Chapter 3Protect Him? Then Face Me

Before he could answer, I stormed in with my men and kicked over a cart laden with champagne glasses. The deafening crash shattered the romantic atmosphere.

Isla rushed over, her eyes widening when she saw me. Her expression instantly twisted into one of pure hatred.

“Elias! What do you want?” she screamed. “We’re even! I’ve run to the other side of the world, why can’t you just leave me alone?”

I just smiled and, in fluent English, informed the guests of her marital status.

The room erupted in gasps and whispers.

“She cheated on her husband?”

“This is the first time a scandal like this has happened at the manor. It’s a disgrace!”

Isla’s face turned a deep, blotchy red.

Julian stepped forward, his fists clenched. “Elias, this isn’t your territory. You’re a long way from home.” He glanced dismissively at the men behind me. “You brought this small crew to crash my party? I’ll give you three seconds to get out. Otherwise, I’ll make you lick every inch of this lawn clean.”

I looked at him, my eyes cold. The last person who spoke to me like that was six feet under.

I started towards him. Isla once again blocked my path, just as she had the first time we met. But this time, it wasn’t to beg for her life. It was to defy me.

“Elias, this is between us. It has nothing to do with Julian. I promised I would convince him to return what he took. If it’s about the money, I can pay you back a portion of it myself.”

“Do you really think I care about those things?” I said flatly. “Isla, your leg is injured. You can’t protect anyone today.”

Julian’s voice dripped with contempt from behind her. “Has it ever occurred to you, Elias, that when Isla begged you for help, it was only because she had no other choice? She and I had a promise. I told her I would come back and marry her in style as soon as I made a name for myself.”

I fiddled with the expensive watch on my wrist, silent for a moment. Then I ripped it off and hurled it at his face.

“Don’t you dare presume to know my motives,” I snarled.

He didn't react in time. He cried out as a line of blood and tears streamed from his eye. Isla’s lips tightened into a thin line, and she fell into a fighting stance. Every punch she threw was a vicious, whistling blur aimed at my head. My guards, trying to protect me, were taken down one by one.

Finally, one of her punches connected, slamming into my jaw. I staggered back, a tooth flying out in a spray of blood. An invisible hand squeezed my heart, sending waves of pain through my chest.

I looked at her—knuckles raw and bleeding, face smudged with dirt—and I smiled.

“Five minutes. It took you a full five minutes to land a single punch on me. Have you gotten slower, or has your heart gotten softer?”

I had run countless combat simulations with her. On average, it took her fifteen seconds to incapacitate a top-tier bodyguard. She had once boasted, “Elias, with me here, no one will ever touch a hair on your head.” Now, the force of her punch hadn't even been enough to knock me down.

“Isla, I told you. I gave you your life. You are no longer of any value to me. It’s time I considered taking it back.”