A sleek black sports car abruptly halted beside her, casting a shadow that felt almost imperial.
Damien Sterling, under the bright sunlight, emerged like a dashing prince, his approach effortless. He was impeccably dressed in a deep blue silk shirt paired with crisp white suit pants.
His voice, authoritative and commanding, left no room for argument: "Come with me."
His piercing gaze locked onto Emma Hart's eyes, sharp and predatory, an aura of intense dominance radiating from him.
"I will not go with you. It's all because of you, everything is your fault!" Emma, upon seeing the man who was her nemesis, was unable to contain her fury.
She lunged at Damien Sterling, intent on striking him, only to find her wrist effortlessly captured in his grasp.
A tantalizing smile played at the corners of his mouth, momentarily disarming Emma with its charm.
"If you don't want to lose all your work, you'll come quietly," he said, his tone laced with a barely concealed scorn as he surveyed her delicate frame.
Not seeing her for days, he hadn't expected her to have lost so much weight, stirring a flicker of unexpected compassion in his usually untroubled heart.
Suppressing this strange sensation, Damien Sterling coldly proposed, "Let's go have lunch." After a brief exchange of looks with his bodyguard, the understanding was clear.
The bodyguard promptly hauled the struggling Emma into the car, her attempts at resistance akin to an angry, yet powerless, kitten.
Watching her flushed face, Damien Sterling couldn't help but find a hint of amusement in her spirited defiance.
There was something endearingly cute about this fierce young woman.
Seated in the speeding luxury car, Emma Hart glared at Damien Sterling, "Let me out! I never want to see you again!"
Observing the sudden drop in the young Sterling's expression, the bodyguards in the car silently empathized with the girl. In the entirety of S city, no one had ever dared to confront Sterling like this.
Was she courting danger?
"Finish this task, and we might never have to see each other again," he remarked lazily.
Seated beside the driver, his muscular physique and elegant lines were evident even through his clothes.
This man, favored by fortune, was most adept with his aloof and ruthless demeanor, simultaneously attracting and intimidating the women infatuated with him.
Soon, the car pulled up in front of a lavish restaurant, its opulence evident, a place not just anyone could enjoy.
Renowned for its exclusivity, a reservation was required well in advance, and wealth alone was not a ticket in.
"Get out on your own if you don't want to be carried in," he said indifferently.
Emma Hart, stealing a glance at the formidable men on either side, swallowed her pride and followed Damien Sterling into the restaurant.
Confronted with a table of exquisite dishes, she felt no appetite.
"What do you want from me?" she demanded, staring at the man opposite her, his features strikingly handsome and refined.
All she wanted was to end this encounter as quickly as possible.
"Bear my child," he said slowly, his tone as emotionless and undisturbed as if discussing the weather.
"Marry me in a contract marriage. Live in my house, give birth to the child, and we'll stay out of each other's way." If it wasn't for his eagerness to consolidate Sterling Enterprises and to further his business empire by taking over Sheng Yu, he wouldn't want any entanglement with this kind of woman.
Emma Hart, stunned, stood up abruptly. "Marry you? Impossible!"
A sharp glint passed through Damien Sterling's eyes, like a razor-sharp sword ready to pierce through anything.
"Are you sure?"