The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 360

Would the St. John family truly end up entirely in his grasp?

The coldness in her eyes vanished in an instant, expertly hidden. As she served Eleanor some food, she said, "Mom, you originally arranged for Sebastian to marry the eldest daughter of the Spencer family. Is it really appropriate to switch to the younger one now?"

"The eldest daughter disappeared over twenty years ago. There's no chance of finding her. I've already spoken with the Spencers, and they said that as long as Winona agrees, they'd be thrilled. Now that both Sebastian and Winona are interested, this is a wonderful occasion. There's nothing inappropriate about it."

"But I remember that before, the two of them..."

"Victoria," Eleanor interrupted her. "Now that you're divorced, if you want to continue living with the St. John family, you need to stay out of our affairs. That's the only way you'll have a peaceful life here."

Victoria's expression stiffened. A second later, she smiled and nodded. "I understand. I'll listen to you."

In the car, Riley received a text from Winona: [Riley, the moment Sebastian saw you leave, he insisted on driving me back to campus. I didn't even get to finish my food! Don't you think he's being a bit too much?]

[Riley, when are you going to just make things official with him? I don't want to play his fake girlfriend anymore. Every time I see the hopeful look in Eleanor's eyes, I feel so guilty.]

Riley stared at the messages in a daze. She hadn't even had the chance to tell Winona that she and Sebastian were already seeing each other. Though looking at it now, it seemed she wouldn't have to.

After a moment of thought, she typed a reply: [I can't help you with that.]

Back home, Mrs. Gable took Alora for a bath, while Riley returned to her room to work on her research paper. Applying for the youth science fund required publishing one or two SCI papers. She had finished drafting them a while ago and had Dr. Graves review them, though a few sections still needed revisions. Lately, however, taking care of Sebastian had put that on hold.

As she edited, her mind began to wander.

It wasn't until the doorbell rang that Riley snapped back to reality. She walked out of her room and opened the front door, only to see Sebastian standing outside. She immediately tried to shut it.

Sebastian was a step faster, pressing his hand firmly against the wood.

Riley pushed with all her might, but the door wouldn't budge an inch. She glared at him, her brows furrowed. "What is the meaning of this, Mr. St. John?"

Looking at her clear frustration, a slow smile curved his lips. "Are you jealous?"

Riley was already fuming, and seeing him smile only made her angrier. "Who's jealous?" she snapped. "Let go. I'm closing the door."

Sebastian applied a little more pressure and easily pushed the door open. He stepped inside and gently pulled Riley into his arms.

Riley struggled against him.

Sebastian tightened his hold just enough to keep her from breaking free, leaning in to whisper against her ear. "Don't move. You might pull the stitches on my arm."

A faint, mocking smirk touched Sebastian's lips as he coldly spat out a single word: "Power."

For the sake of power, she was willing to murder her own flesh and blood?

Riley suddenly remembered what Franklin Finch had told her before: Sebastian had gone missing at fifteen because he was kidnapped. After his disappearance, his mother lost her mind, and his father died in a car crash. None of those events were accidents.

A shiver ran through her body, and she couldn't stop trembling.

Seeing her pale face, Sebastian felt a surge of heartache. He held her tighter, his large hand gently stroking her back to comfort her. "Don't be afraid. I will protect you. I can't let her know you're my weakness, or she'll come after you."

His weakness. He called her his weakness.

Riley's heart pounded wildly in her chest, the overwhelming emotion sending a jolt straight to her core. For a long moment, she couldn't even process what she was feeling.

When Riley didn't respond for a while, Sebastian released her. Seeing her dazed expression, he assumed his words had terrified her. Blaming himself, he murmured, "I shouldn't have told you all this. It's my fault. I was just afraid you wouldn't talk to me..."

Riley stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his.

Shock flared in Sebastian's deep, calm eyes. The man who was always unflappable was now completely stunned.