Hayden stormed out of the bed, his face contorted in anger. Mellissa, shaken, grabbed the bedsheet and wrapped it tightly around herself, her heart racing with fear of what he might do next. She had ruined the moment, and now she sat frozen, watching as Hayden marched to the mirror and started buttoning his white shirt furiously. His hands moved fast, his rage visible in each motion.
"How do you know about her?" he snapped, his voice low but sharp, as he continued fastening his buttons in quick succession.
Mellissa hesitated, her voice trembling. "I overheard you talking to your father... while Sarah, the maid, was taking me to your room," she confessed, her eyes wide with a mix of fear and defiance.
Hayden stopped abruptly, his jaw clenched. Without looking at her, he picked up a white bathrobe and tossed it roughly in her direction. "Get out of the room," he ordered coldly.
Tears welled up in Mellissa's eyes, and her voice cracked as she spoke, still holding onto a trace of kindness despite her growing frustration. "If you think I *want* to be here with you... I don't!" she cried, her words both soft and firm.
Hayden's eyes flashed with anger, but beneath it, something else flickered—empathy. He quickly masked it. "We wouldn't be in this situation if you hadn't accepted that stupid deal with my father!" he spat, his voice rising.
Mellissa, trembling and upset, shot back, her emotions raw and pouring out. "I had my reasons!" Her words hung in the air between them, filled with unspoken pain.
Hayden looked at her for a moment, something unreadable crossing his face, but he quickly hardened again. "I said... get out of here," he growled, pointing toward the door, his voice now more controlled but still laced with tension.
Mellissa, swallowing her sobs, grabbed the bathrobe and slipped it on. She cast him one last glance—hurt, defiant, and angry—before stepping out of the room with heavy footsteps. Without looking back, she made her way to the guest room, her mind swirling with the weight of everything that had just happened.