His Destructive, Toxic Love

Whatever he thought happened might as well have been the truth.

...

After coming back from the hospital, Eliza was at the lounge hard at work. Casper hadn't been around for ages. Word was, he'd taken Nova abroad for some leg treatment.

A few days later, Chelsea invited her out for lunch. Inevitably, the conversation turned to Nova.

"I have a friend who's a doctor at that hospital. Heard her surgery failed again," Chelsea mentioned casually.

Eliza, on the other hand, was taken aback. "Failed again?"

"Yeah, it seems there's hardly any chance for recovery. Her primary doctor said that apart from her knee surgery, she would need a heart or kidney transplant to make her function like a normal person." Finding a kidney donor might be doable, but a heart? That was a whole other level. Still, with Casper's wealth, it would probably not be an issue if he was willing to spend the bucks.

Eliza lowered her head, absentmindedly nibbling on her straw. Chelsea added, "He's spending your joint assets on Nova's treatment. That has to be part of the divorce settlement." Eliza's fingers tightened around her cup. "His money will never be split with me, and I don't want it."

"Whether he wants to or not is his business, but the law's the law." Chelsea handed Eliza a business card. "I've contacted a lawyer from abroad who specializes in divorce cases. He'll be here in a few days; you should reach out."

Eliza blinked in surprise and glanced at the card. The lawyer was from a well-known law firm. "I bet this wasn't cheap, right?"

"Don't worry about it. Pay me back once you get Casper's money."

"Thanks, Chelsea."

Eliza pocketed the card and took another sip of her juice. "I've got to get back to work this afternoon."

"Remember, call me if you need anything."

"I will."

Eliza returned to the lounge. She'd swapped out her traditional attire for a sleek cocktail dress. Her figure always drew some eyes, but after a run-in with one of Casper's friends, the manager had decided she shouldn't perform in private rooms anymore.

She set up her harp and got to work, staying professional. Customers would come up to tip her, and the manager had even added a tipping feature to the website. On a good day, the tips were pretty substantial.

After her performance, the manager approached her. "A customer tipped you a hundred thousand."

"That much?" Eliza was stunned and hesitant to accept it. "Sir, I can't take this money."

"Alright, I'll look into returning it tomorrow."

"Thank you."NôvelDrama.Org: text © owner.

She headed to the changing room. Her cocktail dress was easy to put on but a nightmare to take off. For the sake of looking good, her dresses were tailored to fit perfectly, which meant changing took over half an hour.

Just as she got it off, the changing room door swung open. Startled, she used the dress to cover herself. "Who is it?"

Around the corner came a familiar face. She stepped back. "This is the ladies' changing room, Mr. Casper. If you don't leave, I'll call the police."

"You're gonna call the police and accuse me of being a creep?" He sat on the changing bench, eyes roaming over her nearly naked body. "Do you really think your body is that enticing to me?"

No, she didn't. She wasn't delusional. It was his sudden intrusion that was so disrespectful. Eliza pulled the curtain around herself and began changing into her clothes.

"Why didn't you accept the tip I gave you? Was it too little?" he asked coldly, clearly annoyed.