Chapter 154: I Didn’t Agree

Sophie Wexler stood in the house completely dazed, her brain unable to even process what was happening.

The room was just as she’d left it. Nothing had changed.

No, that wasn’t right. It wasn’t that *nothing* had changed.

Sophie Wexler stared at the extra quilt and pillow on the large bed, her eyes filled with confusion.

She watched the man in front of her place his things around the room, one by one. The closet, which had previously held only her clothes, was now being filled with a man’s attire—and the pile was growing.

Then, she watched as Cillian Forrest took off his shirt right in front of her.

"Ah!" Sophie Wexler’s short-circuited brain instantly rebooted. "Cillian Forrest! What are you doing?!"

Her eyes snapped shut, and she covered her face completely with both hands.

"I’m telling you, forcing a Healer-class is against the law!"

"We agreed to just be a married couple by contract!"

"Don’t do anything rash!"

"I... I... I already came back with you! You! You! You..."

Sophie Wexler’s voice stuttered. Her brain had stopped working, and she blurted out whatever came to mind without thinking.

With her eyes covered, she couldn’t see anything, which made her hearing all the more acute.

The sounds around her seemed to be magnified. The rustle of clothing reached her ears bit by bit, and Sophie Wexler’s heart began to THUMP THUMP THUMP.

After a long moment, a soft chuckle echoed in the room.

A hand reached out and grasped her wrist. Sophie Wexler pressed her lips together tightly.

Cillian Forrest pulled her hands away.

He saw that the girl’s eyes were still squeezed shut, without even the slightest crack.

"Open them."

The man’s voice sounded in the room.

Sophie Wexler shook her head frantically, her refusal resolute. "I won’t!"

"Cillian Forrest, you have no decency!" Sophie Wexler’s accusatory voice reached Cillian’s ears.

"Open your eyes."

"I don’t want to!" Sophie Wexler continued to shake her head.

’Cillian Forrest has lost his mind, completely lost it! He’s even resorted to seduction! He was never like this before!’

"Are you going to open them yourself, or should I help you?"

The man’s tone was level, as if it were the simplest of questions.

Sophie Wexler: "..."

’Seriously? He’s resorting to force now?!’

The room fell utterly silent, leaving only the sound of their breathing.

Sophie Wexler’s fingers, still held by him, clenched into a fist. A fierce internal battle was raging in her mind.

Finally, she sighed internally.

’This guy always does what he says. He really would force my eyes open.’

’Whatever. It’s just a naked body. It’s not like I haven’t seen one before.’

’Better to open them myself than let him do it.’

’With a body that good, it’s not like I’m the one losing out by looking!’

’Right, no loss for me!’

Having come to this conclusion, Sophie Wexler stealthily opened her eyes a tiny crack.

Sophie Wexler: "Huh???"

The next second, her eyes flew wide open.

"You’re wearing clothes?"

The man in front of her had, at some point, changed into a set of pajamas. The fabric was soft and smooth, draping over his frame.

The top button was undone, revealing a patch of skin marked with scars. Only a few were visible; the rest trailed down and disappeared under his clothes.

And that neck ring was still there, stark against his neck, adding a raw, forbidden quality to his appearance.

"You seem disappointed by what you see," the man said, raising an eyebrow.

Sophie Wexler snapped back to reality. "I am not!"

"Don’t talk nonsense!" Her gaze was incredibly earnest, as resolute as someone pledging an oath, terrified that Cillian Forrest wouldn’t believe her.

"Then why did you have such a big reaction?"

"I did not have a big reaction," Sophie Wexler retorted stiffly. "It was you who started stripping without a word."

Her voice trailed off, growing smaller and smaller. "Besides, I just... wasn’t mentally prepared."

Cillian Forrest watched her ramble without a word, then he pulled back the covers and got into bed.

Sophie Wexler was instantly stunned. "!!!"

Her pupils dilated. "What are you doing?"

Cillian Forrest paused his movements and looked up. "It’s obvious."

"Going to bed," he said with a completely frank expression.

Sophie Wexler: "..."

’Of course I know you’re going to bed, I’m not blind.’

’But why are you getting into *this* bed? When the quilt was brought in, my mind was a mess, but I had a vague feeling...’

’And now that feeling has been confirmed!’

"Am I not allowed to sleep?" Cillian Forrest stared at her, asking word by word.

Sophie Wexler gave a couple of nervous laughs. "Of course you can. This is your room, so of course you can sleep here."

"Um, I’ll get out of your way. I’ll go to the guest room."

With that, Sophie Wexler immediately reached for her things.

But with a tug, she found she couldn’t move them.

Sophie Wexler: "Huh??"

’What’s the meaning of this?’

"You’re sleeping here, too," Cillian Forrest said nonchalantly, his fingers pinching a corner of her quilt.

As his words fell, the room was silent for a few seconds. Sophie Wexler bit her lip, her heart pounding incredibly fast.

She swallowed, then looked up at Cillian Forrest. After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke. "Cillian."

"Hm?" Cillian Forrest looked at her, ready to listen.

"We... we’re just partners by contract. We’re supposed to separate eventually."

When they signed the marriage contract, they’d agreed that if either of them fell in love with someone else, they would end things peacefully and dissolve the marriage.

"I never agreed."

Cillian Forrest looked into Sophie Wexler’s eyes, his gaze dark, and said word by word, "I never agreed, Sophie Wexler."

From the moment he signed the marriage contract, he had never considered dissolving it.

And he had never thought of letting her go.

"In Cillian Forrest’s world, dissolving the marriage is not an option."

"I was planning to let you adapt slowly, to let you gradually realize my feelings," he said. "But now, it seems that’s not necessary."

She had already run away; there was no more time for adapting.

This time, Cillian Forrest had no intention of letting Sophie Wexler run away again.

"We are partners. Living together, sleeping in the same bed, doing the most intimate things—these are all perfectly normal."

Sophie Wexler lowered her gaze, unable to meet Cillian Forrest’s eyes for a moment. "I..."

It wasn’t that she hadn’t noticed Cillian’s feelings for her before; she had just forced herself to ignore them every time.

Especially after learning Cillian Forrest’s true identity. Even though she knew he wouldn’t hurt her, she still had her reservations. That identity made her hesitate, which was why she was never willing to bring it out into the open.

But she never expected Cillian to shatter that wall completely, laying everything bare before her.

He was forcing her to face it, leaving her no room to escape.

"The guest room is already being used for storage. You can only sleep here."

"Are you going to get in by yourself, or do you need my help?"