Sera stood behind me with her legs crossed, teasing me after a long pause.

"You actually look the part."

I could only offer a helpless, bitter smile.

After all, being someone's mistress meant that if the master wasn't happy, my life wouldn't be comfortable either.

My sole job description was to please him.

This was the first time he was taking me out while handling official business.

It was already past eight in the evening when we stepped out of the mall, and looking at my reflection in my phone, I still felt uneasy, so I went to get my hair styled late into the night before heading home satisfied.

The next morning when I arrived at the company, the young secretary politely escorted me upstairs, where he was resting in the lounge after apparently just finishing a meeting. When I walked in, he was working at his desk, his handsome profile radiating cold calculation and sharp sophistication.

Come to think of it, I always considered myself quite fortunate.

Chapter 3: This Lady

Most other women's sugar daddies are forty- or fifty-year-old balding men reeking of sweat. But mine, at least for now, is someone I can't really find fault with, except for his slightly foul temper. His name is Christian. At just thirty years old, he already holds a powerful position, and countless business tycoons have to watch his expressions to speak and act.

Seeing me arrive, Christian wrapped his arm tightly around my waist and pulled me onto his lap.

He buried his nose in my hair near my neck, inhaling deeply, sending a wave of numbness down my slender neck.

The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly intimate, and Christian pressed me hard against the sofa, kissing me fiercely.

The lines on his palms were somewhat rough, but it was still easy to see that the man was well-groomed.

His slightly warm hand began to wander slowly. Before I even had a chance to speak, I felt a sudden chill on my body.

Christian hovered over me. From the oppressive weight of his aura, I could tell he was angry right now.

I dared not say another word, leaving myself entirely to his plundering.

After the passion subsided, Christian wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and I could hear the powerful heartbeat inside his chest.

"That Mercedes, why did you send it to the dealership?"

My heart sank.

"Logan told you?"

"He is my driver, after all."

Christian's voice was flat, devoid of emotion.

I didn't know what Logan had told Christian, but judging from Christian's reaction, he probably hadn't said too much.

Anxious and uneasy, I hesitated for two seconds.

"That day I went to a friend's birthday party. They drank too much and accidentally threw up in the car."

"You drank at The Dusk?"

"Yes."

My body stiffened. The Dusk was the exact club where I had encountered that man.

"You and your friends didn't run into any trouble that night, did you?"

Christian's long fingers tapped a steady rhythm on my lower abdomen. At that moment, I could distinctly hear the interrogation and dissatisfaction in his tone.

Inexplicably, I had a feeling that the events of that night mostly had something to do with him.

"Well... we ran into two gangs fighting each other, so we all left." I answered truthfully. Christian's wolf-like gaze fixed on me darkly for a long time. After a while, he said indifferently, "Stay away from those kinds of places in the future."

I nodded quickly.

Christian has a cold nature and is usually a man of few words. This was his warning to me.

The atmosphere in the room became a bit awkward for a moment. Just as I was about to find it unbearable, a sudden knock sounded at the door.

A secretary urged Christian to get ready for the evening banquet. Only then did he release me from his embrace. My heart fluttering with anxiety, I quickly gathered my clothes, and we left together.

The banquet was highly exclusive, and it was obvious that everyone in attendance was either wealthy or powerful.

As soon as Christian entered the venue, he was pulled away into a conversation. Holding a glass of red wine, I wandered aimlessly through the crowd.

"This lady..."

A voice suddenly sounded right behind my ear. I turned around in shock, my pupils shrinking instantly.

It was the man from that night.

"Have we... met before?"

The man curled his lips slightly, his metal frames reflecting a dangerous gleam under the lights.

"You... you're mistaken."

Catching a glimpse of Christian already looking over in my direction, my instinct told me to cut ties with this man as quickly as possible.

"Have a good night, sir."

I raised my glass slightly and turned to slip away, but the man grabbed my arm directly.

"That night, the person in the restroom was you?"

"What are you talking about?"

I put on a playful smile and played dumb, though my heart was wild with panic.

Christian had told me that his mother ran away with another man when he was very young, so he loathes betrayal more than anything in his life.

If he saw me getting entangled with this man in front of me, he would definitely suspect what happened that night.

"Mr. Julian, what do you think you're doing?"

Chapter 4: An Exchange of Connections

Just as I was agonizing in internal conflict, Christian had already wrapped his arm around me, dominantly declaring his ownership.

"Nothing. I just thought Mrs. Christian bears a striking resemblance to an old acquaintance of mine."

"May I ask, how many years have you and Director Christian been married? How come I've never seen you before?"

My face turned pale in an instant.

You should know that women brought to this kind of private banquet are mostly mistresses.

By asking this, the man clearly intended to slap my face in public.

Christian's wife was a bride chosen by the Christian family from the very beginning, and her family background was, of course, top-tier.

In our circle, it's fine to keep a mistress, but if a mistress entertains thoughts of replacing the wife, she certainly won't live long.

I froze completely, my brain going completely blank for a moment.

This man had intentionally thrown a difficult dilemma at me.

Admitting I was Christian's wife would undoubtedly be seeking my own doom.

Denying it, however, would make me lose all face in front of everyone.

Yet, a scene I never expected occurred.

Christian let out a cold snort. "This is my family matter. Where do you get the right to question it, Mr. Julian?"

As the saying goes, one does not strike a smiling face.

This was the first time I had ever seen Christian lose his temper, but at that moment, a sudden wave of warmth actually flowed through my heart.

I have drifted through this world for twenty-four years, and this was the very first time someone had stood up for me.

Looking at Christian's sharp profile, I suppressed the fluttering emotion in my chest.

"I merely found Mrs. Christian so familiar that I made a joke. There is no need for you to be angry, Director Christian."

The man gave me a complex look. I wasn't sure if I was imagining things, but he seemed to deliberately emphasize the words "Mrs. Christian."

Christian was even less pleased now, but before he could speak, the man took a phone call, turned around, and left.

Christian cast a cold glance at me, a look that made me shudder instantly.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly afterward. This kind of private gathering was nothing more than an exchange of connections, and I couldn't really mingle with those wealthy socialites anyway, so I walked out to the balcony alone to get some fresh air.

The moonlight was alluring, and a cold wind blew in through the window from time to time, but I stared outside so intently that I didn't want to leave at all.

"Creak..."

Suddenly, a soft sound came from the door behind me. Turning around, my pupils dilated violently.

"Why look as if you've seen a ghost? Didn't you moan quite delightfully that night?"

Recalling that night, my face flushed. Refusing to reply, I turned around to walk out, but he directly blocked my path.

"You saved my life that night, and one good turn deserves another. I ought to warn you: watch your step around the person sharing your bed."

The smile on the man's face was incredibly wicked, yet it sent a chill deep into my heart.

Watch my step around the person sharing my bed...

Was he talking about Christian?

Why did he tell me to beware of Christian? Could it be that Christian found out something?

Watching the man's retreating figure as he turned to leave, my heart sank.

"Stop!"

"Do you know something? What did Christian say?"

He assumed an indifferent air and shrugged. "I don't know."