Megan Kane had already spent ten minutes on the way back completely giving up. It was impossible.
Since it was impossible, she couldn't be bothered to rush. It would just be a waste of time.
Besides, rushing would just leave her physically and mentally exhausted.
"You're a full thirty minutes late. Did you just let my words go in one ear and out the other?"
"Or do you really think there's nothing I can do to you?"
Jason Forrester wore a grim smile. Megan Kane could only force a strained smile of her own as she sat on his lap.
"President Forrester, I know I was wrong. I was just out buying you a gift. Look, it's all menswear I bought for you. They'll fit you perfectly."
Megan's main strategy was to live if she could, and if she couldn't, she'd find a way to live anyway.
After all, she'd had the good fortune to transmigrate into a novel. Who would want to die such a meaningless death?
She hadn't even had a chance to enjoy a life of luxury yet. So what if her husband was a little possessive? It wasn't like it couldn't be handled.
She, Megan Kane, had plenty of ways to handle a possessive man!
"Weren't you enjoying calling me 'darling' just now? Call me that."
Jason Forrester arched an eyebrow, his gaze fixed on Megan, who was squirming restlessly in his arms.
Megan wanted to escape but couldn't. She wanted to close her eyes and pretend it was all a hallucination.
But the hallucination was happening right in front of her.
"Darling!" Megan could only suppress the nausea rising in her gut. As for her best friend, she still hadn't returned.
'Sure enough, no matter how close you are, a best friend is only there for the good times, not the bad.'
"That didn't sound as heartfelt as before. Do it again!"
A grim smile on his face, Jason Forrester dangled the dog chain in his hand.
Then, without another word, he hoisted her onto his shoulder and threw her onto the sofa.
"Tonight, we're going to have some real fun."
Jason Forrester's face was plastered with a psychotic grin.
Megan crawled on the floor, trying to run, but he grabbed her by the ankle and brutally dragged her back.
"Darling, you're an absolute beast... Ah, it hurts!"
"It hurts? You'll bear it for me. If you can't, there will be worse pain to come."
Jason Forrester ripped the clothes from their bodies.
What happened next could only be described as a bone-deep, unforgettable pain.
Megan leaned against the sofa, a lifeless expression on her face.
Over the course of the afternoon, she had been moved from the sofa to the kitchen, then to the balcony, and pinned against the window. It was safe to say she was constantly on the move.
Jason Forrester leaned against a cabinet, smoking a cigarette. He looked effortlessly cool as he exhaled plumes of smoke.
"You're just too weak!"
He wasn't even close to satisfied, but the woman before him looked like she was on the verge of death. There was no way to continue.
Megan slowly and deliberately mouthed a single word: "Beast!"
She thought that no matter what, there was no way the man in front of her could read her lips.
But Jason Forrester's eyes instantly darkened. He walked over and seized her by the chin.
"You got the guts? Try saying it out loud."
"Do you think I'm blind? That I can't see?"
Although Jason Forrester hadn't heard her say anything, he could easily guess what she'd mouthed.
"I was complimenting you on how handsome you are. They say compliments lose their magic if you say them out loud, so I just mouthed it."
"Y-You... let me go! You're going to make my chin swell."
Megan tried to struggle free, but her entire body was limp as water; she had no strength left.
"Complimenting my looks, huh? Let me tell you, I used to study lip-reading. 'Beast.' A lovely compliment."
A smile on his face, Jason Forrester dragged her toward the basement.
Megan slammed her hands against the floor, wanting to scream for help.
"Darling, I was talking about myself! I was wrong!"
Jason Forrester didn't give her a chance to speak.
Megan lost all track of how many days and nights passed. All she knew was that she was tormented in the basement for a long, long time.
Her stomach was growling with hunger, and there wasn't a single patch of unbroken skin on her body.
Everything was covered in purple bruises and marks of all sizes.
Jason Forrester walked slowly toward her, carrying a bowl of warm congee.
"Drink the congee. Otherwise, I'll feed it to you mouth-to-mouth."
Megan forced a faint smile and downed the congee in one go.
"Do you find me that disgusting?" Jason's expression changed in an instant. Megan burst into tears. 'Fuck, this guy is seriously sick.'
'Not only is his brain broken, his entire way of thinking is twisted.'
'It seems like no matter what I do, he can twist it into something bad about me.'
"Darling, I love you. I was just worried I wouldn't have the strength to serve you, so I drank it a little quickly. Please don't overthink it."
In the end, Megan paid the price for those words.
That very night, she was forcibly taken away by an ambulance.
Jason Forrester stayed by her side, a worried look on his face, looking for all the world like a good husband.
When Megan got to the hospital, she had no idea how many stitches she ended up with. All she knew was that she was beyond tears and didn't want to speak.
"You young people need some self-control. You can't be so wild all the time."
"This is too damaging to the body. You have to be considerate in everything you do."
The doctor stood beside them, pen in hand, lecturing nonstop.
It went in one ear and out the other for Jason Forrester. He completely ignored the doctor standing in front of him, his eyes fixed solely on Megan.
"At this rate, when can she get pregnant?"
The words Jason Forrester spoke utterly dumbfounded the doctor, who had been about to leave. 'Are these two even on the same wavelength?'
"This isn't about getting pregnant or not! Her body will be completely ruined. Do you understand?"
The doctor thought the man in front of him had to be sick in the head.
"I don't care if her body gets ruined. You will find a way to fix it. Otherwise, this hospital can close down."
"You can get ready to be unemployed!"
There was no room for negotiation in Jason Forrester's words. He turned and strode away, leaving all the doctors standing there, utterly bewildered.
They had no idea why they were suddenly about to lose their jobs for no reason.
"Who the hell is he? How can he be so arrogant? Telling us her body isn't allowed to be ruined."
"We're doctors, not angels."
"I feel like even The Nether King in hell isn't as domineering as him."
The doctors all chattered amongst themselves, and in the end, seeing no other choice, they decided to have Megan Kane stay in the hospital to recuperate.
With so many people coming and going, he probably wouldn't be shameless enough to try anything.
This way, the patient would be safe, and they could avoid him actually shutting down their hospital.
None of them wanted to be suddenly unemployed for no reason, even though they all privately thought the man was sick.
But there was nothing to be done. He was sick, and he was rich. Therefore, whatever he said was right.
No matter how complicated things got, nothing could stand up to the fact that he had money.