Mira’s POV
Sure enough, when I got back to the apartment, Elias was still there.
His handsome face was still bruised from the beating Ryan had given him the day before.
Seeing me walk in alone, he assumed I’d finally come to my senses and returned to apologize.
But then Ryan followed me through the door.
I stepped inside and said coldly, “If you don’t leave my apartment right now, I’ll call Pack Enforcement again. And I can report you for drugging me yesterday, too. If you have any shame left, get out.”
Elias sneered.
“Drugging? What drug? Do you have any proof? Mira, you betrayed me, ran off with another man in the middle of the night, and now you’re blaming me?”
I couldn’t even be bothered to argue.
I had no desire to waste another ounce of emotion on someone like him.
I turned to Ryan.
“Ryan, please contact Pack Enforcement for me. I’ll pack some clothes and be out in a minute.”
I walked into my bedroom, pulled out a suitcase, and started packing clothes and essentials.
Elias followed me in, furious.
“What is this? Mira, you’re really going to live with that man? You slept with him? You slept with him last night, didn’t you?”
I gave a short, humorless laugh.
“You drugged me. You’re a doctor. You know exactly what that drug does. Is it really so strange that I ended up with another man? Wasn’t that exactly what you intended?”
Elias’s face went pale for an instant before flushing red.
He clenched his fists, his chest heaving.
“We were together for three years, and you wouldn’t even let me touch you! Why would you give yourself to another man so easily? How could you betray everything we had?”
I looked at his furious face and found the whole thing ironic.
In my last life, I’d been utterly devoted to him, and in return, I’d received nothing but coldness and contempt.
This time, I didn’t want him anymore, and he was the one scrambling to hold on.
Watching him lose control gave me a grim sense of satisfaction.
Then I thought of my last life—how he’d poisoned me, how he’d killed me and my child.
My eyes grew wet, but the warmth quickly turned to ice.
“Elias, compared to what you’ve done to me, what I’ve done doesn’t even amount to a tenth.”
He stared at me.
“What have I done? You were the one who chased after me. You were the one who said you loved me! The gifts, the money, the car, the watch—you insisted I take them! Mira, everything you gave me was your choice!”
I smiled, my eyes glistening with unshed tears, as though I were mourning the woman I’d once been.
He was right.
Everything I’d given him had been my choice.
I’d believed that if he accepted those things, he’d belong to me forever.
I’d fooled myself into thinking he was cold on the outside but warm underneath.
What I hadn’t understood was that some men were parasites.
They took everything you gave them as though they were entitled to it, draining you until there was nothing left.
And even after you’d given them everything, they still wouldn’t be grateful.
I nodded.
“Yes. Everything was my choice. But from this moment on, I’m not willing to give you anything anymore. Elias, you don’t deserve it.”
He laughed, enraged.
“You’re saying I’m not good enough for you? Mira, what do you have besides your family’s dirty money? Without me, you’ll never find a man with better qualifications than mine. Think about that.”
I’d finished packing.
Ryan came in from outside.
“Mira, I’ve contacted Pack Enforcement. They’re not here yet. What should we—”
I cut him off.
“Ryan, wait here for Enforcement. Make sure he’s removed and the door code is changed. I’m going to Cale’s place first.”
I was suddenly exhausted.
I didn’t want to waste another minute on anyone connected to Elias, so I left the mess to Ryan.
Elias tried to follow me, but Ryan blocked his path.
I dragged my suitcase into the elevator without looking back.
As the doors closed, I heard his phone ring in the corridor.
Probably his parents calling to demand money.
His low voice answered them.
I didn’t care anymore.
The villa’s doorbell rang twice before the door opened from inside.
Cale stood in the doorway, a flash of surprise crossing his handsome, impassive face before disappearing.
I stood on the step with my suitcase.
He frowned, his tone cold.
“I told you not to bother me anymore. Didn’t you hear me?”
His words were harsh, but I reminded myself that he was injured, that he’d saved me, and, more importantly, that he was supposedly struggling financially and had no one to care for him.
So I softened my tone and said gently, “Cale, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you until your wound heals.”
I set down my suitcase and headed for the kitchen to see what I could find for breakfast.
He stood in the living room, watching me move around, his expression somewhere between astonishment and bewilderment, as though he couldn’t make sense of what was happening.
There were tomatoes and fresh beef in the fridge.
I pulled them out and looked back at him.
“How about tomato and beef pasta for breakfast? Anything else you want?”
He cleared his throat and looked away.
“Whatever you want.”
His tone had lost its earlier edge.
I took it as a sign that he’d calmed down.
“That’s the spirit. When you’re injured, you need healthy, nutritious food. With me here, you won’t have to rely on takeout anymore.”
Caelan’s POV
I watched her disappear into the kitchen, still not entirely sure what had happened—but Ryan was definitely behind this.
I picked up my phone and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window.
The sound of chopping came from the kitchen, along with the low hum of the range hood.
I dialed Ryan’s number.
When he answered, I said three words: “Explain. Now.”
“Your Majesty, here’s what happened… I saw that Miss Mira was too embarrassed to stay, so I came up with a little white lie. I told her you’d gone bankrupt, that the villa was about to be auctioned, and that you couldn’t even afford a nurse. She softened right up and agreed to stay and look after you.”
My fingers tightened around the phone.
“So you want me to play a broke nobody now?
Ryan, do you have a death wish?”
”Hey, hey, don’t be mad.
It was obvious Miss Mira wanted to stay; she just needed an excuse to save face.
All you had to do was play along and give her one, and she would’ve stayed.”
I pinched the bridge of my aching nose and remained silent for a full five seconds.
Then I ground out through my teeth, “Then go find me a cheap apartment. Now.”
Ryan nearly choked.
“What?
You’re serious?”
”Did I sound like I was joking?”
He immediately swallowed his laughter.
“Understood. On it.”
After hanging up, I stood by the window for a moment.
The aroma of tomatoes and beef simmering together drifted from the kitchen, mixed with the clatter of a spatula against the pan.
I glanced back through the half-open kitchen door.
There was something strangely comforting about seeing her standing at the stove in an apron.
When she came out carrying two bowls of pasta, I was still standing by the window.
She set the bowls on the coffee table and gave me a look.
“What are you standing there for? Come eat. It’ll get cold.”
I sat down on the sofa.
The tomato-beef pasta had a rich sauce, the noodles perfectly cooked, thin slices of beef arranged on top and sprinkled with green onions.
It looked good, I’ll give her that.
I picked up my chopsticks but didn’t eat right away.
“You’re an heiress,” I said quietly.
“And yet you know how to cook and take care of someone. That’s impressive.”
She sat across from me, picked up her own chopsticks, and smiled self-deprecatingly.
“Yes. I learned to cook for Elias.”
When she said his name, her expression remained calm, as though she no longer cared.
Whether that was truly the case, I couldn’t tell.
I didn’t plan to ask.
I toyed with the noodles, my words coming out sharper than I intended.
“For a man like that, you went as far as learning how to take care of him.”
She looked up and glared at me, her eyes carrying a clear Who do you think you are?
defiance.
“If I hadn’t learned all this for him, you wouldn’t be enjoying the results today. Lucky for me I know how. Otherwise, a man who can’t even afford to hire a nurse would be stuck eating takeout forever.”