Before Lilah could fully process what was happening, strong hands restrained her from both sides.

The next second, they forced her back onto the bed. A man dressed in a white coat slowly approached her while carrying medical equipment in his hands. A surgical mask covered most of his face.

"What are you people trying to do?" she blurted as panic spread across her face.

The doctor stopped beside the bed. Although his expression remained indifferent, his voice stayed polite. "Please stay calm, Miss. I'm only here to perform a medical examination and confirm whether you're pregnant."

Pregnant?

Lilah went completely still for a moment.

Then disbelief exploded across her face. "Have you all lost your minds?" She turned sharply toward Darren while struggling against the people holding her down. "Who gave you the right to decide something like this for me?"

A faint crease appeared between Darren's brows before he looked toward the doctor. "Explain it to her."

The doctor immediately nodded. "You may not remember clearly because you were intoxicated that night. However, you approached Mr. Stanley voluntarily at the bar. Around the same time, the Stanley family confirmed through their global selection process that you were the most suitable candidate for childbirth."

The explanation hit Lilah so hard that her thoughts completely stopped. Shock spread across her face instantly.

"That's impossible!" she blurted out before the doctor could continue. "You found the wrong person! I was drunk that night, and maybe I approached him first, but that doesn't mean you can imprison me here like this!"

Darren barely reacted to her outburst. After glancing down at his watch impatiently, he cut her off. "Stop wasting time. Continue."

"Understood, sir."

The doctor picked up the medical instrument and began sterilizing it.

"Let me go! You can't do this to me! This is illegal! I'm calling the police!" Panic completely overtook Lilah at that point. She screamed while struggling desperately.

No one in the room responded to her cries.

While the bodyguards restrained her against the mattress, the doctor moved closer and reached for the button of her jeans.

The humiliation hit Lilah so hard that her entire body shook with anger.

"I already told you there's been a mistake! Who the hell gave you permission to treat me like this? What right do you even have?" she shouted while glaring at Darren without backing down.

Darren's expression darkened further. The little patience he had left was nearly gone. "If you hadn't met the requirements, you would've never stayed here this long."

"What a load of bullshit!" Lilah snapped back immediately.

Then, without warning, she suddenly forced herself free. Nobody knew where she found the strength, but she shoved the people restraining her aside, jumped off the bed, and rushed straight toward Darren. Her hand struck his face with all her strength.

The loud smack instantly silenced the room.

Everyone froze in shock.

Darren's face turned slightly to the side from the impact, and a red mark quickly surfaced across his cheek.

"You actually hit me?" Slowly, he turned back to look at her. The murderous look in his eyes became terrifying.

"And what if I did?" Lilah retorted furiously. Tears streamed down her face as she pointed directly at him. "You think having money means you can treat people however you want? You think you can crush someone's dignity whenever it suits you? Then listen carefully. I'm not someone you get to humiliate whenever you please. I'll make this clear one final time. I am not carrying a child for a man like you!"

The moment she finished speaking, she shoved Darren hard in the chest.

Without wasting another second, Lilah turned and headed for the door. However, the bodyguards moved faster.

They immediately stepped in front of her path and prepared to drag her back. Unexpectedly, Darren lifted a hand and stopped them.

The room instantly fell still. His eyes remained fixed on Lilah while something unreadable slowly surfaced beneath his usual cold expression.

He found her interesting.

For years, everyone around him had either feared him, obeyed him, or desperately tried to flatter him. Yet this woman had cursed him repeatedly and even slapped him across the face without hesitation.

Slowly, Darren walked toward her.

Instinctively, Lilah backed away. Before she could create more distance, Darren grabbed her wrist firmly.

"Take your hands off me!" she snapped while struggling violently. Disgust filled her eyes completely.

Unfortunately, the difference in strength between them was impossible to overcome.

With his other hand, Darren calmly refastened the button on her jeans. "If anyone else had dared to slap me, they would've left this room with every bone shattered."

A cold shiver immediately crawled down Lilah's spine.

"Still..." Darren's tone suddenly shifted, and faint amusement crept into his voice. "I happen to like your temper. So I've decided to change my mind."

Confusion flashed across Lilah's face, but Darren offered no explanation at all. He released her wrist and headed straight for the door.

Just before disappearing outside, he stopped briefly. Then his deep voice rang through the room with unquestionable authority.

"From today onward, this is where you'll stay. You won't leave until you're carrying my child."

As the lock snapped into place, Lilah slid down to the floor and shut her eyes, hopelessness washing over her.

That evening, a female doctor arrived to check on her.

The results came back soon after. She wasn't pregnant.

So it wasn't over. If that man wanted a child, it meant this would continue.

At that thought, Lilah's hands tightened into fists.

She couldn't keep letting him decide everything. She needed to get out.

Her mind started racing, and a plan formed not long after.

Darren stayed occupied with work that night, so he didn't come to her.

The following day, while he was in his study, his assistant, Jack Foster, stepped in after knocking. "Mr. Stanley, Miss Moore has gotten away."

Darren paused mid-sentence, then lifted his gaze. "Explain."

Keeping his head lowered, Jack reported what the surveillance had captured earlier.

"Miss Moore dismissed the servant under a pretense. After that, she used her bedsheets to make a rope and secured it to the balcony. She avoided the guards and slipped out through a gap near the base of the wall."

When he finished speaking, Jack had already prepared himself to be scolded. Instead, Darren simply smiled, without a trace of anger.

That reaction left Jack unsettled. Gathering his nerve, he asked, "Mr. Stanley... what are your instructions?"

"Bring her back," Darren said, his voice firm.

Lilah's resistance only made him more determined to tame her.

"Understood," Jack replied. Just as he was about to leave, Darren spoke again. "There's something else. I need you to investigate it."

At the same time, Lilah rushed back to her small rented apartment. She went straight to the bathroom and turned on the shower. Hot water poured over her as she scrubbed at her skin, trying to erase every trace of Darren. The strain she had been holding in finally gave way, and tears slipped out, mixing with the water before disappearing down the drain.

She had grown up without a family. With her medical skills, she had only just started to build a stable life at a nearby clinic. Things were finally improving. So why did everything keep going wrong?

She stayed in the bathroom until she was sure she had washed away every last trace of Darren, and only then did she finally step out.

Her phone kept vibrating on the nightstand. When Lilah picked it up, she saw more than forty unread messages from Cayson.

"Lilah, did Nicole contact you?"

"I know you're upset, but this engagement wasn't my choice. You're the one I care about."

"Please call me, or meet me. I'll explain everything."

...

Each message hit her like a blow she couldn't block.

She didn't allow herself to stay in that state for long. Pulling herself together, she typed a response.

"It's over. Don't reach out to me again."

The message was sent without hesitation. She blocked Cayson's number right after and removed him from all her social accounts.

A knock sounded at the door.

"Coming," Lilah called out, thinking it was her delivery, and went to answer it.

Instead, Jack stood there with several men behind him. "Miss Moore, you'll need to come with us."

An hour later, she was back inside Darren's estate.

Darren sat behind his desk with a file open. When he saw her, he pushed it toward her and gestured for her to look.

Lilah's eyes dropped to the contents, and she went still.

Everything about her was inside. Her Social Security number, her school history, her orphanage records, and even a clear photo of her as a child standing at the orphanage gate.

"What is it that you want?" she asked, keeping her guard up.

Darren didn't bother softening his words. "My people checked. You weren't part of the Stanley family's global selection."

Relief slipped out of Lilah as she exhaled. "Then you know the truth. That's enough. I don't want anything. Just apologize and let me leave."

A quiet laugh came from Darren, like he had heard something ridiculous.

"No one asks me for an apology," he said. "And even if they did, it wouldn't end well for them. As for letting you go, that was never on the table."

The Stanley family's selection process had always been strict. He was still investigating how someone else had arranged for Lilah to take her place.

Still, he couldn't deny it. Lilah caught his attention.

Her appearance, her figure, and the way she acted all stood out.

He had seen too many women who tried too hard to impress. Lilah was different. She would rather escape through a hole than stay.

Whether it was genuine or not, she had gotten his interest.

There was also another reason. Sleep had always been a problem for him, yet on the night he had spent with Lilah, he had rested well.

Darren continued, making his stance clear, "I don't care who you are. My family needs an heir. Give me a child, and you'll get a billion."

"Not happening," Lilah shot back immediately.

Money wasn't everything to her. She valued her freedom far more.

Over the past few days, she had already seen what kind of man Darren was. Cold, ruthless, and rough. To him, she wasn't even treated like a person. Someone like that had no right to have her child.

As expected, Darren's expression turned grim. "That's not something you get to decide."

Lilah tried to speak, but he didn't give her a chance. His men stepped in and dragged her back to her room.

Beyond the bedroom window stretched nothing but the open sea.

There was no way out.

Despair crept in, but she forced herself not to give in.

If she wanted a chance, she needed something to negotiate with.

Right now, the only thing he cared about was a child.

Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.

Later that night, after finishing his work, Darren came down for dinner.

He paused as soon as he reached the bottom of the stairs.

Rose petals were scattered across the floor. At the dining table, Lilah sat waiting, dressed in a purple slip dress with the straps hanging loose. Her gaze held a quiet invitation.

"You're finally here, Mr. Stanley."

She stood, took his hand, and guided him toward the table. "I had them set this up. Sit down."

Darren looked at her with a hint of doubt. "Have you lost your mind?"

"You're the one who—"

The words almost slipped out, but she stopped herself.

Letting go of his hand, she forced a calmer tone. "I've just changed my mind. Is that so strange?"

"Fine." Darren didn't press further.

Or rather, he didn't take her seriously.

On this island, everything was under his control. With his men everywhere, he didn't believe she could do anything.

Once seated, Lilah poured a glass of red wine for him.

Darren pushed it back toward her. "Drink it first."

Lilah had expected that. Without hesitation, she lifted the glass and finished it, then poured another and handed it to him. Her eyes briefly flicked toward his waist.

Darren took a sip. Almost immediately, his brows tightened.

In the next moment, he spat out blood.

Before anyone could react, Lilah moved. She grabbed the gun from his waist and pressed it against his forehead, her voice turning cold. "The wine's poisoned. If you want the antidote, let me walk out of here."