Everything was a deal until divorce novel Chapter 294

Her hand froze for a moment.

The forest ambush flashed through her mind. She dropped the subject. The less she knew, the safer she’d be.

She bent lower, moving to clean around his abdomen. It was a dangerous area–too close to the wound. Her touch was feather–light.

But to Dorian, every brush of her fingers was gasoline on embers. He clenched his jaw.

He could feel the heat rising under his skin. It had nothing to do with the water.

“Arden,” his voice was strained, “Are you almost done?”

“Almost,” she replied, moving behind him to wash his back.

Dorian braced both hands on the sink. His knuckles whitened, veins protruding. He was out of his mind to let her do this.

But then again—maybe he’d been out of his mind the moment he asked her to stay.

His thoughts slipped, involuntarily, to those first few nights when they were married in name only–but things had turned… physical. Rare, but intense.

He lifted his eyes to the mirror in front of him. What stared back was a man on the edge of losing control.

Meanwhile, Arden moved with grace, with care, with absolute focus–like a nurse tending to a patient. There was nothing romantic in her eyes. No heat. No softness.

Not for him.

“All done,” she said with relief.

“Okay.”

“I’ll leave you to finish your… lower half. Want me to call Lucien?”

“I’ll handle it,” Dorian said.

She clearly couldn’t wait to be out of the room. He saw it in her eyes. And that–more than anything–told him to back off.

“Good,” she said quickly, already moving. She washed the towel, wrung it out, and handed it to

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Chapter 294 None of Thin Wan Real

him like it was radioactive.

“If you feel dizzy or anything, call me. I’ll be just outside.”

She shut the door behind her and practically fled.

Dorian stared at his reflection.

Body? Impeccable. Tall, muscular, scarred just enough to look dangerous. Face? A little thinner than before, but the bone structure was still flawless.

So why couldn’t he win Arden over?

He thought of her wide eyes as she bolted from the room. Dorian scoffed and looked down.

Yeah. All the right reactions. Just… none of them from her. He unfastened his belt, jaw tight.

Outside, Arden sat on the edge of the bed. Her gaze wandered the dark–toned bedroom. Not a single photo. No flowers. No trace of the marriage that had once happened here.

She looked down at her bare ring finger. This marriage had always been more of a deal than a love story. A gamble. Maybe even a joke.

No proposal. No photos. No ceremony. Not even a ring.

Just a marriage license–and even that had been a hassle.

She remembered waiting at the county clerk’s office, standing alone until he finally walked in. Late. Hands in his pockets. Barely looked at her.

“You waited long enough,” he’d said, smirking. “Take the damn picture.”

They’d stood stiffly, like strangers. The emotional distance between them could have filled a

canyon.

Afterward, he left without a word. Theresa handed her the marriage license.

Just before he walked out, he’d leaned in and whispered, “You insisted on this marriage, Arden. Don’t expect love. Don’t expect loyalty. I’ll do whatever the hell I want–and you’ll stay quiet. Got it?”

Arden had stayed quiet.

Because she had no other choice. Eugenia’s five billion dollars had saved her father and brother. What else could she do?

But she had been young and naive. And even though she hadn’t expected love… the

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indifference had still hurt.

He hadn’t even come home that night.

This room… wasn’t a marital suite. It was a man’s bachelor pad. Decorated in his image.

Arden’s expression turned colder. She looked away from the bathroom door and gave a silent,

bitter smile.

Of course he was doing this on purpose. Punishing her for forcing that marriage. Turning her into a live–in nurse. Making her life hell–just because he could.

Her phone buzzed. It was Caleb.

“Are you okay? Did he touch you? Has he done anything to you?”

She didn’t reply.

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