Chapter 1
Did you really think you could run away?
Did you really think you could leave me?
"Sloane," Norton chuckled, his fingertips icy as they traced my lips. "Say it again. I didn't quite catch that."
God! If I said it again, I was dead meat!
My smile was so awkward, it was almost painful, way uglier than crying.
"I said... I love you," I muttered, barely forcing the words out.
*****
I got transmigrated into a novel.
And not just any novel—I became the evil cannon fodder side character in a twisted romance, the one doomed to die alongside the obsessive male lead.
Right now, I was sitting directly across from Norton Ashford, the main character.
The top-notch restaurant was aglow with crystal chandeliers, their light scattering golden flecks all over the room.
He cut his steak with slow, deliberate precision, the silver knife and fork in his sharply defined hands moving like a pair of elegant surgical tools.
[These are the same hands that, in the original story, pushed me off the cruise ship and gently told me, 'Don't be afraid. I'll be right down to join you.']
I was scared to death! I was absolutely terrified!
My stomach churned violently.
According to the original storyline, tonight was the first step in Sloane digging her own grave.
Driven by jealousy toward the original heroine, she'd ask Norton for something totally out of line. After getting the cold shoulder, she'd spiral into a string of crazy stunts, eventually feeding the fish in the Pacific.
No way.
I couldn't just sit here and wait to die.
Since I was screwed no matter what, I might as well go all out and make him hate me enough to dump me right here and now!
Break up! I needed to break up with him!
I took a deep breath, trying to make my voice sound greedy and stupid at the same time.
"Norton," I said.
He looked up, his eyes as dark as a starless night, holding only my reflection.
"Hmm?" He replied, his voice carrying a chilly, magnetic undertone.
Target locked. He was giving me that killer death glare!
What was I supposed to say to make myself look super gold-digging, super shallow, and completely unreasonable?
I nervously clenched the tablecloth, my mind racing.
I got it!
I pointed at the charity auction table nearby, where the Heart of the Deep diamond necklace was sparkling so bright it hurt to look at.
In the original story, Sloane wanted it too, but she only whispered about it, and one glare from Norton was enough to shut her up.
I was not like her.
I was going to say it out loud!
"I want that one!" I tilted my chin high, channeling every ounce of spoiled princess energy I had, practically throwing a tantrum right there.
Yes, that was exactly the expression! Was it annoying enough? I needed to add a little more!
I cleared my throat and went all in. "If you don't buy it for me, it means you don't love me! We're breaking up, right here, right now!"
After I finished, I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for him to lose it and hurl his steak plate at my face.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
But the furious outburst I was bracing for never happened.
I cracked one eye open, sneaking a peek.
Norton set down his knife and fork.
He wasn't angry.
He was smiling.
It was a smile I couldn't even begin to describe. There was a hint of mischief, a touch of understanding, and somehow...a bit of fondness, like he was actually spoiling me.
Wait, what? That wasn't in the script! What was he laughing at? Had I made him so mad that he had to laugh? Was he about to skip the formalities and just send me straight to my grave?
He stood up and walked around the table to my side.
His shadow loomed over me, carrying that crisp, woody scent that always lingered around him.
He bent down, his icy fingertips pinching my chin, tilting my head up to meet his gaze.
"Ah, so this is what's got you all worked up," Norton teased.
His voice was deep and velvety, like a cello's notes humming right against my skin.
"Afraid I'd say no? Afraid I don't love you?"
No, that was not it! Seriously, stop twisting my words! I was really just trying to make him hate me! I was panicking inside.
Internally, I was freaking out, but my face was frozen in fear.
To him, that expression probably looked like silent confirmation.
His eyes sparkled with even more amusement.
"You little fool," Norton said, a fond smile tugging at his lips.
He stood up and gave a lazy wave to the auctioneer across the room.
"10M dollars," he announced, sounding completely unfazed.
The whole room went dead silent.
I was frozen. My mind went completely blank.
Not only did he buy it, but he also put it on me personally after the necklace was delivered.
The icy diamonds rested against my skin, feeling less like jewelry and more like an opulent shackle.
He leaned in, his warm breath ghosting over my neck, his voice dripping with honeyed tenderness.
"Now that you're wearing something of mine, you belong to me," Norton murmured, his tone possessive and soft.
"And from now on, don't you ever say those two words again," he added, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
He paused, something cold and predatory flashing in his eyes.
"I hate breaking up," Norton murmured, his voice dropping to a possessive, dangerous whisper.
I looked down at the Heart of the Deep necklace worth 10M dollars hanging from my neck, and instead of feeling happy, all I could sense was a mountain of despair weighing me down.
It was icy cold, just like Norton's touch.
It felt more like a pair of luxurious handcuffs.
Great, I was trying to get dumped, and now it was turned into a freaking proposal scene.
How the hell did I get this thing off? Where was the clasp?
When I got back to the villa Norton arranged for me, the first thing I did was rush into the bathroom and start examining the necklace around my neck in the mirror.