Victor pulled out a gift box tied with a delicate ribbon.
“Abby picked out a dress for you. Try it on, see if it fits.”
The dress was a low-cut, backless gown with a slit running all the way up to my thigh. It didn’t look like an evening dress. It looked more like… lingerie.
Victor’s fingers brushed behind my ear as he expertly started undoing my clothes.
I shoved his hand away in disgust. “Victor, my private photos and videos are being sold like crazy and you still call this a prank? Tell me, are you humiliating me, or are you humiliating yourself?”
His expression didn’t change, but in my mind, I could still hear the conversation I had overheard at the club.
“Mr. Whytton, those private photos came from you. How do you plan on explaining that to Faith?”
Before Victor could respond, Abigail’s sweet, teasing voice came through the speakerphone.
“Explain? Why would anyone need to have explanation for Faith? It’s not like anyone forced her to pose like that!”
“Even if we take the most generous view of this—look at what she did to me! I sent her flowers out of kindness and she turned around and manipulated her fans on me! My personal photos are everywhere, yet people have to pay to see hers. If anything, she should be grateful that my brother showed her mercy!”
“Come on, big bro, stop wasting your breath. Just say it was all a prank! That way, you’ll look forgiving, like you’re standing by her no matter what and I get to teach her a lesson. Two birds, one stone!”
His words were like ice picks, laced with barbs, stabbing straight into my eardrums. They shattered every last bit of reason left in me.
Before the performance, Abigail had played the role of a devoted fan, handing me flowers while I signed an autograph. In that moment, she discreetly cut my safety harness.
What she didn’t know was that one of my most loyal fans in the front row had set up a camera in advance. Every single one of her little tricks had been caught on tape.
After I completed my performance, my fans leaked Abigail’s public information online.
She was young and I had survived without injury. So, I asked my fans to stop the harassment. All I wanted was a simple apology from her. That was it.
Standing outside the private room, I still foolishly hoped that Victor would say something in my defense—that he would put an end to this ridiculous farce.
Instead, Victor agreed to everything Abigail wanted, smiling at her with indulgent affection.
“Abby, consider it done.” Warmth was devoid from his voice.
His brows were tightly furrowed, irritation written all over his face as he yanked my clothes off with force.
“Faith, you have no right to make a scene.”
He shoved the dress over my body, rough and impatient.
“Abby didn’t even get a chance to rest after her flight—she went straight to watch your performance. And you repaid her by pushing her to the brink over something so trivial? Don’t you feel even a little guilty?”
So that was it? To him, my life had been nothing more than a trivial matter.
After seeing the bruises over my body, Victor finally softened his tone.
"I'm your fiancé, but I'm also Abby’s brother—I have to protect both of you. As her sister-in-law, can you not hold grudges against a younger girl?" With that, he dragged me to the Whytton estate.
Victor's mother barely spared me a glance before covering her mouth and nose in disgust. His father ignored my outstretched hand, turning instead to scold Victor.
"That trashy mystery box even ended up in the hands of the servants. Can you stop bringing garbage into this house?"
They stood there like the sun—radiant, untouchable—looking down on me like I was nothing more than a rat crawling through the gutters, afraid I might stain their light.
One of the rich heirs blew a smoke ring in my face and let out a loud, mocking laugh.
"Damn, Sis! You’re dressed pretty bold tonight. Never been with a dancer before—Mr. Whytton, you sure are lucky!" Someone else chimed in with a smirk.
"She might be fun, but only after the boss is done with her!" The first guy shrugged. "Relax, I wouldn’t dare. I’m just jealous, that’s all. I’ve seen plenty of flirty women before, but I’ve never seen one this wild!"
Victor ran his hand along my stiffened back, murmuring in a low voice, "They’re just spoiled brats who don’t know proper manners."
He added, "Don’t take it to heart, okay?"
