“I thought we were on the same wavelength…”His words dragged out oddly, and I frowned.“On the same wavelength? You and me?”A beat later, I snapped irritably.“Why on earth would I be—interested in you?”With that, I blatantly let my gaze roam over his body before fixing it back on his face, then exhaled a derisive breath, as if mocking the very idea he could be worthy of thought.Right then, Nathaniel Miller.He was only two paces away. If he reached out, he could easily choke me—and this time, no one would come to my aid.Even knowing that, I didn’t regret my provocation or consider stopping. In fact, I felt an almost violent need to unsettle him, to mar that masklike composure. The reckless vanity of wanting to scratch even a small wound on the shameless scoundrel who’d abandoned /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ the trial then tried to bed me—it was nothing but drunk bravado.“Hmm.”A short sigh escaped Nathaniel. He tilted his head and spoke in a faux-sympathetic voice, the hint of amusement in his tone unmistakable.“I thought our little war was over. Judging by your attitude, I was wrong.”I opened my mouth to remind him that negotiations remained—but then a sudden thought flashed through my mind.…Why didn’t I think of this sooner?It made perfect sense: the victim’s mother had begged me so desperately to open a trial, yet she’d dropped it at the mere mention of the name Miller. Now that I thought about it, it didn’t add up. Only one conclusion was possible.I glared at him, voice cold and hard.“How does it feel to threaten your victims into the outcome you desire?”My taunt flickered across his eyes—surprise, just for a moment—before his usual composure returned. He turned my question back on me.“What are you talking about? All of a sudden.”He feigned ignorance, but I pressed on without backing down.“To drop a case just on hearing the name Miller—that’s absurdly naive.”Truth was, I’d been the same. The realization had come only after my case crumbled overnight, leaving me hollow and stunned. If he hadn’t shown up just then, would I ever have thought of it?…Though it wouldn’t have changed anything.I bit my lip at the frustration, and he spoke again.“Are you accusing me of intimidating the Smiths? Why?”After a brief pause, he added softly,“You feared losing to me?”He lifted his empty hand to his mouth, as if suppressing laughter. I bristled—expecting anger, I’d provoked him, yet he found it amusing. My fingertips grew cold; I clenched and unclenched my fists, lifted my head, and glared at his unshakeably refined features. Nathaniel lowered his hand and offered an apology.“Excuse me—I’ve never heard such a deliciously absurd joke.”His face was awash in a mocking grin. I snapped back fiercely.“If not that, why abandon the trial? We had a clear witness, evidence, motive—everything. You had no chance of winning. So you persuaded Mrs. Smith to drop it, didn’t you?”The rest was my own deduction. But his attitude left little doubt. Would he deny it again? I waited with tense patience. Calmly, he spoke.“I was doing you a favor—so you wouldn’t be humiliated.”His slow words made me doubt my ears. Then, in an instant, he stepped forward. Bracing himself on his cane, he closed the gap in a single stride, coming so close his breath brushed my cheek. A sudden rush of sweetness filled the air. Before I knew it, my head spun, and I heard a low whisper at my ear.“If you wanted that trial so badly, you should’ve crawled into my bed.”My body froze as he murmured, voice laced with laughter.“If you’d stopped that pathetic prosecutor act and spread your legs for me, I’d have lost any trial for you in a heartbeat.”Something inside me snapped. With a crack like thunder, my fist struck Nathaniel Miller’s jaw. The resounding blow shattered the night’s silence, bringing an unexpected thrill of release. Though he barely budged—only his head turned slightly—it felt like a roar across a vast plain.His reaction came slowly. First his eyes moved to study me, then he tilted his head back as if he couldn’t believe it. He raised a hand to his jaw, stroking it in disbelief while I hissed between clenched teeth.“You fucking bastard—go fuck yourself in any hole you can find.”I spat, turning my head in contempt, then delivered the final sting:“You’re trash.”Those were the words I’d longed to say. Saying them out loud felt liberating. I didn’t care what came next—I was drunk, after all, utterly and completely.“…Hmph.”A disbelieving sigh escaped Nathaniel. A red mark bloomed on his flawless skin—by morning, it might bruise. At the thought, I felt a grim satisfaction. His twisted, unsettling smile vanished, replaced by deep furrows between his brows. For the first time, I realized he was human.…Until now.“…Gasp?”I didn’t even have time to scream. Before I could react, Nathaniel’s hand shot out and wrapped around my throat. He lifted me effortlessly from the ground. My breath cut off, and my feet dangled uselessly in the air.“Chrissy Jin.”In a voice deeper and more hollow than I’d ever heard, Nathaniel Miller whispered my name. His single hand gripped my windpipe with such force that I struggled for air, yet his voice remained eerily steady.

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