Chapter 4 I Didn't Mean To

His skin was a warm tan, and the lean muscles beneath shifted subtly with each breath he took.

Even his lower abdomen was sharply defined-hardly the physique of a man confined to bed for days.

His waist was taut, and not an ounce of fat could be found. The only flaws were a few faint scars scattered across his torso. They were old but unmistakable.

She wasn't surprised. Most men had some remnants of a rough-and-tumble childhood. It wasn't unusual to carry those marks into adulthood.

Zane Hunter had similar scars, she remembered.

He once claimed they were the result of climbing trees and getting scratched by twigs. It had seemed innocent at the time.

But as his name passed through her thoughts, it triggered a sudden, searing ache in her chest. Her heart clenched so tightly she could hardly breathe. The pain dug into her like claws.

She shut her eyes for a moment, forcing herself to push those memories away. When she opened them again, she found her calm.

She carefully wiped down Henry's upper torso with a towel, then hesitated before lowering the sheet.

Slowly, methodically, she removed his pajama pants, keeping her eyes fixed on the TV screen in front of them as she tended to his lower body.

She avoided looking at him entirely.

On the screen, a glitzy awards ceremony was in full swing.

"And now," the host beamed, "it's time to reveal the winner of this year's Best New Talent award... Jenny Miles! Let's welcome her to the stage with a round of applause!"

A poised woman in a flowing sapphire gown stepped into view. Her smile was flawless, her posture elegant, her makeup pristine. Everything about her radiated success.

Mia's hands faltered slightly as she gripped the towel tighter and scrubbed a little more vigorously.

Jenny Miles?

That name echoed like a drum in her ears.

She'd left Melbille City over a year ago, and yet that name still haunted her. Jenny had taken so much-her peace, her trust, her future!

She hadn't just stolen Mia's fiancé.

She had walked away with the life Mia had spent years building. And she'd done it with a smile.

Back then, Mia had thought she was living her dream. But in one cruel twist, that dream had been shattered.

She stared at the TV, her heart thudding.

Who could've imagined that the woman now being hailed as a star had once been her best friend?

Mia Brock could never forget the day Zane Hunter stood in court and accused her father of inappropriate conduct with a student-a lie that shattered her family.

That single move sent her father behind bars.

Zane didn't stop there. He seized her father's business empire, built from the ground up with decades of hard work, and then ruthlessly cast her out of the Brock household.

As if that wasn't enough, he orchestrated her blacklisting in the voice-over industry and turned her final days in university into a nightmare filled with obstacles and daily harassment.

The pressure eventually forced her to drop out and flee Melbille City.

Following that, Jenny Miles soared to fame like a comet, courtesy of Zane's backing.

She snatched a major voice role in a blockbuster film-a role that originally belonged to Mia.

Zane spared no expense to make Jenny the leading actress in a fantasy epic directed by a renowned filmmaker.

That film turned Jenny into a household name, and within a year, she stood onstage accepting the "Best Newcomer" award.

Meanwhile, Mia-the daughter of a once-esteemed family, someone who had once held the spotlight-was now living quietly in a distant city, caring for others as a home aide.

She had begun her dubbing journey back in middle school and had lent her voice to over a hundred productions. To many, she was a prodigious talent with an enviable future ahead. But all of that had crumbled overnight.

She simply couldn't grasp how her world had unraveled so completely.

Jenny had once been her closest confidante.

Back when no agency would even give Jenny a second look, Mia had been the one lobbying around to get her opportunities.

As for Zane-what had she ever done to warrant his cruelty?

Why destroy her family, her career, and her peace of mind? Why exile her from Melbille without a single place to call her own?

Those two...

A burning fury surged in Mia's chest, almost choking her with its intensity.

"You trying to exfoliate me to death or what?!" Henry Carter's icy voice suddenly exploded next to her ear.

"Seriously, how much longer are you gonna keep scrubbing there?"

Mia's hand froze mid-motion.

She lowered her gaze... and realized where the sponge had lingered far too long.

Her face turned beet red in an instant.

Mortified, she tried to remain composed, but it felt like her dignity had just combusted.

Yes, she'd once been engaged-to Zane Hunter, no less-but they had never shared this kind of closeness.

This was the first time she'd seen a man so completely exposed, with nothing left to the imagination.

And to make matters worse... it looked like things were about to get even more awkward.

"Are you finished staring at me like that?" Henry snapped, his face flushed a deep, stormy purple. If looks could kill, Mia would have been six feets under!

"I-I didn't mean to," Mia stammered, panic gripping her as she fumbled to pull up his pants.

But in her flustered state, she accidentally brushed her hand against the very place she had tried to avoid.

Henry tensed up completely, his eyes narrowing into lethal slits. "You..."