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Chapter 16
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Chapter 16
When Matteo woke up again, everything around him was a blinding white.
The sharp, sterile scent of disinfectant filled his nose.
The aftereffects of alcohol still clung to him. His head was pounding, his stomach a heavy, acidic mess, with a dull ache radiating
from within.
He stared blankly at his surroundings as the blurry edges of his vision slowly sharpened.
Caroline’s eyes were red, her face twisted in frustration.
“Are you seriously acting like this over some woman? She’s just a maid’s daughter. What exactly do you even like about her?”
A few of his friends had gathered around, chiming in with words of persuasion.
“Evenlyn’s been gone for a month now. There’s no news, no nothing. She’s obviously doing it on purpose, Matt. Just let it go.”
Matteo had heard these same lines over and over again in the past month.
He hadn’t listened then, and he wasn’t listening now.
His bloodshot eyes were vacant, and his lips pressed into a thin line. Unshaven, his face was shadowed with stubborn defiance.
Seeing that he had no intention of responding, Caroline gave up.
She didn’t bother sparing him another glance before slamming the door on her way out.
Silence instantly filled the room.
His friends exchanged looks, hesitant, before someone tried again.
“Honestly, with your status, you could have any woman you want. There’s no reason to keep obsessing over Evelyn.”
“What you should do is show her that you’re doing better without her, that you have plenty of options, while she is nothing
without you. She’ll come crawling back sooner or later.”
“Exactly. In the worst–case scenario, we’ll find some women who look like Evelyn. You can train them however you want. What’s
the diff-”
A loud crash echoed as a glass shattered at their feet, shards and water splashing across their shoes.
No one dared to move.
No one dared to breathe.
At first, when they had watched Evelyn stay by Matteo’s side, even when he was blind, they had scoffed.
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Chapter 16
A blind man? A discarded heir? Who would lower themselves to cling to someone like that?
But over time, that disdain had turned into something else–jealousy.
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They all came from powerful families, surrounded by women who came and went. But none of them had ever met a woman as
devoted as Evelyn.
So, they tried introducing women to Matteo.