Chapter 3
He kissed me like he owned me, rough and hungry.
I could taste a bit of blood, and the way he took charge left me no chance to resist.
My brain went blank. I was totally stunned.
Was he fucking insane?
The system was watching.
"Warning. Warning. Ryan's actions are seriously off-script. Host is at risk of being erased." A piercing alarm blared nonstop in her head.
My whole body jerked, snapping me out of it. I struggled, pushing him away with everything I had. "Mmph... Let go."
But Ryan only tightened his grip, kissing me even harder.
His presence completely engulfed me, so familiar and possessive.
Sophie's screams barely registered, like they were echoing from some distant universe.
"Ah! Ryan, what are you doing? Let her go."
OMG! OMG! OMG!
I was so desperate that I was almost in tears. So I bit down hard on his lip.
The taste of blood got even stronger.
He winced from the pain and finally let go of me.
As soon as I got free, I didn't even think. I spun around and slapped him hard.
This time, I went all in with no holding back.
This slap was a hundred times louder than the last one.
"Ryan. Who the hell do you think you are? You dare touch me." I was shaking, partly acting, but honestly, I was pissed for real.
This lunatic almost blew everything up for us.
Ryan's face was completely swollen, blood streaming from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were burning with a wild, unsettling intensity.
He locked his gaze on me like a beast that had been provoked, raw and dangerous.
"System warning lifted. Behavior update: Love turns to hate, retaliation triggered by extreme humiliation. Logic checks out. Approved."
I let out a long, shaky breath, and my knees went weak.
"You... You two..." Sophie pointed at us, so furious that she could barely speak, her tears pouring down even faster.
The crowd around us started pointing and talking behind our backs.
"What's with that guy? After getting humiliated like that, he still kissed her?"
"Stockholm syndrome, maybe?"
"That girl's savage. She really slapped him hard."
I didn't care what anyone was saying. I wanted to bail from this drama.
"Get lost," I snapped, barely holding back my rage, then stormed off.
This time, Ryan didn't try to stop me.
I slid behind the wheel and tore out of there.
Even after I'd driven a few blocks, my heart was still pounding like crazy.
My phone started buzzing like crazy. It was Ryan calling.
I took a deep breath, answered the call, and immediately snapped, "Ryan, are you insane? If you've got a death wish, don't drag me down with you. That three million almost turned into blood money."
He was quiet for a few seconds and then let out a low, almost sulky chuckle.
"I couldn't help myself," he murmured.
"You couldn't help yourself?" I snorted. "Do you even know how dangerous that was? The system could've caught us acting out of control and deleted us for good."
"I know," he replied, a hint of frustration in his voice. "But watching you slap me for the mission, then pretend it was nothing and walk away, I couldn't stand it."
"We agreed, didn't we? This is all a show," I said, my voice going soft before I even realized.
"The act is real, the money is real, but the way my heart aches for you is real too," he said, his voice coming through the line, low and hypnotic. "Madison, I don't want you to keep forcing yourself to do things you hate for the money."
My heart suddenly skipped a beat.
"So you had to add extra drama, huh? And you even bit your lip on purpose," I shot back.
"Wasn't that to get you to worry about me?" Ryan laughed. "Worked like a charm. You totally held back on that second slap."
"I did not," I protested stubbornly.
"You did," Ryan said confidently. "Come on, admit it. Wasn't that whole scene kind of exciting?"
Exciting my ass. It scared the hell out of me.
"Don't ever do that again," I snarled. "If you try it one more time, I'll..."
"Oh? And what'll you do?" Ryan drawled.
"I'll... I'll seriously break your legs." I threatened.
He laughed on the other end, clearly enjoying himself.
After hanging up, I rubbed my hair in frustration, feeling seriously irritated.
Just as I was about to drive off, an unknown number popped up on my screen.
I frowned and picked up. It was my so-called "father", Richard Grant, the head of the Grant family.
"Madison, get your ass back here right now," he roared the second I answered. "Sophie told me everything. You humiliated Ryan in public, and you even hit Sophie. You've dragged the Grant family's name through the mud."
Wait, what? I hit Sophie? She was really good at making up stories.
"I'm busy," I replied coldly.
"You dare," Richard roared. "I'm ordering you to come back right now and apologize to Sophie. Otherwise, I'll freeze all your cards."
Freeze my cards?
I glanced at the five million that had hit my account and couldn't help but smile.
Who cared about that?
But then it hit me. This was actually a perfect excuse to go back.
After all, the Grant family was basically a goldmine for system missions.
"Sure," Madison drawled, her tone lazy and unconcerned. "I'll come back."
But I wasn't going back to apologize.
I was going back to cash in.