Chapter 7

Bryan pulled Valine inside. The apartment was big enough for one person, with one room, a kitchen, and a living room. Clothes messily hang everywhere with bags of chips and packs of cigarettes strewn on the floor. The place had a strong smell of alcohol and smoke while the sink was full of opened cups of noodles and bottles of alcohol.

Sally laughed awkwardly, picking up some of the scattered dirty clothes and trash. "Excuse my place. I forgot to clean"

"When will you stop living like this, Sally?" Bryan asked coldly.

"Until I want, Bryan" Sally snapped, glaring at him.

"Sally, you have a daughter—"

"And? I told you a hundred times over, I don't want a child! But you insisted on me being with Brielle and I did, right? So stop asking me too much!"

Silence passed with Bryan and Sally glaring at each other. Valine shifted her foot awkwardly but she accidentally stepped on a plastic bag of chips. With her werewolf hearing, the sound was too loud. She quietly implored that they didn't hear it yet when Sally took a gander at her, she realized it was the opposite.

"Sorry," Valine said apologetically.

Sally took a deep breath and shook her head. "No, I am the one who's sorry for our behavior" she began to stroll towards the room. "You said, you need a pair of clothes, right? My name is Sally, by the way."

"I am Va—"

"Her name was Valerie," Bryan quickly replied, without looking at Valine, and pulled her to where Sally was heading.

Valine frowned but she didn't correct him. Thinking about it, it may be safer to use a different name.

"She needed a pair of clothes that were not revealing. A hoodie jacket was better", Bryan continued, wanting to leave the place of his ex-girlfriend. They were still casual with each other because they had a daughter together, but for the past years, Sally had not behaved as a mother should.

Valine discreetly let Bryan drag her, not having the confidence to talk when she was basically the outsider to them. As she strolled behind him, she out of nowhere felt something penetrate the underside of her left foot where the cut brought about by her running was. She halted on her steps and hissed, having an idea what she had been stepping into.

Bryan halted abruptly too, confronting Valine. His eyes zeroed on her foot. "Is something wrong?"

Valine lifted her foot just to find a piece of broken glass punctured on her foot and blood was gushing out from it. She bent down a little and carelessly pulled out the glass. A whimper came from her.

Bryan was surprised by what Valine did. It was the first time he saw a woman boldly pulling out the glass on her skin. He got down on one knee and briskly snatched her foot, causing Valine to grab his shoulder for support.

"Can't you even clean your room, Sally? Seriously, a glass? I always told you that it could hurt you or someone else", Bryan chastened, shaking his head while taking out his black handkerchief from his jacket and gently tying it around the wound.

Sally's face morphed into bafflement. She couldn't believe that Bryan was scolding her just for a woman that she presumed was a new fling of his, because she knew every woman Bryan hooked up with and the woman in her apartment was a new face. Instead of saying a good comeback, she vanished making her room and rummaged in her drawers, intentionally pulling out her old jeans and ugly hoodie jacket. There were some holes in the jacket but she didn't care anymore.

"Here, now leave my apartment" Sally muttered nastily, throwing the clothes to Valine and pointing to the door of her apartment.

Bryan stood up, facing Sally. "What the hell is your problem, Sally?!"

"You! You came in here bringing some slut and you will begin to question me about my place because that whore just got hurt!" Sally hollered furiously. Her eyes shot daggers toward Valine.

Bryan chuckled darkly "Can you even think for a moment, Sally? She was what? The tenth person that got hurt because of this fragment of glass at your place and just the other day was our daughter!"

Valine concealed her shock from Sally's choice of words and the fact that they had a daughter. It might be the name they mentioned earlier—Brielle.

"Brielle didn't... " Sally turned away, feeling humiliated. She was at fault for that accusation because she did bring her daughter into her apartment when Bryan strictly instructed her not to. Her daughter accidentally had a cut because of the shard of a glass of alcohol she threw on the floor an evening or two ago. "Just leave, Bryan"

"I don't know why I waited and hoped for you to change because, clearly, you have no will for that'' Bryan pulled Valine towards the door, slamming the door shut.

Valine bit her lower lip as she stepped her wounded foot onto the floor and let herself be dragged again, not wanting to make any more scene than she had already brought. She was stubborn, yes, but there were moments like this when she felt that she was invading people's lives and that she chose to be quiet. It was quite funny because, in her work, she invades people's lives, destroying them even though, outside of her work, she feels guilty doing it.

She despises herself for doing it.

When they finally get in the elevator, Bryan, still ignorant about the state of Valine, takes out his phone and sees a text from his assistant that she was already there, at the back of the building. His assistant had told him earlier that she had some personal business nearby.

Putting his phone back in his pocket, he turned to his right, finding Valine staring at the buttons anxiously. Her hands firmly held the handrail for support. His gaze lowered on her foot not without seeing and subliminally appreciating the long, fair legs that her dress couldn't cover. He gulped and made a sound as if to speak, zeroing in on her foot and to the floor. There were traces of blood on the platform of the elevator.

"Shit, sorry," Bryan said, procuring an inquisitive look from Valine.

"Sorry for what?"

"I just dragged you when your feet were wounded. Is it okay if I carry you?" Bryan asked instead. He couldn't bear watching her walk limper than she already was.

Valine was too stunned and drained to quickly register his blunt question till the ringing sound of the elevator rented the confined place. It was too late for her to reply as Bryan put his arm on her back and bent down a little to put his other arm on her thighs, then started walking out. She instinctively hooked her arm around his neck.

A part of her wanted to protest but the relieving pressure on her foot and body, because she moved less now, was too much to ignore. Honestly, she was so close to collapsing from the pain in her body. So, she let the man carry her, putting her trust in him. In the corner of her eyes, she saw that they were taking an unexpected foyer in comparison to the one they entered before. Understanding that perhaps they would utilize the back door of the building, she waited for them to step outside. Her body was urging her to rest. Her eyelids felt heavy.

With one hand, Bryan opens the backdoor. The bright sunlight greeted them. He immediately recognized the black car parked on the corner. His assistant, dressed in a fitted pencil skirt and a white blouse, was running towards them.

"Who is she—"

Bryan didn't allow his colleague to pose any questions and cocked his head to open the door. His assistant quickly did what he asked. He carefully put down Valine and asked her to change. He cannot risk someone seeing Valine looking to be beaten and wearing a robe when he brings her to his penthouse later. The appearance of the woman was enough to gather unwanted attention.

"Change first inside the car, don't worry, it was tinted. We will stay here outside."

Valine got inside the car. She made a valiant effort to eliminate her dress and wear the pants and hoodie jacket that was too tight for her. Every movement brought tears to her eyes. When she was done, she feebly thumped on the window, signaling that she was done.

"Who is she, Mr. Smith?" Paula addressed him once more, not being able to stand the curiosity anymore.

Bryan strolled to the opposite side of the door. "Just someone."

Paula, knowing that if her boss didn't directly answer, it meant she needed to drop the subject at once, went to the driver's seat and started the engine.

"Where to, Mr. Smith?"

"To the Penthouse"

As the car started to move, Valine sighed and gave in to the heaviness of her eyelids that was demanding her to sleep. Wanting nothing but to escape the stabbing pain all over her body, she let the smooth drive lull her to sleep.

Bryan carefully put the hood over Valine's head to cover her lovely hair and scoot closer. He guides her head on his shoulder so she feels comfortable throughout the ride. After 20 minutes, Bryan finally gets annoyed at the constant peeking in the rearview mirror of his assistant.

"What is it, Paula?"

"Why was she like that? I mean, shouldn't we go to the police station instead of your penthouse?"

"It's her story to tell Paula and we need to treat her first, above anything else. Did you call Doctor Sullivan?"

Paula nodded "Yes, he was on his way to the penthouse as per your instructions". She suddenly remembered something important. According to his boss, he didn't get to talk to the CEO of one of the largest companies in the world last night.

"Oh right, Mr. Smith. Do I need to set an appointment with Mr. Creighton today or not?"

"Maybe some other day. My friend told me that the man appeared late at night and only talked to some people. I swear, that man was hard to meet", Bryan said frustratedly.

It would be great for Bryan and his company if Mr. Creighton invests with them. He can plainly recollect how his dad was anxious to meet the man behind the huge organization, yet it just acknowledged only meticulously selected invitations and calls. And their company had never been selected.

After one hour, they finally reached the building where his penthouse was located. Bryan engrossed himself in reading emails and trying his best to avoid the beauty leaning on his shoulder the whole ride while Paula was too focused on the road.

Paula maneuvered the car right at the main entrance of the building and quickly got out to open the door for her boss. Bryan carefully shifted his body so he could carry Valine, cautious not to awaken her. He stepped outside the car with her securely in his arms. Her head was leaned on his chest for support.

As Bryan entered the building, eyes landed on him. There were a fair number of people in the lobby. But he overlooked their inquisitive gazes and went directly to the lift. Luckily, Valine was covered from head to toe. As he waited for his floor, a couple entered. He stood unfeeling as he looked straight ahead, yet the extreme gaze of the lady was most likely difficult to overlook. Sighing irritatedly, he turned to face the woman, who did not know that staring was rude.

"Excuse me, is there a problem?" Bryan asked, annoyed.

The woman just shrugged, rather than feeling humiliated, she even turned her body to confront Bryan straightforwardly. Her long fingers pointed to Valine. Her date keeps on looking at the reflection of the woman through the panel of the elevator and it irritates her.

"Who is she?"

Bryan raised a brow. The corner of his lips twitched as he finally realized that the date of the woman was taking a glance at the beauty in his arms. "My wife"

The woman smiled and was relieved. "Really? Why was she like that? She must be pregnant for you to carry her all the way here"

Bryan smirked, knowing what the woman was trying to do. Her comment was more directed towards her date than towards him. With a shake of his head, he got out of the elevator as it slid open to his floor. Subsequent to punching the code into his lock, he entered his home. Very much like he expected, he was welcomed by the lively voice of his little girl. A young girl with dull light hair like him came running towards him with a big smile on her face.

"Daddy!" the girl exclaimed to her nanny just behind her back.

"Shush" Bryan softly said to his daughter, who nodded for an instant, eyes glancing at Valine.

He took Valine to one of their guest rooms and gently placed her on the mattress. A grimace passed into her face as she shifted on the bed.

Soon after, a middle-aged man entered with a medical bag and began treating Valine.