Adelyn was slightly taken aback by the unexpected intrusion.
She turned her head toward the door, where a young man stood, looking severely displeased —almost as if she had robbed him of sothing precious and he had rushed all the way to just take it back.
But wait ...
Didn’t this young man look slightly familiar?
Adelyn’s eyes narrowed slightly as she tried to recall if she had t him sowhere before.
Suddenly, a clear mory from the previous day flashed through her mind.
The guy she had t at the hotel entrance.
Mr. Crashing Bull.
Karl stared at Adelyn for a mont longer before stepping into the room.
"How did you even think that my brother would sleep with you?" he demanded.
The words were blunt and undeniably rude, yet for obvious reasons, they only brought Adelyn relief.
However, she didn’t realize that her relief was fleeting. Before she could even savor it, it was already slipping away.
"He is Dylan Warren," Karl continued coldly. "The entire industry knows that he is practically allergic to won. He has never had any scandals —especially one involving a woman. And you think a man like that would let his spotless record slip just like that?"
Allergic to won?
That was new.
Still, Adelyn didn’t dwell on it. She was simply relieved to know that the situation she had been worrying about apparently held no possibility at all.
Letting out a quiet breath, she patted her chest in relief before turning toward Dylan with a polite smile.
"My apologies for being so audacious as to think such a thing, Mr. Warren," she said. Her smile widened slightly. "Of course, soone as proud and reputable as you would never do sothing like that."
Dylan didn’t respond.
He just watched her silently.
"Of course," Karl interjected on his brother’s behalf. "He wouldn’t. But you would, wouldn’t you?"
Adelyn frowned and turned to look at him.
"What do you an? What did I do?"
"You still dare to ask?" Karl scoffed. "You took advantage of my brother. You assaulted him for the whole night."
Assaulted? Entire night?
Adelyn choked on the accusation.
A violent cough escaped her as her face flushed red.
Karl blinked in surprise. He hadn’t expected such an extre reaction.
"You —"
Before he could continue, his words abruptly halted.
Dylan rose to his feet.
His movents were swift and elegant as ever.
Walking over to the table, he picked up a glass and poured water into it. Then he turned toward Adelyn and extended it to her.
Adelyn looked up in surprise.
Dylan gave a small nod, gesturing for her to take it.
Karl stood off to the side, completely speechless.
He nearly rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating.
His Old Demon of a brother ... serving water to soone?
And that soone was a woman?
"Brother, you —"
"Haven’t you had enough?" Dylan’s cold voice cut him off instantly.
Karl flinched.
"Where have you left your manners?" Dylan continued calmly. "Walking straight into my room without permission. Have you grown that bold?"
Karl imdiately lowered his gaze. Wasn’t he speaking for him? Why was he getting scolded?
Behind him, Jasper and Felix finally arrived. They stopped right at the doorway, not daring to step inside.
Not only because Dylan was there, but also because it would be inappropriate.
In truth, they would have stopped Karl as well.
But this brat had run off while they weren’t looking.
And now ... here they were.
"Leave!"
Dylan’s voice was low, yet it was enough to make Karl step backwards imdiately.
Just as he reached the doorway, Jasper grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out.
"Brother, we are really sorry," Jasper said quickly. "We will take him out and teach him a lesson."
And with that, the three of them left.
Adelyn was still processing everything.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely registered anything that happened after Karl dropped that bombshell.
"Are you alright?"
Dylan’s deep, masculine voice finally snapped her out of her reverie.
She looked at him, confused about what to say.
Was he alright?
How could she be after knowing the outrageous things she had committed the last night in her delirious state?
Dylan took the glass from her and set it aside on the table.
"Mr. Warren," Adelyn spoke slowly, trying her best to keep her calm. But the more she thought about the situation, the more frantic she felt inside. "Did I really do sothing inappropriate to you?"
How did she even end up taking advantage of Dylan Warren?
Out of all the n in the world, she took advantage of him?
The very man she would have thought a million tis before offending?
Dylan tapped his fingers lightly against the surface of the table.
"It would have been inappropriate if you had forced yourself onto ," he said calmly. "Since you didn’t, it wasn’t inappropriate at all."
Adelyn felt completely speechless.
What was that supposed to an?
"So, you an, I didn’t force myself onto you?" she asked before adding quickly, "Then how did we end up together? And why did you co looking for ? Had we known each other from before?"
She had never been such a curious person.
But today, it felt like she was breaking all her records.
"By mutual agreent," Dylan replied easily.
"Mutual agreent?" Adelyn repeated.
He nodded to her, looking serious.
Adelyn had thought that getting answers would help her understand the situation better.
Instead, the more she learned, the more confused she beca.
Just what kind of deal did she sign with the Devil?
Does knowing that now would even help her change a thing?
Feeling anxious, she suddenly asked, "Mr. Warren, you’re a reputable businessman. You must strongly believe in ethical practices, don’t you?"
Dylan tilted his head, resting it casually against his hand.
"You want to teach you business?" he asked, clearly amused.
"No ..." She breathed out, shaking both of her hands in front of her, almost anxious. "I was just curious about your principles."
"Well ... if that’s the case," he said slowly, his voice calm yet magnetic. "I won’t hide it from you. Business cannot succeed on ethics alone. The definition of ethics changes depending on the situation."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"In the end, it’s about making profits and avoiding losses."
"Losses?"
The more Adelyn listened to him, the more she felt dood.
She wasn’t scared, but she wasn’t fearless in front of him either. She just wanted to avoid any situation that brings her chaos.
Dylan humd in acknowledgent.
"Yes. Losses. Anything that puts —or my gains —at a disadvantage is a loss."
His gaze deepened slightly as he finished, "And as a businessman, I don’t make deals that would bring losses."
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