Arielle's POV
Looking back, I realize how foolish I was to be willing to give up my dreams of attending Harvard or Stanford, all for the chance to marry the man I loved and have what I thought would be the perfect result of that love.
Now, the gossip photo that was making the rounds online only showed a blurry side profile of me.
The only thing that stood out was my torn evening gown.
But as long as I didn't admit that Chester had been the one to rip it, who could really do anything to me?
Seeing how calm I was, Penelope started to hesitate.
"You really didn't do anything with my brother?"
I kept my cool, shaking my head. "Do you want something to have happened?"
Penelope's face twisted with anger. "Don't be disgusting! Then explain why you and my brother were in the same hotel? Why does he have all those red marks on his body? And why was your dress torn?"
Penelope might have had some brains, but not much.
I glanced at Chester, who was approaching in the distance, and shrugged nonchalantly.
"It was my birthday last night. Isn't it normal to drink too much and stay at a hotel? I got a little too excited about getting into Stanford and Harvard, went a little crazy, and cut up my own dress—totally normal, right?"
I paused, then added with a smirk, "As for why your brother was at that hotel too, you should ask him. How would I know what he's up to?"
"Plus, it's summer. Mosquitoes are everywhere. Getting a few bites isn't a big deal. Penelope, why do you always jump to the worst conclusions? Maybe you should lay off those trashy romance novels."
I shot a glance at Chester and smirked. "Don't you agree, hm?"
With his hands in his pockets, Chester stood looking dark and unreadable, his expression sharp, as if he were trying to determine whether I was serious or just playing with Penelope.
"Chester, is what she said true? Because those don't look like mosquito bites to me…"
Penelope jabbed her finger at the red marks on Chester's neck, trying to use them as proof that I'd laid a hand on him.
But Chester didn't flinch.
He simply pointed to the fresh handprint still visible on my cheek and asked, "You hit her?"
Penelope's face faltered. She could tell, even if she didn't want to admit it, that Chester had always favored me.
"I didn't want her to lose her sense of boundaries! She's the reason you're the center of all this gossip and ridicule right now! If she really slept with you and then ran off, what would become of our family? I was just giving her a little warning!"
Chester's face darkened, his voice cold as ice. "Penelope, where did all that noble upbringing of yours go? You're grounded for three days. No going out."
I couldn't help but roll my eyes.
Since I'd already decided to distance myself from the McKinsey family, there was no need to pander to Penelope anymore.
Knowing Chester would probably back me up on denying everything, I let out a bitter laugh.
"Penelope, do you really think your brother is someone I could just boss around? I didn't even have the means to do anything. And if something did happen, who knows who was really taking advantage of whom…"
To my surprise, Chester touched the bite mark on his neck and suddenly said, "You didn't?"
His cryptic tone made my eyebrows twitch.
I wasn't the one who drugged him, and I certainly wasn't the one who made the first move.
I was doing everything I could to distance myself from him, so why was he choosing to play along like this?
"Mr. McKinsey, you must be joking. Even if I had a hundred times more guts, I still wouldn't dare lay a finger on you."
Thinking back on everything that had happened in my past life—about our daughter, about him—I just wanted to get as far away from Chester as I could.
Penelope's eyes kept shifting between us, her suspicion growing.
"There's something weird going on with you two."
Chester and I both answered in unison, "Nothing is going on."
A flicker of surprise passed through Chester's eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly.
I limped away without another word, determined to leave this mess behind me.
But before I could get far, Chester grabbed my arm.
"We're going to the hospital," he stated, his tone leaving no room for refusal.
The sudden touch of his hand felt like a burn. I immediately pulled my arm back.
"Don't touch me!"
In front of a stunned Penelope, Chester grabbed me by the waist. I fought to get free, but he was too strong. I smacked him across the face, my anger rising.
But instead of getting angry, Chester actually laughed.
