Chapter 009 - The Next Morning

***** 

 Inside a quiet, peaceful, and rough bedroom that has the appearance of a war aftermath, a sudden vibration sounded and the next second, two bloodshot eyes snapped open. 

 Very lazy to the peak and still sleepy, Grace, not seeing her present appearance twitched, wanting to pick up the phone ringing.

 Just then, she felt a warm body against her skin, scaring her badly. She jumped back and stared with full alert, preparing to engage in case someone had intruded on her bedroom. 

 The following second, however, she saw probably the most handsome body she'd seen in her life. 

 Although the body was lean, it was well-built with no excess muscles or fat. Just as she liked it.

 Though her heart skipped a bit at the sight of this body, Grace was able to ignore it, instead, her gaze slowly turned cold in an instant and she was about to yell when; everything that happened the previous night came crashing into her brain. 

 Her face paled the next second and she appeared to have done the most unforgivable thing of all time. 

 "How could I?" She mumbled dumbly before eventually sighing deeply. 

 The next moment, it was as though she wasn't the one filled with deep regret just a moment ago—Her entire being turned emotionlessly cold in an instant. 

 She then glanced emotionlessly at the handsome man sleeping beside her for a moment before slowly picking up her cell phone and holding it to her ear. 

 "Where have you been, boss? Your grandfather, cousins, and uncles had long been waiting for you in the conference room." 

 "This…" The emotionless look on Grace's face changed significantly and she panicked for a moment, having forgotten the important meeting she had that morning. 

 "What time is it?" she thought to herself before quickly checking and upon realizing that it was already after nine in the morning, she felt like smacking herself on the face, wondering how she could have forgotten such an important meeting.

 She took a deep breath before returning the phone to her ear. 

 "I will get be there shortly, keep them busy for me," she said before hanging up the cell phone, not waiting to hear what the secretary was going to say.

 Without hesitation, Grace crawled out of the bed and then gave Xavier an icy cold glare.

 She felt like strangling the peacefully sleeping Harvey to death but then forced herself to breathe in again after which she bent over, wanting to pick up her scattered clothes. 

 Just as she made this single movement, however, it felt as though a blade had sliced through her legs, causing her to wince in pain and break out in a sweat.

 Instantly understanding the cause behind this pain, she sent an even more hateful glare toward the still-sound-asleep Xavier, the urge to strangle him to death returning with a stronger force. 

 Grace gritted her teeth hysterically against each other. 'I should get out of here before I commit a murder!' she thought before managing to finally pick up her dresses and quickly wearing them. 

 Once done, she picked up her bag and walked out of the room without hesitation. 

 ****

 The bedroom returned to its tranquil state after she was gone and this lasted for thirty more minutes until Xavier, who had been sleeping soundly twitched. 

 The next moment, his eyes snapped open, and he let out a lazy yawn, following which he tilted his head to the side, producing a loud crack, and then sluggishly sat up.

 Just then, he saw the sun streaming through the window, and he was greatly taken aback, the look of laziness in his eyes vanishing.

 "Did I just sleep till the sun fully rose?" He muttered with disbelief while feeling as though he was dreaming, as he couldn't remember the last time he had slept for more than four hours. 

 Xavier took a moment to process this before eventually shaking his head and trying to recall where he was.

 The next moment, however, his face went blank again, and this time a wry smile spread across his lips. 

 "To think that, not only had the love of my life, whom I was imprisoned for, moved on upon my release, but she was also sleeping with the person who imprisoned me in my house, with all my possessions gone," he murmured, his voice heavy with pain.

 He then chuckled self-deprecatingly after a moment as he remembered everything that had happened the day before, clenching his fists.

 Xavier had hoped that getting drunk would help him forget the pain, which was why he allowed himself to get intoxicated the night before. However, the pain remained just as fresh as ever. 

 He heaved a deep sigh after a moment and got out of the bed while mumbling; "I should go and see my parents." 

 At that moment, something caught the corner of his eye, and he quickly turned to look. In the next second, his eyes widened in shock.

 "Blood?" He mumbled with confusion. "What's blood doing in—in… wait!" 

 Xavier' went into a daze, staring blankly as everything that had happened after he got drunk the night before came crashing back into him. 

 "This!" His eyes widened as he couldn't believe the memories in his head.

 "Did I just share a one-night stand with someone I newly met?" He muttered in a stupor, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. 

 Eventually, Xavier let out a wry chuckle before shaking his head. "Considering how she left, it's clear she doesn't want any relationship with me, just as I want." 

 As he uttered this, Xavier yawned lazily once more before gathering the bedding and putting on his clothes that were as well sprawled on the floor. 

 After doing all this, Xavier gave the bedroom a last glance before stepping out. 

 ***

 The room was on the second floor of the bar, and when Xavier reached the ground floor, he found it quiet and peaceful, a stark contrast to the chaos he had encountered the night before.

 He glanced around, and seeing no soul present, dropped a wad of cash on the cashier's table before leaving without looking back and just a little over five minutes later, the bartender from the previous night entered the bar, pushing a trolley of wines. 

 "Is he still sleeping?" she wondered and quietly made her way to the second floor to check the room where Xavier had been staying. 

 Realizing he was no longer there, she felt unexpectedly heartbroken and lost in her thoughts for a few minutes until the sound of footsteps jolted her back to reality, then giving the room one last look, she heaved a deep sigh before exiting and scurrying back to the bar. 

 "We're not open yet!" she announced loudly upon arriving, but the next second, she was greatly taken aback to see the fierce and menacing figures standing there, each holding dangerous objects and glaring fiercely at her.

 "Where is the bastard who castrated my brother light night?" the leader of the menacing group, one of the most notorious dons in Riverton City, asked coldly. 

 "This…" the bartender went momentarily daze, having never expected something like this.

 She continued staring blankly until she hurriedly shook her head to snap out of her reverie. 

 "He has left," she responded, stunning the people before her.

 "Left?" Jazzy inquired blankly for a moment before glancing at his men with a fierce glint in his eyes.

 "Did you guys hear that?" He inquired and immediately, a gang member hurriedly approached him.

 Boss, I suggest you let us tear this place apart. I refuse to believe this bitch won't provide the bastard who dared to harm your brother!"