Willow did not return to the guest room that night.
Lawrence woke up very early the next morning.
The curtains were slightly parted, letting in the cold, gray dawn.
Willow was still asleep, her face buried in the pillow, a faint red mark visible on her neck from the night before.
Lawrence stood by the bed, staring at her in silence for several seconds.
Now that the heat of the night had vanished, all that remained was cold calculation.
The line had been crossed.
But it couldn't blow up in his face.
The Langford family couldn't find out.
And Wren absolutely could not find out.
At least, not right now.
By the time he stepped out of the bathroom, Willow was awake.
She sat up in bed, pulling the sheets to her chest, looking lost and genuinely terrified.
"Lawrence."
Lawrence didn't stop buttoning his shirt.
"You're awake?"
Seeing him act so impeccably calm drained the color from Willow's face.
"Do you regret it?"
Lawrence said nothing.
That fleeting silence felt like a bucket of ice water being dumped over her head.
Willow's eyes immediately reddened.
She forced a heartbreaking smile, her voice paper-thin. "It's okay. If you regret it, I can pretend last night never happened. I won't tell Wren, and I won't cause any problems for you."
The more accommodating she acted, the more sensible she seemed.
Lawrence frowned.
He walked over to the desk, pulled a premium credit card from the drawer, and set it on the surface.
"Take this."
Willow froze.
Staring at the plastic card, the tears welling in her eyes abruptly stopped.
This was not the answer she wanted.
But she fully understood that this was the specific type of acknowledgment Lawrence was willing to offer.
Money.
Resources.
A safety net.
When a man handed a woman these things, it meant their relationship had fundamentally shifted.
Lawrence continued. "I'll have Xavier set up an apartment for you near Langford Medical. It'll make handling your projects easier."
Willow's fingers slowly curled into tight fists.
An apartment.
She had surrendered herself last night, and instead of a promise, she was handed an apartment and a credit card.
It was a deeply subtle humiliation.
And a brutal dose of reality.
But she couldn't reject it.
And she didn't want to.
Lydia had warned her: Men never gave you a title at first; they just gave you convenience. But as long as he was willing to give you something, you had the leverage to demand more.
Willow looked up at him, letting a single tear fall.
"I didn't do this for the money."
Lawrence met her gaze. "I know."
"Then what am I to you?"
The question was incredibly soft, but it carried a trace of genuine desperation.
Lawrence stayed quiet for a moment.
"Willow, don't make this difficult for me."
Willow's heart felt like it had been pierced by a needle.
But she quickly lowered her eyes, offering a submissive, shattered smile.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Sign the Papers Mr. Langford