Everything was a deal until divorce novel Chapter 21

Chapter 21 What Love Doesn’t Mean

At first, Arden’s body stiffened. She resisted him instinctively. Dorian felt it immediately.

Finished

Something darker flickered in his eyes, heat simmering beneath it. His voice dropped, rough and low. “What, you don’t want me touching you? Arden, as long as this marriage still exists, this is part of it. A husband and wife have obligations.”

They stared at each other for a few seconds, neither willing to give in.

“So Vivienne isn’t enough for you anymore?” Arden asked coolly. “Mr. Vale.”

There was mockery in her tone, her gaze cold and sharp. “You’re really that desperate to sleep with me?” The anger inside her felt almost destructive, yet she smiled faintly. “Or what, did you fall for me, Mr. Vale?”

This side of her was unfamiliar to him.

Dorian asked, “Are you jealous?”

She let out a short laugh. Arden turned her face away, dodging his touch. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

Sensing her resistance, Dorian pulled her back and kissed her, direct and forceful, with no buildup at all.

Arden pressed her hands against his chest. “Do you really have to do this tonight?”

His eyes were dark. “Yes.”

She paused, then smiled. “Fine. Then you don’t mind if I treat you like a paid escort I didn’t even have to pay for, right?”

Dorian went still. He narrowed his eyes. “What does that mean?”

Arden looked at him casually, there was no affection left in her eyes at all. “Exactly what it sounds like.”

Dorian lifted her chin. “Arden, don’t you like me? Shouldn’t this be what you want?”

He searched her eyes. He wanted to find even a trace of admiration or longing. There was nothing. Her gaze was distant, cold, empty.

Arden nodded instead. “Sure. You’re good in bed. I’ll count it as a free deal. I’m not the one doing the work anyway.”

Dorian said nothing. Arden knew resisting was pointless. They slept together. A night of utter recklessness.

Yet even after taking her, Dorian felt like he never truly had her.

Dorian woke up first. There was a warm, soft body in his arms, and for a moment, he wasn’t used to it.

He lowered his gaze and watched her quietly. Her lashes curled softly, her cheeks flushed, sleeping peacefully. He moved carefully and eased her out of his arms.

The moment he got up, Arden woke as well. She opened her eyes and froze when she saw him. Then she

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Chapter 21 What Love Doesn’t Mean

smiled faintly “Morning, Mr. Vale.”

Finished

As she sat up, the blanket slipped, exposing the marks along her neck and chest. Her skin really did bruise

easily.

Dorian glanced once, his gaze deepening. His throat shifted before he answered with a low sound and turned toward the bathroom.

The first thing Arden did was grab the bottle of birth control pills from the nightstand. She shook two into her palm and swallowed them.

Dorian saw it.

He glanced at the bottle, recognized it instantly, pressed his lips together, then asked anyway, “What did you take?”

“Birth control,” Arden replied simply.

She looked at him, her expression almost innocent. “You know exactly how much you left inside last night. Don’t worry. I won’t get pregnant with your child.”

She poured out two more pills and swallowed them right in front of him.

He had been the one who insisted on the pills in the first place. But watching her take them so calmly stirred an inexplicable irritation in him. He turned and left the bedroom.

Her phone buzzed. It was Isla.

Isla asked, “Arden, are you okay after last night?”

Arden replied, “I’m fine.”

Isla sent a picture. Then a video.

Isla added, “Dorian and Vivienne are trending again. And there are videos from his birthday party everywhere. Him being cozy with other women.”

Arden opened them. The photo showed Dorian and Vivienne heading into a hospital. Just their backs, like always.

The video was with Clara.

Dorian had two buttons undone, sitting casually with his legs spread. Clara stood between them, holding a drink, leaning in close. The angle made it look like she was sitting on his lap.

She wore a pink cropped top and a skirt so short it barely covered her thighs. Her legs were long and striking. Under the club lights, the atmosphere was undeniably suggestive.

A cigarette hung from Dorian’s lips as he glanced at her lazily. From that angle, it looked like flirting.

Arden exited the screen.

Isla asked, “Did he come back last night?” Arden replied, “He did.”

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Chapter 21 What Love Doesn’t Mean

Finisher

After a brief pause, she sent another message.

Arden wrote, “He even had the energy to sleep with me.”

Isla replied, “WHAT? You didn’t fight him?”

Arden wrote, “We’re married. That’s part of it. And with my family still tied to him, there’s no avoiding it. Besides, the body’s decent. I’ll count it as getting a top escort for free.”

Isla sent a flood of laughing emojis. Isla wrote, “Respect. Still you, Arden. Mental strength of a tank.”

Arden got up, washed her face, did her makeup, and changed. When she saw the marks all over herself in the mirror, especially on her chest, she cursed Dorian quietly.

Like she’d been mauled. She used concealer to cover the marks on her neck.

When she went downstairs, Dorian was already sitting at the dining table.

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