Chapter 314

“I’m helping him eat,” Eliza said, rising slowly. “He can’t sit up properly.”

“He has nurses for that,” Dallas said. “You are my wife. Not his servant.”

Anson smirked. “She’s paying her debts, Koch. Something you know all about.”

Dallas took two long, limping strides into the room. He grabbed Eliza’s arm. “I can write a check for the debt,” he said to Anson. “But I don’t pay with my wife.”

He pulled Eliza toward the door.

“Dallas, stop! You’re hurting me!” Eliza protested, trying to pry his fingers loose.

He didn’t stop until they were in the elevator. The doors slid shut, enclosing them in a steel box.

He spun her around and pinned her against the wall.

“He saved my life!” Eliza yelled.

“And I’m living for you!” Dallas roared back. “Why does his sacrifice count more? Why do you look at him like he’s a martyr and at me like I’m a jailer?”

He didn’t wait for an answer. He leaned in, his face inches from hers, his breath hot with fury. He saw the fight in her eyes, the defiance — and something in him broke. The plan to push her away, to use cruelty as a shield, solidified in his mind.

He didn’t kiss her.

Instead, he let go of her abruptly and stepped back. The heat in his eyes vanished, replaced by an arctic cold.

“This is a mistake,” he said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. “All of it.”

The elevator doors opened to the lobby. Dallas limped out without looking back, leaving Eliza standing alone, breathless and confused, the ghost of his rage still prickling her skin.

“Home,” Dallas said to Weston, who was waiting by the car. His voice was wrecked. “We’re going home.”

The penthouse was silent.

Dallas walked into the living room and threw his cane onto the sofa. He began to undo his tie, his movements jerky and angry.

When Eliza entered a few minutes later, her face was a storm of confusion and hurt.

“You are being unreasonable,” Eliza said, standing by the door.

“Unreasonable?” Dallas spun around. “He is manipulating you, Eliza! He is using that leg to guilt you into playing house with him!”

“He is alone!” Eliza argued. “His parents are useless. He needs someone.”

“He has a fiancée!” Dallas shouted. “Where is Cathey? Why isn’t she feeding him soup?”

“Because he doesn’t love her!” Eliza shouted back.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Dallas looked at her. His eyes went cold.

“Right,” he said softly. “He loves you. And you love being needed by him.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Eliza whispered.

“One hour,” Dallas said. “You can visit him for one hour a day. A professional nursing team will handle the rest. I’ve already arranged it.”

“You can’t control me,” Eliza said.

“Watch me,” Dallas said.

Eliza turned and walked into the guest bedroom. She slammed the door and locked it.