Betrayed by Four: Reborn, Their Rival Mafia Lord Became My Husband - Chapter 17: Chapter 17
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In Asher's private wine cellar, crystal glasses refracted amber light.
He'd already downed half a bottle of Macallan, yet his throat still tasted bitter. The memories that alcohol couldn't numb grew sharper by the minute.
"Idiot." Asher cursed at the empty air, unsure if he meant his past-life self or this lifetime's version making the same damn mistakes.
As his glass emptied again, he let out a low, bitter laugh.
How fucking ironic. This time around, he'd planned to keep watching over her silently, waiting for the day she might glance his way. And fate delivered—she did look back... but only with guilt from her past life weighing her down.
"Asher, you haven't learned a goddamn thing."
He tilted his head back, draining the last drops. The glass hit the marble countertop with a sharp crack.
A cold hand suddenly wrapped around his wrist.
Asher turned. I stood behind him, appearing out of nowhere.
I was barefoot on the freezing floor, watching him in complete silence.
The moment our eyes met, my pupils contracted sharply.
I'd never seen Asher like this. His shirt hung open at the collar, his usually pristine hair fell messily across his forehead, and his eyes were shot through with red veins.
"You..." My voice caught in my throat.
"How did you get in?" His voice came out rough as sandpaper.
I dangled the key in my hand. "Won it in a bet."
Only then did Asher remember—that spare key had always been mine to keep.
Asher turned away. "Here to watch me fall apart?"
I snatched the glass from his hand and knocked back the remaining liquor in one go. The alcohol burned down my throat, making me wince, but I stubbornly continued:
"I came to tell you something..."
"I'm not choosing Derek because he me. And I'm not choosing you out of guilt."
My fingertips traced the old scar above his brow—a souvenir from a fight when they were fifteen. "It's because this lifetime, I finally see who's worth it."
The wine cellar fell dead silent except for our ragged breathing.
Asher's Adam's apple bobbed.
He meant to push me away, but his fingers him, tightening around my slender wrist instead.
"Sienna," his voice dropped low, "do you know why I never came to your birthday parties?"
I shook my head.
"Because when you turned twenty-two," his thumb traced the pulse jumping at my wrist, "I watched you walk toward Derek and told myself—if this is what you want, if this makes you happy, I'll let you go."
Tears suddenly spilled down my cheeks, landing hot on his hand.
Asher jerked back like he'd been burned, but I caught his shirt.
"Asher," I asked through my tears, "what if I chose Derek again this time?"
His jaw clenched tight. After a long pause, he ground out, "...I'd keep watching."
"Even if I died in front of you again?"
Those words sliced through the last barrier between us like a blade.
Asher suddenly swept me up in his arms, taking the stairs two at a time.
I struggled in his embrace. "Put me down!"
"Shut up." He kicked open his bedroom door, setting me on the bed with surprising gentleness. "Your feet are bleeding."
Only then did I notice I'd stepped on glass shards in the cellar.
Asher returned with tweezers, dropping to one knee to carefully extract each fragment from my sole.
When the alcohol swab hit my wounds, I flinched.
"Serves you right," he muttered, but his touch grew even gentler.
After bandaging my feet, Asher stood to leave. I wrapped my arms around him from behind.
"The first day I was reborn," I pressed my face against his back, my voice muffled, "I bought a ticket to Switzerland."
Asher went rigid.
"I waited at the airport all day, but the flight got canceled due to weather."
I tightened my hold. "That's when I decided—I'd wait for you to come back. This lifetime, I'd hold onto you no matter what."
Moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting interwoven shadows on the floor.
Asher slowly turned around, cupping my face. His thumb brushed across my damp eyes, his gaze unreadable.
"Sienna," he asked quietly, "aren't you afraid we'll just repeat the same tragedy?"
I gathered my courage, rose on my tiptoes, and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Then we'll meet again in the next life."
That feather-light kiss shattered Asher's defenses completely.
He cradled the back of my head, deepening the kiss. Ambergris mixed with whiskey overwhelmed my senses.
When we finally broke apart, I realized our fingers had somehow interlaced.
Asher's palm burned against mine.
I woke in Asher's arms as dawn broke. He slept deeply, the furrow between his brows finally smoothed away.
I quietly traced his features with my fingertip—from his sharp brow bone to his aquiline nose. His usually cold, hard face looked tender and soft in sleep.
My phone suddenly buzzed with a news alert.
BREAKING: Elite Financial Consortium Caught in Fraud Scandal, Stock Prices Plummet 50%
He'd already downed half a bottle of Macallan, yet his throat still tasted bitter. The memories that alcohol couldn't numb grew sharper by the minute.
"Idiot." Asher cursed at the empty air, unsure if he meant his past-life self or this lifetime's version making the same damn mistakes.
As his glass emptied again, he let out a low, bitter laugh.
How fucking ironic. This time around, he'd planned to keep watching over her silently, waiting for the day she might glance his way. And fate delivered—she did look back... but only with guilt from her past life weighing her down.
"Asher, you haven't learned a goddamn thing."
He tilted his head back, draining the last drops. The glass hit the marble countertop with a sharp crack.
A cold hand suddenly wrapped around his wrist.
Asher turned. I stood behind him, appearing out of nowhere.
I was barefoot on the freezing floor, watching him in complete silence.
The moment our eyes met, my pupils contracted sharply.
I'd never seen Asher like this. His shirt hung open at the collar, his usually pristine hair fell messily across his forehead, and his eyes were shot through with red veins.
"You..." My voice caught in my throat.
"How did you get in?" His voice came out rough as sandpaper.
I dangled the key in my hand. "Won it in a bet."
Only then did Asher remember—that spare key had always been mine to keep.
Asher turned away. "Here to watch me fall apart?"
I snatched the glass from his hand and knocked back the remaining liquor in one go. The alcohol burned down my throat, making me wince, but I stubbornly continued:
"I came to tell you something..."
"I'm not choosing Derek because he me. And I'm not choosing you out of guilt."
My fingertips traced the old scar above his brow—a souvenir from a fight when they were fifteen. "It's because this lifetime, I finally see who's worth it."
The wine cellar fell dead silent except for our ragged breathing.
Asher's Adam's apple bobbed.
He meant to push me away, but his fingers him, tightening around my slender wrist instead.
"Sienna," his voice dropped low, "do you know why I never came to your birthday parties?"
I shook my head.
"Because when you turned twenty-two," his thumb traced the pulse jumping at my wrist, "I watched you walk toward Derek and told myself—if this is what you want, if this makes you happy, I'll let you go."
Tears suddenly spilled down my cheeks, landing hot on his hand.
Asher jerked back like he'd been burned, but I caught his shirt.
"Asher," I asked through my tears, "what if I chose Derek again this time?"
His jaw clenched tight. After a long pause, he ground out, "...I'd keep watching."
"Even if I died in front of you again?"
Those words sliced through the last barrier between us like a blade.
Asher suddenly swept me up in his arms, taking the stairs two at a time.
I struggled in his embrace. "Put me down!"
"Shut up." He kicked open his bedroom door, setting me on the bed with surprising gentleness. "Your feet are bleeding."
Only then did I notice I'd stepped on glass shards in the cellar.
Asher returned with tweezers, dropping to one knee to carefully extract each fragment from my sole.
When the alcohol swab hit my wounds, I flinched.
"Serves you right," he muttered, but his touch grew even gentler.
After bandaging my feet, Asher stood to leave. I wrapped my arms around him from behind.
"The first day I was reborn," I pressed my face against his back, my voice muffled, "I bought a ticket to Switzerland."
Asher went rigid.
"I waited at the airport all day, but the flight got canceled due to weather."
I tightened my hold. "That's when I decided—I'd wait for you to come back. This lifetime, I'd hold onto you no matter what."
Moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting interwoven shadows on the floor.
Asher slowly turned around, cupping my face. His thumb brushed across my damp eyes, his gaze unreadable.
"Sienna," he asked quietly, "aren't you afraid we'll just repeat the same tragedy?"
I gathered my courage, rose on my tiptoes, and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Then we'll meet again in the next life."
That feather-light kiss shattered Asher's defenses completely.
He cradled the back of my head, deepening the kiss. Ambergris mixed with whiskey overwhelmed my senses.
When we finally broke apart, I realized our fingers had somehow interlaced.
Asher's palm burned against mine.
I woke in Asher's arms as dawn broke. He slept deeply, the furrow between his brows finally smoothed away.
I quietly traced his features with my fingertip—from his sharp brow bone to his aquiline nose. His usually cold, hard face looked tender and soft in sleep.
My phone suddenly buzzed with a news alert.
BREAKING: Elite Financial Consortium Caught in Fraud Scandal, Stock Prices Plummet 50%
End of Betrayed by Four: Reborn, Their Rival Mafia Lord Became My Husband Chapter 17. Continue reading Chapter 18 or return to Betrayed by Four: Reborn, Their Rival Mafia Lord Became My Husband book page.