The Stand-In Girl He Couldn’t Keep Chapter 03
I froze, my heart hurting as if a sharp blade had viciously pierced right through it.
But Steven’s torment of me was far from over.
Using Mom’s life as leverage, he issued a chilling threat. “Ellie, be a good girl. Let’s pretend none of this ever happened.
“You wouldn’t want me to cut off your mother’s specific medicine, would you?”
Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine he would one day turn his blade on me.
His utter coldness struck a wave of terror through me, and my body instinctively shrank back from him.
He noticed the shift in my emotions and lifted a strand of my hair with his fingers.
His touch remained agonizingly tender, yet his words continued to force my submission. “What are you so afraid of? As long as you listen to me and behave, I will never hurt you.”
With that, he turned and walked out.
I sat dazed on the hospital bed, feeling like a soulless puppet.
I couldn’t fathom why Steven had suddenly become so utterly heartless toward me.
For the past two years, he had always been attentive and patient with me.
He had been so incredibly good to me—how could someone change so completely, overnight?
Helpless, I curled my legs up, buried my face into my knees, and wept silently.
Suddenly, Sophia’s voice drifted in from the suite’s living room. “Steve, I hate Eleanor. Can you break up with her?”
Steven’s tone was entirely nonchalant: “Who told you she and I were dating? She’s just a bed partner.”
“Then you can’t meet her anymore, and you definitely can’t sleep with her again!” Sophia huffed, full of childish pique.
“Sophie, stop throwing a tantrum,” Steven said with a sigh. “I’m a normal man pushing thirty. I have normal needs.”
Unbuttoning her clothes, Sophia eagerly offered herself up. “I can take care of those needs for you!”
Steven caught her, putting a stop to it. “Sophie, don’t do this.”
“You think I’m not good enough?” Sophia began to sob. “I know I’m not as sexy or beautiful as Eleanor, and I don’t know how to do… those things to please you.
“Steve, whatever position you like, I can…”
Steven cut her off: “Sophie, you don’t need to be like Eleanor.
“She has to use her body to please me, but you don’t.
“Even if you do absolutely nothing, I will still treat you well.”
Sophia sounded utterly dejected. “But I love you, and I want to be your woman.”
Steven let out a fond, indulgent chuckle. “Be good. You’re only nineteen, and you haven’t seen enough of the world yet. You can’t tell if what you feel for me is love or dependence. I don’t want you to regret this later.
“When you turn twenty-two, if you still love me, then I promise I’ll be your boyfriend.”
Hearing that, Sophia finally gave in. “Then you can never bring Eleanor back to your place again. She doesn’t deserve to be here!”