Coralie was seized by the bitter certainty that Sebastian was nothing short of an insufferable bastard.
"You bastard! Who the hell do you think I am? To you, does matrimony amount to nothing more than sharing a bed? Is a wife nothing but a readily available body to satisfy your desires?" Coralie fought him with frantic resistance, her form twisting and thrashing as venomous words spilled relentlessly from her mouth.
Sebastian paid no heed to her fury, shoving her back against the table while dipping his head to seize her mouth with his own. This time, the kiss carried none of its former restraint—it was savage, claiming, ruinous.
Coralie attempted to clamp down on him with her teeth, but he foresaw the attempt and clamped her jaw between his fingers.
Her mouth fell open just enough, and he took advantage of the opening, his tongue forcing its way in, tangling with hers in a fierce and unrelenting conquest.
Sebastian's kiss bore the weight of complete control, as though he intended to swallow her existence whole.
Coralie resolved herself firmly, refusing to allow even the faintest stir of response under such degrading circumstances.
She tried to steady herself on her feet, but her stilettos betrayed her, her ankle bending at a cruel angle.
"Ah." A fierce jolt of agony surged upward, and Coralie could not suppress the broken sound that escaped her throat. She longed to break free, yet her limbs refused to obey her will.
"What happened?" Sebastian asked with a frown, his grip still locked firmly around her wrists.
Coralie shot him a look filled with resentment before dropping her eyes.
Sebastian traced the direction of her gaze. Her foot rested at an unnatural tilt against the floor—undeniably injured.
He let go of her wrists and swept her into his arms, carrying her toward the exit.
Coralie struck his shoulder with her fist. "Let me go!"
"If you'd rather I don't lose control in the elevator, then remain still," Sebastian said flatly.
She damned him endlessly in her thoughts, yet her body stayed rigid and unresisting as he carried her inside the elevator.
The elevator dropped toward the underground parking level.
Sebastian pulled open the car door and placed Coralie into the passenger seat, securing the belt across her.
He shut the door, circled to the driver's side, fastened his own belt, and pressed hard on the accelerator.
The vehicle's speed climbed rapidly to 80 mph.
Coralie grabbed the strap across her chest with trembling fingers. "Sebastian, have you completely lost your senses? If you're determined to get yourself killed, don't take me along with you!"
Sebastian kept his focus ahead, his voice devoid of emotion. "I have no intention of dying, but if you insist on dying beside me, I'm willing to indulge you."
"You're insane! Even if death comes for me, I refuse to meet it with you. Crossing paths with you in this lifetime was already a terrible mistake. If another lifetime exists, I want nothing to do with you!" she shouted.
Sebastian slammed on the brakes as the traffic signal shifted to red.
He turned his head toward her, his eyes empty and glacial. "You won't be free of me in this lifetime."
"Sebastian Spencer, you bastard!"
The car jerked forward again, and Coralie's wounded foot struck against something, forcing a sharp breath from her lips.
She abandoned the argument, drawing her leg onto the seat and gingerly brushing her fingers over the swollen flesh.
Sebastian's eyes lingered briefly on her injury before he turned his attention away without a word.
At that moment, a notification lit up the phone beside him. It was from Lilliana.
"Seb, I skipped breakfast today, and there are too many patients. I'm still working, and I might not even get to eat lunch."
The message ended with a pitiful little bunny emoji.
The sight of that carefully crafted helplessness made Coralie's stomach churn with disgust.
Men truly were drawn to women who played fragile and calculating games.
Sebastian's slender fingers tapped the voice input, and when he spoke, his tone softened. "What would you like to eat? I'll bring it to you right away."
