“Yes, I asked to see you. I’m tired of playing these games. Aren’t you?”
Laurette spoke evenly. “What games would that be? I’ve been nothing but honest with you.”
“You know what the hell you’re doing! Why are you dressed like a maid!?”
“Because you’ve decided that for me to see my children I had to pretend to be the help.”
“I’m done with this. I’ve given you time to sulk. We both know how this is going to end.”
Her head tilted slightly. “I don’t think you do. I’ve been honest with you about everything. Unfortunately, you can’t say the same.” Her voice was tired, strained. “I just want out. I want out of this relationship and out of this house. I want to take my children back to my country.”
He scoffed at that idea. “That will never happen, and if you ever think about taking those girls, I promise, you’ll disappear just like that man in my office.”
Laurette wrapped her arms around her body. She couldn’t believe the words that spewed from his mouth. “Who are you?”
Chang’s voice lowered. “I’m the same man you fell in love with.”
For the first time, Laurette lost her cool when her eyes landed on his and flashed with anger. “No. That’s not true. You’re nothing like that man. You made me believe the fairytale only for me to wake up in a nightmare. You were never the man I fell in love with. You’re a murdering, lying bastard!”
“A nightmare?” Chang looked around in disbelief. “You live in the lap of luxury! How the hell are you living in a nightmare?”
“Not only do you keep me locked up like a prisoner—You. Kill. People! People die if they don’t follow your orders.”
Chang gritted his teeth. “You want to leave so bad? Then leave! You’re free to walk out of that door anytime you want, but Gina and Nina, they stay here. If they don’t get to know their mother, it will be your fault.”
The mention of her girls’ names made her chest ache. “You’re a monster, Chang. I can’t . . . I won’t allow myself to love a monster.”
Chang yanked Laurette by the back of her head to only inches away from his face. He could feel the warmth of her breath on his lips. Her closeness almost made him take her right then and there. He’d been walking around in a semi-state of hardness since the night she’d witnessed the messiness in his office. The last two weeks had been the hardest, and he planned to put an end to that tonight. “I’ve been a patient man, but my patience has run out. I want you in my bed waiting for me in the next hour.”
“You do not lack for someone to keep your bed warm. Still, you would force me?”
Chang placed angry lips over Laurette’s as his hands snaked down to grip her neck and hold her in place. He pressed his needy body into hers. Both her lips and body stiffened. Laurette put her hands in-between them and pushed against his chest. She refused to open for him. Her refusal only seemed to make Chang angrier. After a moment of not being able to get Laurette to acquiesce, he shoved her away from him.
“If you think treating me cold is going to keep me from being inside you tonight, you’d better think again. Now, get out and get ready.”
She was furious. Laurette straightened herself up and walked out of his office with as much dignity as she could muster. Yes, she was trapped in this house and his country, but she would figure something out. She would bide her time until the perfect opportunity came, then she would take Gina and Nina and leave.
As she left, Laurette almost knocked Jiang Lee-Xiou over when he meandered inside. He waited for her to be completely out of the room before speaking. “Son, I don’t think threatening and bullying is going to work with Laurette.”
Chang walked back around to his desk and sat down. “Stop eavesdropping in my house. You don’t need to worry about my love life.”
“A woman needs a soft hand, not a hard one. You can’t continue to use those girls against Laurette. It will only backfire on you. They need their mother.”
Chang never looked up from his desk. He picked up a document and began to read it. “That’s why she’s here.”
“As a maid. Not as their mother.”
He shrugged. “She chose her fate. She could have had everything. I would have given her anything her heart desired.”
“You weren’t honest with her about who you are and what you do. You can’t be angry that she doesn’t want any part of your other life.”
“What I do doesn’t affect her.”
“You can’t be serious. There are bars on the windows and security everywhere. You’ve turned Xiou Manor into a prison. You have enemies seen and unseen. It affects all of us.”
“If you don’t like it here father, you are free to leave just as she is.”
Jiang couldn’t seem to get through to Chang. When or how his son had changed so much was a mystery. Maybe he could appeal to his love for his daughters. “What are you going to do when Nina and Gina are old enough to go to school? You can’t keep them locked up here forever.”
“I still have a few years left before I have to deal with it. When the time comes, I will make sure
