Her Rebirth.

"Kai, do you even know what you just did?!"

Ace scolded, his voice sharp. His brows furrowed in frustration. "That man you just crippled, he’s Caleb Blackbourne, heir of the Blackbourne family. Do you realize what kind of trouble you’ve stirred?"

Kai barely spared Ace a glance. He withdrew his foot from Caleb’s broken hand, flicked the ash from his cigarette, and exhaled slowly. His gaze, cold and indifferent, landed on Ace. "Don’t worry, brother. I won’t do it again." His voice was emotionless, making it obvious that he felt no remorse for what he did.

Ace let out a sharp breath, frustrated by Kai’s nonchalant attitude. His gaze flicked toward Amelia, who stood clearly drunk. To this ex-fiancée of his, he felt angry. After the day she had broken the engagement, Lilac had been avoiding him out of guilt. He needed to vent his anger somewhere.

His expression darkened. "And you, why did you..."

Kai’s head tilted slightly, and then he smiled it was cold and dangerous.

"Only I can talk to my fiancée that way." His voice was soft, but the threat in it was clear.

Ace stiffened. Despite this brother of his holding no real power, he had always been scared of him, and it infuriated him to death. A part of him knew Kai wasn’t bluffing.

Still, he pressed on. "You need to apologize." He was the heir of Blackbourne, after all. What could this bastard do to him?

Kai raised a brow. "Apologize?"

Ace nodded sharply. "Yes. To Caleb. You just assaulted the heir of the Blackbourne family—"

Kai let out a soft chuckle, his eyes filled with mockery. He turned toward Caleb, who was still groaning on the floor. Then he met Ash’s eyes and drawled,

"I’m sorry... for trying to protect my fiancée from being harassed by you."

Ace’s face turned red instantly. "Kai!"

Kai, however, had no interest in prolonging this. Without another word, he turned to Amelia and effortlessly scooped her into his arms. She let out a soft noise of protest but, sensing it was Kai, calmed down.

As he carried her toward the exit, one of his men approached him. "Master Kai, what should we do about the Blackbourne family?"

Kai didn’t even pause. "Clean them up." His voice was cold.

Outside, he placed Amelia in his car. Just as he was about to get in, she asked in a slightly muffled and slurred voice:

"What about Sera...?"

Kai paused mid-step, inhaled deeply, then let out an annoyed sigh.

"Take her home," he ordered the man beside him.

Securing Amelia in the passenger seat, he then slid into the driver’s seat. He glanced at Amelia, whose eyes were half-closed, clearly struggling to stay awake.

"I’ve taken her home," he told her flatly.

Amelia sighed in relief, her body relaxing. "Good..."

Kai started the car and drove through the almost empty streets. Silence settled between them for a while until he finally asked,

"What happened?"

Amelia blinked lazily, then muttered, "Sera dragged me here. I didn’t want to come, but... I couldn’t just leave her... I had to get paid."

Kai raised a brow. "Paid?"

"She promised me a thousand dollars if I followed her to the bar. I was about to take her home, but she vomited on his shoe. Then he started harassing me."

Kai puffed out a cloud of smoke, his fingers tapping lightly against the steering wheel.

"Don’t come here again," he said, his tone colder than before. "This place is dangerous. And if you absolutely must, carry a small weapon next time."

He didn’t even know why he was saying this. Why he felt this sense of unease, this flicker of something that irritated him.

Amelia, still a little dazed, turned her head toward him. Her gaze landed on the cigarette between his fingers.

Then, in a soft, slightly accusing voice, she muttered, "Why are you smoking? You know it isn’t good for your health, right?"

Kai’s fingers paused mid-air.

For a moment, he just stared at her.

He didn’t know whether to laugh or be dumbfounded.

Of all things, after everything that had just happened... she was scolding him for smoking?

Kai was at a complete loss for words.

By the time they reached home, Amelia was already asleep.

Her face was flushed, her soft breathing barely audible. Her long lashes cast delicate shadows over her cheeks, and her lips were slightly parted, looking unconsciously inviting. She looked so different from her usual self—no sharp words, no coldness nor indifference in her eyes. Just quiet. Docile.

Kai exhaled and leaned back against the car seat for a moment, rubbing his temple. Troublesome.

Still, he got out and walked around the car, opening her door. With ease, he scooped her up in his arms. As soon as her body pressed against him, warmth seeped into his skin. The softness of her curves, the faint scent of alcohol mixed with her perfume, Kai felt his muscles tense.

A slow, simmering frustration coiled in his gut.

Damn it.

He walked inside, clicking his tongue in annoyance. Each step up the stairs felt like hell as it made him more aware of how warm and delicate she felt in his arms. His hands itched to explore, his body reacting in a way he hadn’t expected. By the time he reached her room, he was already hard, and that pissed him off even more.

What the hell is wrong with me?

With a little more force than necessary, he placed her onto the bed. Amelia let out a soft sigh, shifting slightly before settling again.

Kai stood there for a second, staring down at her. His throat was dry. His mind unhelpfully supplied an image—what if she looked like this underneath him?

Cursing under his breath, he turned and strode out of the room.

He needed a shower.

---

The water was cool as it ran down his body, but it did nothing to cool the fire burning in his veins. His hand slid down, and before he could stop himself, he was stroking himself to the memory of her. Her flushed face. The way she had curled up against him so unconsciously, her scent teasing him.

Fuck.

He leaned against the cold tile, breathing heavily as he reached his release, but his frustration was nowhere near sated.

By the time he stepped out of the shower, his thoughts were still a mess. His towel hung low on his hips as he walked to the mirror, running a hand through his wet hair.

Then, annoyingly, the image of her popped up in his head again.

Kai exhaled sharply, dragging his palm down his face. What the fuck is wrong with me?

Was it because he had repressed his desires for some time now? It wasn’t like he was some saint, before all this, he could’ve just gone out, found a willing woman, and taken care of it. But the thought of doing that now irritated him for some reason.

He didn’t want to be like his dogshit brother who had cheated on Amelia. She had broken off the engagement because of that, hadn’t she? If he went out now and fucked someone else while she was still his fiancée, wouldn’t that make him just as bad?

Kai let out a low, annoyed growl, gripping his hair in frustration.

This was ridiculous.

Maybe he really should just soak himself in cold water. His little brother might not be so eager after that.