When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

### Chapter 35: I Don’t Care Who You Are

"Do you have any idea who I am? If you dare touch a single hair on my head, you can forget about making it in Kenport. And don’t think I’m just trying to scare you—I’m telling you the truth. If you don’t believe me, just let me call someone."

Hazel Hawthorne was trying to stall for time and intimidate the man. If she could just contact Aiden Xavier, she could get out of here. She was sure he wouldn’t abandon her—after all, she was still his wife.

It would be a scandal if word got out that his wife was being assaulted by some nobody. The Xavier Family absolutely couldn’t afford that kind of humiliation.

"HAHAHAHA! A woman like you at a bar is just looking for a rich guy. Well, I’ve got plenty of money. I’ll give you a million when we’re done. How does that sound?"

’A million?’

’A damn million, and he calls himself rich!? The allowance Aiden Xavier gave her was twenty million. As if she’d give a damn about one million. How was she going to get out of here?’

"Let me go, and I’ll give you ten million," Hazel Hawthorne said without hesitation. She didn’t have the money herself, but Aiden Xavier did, and that ten million would be the price to prevent a scandal.

But the man had no patience for haggling with Hazel. He had gone to great trouble to get her here; there was no way he would let her go so easily.

He didn’t give her any more time to talk, lunging straight for her. Hazel threw the pillow she was holding, but it bounced off him harmlessly, almost like a playful flirtation. When the man laughed, the fat on his face bunched into folds.

Hazel felt sick to her stomach, but she was helpless. They ended up in a game of cat and mouse around the room.

When Hazel grew tired, she paused to catch her breath. The man’s portly frame couldn’t handle the exertion either. He was already winded, leaning against a wall and gasping heavily for air.

"Let me go. It’ll be worth your while. I’m Aiden Xavier’s wife. If you do anything to me, he will not let you get away with it when he finds out. Do you know who Aiden Xavier is? He’s a member of the Xavier Family."

The man sneered. "You’re in my hands now, so don’t even think about escaping. I don’t give a damn whose woman you are!"

The man grabbed Hazel’s hand and yanked her forcefully into his arms. Smelling the faint scent of body wash on her, he couldn’t stop himself from taking a deep breath. He leaned in close to her ear and bit it.

Hazel tried to raise her leg, but to her horror, the man anticipated the move. He flipped her over in one motion, forcing her onto her stomach. He pinned her arms and pressed her down with his body.

The man’s lecherous laughter filled the air as the stench of smoke and alcohol flooded Hazel’s senses. She struggled to breathe. Pinned and helpless, she was at his mercy. Despair washed over her.

His hot hand roamed over her body. Even through the layer of her clothes, her skin broke out in goosebumps. Her mind went almost completely blank, but at that moment, her body began to feel a strange sensation.

It was a carnal yearning, something Hazel had never experienced. She was repulsed by the man, yet it felt as if an electric current was coursing through her, a feeling she couldn’t control.

"I told you there was no escape. I worked too hard to catch you. Don’t resist... I’ll be gentle with you..."

Hazel thrashed, using every ounce of her strength to throw the man off her. She let out a blood-curdling scream.

In that moment, she was truly desperate, truly afraid. Terror seized every nerve in her body. No one was coming to save her. She was like a piece of driftwood floating on the ocean, utterly alone and helpless, no matter what happened.

Suddenly, with a loud CRASH, the door was violently kicked open.

The man was still trying to pull off Hazel’s clothes when someone grabbed his collar from behind. His greasy body was lifted effortlessly into the air. Aiden Xavier saw Hazel lying unconscious on the bed, and his face went livid. He slammed the man against the wall.

With a sickening THUD, the impact sounded like the world was collapsing.

The man was thrown so hard his vision swam. Lying on the floor, he roared at the figures pouring into the room, none of whom he recognized. He angrily pointed at Aiden Xavier’s back and shouted, "Who the hell are you? How dare you ruin my fun!"

Aiden Xavier took off his jacket and draped it over Hazel. Thank God he’d arrived in time. Any later, and she would have been completely undressed. What might have happened after that was something Aiden couldn’t bear to imagine.

He turned around silently, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the man who was still yelling. "I’m here to teach you a lesson."

Before the words even faded, Aiden lifted his foot and kicked the man brutally in the chest. The man froze for a second, gasped for air against the wall, and then sprayed a mouthful of blood. The pain finally seemed to sober him up.

Staring at the man before him, who looked like a demon from hell, his face was twisted in terror—the same terror and fear he had seen on Hazel’s face just moments ago. He clutched his chest. As Aiden walked toward him, he was too scared to even breathe, scrambling backward with difficulty.

"Y-y-you, who are you? Do you have any idea who I am?"

"I don’t care who you are," Aiden said. "You dared to lay a hand on my woman. It seems you have a death wish."

Aiden loomed over the man and punched him squarely in the face. The man spat out another mouthful of blood, along with two teeth that clattered to the floor.

The man held up a hand, begging for mercy. All of his earlier arrogance had vanished in the face of Aiden. He even spoke in a fawning tone, "Sir, I didn’t know she was your woman! I didn’t do anything to her..."

When he saw Aiden didn’t believe him, he quickly added, "It’s true! I really didn’t do anything! I didn’t even have time before you showed up."

Aiden’s voice turned icy. "So, you’re saying I interrupted you?"

"No, no, no! I mean I never should have touched your woman! If I’d known she was yours, I wouldn’t have dared, not even if I had ten times the nerve!" The man was simply terrified of the beating, but he still hadn’t recognized who Aiden was.

A faint moan from Hazel cut through the eerie, blood-soaked silence of the room. Aiden’s brow furrowed. He turned and went back to her side. Hazel’s eyes fluttered open. She couldn’t see the person in front of her clearly, but she recognized the familiar scent and instinctively reached out to touch him.

An unnatural flush colored her cheeks. Aiden was a man of the world; he realized at once that Hazel had been drugged.

He had no time to deal with the man on the floor. He scooped Hazel into his arms, walked swiftly out of the room, and got another suite in the hotel.

Only after Aiden had disappeared did the man, nearly collapsed on the floor, suddenly realize who his attacker was.

He broke out in a cold sweat and sat weakly on the floor. The spot where Aiden had kicked him ached dully. His own men had already been beaten down by Aiden’s people and were now lying on the ground, letting out blood-curdling moans.

He knew he was doomed. He had finally recognized the man. It was Aiden Xavier!

He had made a move on Aiden Xavier’s wife!

He never would have imagined that this plainly dressed woman was actually Aiden Xavier’s wife.

The room was in shambles. The smell of blood in the air seemed to be mixed with the faint stench of urine. Aiden’s secretary stood in the room, looking down with disgust at the ashen-faced man.

*****