Chapter 4

Dylan Lowell had refused to call it a night, dragging them to another round of drinks.

By the time Nathan Evans was driven home, dawn was breaking in the east.

He stumbled into the shower, barely conscious, scrubbing off the alcohol.

At least Evelyn wouldn't complain about the smell.

That was his last coherent thought before passing out.

A sharp pain in his gut yanked him from sleep.

"Damn it..." He curled into a ball, sweat soaking his back.

"Ev—"

The name died on his lips.

Nathan's mouth twisted into a bitter smirk.

She'd grown a spine.

Fine. Let's see how long her defiance lasts.

Where were the meds?

Ten minutes of rummaging through the living room yielded nothing.

"Master Nathan, the medicine is in the walk-in closet," Mrs. Watson explained over the phone. "Miss Langley put it there. Said you'd need it after drinking..."

He hung up and found five neatly stacked boxes of antacids in the back of the drawer.

The pain eased after swallowing the pills.

As he shut the drawer, his body went rigid.

All her jewelry remained untouched. Only her identification documents were missing.

The pink suitcase in the corner had vanished too.

"Perfect... just perfect."

His knuckles whitened as he ground his teeth.

This is what happens when you spoil a woman.

The more you indulge them, the more they take liberties.

The front door clicked open downstairs. He took the steps three at a time.

"Bro?" Isabella Evans blinked at him. "Who else were you expecting?"

"What do you want?" Nathan slumped onto the couch, voice flat.

"Mom sent me to check on you." She breezed past him toward the kitchen. "And mooch some food."

Thirty seconds later, a shriek echoed from the kitchen.

"Where's Evelyn? She didn't cook today?"

Nathan's temple throbbed.

"I saw her at Mass General yesterday. She looked terrible..." Isabella muttered.

"Hospital?" Nathan shot upright.

"Yeah. Oh, by the way, Professor Roland approved my direct PhD admission!"

"Why was she there?"

"How should I know?" She rolled her eyes. "Her entire world revolves around you. What friends does she even have?"

"Are you done?"

"Two p.m. tomorrow. West End Bistro. Mom's latest setup." Isabella called while slipping on her shoes. "Don't forget!"

Nathan didn't bother watching her leave.

The family had been throwing eligible women at him for years. Just another obligatory date.

It's not like keeping Evelyn interfered with these charades.

By the time he cleared his backlog in the study, night had fallen.

When he'd stubbornly refused family money to start his business, only Evelyn had endured those three brutal years with him.

Now that his company thrived, his parents had softened, turning a blind eye to her presence.

His empty stomach forced him to abandon work.

"Babe, I'm in class..." Chloe Valentine whispered on the phone.

Nathan hung up.

Five minutes later, the doorbell rang.

"I got the address from Julian." Chloe batted her lashes. "You scared me when you hung up."

She bounced inside, glancing around.

"Can you make nourishing porridge?" Nathan asked abruptly.

"Huh? I can learn!"

......

After sending Chloe away, Nathan finally met Dylan.

At a red light, Isabella's words resurfaced. He opened his messages.

[You are no longer friends with this contact...]

The crimson notification burned his retinas.