The temperature inside the room continued to rise gradually. Ella waited, feeling her body tremble slightly. Whether it was due to anger or nervousness, her heart felt like it was going to leap out of her chest.

But then, she heard laughter – a seemingly uncontrollable, light laughter. Ella opened her eyes and saw Eden leaving the king-sized bed, his laughter sounding eerie and unsettling.

Eden's laughter continued as he asked, "What were you expecting?!"

Ella gritted her teeth.

"Don't worry, Miss Ford. Last night…" Eden's gaze wandered over Ella's body.

Ella instinctively pulled the covers closer around herself, feeling uneasy. She couldn't even remember who'd changed her into these men's pajamas she was wearing.

"It was really hard for me to get in the mood after you threw up all over the place," he finished bluntly. Ella blushed slightly. Not being interested was one thing, being repulsed was another.

"So your time here has been nothing but innocent," Eden added, smiling.

Nothing was innocent when it came to this bastard…

"The bathroom is over there. There are fresh towels and toothbrushes. Come downstairs when you're cleaned up. There's something we need to talk about," Eden said before turning to leave.

Eden left without a trace, as if he truly had no interest in her.

Ella found herself lost in thought. She looked down at the oversized men's pajamas, which were a few sizes too big for her.

Damn.

The thought of Eden changing her clothes made her want to… grit her teeth.

Ella climbed out of bed and walked into the bathroom. There, she saw a pink towel and a pink toothbrush carefully placed on the sink, as if they had been prepared just for her. Despite her anger, her heart softened at Eden's thoughtfulness.

This had to be one of his devilish tricks. No wonder so many women gravitated toward him.

If she hadn't lived ten more years in her past life, she didn't think she'd be able to resist him either.

She quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face, freshening up.

Inside the large mirror, Ella's face appeared a little pale, clearly showing the aftermath of excessive drinking from the previous night. She hadn't been that drunk since she was a teenager, and now she was left with an unbearable headache. She couldn't fathom how someone like Cendy could manage to drink herself silly three to five days a week.

Barely managing to stand up straight, Ella left the room and made her way downstairs.

The décor of the place was modern and minimalist, exuding simplicity while maintaining an undeniable sense of value. The premium gray color tone added to the overall sophistication, with a strong emphasis on texture.

As Ella walked through a corridor, she came across a revolving staircase. Carefully descending one step at a time, she eventually reached the open-air dining room outside the living room. There, she found Eden sitting elegantly, enjoying his breakfast.

The early morning sun cast its golden rays perfectly upon Eden's body and hair, creating a picturesque scene. From a distance, he looked like a figure from a beautiful painting, bathed in the warm glow of the morning light.

When Eden noticed Ella's presence, he gracefully wiped the corner of his mouth and asked, "Hungry?"

Ella met Eden's gaze, and as she returned to her senses, she couldn't help but feel a blush creeping onto her face. She walked over to Eden, and in a somewhat abrupt manner, he rose from his dining chair and offered it to her.

This courtesy…

Lucien would've done the same thing, but that was just for the sake of appearances.

Ella didn't refuse the seat offered by Eden and took her place. As she was about to speak, a middle-aged man appeared and respectfully brought her breakfast. He informed her, "The young master said that you might be hungover from last night, Miss Ford, so he prepared some porridge to help you wake up."

Ella was slightly taken aback by the consideration and slowly replied, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Miss Ford. Please enjoy your meal." The man bowed slightly, then left. Ella watched him go.

"That's Cullen," Eden explained, introducing their head butler.

"Oh," Ella responded, not dwelling on it much.

Eden didn't say much either, and Ella found herself without much appetite. She left her food untouched and got straight to the point, asking, "Did Jonas get the video last night?"

"I'll tell you if you eat your breakfast," Eden teased, prompting Ella for a response.

Ella didn't reply, reminding herself not to get upset. After all, Eden was only twenty-five years old, while she was actually thirty-two. She couldn't let herself be flustered by a man seven years her junior.

Eden wore a slight, imperceptible smile as he observed Ella finishing her meal. She wiped the corners of her mouth, feeling a bit unsatisfied but eager to address the main concern on her mind – everything from last night.

Ella asked again, "So last night…"

"It worked." Eden's response was brief but to the point.

Ella looked at him expectantly, waiting for more details. Eden explained, "Everything you wanted – we have it on tape."

The revelation left Ella feeling a mix of emotions, unable to bear the suspense any longer, she inquired, "He slept with Hedy?"

"Yes."

"At the Imperial?"

"No, it was in an apartment in a fancy neighborhood," Eden clarified. "I had Jonas check it out, and it's not Lucien's account; it's in Zoey Duke's name."

Ella frowned.

"Since you know what kind of man Lucien is, you should know that he has more than one woman on the side," Eden stated with a light expression.

Ella pursed her lips, finding it hard to be completely indifferent. She and Lucien had been together for many years, ever since they were children, when her grandfather arranged their betrothal. She had always believed that what her grandfather had chosen for her was the best, so she never put up any defenses and surrendered her heart completely to Lucien.

However, her feelings were still trampled on. At that moment, she couldn't deceive herself anymore, as everything that had occurred in her past life now felt like a vivid reality and not just a dream.

"How could you tell?" She asked, her emotions settling down. Reincarnated or not, what she experienced in her past life was real.

Eden appeared to finish his breakfast. He set down his knife and fork and elegantly wiped the corners of his mouth. He remarked, "I thought you said you knew me well."

Ella was taken aback.

"Not as well as you thought, it seems," Eden continued, "But maybe just well enough to care about me."

His statement held weight to it, but Ella chose to ignore it. Instead, she said, "Show me what you got on camera last night."

And she didn't want to delve into too much else. Although she desired to, the main goal was to establish a partnership with Eden, ensuring a win-win situation. Anything beyond that didn't matter to her.

Eden handed Ella the cell phone that was resting on the dining table. Ella took it and watched a video on the screen.

She tapped the play button with a cold expression on her face, seeing the disgustingly lewd images flash across the screen.