but Julian suddenly threw out a chilling question: "Then, if you had a good dog, would you abandon it?" "...I would never get a dog." "Why not?" "Because I don't have the capacity to take on that responsibility." I lost my mother, I lost Julian, and I lost my little mutt. I would never allow myself to have a weakness ever again. "I need to go finish the toasts. I won't bother you any longer, Mr. Sterling." I turned around. But the little dog lunged at me again. I was walking too fast, terrified my heels would step on it. I stumbled, losing my balance, and pitched forward. A pair of large hands reached out from behind, catching me firmly and pulling me flush against a solid chest. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself? Does it hurt anywhere?" My nose bumped against Julian's chest, and his deep, frantic voice rumbled from above my head. It was exactly like the two years we spent together. His overwhelming care and concern... it gave me the heartbreaking illusion that we could actually grow old together. "Julian, why have you been out in the garden for so long?" Suddenly, a sweet, melodic female voice rang out behind us. I didn't even need to turn around to know exactly who it was. Victoria Hastings. Julian's childhood sweetheart. His fiancée. 04 The voice that shatters your most beautiful dreams is the one you remember the clearest. For me, that voice belonged to Victoria Hastings. I vividly remembered the day Victoria stepped into my cramped, low-rent apartment in her designer heels, looked around, and delivered her first sentence: "Julian actually slept in this literal garbage dump for two years? "He really endured all this just for our future together. Amazing." I wasn't normally a weak person. But looking at the glamorous, radiant Victoria, I couldn't even force a single word of defense out of my throat. For the first time in my life, I cried bitter tears over my own crushing poverty. But thankfully, that wouldn't happen today. Because my heart was no longer barren and destitute. I quickly shoved Julian away and stood up straight. Victoria walked over from behind him. When she saw my face, her pupils dilated in pure shock for a split second. But she recovered her flawless composure within seconds. Clearly, her acting skills were vastly superior to mine. She smiled and asked: "Hello, you must be the new singer signed to Tara's agency, right?" "Yes." "Then why were you hugging Julian just now?" Victoria pouted, looking at Julian playfully, her tone sickeningly sweet. "Aren't you afraid your fiancée might get jealous?" "Fiancée." Julian slowly lifted his eyes, repeating the word she had just said. But his dark, bottomless eyes were locked dead onto me. It looked as if molten lava was boiling violently beneath his gaze. "I was startled by the dog. Thank you for catching me, Mr. Sterling. Have a good evening." My expression didn't change. I delivered the line and immediately walked away. But Julian took a long stride, completely blocking my path. He pulled an elegant, wax-sealed wedding invitation from his suit jacket and handed it to me. "My wedding is next month. You will be there." His voice was heavy, delivering an absolute command, not a request. Victoria whined playfully, "Julian, you're so silly. The invitation is wax-sealed, and it says it can only be opened on the day of the wedding! How is anyone supposed to know the names of the bride and groom?!" I had absolutely zero interest in watching them flirt. I politely took the invitation and walked away. On the way back to my hotel room, I casually tore the invitation in half and tossed it into a trash can. I didn't notice that on one of the torn corners, a tiny, elegant letter "C" was visible... 05 I initially thought running into Julian was just a terrifying coincidence. I put it out of my mind and focused entirely on my career. Until my manager told me that a massive, A-list director had specifically requested me to sing the opening theme song for his upcoming blockbuster. For a minor artist like me, this was like winning the lottery. But when I arrived at the studio and saw Julian sitting there, I realized it had nothing to do with luck. —He had personally requested me. My incredibly extroverted manager, Tara, pulled me over and enthusiastically greeted everyone in the room. When we reached Julian, he actually lowered his aristocratic head and spoke first: "Miss Vance, it's been a long time." Tara quickly laughed, "Mr. Sterling, you must be mistaken. Her last name is Davies. Her name is Chloe Davies." My heart hammered against my ribs. Back then, after faking my death, I moved to a different state, deleted my identity, and legally changed my name to my mother's maiden name. But my mother had chosen the name "Chloe" for me, and I couldn't bear to change it. Besides, "Chloe" was a common enough name. Julian's gaze seized me, his tone dangerously casual: "I suppose my memory must be failing me then. "I used to have an old friend named Chloe. Except her last name was Vance." The more I spoke, the more likely I was to make a mistake. I decided to stay completely silent, plastering on a socially awkward, shy smile. Tara, thinking I was blowing a massive networking opportunity, secretly glared at me. I just pretended to be blind. At noon, the production staff brought in catered lunches. Fruit salad. The portion handed to me was loaded with mangoes. I am highly allergic to mangoes, a fact Julian knew better than anyone. But if I refused it now, his suspicions would turn into absolute certainty. My allergy wasn't life-threatening—I'd just break out in hives. Popping a Claritin later would clear it right up. Compared to the apocalyptic disaster of my cover being blown, a few hives were nothing. I opened the container right in front of Julian, stabbed a large chunk of mango with my fork, and brought it to my lips. The next second, Julian actually reached out and violently snatched the fork out of my hand. He used so much force it felt like he was legitimately furious. The mango splattered onto the table. Tara was stunned. "Mr. Sterling..." Julian grabbed the entire bowl of salad from in front of me as well. I heard him instructing his assistant as he walked away: "I'll eat this one. Get her a hot meal with rice." Moments later, the assistant returned with a massive, luxurious multi-course meal just for me. It was from The Golden Lotus. A meal from there cost at least a thousand dollars. Tara was flabbergasted. She leaned in and whispered frantically: "Chloe, did you secretly hook up with Mr. Sterling behind my back?! Did you actually bag him??" "Tara, didn't you just tell me last week that he was notoriously ruthless and untouchable?" "But the way he was looking at you... how do I explain this? It felt like you were the only thing he cared about. In a room full of people, he only had eyes for you." My grip on my chopsticks tightened. He only cared about me? It seems I wasn't the only idiot who fell for the illusion. Even a sharp, cynical businesswoman like Tara was completely fooled by it. 06 When I first brought Julian home, he was blind, and his injuries were incredibly severe. I was so broke that every piece of clothing I owned had patches on it. I genuinely considered just dropping him off at a homeless shelter. But Julian seemed to sense exactly what I was thinking. As I stood up to open the door, he reached out with his bruised, bloody hands and grabbed the hem of my shirt. "Don't... don't send me away..." He "looked" directly at me with his unseeing eyes. Even though they were blind, those eyes were as deep as the ocean, capable of drowning anyone who looked too closely. My heart instantly melted. I asked him where his parents or family were. He claimed he had no idea. He kept his head down, the unhealed cuts on his cheeks making him look like a giant, abandoned puppy. I figured he must have been ruthlessly discarded by someone, causing the trauma that wiped his memory. I started working three part-time jobs a day just to afford his medical treatments. Every night when I came home exhausted, Julian would wrap me in his arms and warm my freezing hands and feet. "Chloe, you work so hard. "Once my eyes are healed, I'm going to give you the most luxurious life, the most beautiful home. You'll never have to suffer like this again. I'll make sure you live like a queen for the rest of your life. "I'm so sorry, Chloe. I'm the reason you're so exhausted. Just wait a little longer. I promise I will make it happen." His arms and legs were so long they could completely envelop me in his embrace. Hearing him say those things, my heart felt like it was drowning in honey. I didn't even notice how effortlessly and confidently he made those massive promises. Nor did I catch the fleeting flash of guilt and restraint in his eyes. "How could I possibly blame you? I have to work anyway. "Hubby, I've been thinking... once we save enough money, we'll go to Boston to get your eyes checked. I heard they have the best eye hospitals in the country there... "No matter what, I'm going to get you cured so we can see the world together. "If we get the chance, maybe we'll even have a baby! But if we can't, that's fine too. We're already each other's babies, right? "Oh! And one day, I want to buy a house that's all ours. Not a tiny, cramped one like this. One that doesn't leak when it rains or lose power every week..." Whenever I started rambling about these dreams, Julian would just hold me tighter and silence me with a kiss. Then he'd strip me naked, pin me down, and make love to me over and over again. That way, my mouth was only useful for moaning, and I couldn't talk about anything else. Looking back now, maybe Julian just didn't want to hear my pathetic little fantasies. Because to him, my ultimate "dream life" was just basic, ordinary survival. But he was a billionaire heir, born with a silver spoon in his mouth, raised in a literal palace. The "luxurious life" he envisioned was on an entirely different stratosphere than mine. In that tiny, dilapidated apartment, we were just two lonely souls clinging to each other for warmth. But the moment we stepped outside that door, we were two entirely different species, separated by an uncrossable chasm of wealth and class. 07 During a break in the recording session, Victoria showed up. The golden princess of New York, Julian's childhood sweetheart. Everyone immediately fawned over her. Victoria handed out expensive afternoon tea to the crew, saving a box of handmade chestnut pastries specifically for Julian. "Why the sudden interest in a theme song recording? I saw you listening so intently just now." Julian didn't take the pastries. His tone was icy: "Because I needed to see someone very important." The crew immediately started making "ooh" and "ahh" noises, teasing them. Victoria's face flushed a delicate pink. Someone bold enough asked, "Mr. Sterling, is the big day officially set for next month?" Julian's tone shifted from icy to deadly serious: "Yes. At the wedding next month, I will officially confess my love to the woman I adore." I didn't want to hear another word. I turned around and headed to the balcony to clear my head. That massive lunch had hit me like a brick; I was in a total carb coma. After getting some fresh air, I was about to head back inside when I heard voices near the side door. "Julian, do you really think that girl Chloe Davies sounds like her?" It was Victoria speaking. "Yes." "But she's been dead for five years! You were the one who told me to give her a lump sum to appease her. All I did was add a little extra, and she took the cash and vanished without a second thought. She obviously didn't love you that much. She clearly loved the money more..." Actually, Victoria had it all wrong. I wasn't nearly smart enough back then to realize that money was vastly more important than men. The reason I took the money and ran so quickly was due to something else entirely. First, I was completely out of my depth and so humiliated by Victoria's insults that I just wanted the ground to swallow me whole. Second, a full two weeks before Victoria ever showed up at my door, I had accidentally caught her and Julian together. That day, the owner of the diner where I worked had an emergency, so I went home early. When I arrived, the man who was supposedly blind and suffering from amnesia was standing perfectly straight in our courtyard, holding a stunning woman in his arms. His eyes were wide open, clear, and filled with absolute adoration. When he scanned the area, his gaze turned incredibly sharp and predatory. Where was the blindness? The only one who was blind in that relationship was me. Back then, I was so pathetic and cowardly it was almost funny. Seeing them together, my heart felt like it was being ripped out of my chest. I hid in an alleyway and cried for hours. But when I finally went inside, I pretended everything was fine. I didn't even have the guts to confront him. I was terrified of the truth. I was terrified that if I asked, Julian would just walk out the door, and I'd be utterly alone again. But later, Victoria showed up with a briefcase full of cash and threw a stack of intimate photos of her and Julian on the table. Along with... photos of them in bed together. That was the final straw. Even a pathetic loser like me had my limits! My mother always told me never to use a man who had been used by someone else. It meant he was defective. So, I angrily rode Julian for three straight hours... Then, I fully cooperated with Victoria's fake death scheme, took the cash, and disappeared. Thinking back on it now, my only regret is— I definitely should have asked for more money. 08 A whole week passed after the photoshoot, and absolutely nothing happened. I figured Julian had been convinced by Victoria and wasn't going to try and test me anymore. That evening, as I was packing my bags to leave for a shoot in another state, Tara was scrolling through her phone. "Oh wow. I just heard from a friend that Mr. Sterling's dog went missing. They've been searching for days and still haven't found it." The little mutt was missing?! When I faked my death and left, I couldn't take the dog with me. So I entrusted it to the family that owned the BBQ chicken stand at the end of the alley. I figured it could at least get some leftover meat and bones to eat there. "They said Mr. Sterling just bought a new, expensive purebred. Guess he's giving up on the old one," Tara added casually. Her words sent me into a full panic. It was clear I couldn't rely on a bastard like Julian to care. I grabbed a cab in the pouring rain and rushed straight to my old, rundown neighborhood. Sure enough, the door to the old apartment was unlocked. I rushed in, closing my umbrella. "Mutt! I knew you'd be hiding here..." Click. The lights flicked on. The little dog wasn't there. Instead, sitting at the cheap, plastic folding table was a tall, incredibly imposing figure that looked completely out of place. He was holding a lit cigarette. When he raised his eyes to look at me, his gaze was more violently red than the burning cherry. "Chloe. You're back." 09 It was Julian! The second I saw the little dog happily tied to the leg of his chair, I knew I had walked straight into a trap. But I still tried a pathetic, dying struggle: "...Mr. Sterling, what are you calling me?" Julian stared at me, his gaze completely unblinking: "That night at the hotel, 'Resurrect' was incredibly affectionate with you. He never approaches strangers. "When I gave you the wedding invitation, you tore it up and threw it in the trash. If you truly didn't know me, you wouldn't have done that. Attending a billionaire's wedding is a massive networking opportunity; you should have been thrilled. "I had you brought in to record that song. The second you opened your mouth, I knew it was you. "Also, when you looked at the mangoes, you hesitated. But you deliberately tried to eat them right in front of me. "From that eight-course meal, you didn't touch the cilantro, and you didn't touch the mushrooms. "And above all else— "Chloe Vance. I've mapped every inch of your body with my hands a thousand times. Did you honestly think... I wouldn't recognize you?" Since my cover was blown so spectacularly, I decided to drop the act. "Fine. I'm Chloe Vance. So, what do you want from me, Mr. Sterling?" "You think you can ride a man until he drops and just run away?" Julian took long, predatory strides toward me. He was radiating absolute malice. I genuinely thought he was going to hit me. After all, when I rode him that last time, I was absolutely merciless. My thighs ached so badly I couldn't even squat for a month. I imagined he didn't fare much better. But when Julian reached me, he raised his hand— And gently placed it on my cheek. His freezing fingertips traced my skin with excruciating softness. "So, this is what you look like. You look exactly how I imagined. "All these years, I've traced your face in my mind, millions of times. "You're so beautiful." He stared at me intently. "You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen." I didn't flinch. I kept my voice perfectly flat. "Are you having fun playing games, rich boy?" Julian's hand froze. "Chloe." He whispered my name. "Look at you. You're back at the top of the world. Power, wealth, you have it all in the palm of your hand. So now you're feeling nostalgic? Want to reminisce about the good old days and play out your little slum-romance fantasy again? "You want to play? Fine. Pay me, and I'll play whatever sick game you want." I stared directly into his eyes. Maybe my dead-serious expression finally pushed him over the edge. He glared at me, grinding his teeth: "Is money all you care about? For money, you'd even throw away your own name and your home, wouldn't you?!" "Yes—and not just that. Back then, I took three million dollars, faked my death, deleted my identity, and vanished. Looking back on it now, I was incredibly stupid. "You are the heir to the most powerful dynasty in New York. I saved your life. Thirty million wouldn't have been asking too much." Julian suddenly hauled me up into his arms. He slammed his lips down onto mine, kissing me violently. With one hand, he ripped off his tie and bound my wrists together. His mouth aggressively trailed down my neck to my collarbone. I couldn't escape, so I stopped fighting. "Want to sleep with me? Go ahead. What do I have to be afraid of? I already slept with you when you were a blind nobody. Now that you're an untouchable billionaire, getting to sleep with you means I'm winning, doesn't it?" My words infuriated him so much his chest heaved. He leaned over, looking like he was about to throw me onto that cheap, hundred-dollar mattress. But then he suddenly remembered something, stopped, picked me back up, and carried me out the door.
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