Chapter 2

The disdain on the faces of the guests gathered below the stage was impossible to miss. Whispers rippled through the crowd.

"Is that woman... really Jeremy's fiancée? Why is she dressed like a beggar?"

"Shouldn't Jeremy's partner be someone refined and elegant? Who on earth is this woman?"

"Hmph! Jeremy has... unique tastes, to put it mildly."

Corinne had deliberately dressed like a disaster to scare off her blind date, but Jeremy seemed entirely unfazed by the murmurs. He remained indifferent to the doubts surrounding his preferences, observing the scene with the detached amusement of a spectator.

Corinne, meanwhile, felt like she had a blade pressed to her throat. Despite the glaring stares from the crowd, she had no choice but to swallow her pride and exchange engagement rings with Jeremy.

She just had to hold out until the host announced the end of the ceremony.

No one understood what Jeremy saw in her, but they all applauded warmly anyway, if only out of respect for him.

The applause had barely died down when Corinne slipped off the stage, eager to flee the venue as quickly as possible. Three elegantly dressed women immediately blocked her path.

"Which family are you from?"

"How dare you show up here looking like that?"

"What gives you the right to stand next to Jeremy with your deplorable taste in clothes?"

Corinne tried to sidestep them without a word, but the trio stubbornly boxed her in. Losing her patience, she swept a cool glance over their designer gowns and said, "In terms of style, the three of you are undoubtedly a better match for Jeremy—but let me ask you this: did he even invite you?"

"How dare you!"

All three hailed from prominent families in the New Capital and had never been subjected to such mockery. They demanded an immediate apology, threatening to keep her trapped there until she complied.

A short distance away, Zeke Callen, the second son of the Callen family, approached Jeremy and raised his glass.

"Where did you dig this woman up, Jeremy? Your grandfather is going to throw a fit if you bring her home to him."

"He just wants a granddaughter-in-law," Jeremy replied casually. "As long as she's a woman, I'm fine with it."

Zeke clicked his tongue. "Out of all the women out there, why her?"

Jeremy lowered his gaze, brought the glass to his lips, and took a slow sip of red wine, looking deep in thought.

"Because her lips are soft."

Jeremy wasn't a man who softened for anyone, so Zeke just stared at him in utter disbelief. "I never would have guessed you had such... peculiar tastes!"

A dull thud sounded, followed by a splash—someone had just thrown a glass of red wine all over Corinne.

Zeke turned around and raised an eyebrow. "Looks like your little fiancée is getting bullied. Aren't you going to see what's going on?"

Jeremy narrowed his eyes. "That won't be necessary."

Zeke was still trying to process those words when he watched Corinne grab one woman by the hair with her left hand, grab another with her right, and slam their heads together like two overripe watermelons.

The two women crumpled to the floor, out cold. The third stared at them, her jaw unhinged. "You... you..."

Corinne's expression didn't even flicker. She calmly waved a hand, gesturing for the third woman to step aside. Terrified, the woman obeyed without another squeak and didn't dare intervene further.

A smirk tugged at Zeke's lips. "I think I understand now why you set your sights on this little spitfire."

A flicker of intrigue crossed Jeremy's face as he took another sip of wine. He thought back to how she had ambushed him earlier—moving with disconcerting speed, using just one hand to yank a man of his size down for a kiss.

Extraordinary strength. And on top of that, guts and quick wits.

"Tommy, take her to get changed."

"Yes, sir!"

But instead of following Tommy, Corinne marched straight up to Jeremy and glared at him.

"You are being completely unreasonable. I just gave you a little kiss, and now you want to tie me down to you for good. Don't you think the punishment is a bit disproportionate? Can't we settle this another way—with financial compensation, for example?"

Jeremy narrowed his striking eyes, an enigmatic smile playing on his lips. "Hmm... Tell me, how much do you think a kiss from me is worth?"

Corinne studied him for a moment—scanning his face, then dropping her gaze to his thin, perfectly sculpted lips —as if she were conducting a serious appraisal.

"Hard to say for sure. It would be best if you set your own price. You're not exactly young anymore, and I highly doubt that was your first kiss, so let's cap it at thirty dollars. I can't afford to pay more than that anyway."

Ridiculous.

Tommy felt like he was watching someone willingly jump into a woodchipper. Being engaged to Jeremy should have been an unexpected stroke of luck, yet this woman seemed hellbent on provoking him.

Jeremy raised a hand, signaling Tommy to step back, then caught Corinne's pointed chin between his slender fingers.

He wasn't really using any force, but something in the gesture radiated a quiet, implicit danger.

"You have the nerve to belittle me in public. You might as well take responsibility for me to the very end, don't you think?"

Corinne frowned, utterly convinced this man had lost his mind. She still couldn't fathom why he had chosen her, especially when she looked terrifying enough to scare anyone away today.

Her lips twitched. A glint flashed in her eyes before she said in a perfectly flat tone, "Very well. Can I go to the restroom now?"

Jeremy didn't answer. He simply shot Tommy a look, silently ordering him to escort her there.

A few minutes later, Tommy returned with a grim expression and approached Jeremy. "Sir, Corinne jumped out the restroom window. She ran away. I've already sent men after her."

Jeremy, lounging elegantly on the sofa in his immaculate suit, looked exactly like a man who had expected this all along. His face betrayed nothing. He slowly swirled the red wine in his glass. "No need to chase her. Just find her address and send someone to drop off the engagement gifts."

"Yes, sir!"

Zeke had witnessed the entire circus and felt compelled to intervene. "Are you absolutely sure you want to marry a woman who bolts at the first opportunity? Honestly, I..."

"Only a woman like her will be up to the task," Jeremy said with absolute conviction.

...

It was late by the time Corinne finally returned home.

She had barely crossed the threshold when her father, Marvin, raised a hand to strike her. "You have some nerve showing your face here!"

Corinne took a casual step back, dodging the slap effortlessly.

Marvin's hand hung suspended in the air, his rage completely intact.

"Your mother found you a perfectly good match, and you dress up like a clown for the date? And then you kiss a total stranger in public on top of that! You've ruined this family's reputation! The matchmaker gave your mother an earful because of your little stunt! I want you to admit your mistake and formally apologize to your mother right now!"

Corinne shoved her hands into her pockets and fixed her father with a frigid stare. "She is not my mother. She is a stepmother who is doing everything in her power to marry me off as quickly as possible so that I'll be cut out of the family inheritance."

Lilliana immediately put on a distressed expression, her voice softening into a tremble. "Let it go, Marvin. Don't take it out on Corinne. If she lacks maturity, it's only because I've failed in my role as a stepmother..."

Seeing his wife defend his daughter after such a humiliating ordeal only fueled Marvin's exasperation. He whirled back to Corinne, pointing a shaking finger at her. "Ungrateful! You are completely ungrateful! Lilliana waits on you hand and foot, and you can't even bring yourself to call her Mom!"

Lilliana dabbed at her eyes, playing the perfect, long-suffering wife as she spoke to her husband. "Please, let it go, Marvin. I really don't mind if she just calls me Lilliana."

Lilliana's little performance didn't surprise Corinne in the slightest. The woman had a master's degree in playing the victim, carefully curating exactly what she wanted others to see. What a pity that Marvin, blinded by her beauty, was completely incapable of seeing her true nature.

Corinne pulled a stack of documents from her bag and handed them to her father. "Here is the background information on every single date Lilliana arranged for me. Take a look at this. If you find someone in there who suits you, I'll be more than happy to marry him."

Marvin froze. He took the folder, scanned the pages, and his expression gradually hardened into stone.