The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 341

Completely oblivious, Riley acted perfectly natural as she asked Winona, "Who are you talking to?"

Winona shifted her body slightly. Her intention was to let Riley see the person on the screen, but it also brought Riley into clearer view of the camera.

On Sebastian's end, the camera feed showing their side was just a small window in the top right corner.

Riley couldn't see clearly, so she leaned in closer. When she realized it was Sebastian on the screen, she then noticed the preview of herself. The camera was pointed right at her—and because she was leaning over, the plunge of her nightgown offered a very distinct view of her cleavage...

Riley snapped upright instantly. Her entire body turned the color of a ripe apple. Her cheeks burned crimson, and even her neck flushed a delicate pink.

She shot Winona a glaring look, silently accusing her: Why didn't you tell me you were on a video call with Sebastian?

Winona looked back innocently. Recognizing Riley's embarrassment, she spoke into the phone. "Sebastian, I have to go. I need to blow-dry Riley's hair."

"Mm."

A simple sound of acknowledgment, but it was deep and laced with an unidentifiable hoarseness.

Winona ended the call.

Riley gently poked Winona in the head. "Why are you so wicked?"

Winona laughed and grabbed Riley's hand. "How am I wicked? You're the one who walked over. Besides, what's the big deal if he looked? It's not like you were naked."

Riley was speechless.

Winona slid off the bed and headed toward the bathroom. "I'll go get the hairdryer."

Riley sat on the edge of the bed, covering her face with both hands to cool her burning cheeks. She couldn't shake the image of her own cleavage inadvertently flashing on the screen when she leaned in.

A moment later, she tried to console herself.

It's fine. She didn't do it on purpose, and Sebastian probably won't even care.

They had slept in the same bed and he hadn't reacted at all. A scene like this was probably nothing to him. He likely thought nothing of it.

The Cloudview Terrace.

Sebastian emerged from his study.

Franklin, who was standing guard outside, looked extremely surprised. Usually, his boss never left the study before eleven, and working until dawn was a common occurrence. Why was he out before ten tonight?

He followed him. "Mr. St. John, are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?"

Sebastian was silent.

He was indeed hungry, but it wasn't food he was craving.

"Stop following me. Go to bed."

He stood under the cold water for a full thirty minutes before stepping out of the bathroom in a bathrobe. He grabbed the cigarette pack and lighter from the nightstand, walked over to the window, pushed it open, and lit a cigarette.

Halfway through the smoke, his eyes burned dark as he crushed it out, turned around, and swiftly walked back into the bathroom.

That night, Sebastian barely slept at all. On the rare occasions he drifted off, his dreams were filled with images of Riley sobbing softly beneath him. Waking up meant not only taking another cold shower but also changing his bedsheets.

While Sebastian spent an almost sleepless night across town, Riley was entirely unaware of the fire she had started. After drying her hair, she and Winona lay side-by-side in bed chatting.

Winona stared at the ceiling with melancholic eyes. "Riley, I regret it so much."

"Regret what?"

"Regret rejecting him. Regret overthinking everything. If I could turn back time, I would absolutely say yes to him and date him properly. Even if we couldn't be together in the end, it wouldn't matter."

Riley turned her head to look at Winona, a bit confused. "If you knew you couldn't be together in the end, why would you still want to date him?"

Winona looked back at Riley. "If I had dated him, I wouldn't be this heartbroken right now. Maybe after dating him, I would've realized we weren't compatible and we would have broken up anyway."

"And what if you liked him even more after dating him? How would you handle that?"

Winona thought for a moment and said, "If I liked him even more, I'd try my absolute hardest to stay with him. If it still didn't work out, then we'd break up."

"Wouldn't you be even more devastated then?"