Cecilia bit her lip and averted her gaze. She feigned calmness as she replied, "It's been three years. If I hadn't figured a way to remove it, I'd be suffering greatly by now."

Bennett scoffed. An evil smile hung on his lips as he pressed his leg against her. Cecilia couldn't help but moan.

"Then you became someone else's lover? Layla, you know how much I hate it when others touch my belongings." His deep voice was fueled with rage. He held her chin in an iron grasp. The viciousness in his eyes was so terrifying that Cecilia froze.

Getting up, he pulled out a chastity belt from nowhere. Cecilia gulped as she stared at it, trying her best to cower away from him. That belt seemed to be of higher quality than the one she had three years ago.

She thought she was losing it. If Bennett had his way, she wouldn't be able to hide their relationship.

With the belt hanging off his index finger, he slowly moved closer to her. "This is my gift to you. It's a new style; I specifically ordered it for you. Do you like it? It has a fingerprint sensor lock."

"Go away!"

Cecilia seized her opportunity and quickly slipped through the opening under his arm. Seeing that, Bennett only had to draw his arm in to trap her in his embrace. She wriggled about, trying to break free. Tears instantly welled up in her pretty eyes.

Red marks had formed on her wrists. Cecilia was terrified. She finally managed to secure a peace that lasted for three years. If Henry spotted those weird marks, she was afraid that her peaceful life would come to an end.

"Layla, you've been disobedient." Bennett laughed menacingly. He gently pinched her waist, and she couldn't stop herself from moaning. He knew her body too well. Her body would react to his every move.

"You seem to have been living a good life after leaving me." Looking down, Bennett chuckled. The next moment, his gaze became sharp as he clutched her throat. "That's not what I want to see. What do you think I should do?"

His deep voice reverberated throughout the moderate-sized lounge. It was like an arrow threatening to pierce through her. Chills ran down her spine.

Suppressing the urge to tremble, Cecilia hissed through clenched jaws, "Let me go."

When he wasn't aware, she took the chance to bite the most tender part of his wrist. Soon, she tasted blood.

Bennett groaned. With the hand she bit, he held her wrists together. He then grasped her face with his other hand so that she would loosen her bite. She was sensitive to pain and yielded almost immediately.

Blood smeared her pinkish lips, and her hair was messy. She looked as tempting as a rose adorned with dewdrops.

Bennett suddenly became excited. Holding her up, he removed his necktie and tied her to the wrought iron sofa. Then, he leaned forward and took her phone from her handbag. Putting it in front of her face, he unlocked it.

"Bennett, I'm no longer yours! Let me go!" Cecilia shouted fearfully. Her heart pounded against her chest.

Standing before her, he spoke in a brooding tone. "Layla, you will only ever belong to me."

At the same time, her phone emitted a dial tone that stopped only when Henry spoke. It was only then Cecilia understood what Bennett, that lunatic, was up to.

"Hello?"

Bennett put her phone to her ear. Her voice quivering, she answered, "Henry."

"Ceci, what's wrong?" Henry quickly asked. He seemed to have sensed something was off through her voice.

Cecilia replied, "I-I'm fine. I fell asleep—"

Before she could finish, Bennett kissed her. She tried to refrain from letting any sounds escape her lips. As Henry's voice came through the phone, she felt an odd and unpleasant sensation radiating throughout her body.

"You should sleep for a bit more. I'll come and get you later."

Cecilia instinctively wanted to reply, but Bennett took the chance to deepen the kiss. As their breaths intertwined, she felt a sense of humiliation like never before. She hated herself for succumbing when he teased her and for reacting to his touch.

As though toying with her, Bennett stopped. Now that she had the chance, Cecilia acknowledged Henry's suggestion. She was about to say something else when Bennett kissed her again.

Suddenly, she felt a chill on the lower part of her body. Her eyes widened, and she struggled violently. Bennett's eyes reddened.

"Ceci?" On the other end of the receiver, Henry frowned. He intuitively felt that something was off. "Are you—"

Bennett freed one of his hands and ended the call.

Staring at him, who was on top of her, Cecilia seized the opportunity to bite his earlobe. That was his weak spot. As expected, he held his earlobe, trembling all over as he glared at her with his bloodshot eyes.

"Does he know you're also known as 'Layla'?" Bennett grasped her with such tremendous force, as though he wanted to crush her bones.

"Bennett, it's all over between us. It all ended three years ago!" Cecilia growled through clenched jaws. She was holding back her fear.

Her eyes were large and pretty. When she cried, they would tear up and look pitiful. Bennett could never resist when she gave him that pitiful yet defiant look.

He held her dainty face in his palm and wiped her tears off her face. "Layla, you're too naive." Anger tinged his profound eyes. "Do you think I'll let you off the hook after what happened back then?"

"Cecilia?" Henry's voice came from outside the door.

Cecilia shuddered.

Bennett turned to look at the door. Ruthlessness crept into his gaze.

Cecilia was flustered. She was afraid Henry would walk in. She also feared that Bennett would open the door on purpose. The lounge wasn't big enough; there was nowhere she could hide. If Henry saw her with Bennett in this state, that would be the end of her.

"What's wrong, Henry?" she asked, pretending to have just woken up. However, her gaze was fixated on the door handle.

Bennett calmly straightened up and sat beside her. Studying the panic on her face, he smiled playfully. "What is it? Are you scared that he'd catch you in the act?"

Cecilia glared at him. She was panicking.

A robotic female voice rang out, "Verification failed."

Cecilia instantly felt relieved.

Smiling, Bennett kissed her as he reached for the belt. Immediately, Cecilia felt a sudden chill as he put on what she deemed as a source of humiliation.

"Bennett Spencer!" Gritting her teeth, she shoved him.

She stared at her underwear, which he had taken off. There was a cold, tight feeling in her private parts. It felt partly familiar to her.

She was done for.

"Ceci?" Henry called out again.

Bennett strode over to the door and placed a hand on the handle. Shocked, Cecilia wasn't even able to make herself presentable as she ran over and stood before him and the door.

They were less than an inch apart. She could feel his warm breath on her cheeks, and it was becoming shallower by the second.

She frowned.

He looked down at her. In a deep, alluring voice, he asked, "Layla, it seems you enjoy it when it's thrilling, huh?"

He gently ran his fingers through her hair and played with a strand of hair. His gaze was dazed and burned with slight desire.

Instantly understanding what he meant, Cecilia pressed her hands against his chest. However, the heat he radiated surprised her.

"Henry, the door's stuck. Go on ahead. I'll come after touching up my makeup."

Henry was about to say something when he heard someone call him. He couldn't ignore that. So, he said, "Okay. I'll be waiting."

"Alright," Cecilia immediately replied. Her tense body relaxed instantly.

With his arms folded across his chest, Bennett studied her. When she spoke to Henry, her tone was demure and innocent. Pretentious, even, just like a naive bunny.

"Layla, is that an act you put up before Henry? Are you pretending to be innocent?" As he spoke, he untied her.

"Bennett, take that thing out of my body!"

"No way. Without me, you won't be able to remove it this time."

Cecilia tried to take it off. However, the belt fit her body well. It was impossible to remove it.

They glared at each other, and the tension in the room rose. Cecilia knew Bennett always meant what he said. This time, he was surely going to gain the upper hand over her. She couldn't imagine the consequences if Henry discovered the belt.

"Bennett Spencer, you're truly a pervert!"

Her words didn't bother him one bit. Bennett watched on with interest as she picked up her underwear and went to the restroom to spruce herself up. He followed her and leaned against the door. Smiling, he raised an eyebrow as he watched her touch up her makeup through her reflection in the mirror.

When she left the lounge, he didn't attempt to stop her. Cecilia walked on for some distance before looking back at the lounge, feeling uneasy.

The odd sensation in her private area caused her discomfort when she walked.

She looked at the lounge again. The door was shut. Was Bennett here to exact revenge on her?

Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind, and she anxiously pulled out her phone. A call came in before she could do anything.

"Layla, Bennett is back."

It was Yvonne Shaw. They both worked under Bennett back then. When he was in trouble, they fled Bryndale to Jacksonburg. If he could locate Cecilia, he would definitely find Yvonne too.

"I know," Cecilia answered in a lowered tone. "Be careful. If anything happens, run."

"Alright."

Cecilia ended the call. She felt extremely uncomfortable. It wasn't easy for most to escape Bennett unharmed. Back then, everyone knew she and Yvonne betrayed him. Now that he was back, he would never let them off the hook that easily.

As her mind wandered, she stood rooted to the spot.

"Cecilia."

There was a sudden weight on her shoulders, and it made her jump. Turning around, she saw Henry, clad in a white suit, standing behind her.

He put his arm around her shoulders. However, he could clearly feel her shudder. Looking down, he noticed her lips were scraped. He frowned. "What happened to your lips?"

He didn't sound stern, yet he didn't ask that out of concern either; he was questioning her.

Cecilia clenched her fists, cursing Bennett under her breath. That lunatic.

"I rolled off the couch in my sleep and banged against the edge of the table. There was so much blood." Pursing her lips, she grumbled coquettishly. Her soft body squirmed in his embrace.

Henry chuckled and teased her.

She covered the marks on her wrists with setting powder, but they were still pretty obvious. However, Henry's attention was elsewhere, so he naturally missed it.

He left the manor with his arm still around her. Cecilia realized it only after a while. Looking up, she asked, "Are we leaving? Where did the bigshot go?"

Henry nodded. "He said he had something else to attend to, so he wouldn't be coming."

"I wonder who it is. How arrogant." She was truly curious to know who could make Henry wait that patiently for him.

"Have you heard of the Sullivan family?"

She nodded.