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“Alright.”

She had no choice but to agree. What else could she do? Let him pester her all night long? Lynn Winslow rubbed her forehead, mentally exhausted.

The moment Ian Sterling heard her, he shot up, grabbed his phone, and started furiously tapping the screen.

Lynn Winslow asked, confused, “What are you doing?”

Ian Sterling said, “I’m texting my mom to get my household register ready.”

“…” A vein throbbed on Lynn Winslow’s forehead. She said wearily, “Do you know what time it is? Why are you texting your mom now? Can’t it wait?”

“No way. I’m afraid you’ll go back on your word.” The moment he finished speaking, Ian Sterling turned on his phone’s voice recorder, thrust it toward Lynn Winslow’s mouth, and said earnestly, “Say it. Say it again.”

“Say what again?” Lynn Winslow frowned.

“That you promise to marry me after the engagement! You’re not going to take it back already, are you?” Ian Sterling stared at her in disbelief. He went so far as to kneel on the bed, stretching his arm out, refusing to lower the phone until she said the words.

Lynn Winslow looked at him as if he were a child. She let out a breath and played along robotically, “After the engagement, I promise to marry Ian Sterling.”

Gleefully, Ian Sterling pulled his phone back. He carefully saved the recording and then made a backup. Lynn Winslow pushed him away and lay down, watching his antics with a sense of helplessness.

“Was that really necessary?”

“It was. You’re the one who’s always backing out of our deals.” Ian Sterling scoffed. Remembering the few promises Lynn had weaseled her way out of before, he felt it was better to be prepared.

He got up to take a shower while Lynn Winslow lay on her side under the covers, playing on her phone. When Ian Sterling returned, he was radiating a chilly coldness from the shower. Without a care for whether he’d freeze her, he pulled her straight into his arms. Hearing her shriek, he let out a mischievous laugh.

“You bastard! I knew you weren’t drunk,” Lynn Winslow said through gritted teeth.

But Ian Sterling just snuggled up against her winningly, grinning. “I really was drunk. I just sobered up.”

Lynn Winslow didn’t believe him for a second and flicked him on the forehead.

Ian Sterling whimpered, clutching his forehead, but he didn’t try to dodge. He hugged her waist and gave her a little shake, feigning injury.

After roughhousing for a bit, they fell silent. They both played on their phones for a while before Ian Sterling suddenly spoke up. “Are you nervous?”

“What’s there to be nervous about? It’s just an engagement. We go on stage for a bit, and then it’s all eating and drinking. What’s the big deal?”

Lynn Winslow really didn’t think it was a big deal. But Ian Sterling, on the other hand, was getting more nervous the closer the engagement came, his heart pounding in his chest. Hearing Lynn’s words, he fell silent for a moment before saying, “I’m really nervous. And I have this weird premonition, I don’t know where it’s coming from.”

Lynn Winslow had her back to him, but when she heard that, she turned to look at Ian Sterling.

He was lying flat on his back, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling in a daze. A wave of tenderness washed over Lynn Winslow. She put her phone aside, rested her hand on his chest, and began patting it gently, coaxing him. “It’s okay. Don’t be nervous. I’m right here.”

She had intended to lull Ian Sterling to sleep, but before he could drift off, she ended up lulling herself to sleep instead.

Ian Sterling was still enjoying her gentle pats when he noticed the movements getting fainter. He turned his head to look and realized she had closed her eyes long ago; her remaining motions were nothing more than reflex.

“Go to sleep, baby,” Ian Sterling said softly.

*

The engagement ceremony that Ian Sterling had been dreading was about to begin. He paced back and forth in his suit while Lynn Winslow leaned against a nearby table, holding a cup of hot water and watching his nervous state with amusement.

“I can’t take it anymore, baby. I’m going to the restroom.”

With that, Ian Sterling turned and ran off, leaving Lynn Winslow standing there, completely baffled. This was the third time he had run off to the restroom since they started waiting.

Not long after Ian Sterling left, someone called Lynn Winslow’s name from a short distance away.

She glanced over and saw, to her surprise, Esther Abbott, who had been out of sight for a long time. Lynn Winslow frowned but walked over anyway.

With bodyguards all around, Lynn wasn’t afraid she would try anything. ‘Besides, Esther Abbott can’t be stupid enough to risk everything just to cause a scene.’

“I don’t recall seeing your name on the guest list.”

Lynn Winslow was a little confused. She had asked Ian Sterling about Esther Abbott’s name being absent from the list, and his explanation was that Esther’s breakup with Zachary Quincy had been messy. Besides, since the Nigel Abbott household was attending, the Abbott family was already represented, so no offense was taken.

Esther Abbott smiled. “You’re right, I’m not on it. But I wanted to give you an engagement gift.”

Lynn Winslow instinctively took a wary step back and said coldly, “We’re not that close. You don’t need to give me any gifts.”

“Oh, but I must,” Esther Abbott said, a corner of her mouth twitching into a smirk. She lowered her voice. “Aren’t you curious who went after Mia Rhodes back then? Or who it was that helped push you and Ian Sterling back together?”

She enunciated every word. “I’ll tell you today.”

Lynn Winslow sensed something was wrong and turned to call for the bodyguards, but Esther Abbott was already prepared. Just as she was about to open her mouth, several people emerged from the shadows behind her, clamped a hand over her mouth, and dragged her to the underground parking garage on level B1.

The men were deft and swift, quickly tying Lynn Winslow’s hands and feet with thick rope and binding her to a chair.

Esther Abbott walked up slowly, pulled the cloth gag from Lynn Winslow’s mouth, and asked with a smile, “Just wait here. The person who’s coming to see the show should be here soon.”

Lynn Winslow stared at her silently, her mind racing. ‘If Esther Abbott just wanted to kidnap me, it would have been much easier to take me out of the hotel. Tying me up here is strange. When Ian Sterling gets back and can’t find me, he’ll come looking soon. As for this ‘person’ Esther mentioned… their identity will be revealed soon enough.’

When Lynn Winslow suddenly vanished, Ian Sterling nearly went insane with worry. Lynn’s bodyguards knelt on the floor, so overcome with guilt they looked ready to kill themselves.

“A bunch of useless bastards!”

Joel Winslow could no longer maintain his innocent, well-behaved facade. He kicked out at one of them and snarled, “You couldn’t even protect my sister! What’s the use of having you around?”

The bodyguards didn’t dare make a sound, much less say that Lynn Winslow had told them to take a break further away. Besides, it was true that they had let their guard down. After spending so long in Veridia without incident, they hadn’t thought twice when Lynn gave the order.

Ian Sterling could barely stand, his eyes already red-rimmed. He roared at all the security and bodyguards, “The surveillance footage! Go check the footage! Search every single room! Hurry!”

Lynn wouldn’t just leave suddenly. There had to be a reason. There absolutely had to be a reason…

The security footage was pulled up quickly. The moment Ian Sterling saw it, he broke into a run for the elevators. The car was on the first floor, and it would take time to come up. Unable to wait, Ian bolted for the stairwell.

The bodyguards, along with members of the Sterling and Winslow families, scrambled to follow him. Jasper Jennings was close to Ian Sterling and saw his legs give out, nearly sending him tumbling down the stairs. With quick reflexes, Jasper caught him.

“Don’t be scared, Finn. Since Esther Abbott did this, she won’t risk throwing her own side of the family away.”