Chapter 451

'This is madness! Absolute madness!' Adrian thought, his pulse racing. He hadn't witnessed the previous physical altercation between Evelyn and Dominic, but the memory of Dominic spending weeks in the ICU afterward still haunted him. Now Dominic wanted to confront Evelyn again when their last conflict remained unresolved. Was he deliberately walking into the same disaster?

Adrian's hands trembled. Unable to stop Dominic himself, he dashed to find Lucas and Sophie.

"He only had one drink," Lucas analyzed with calm precision. "He can't possibly be that intoxicated."

"But Evelyn explicitly said she doesn't want to see him!" Sophie countered, her voice tight with anxiety. "She told me this herself! No, I have to stop him!"

Sophie made to rush upstairs, but Adrian and Lucas each grabbed one of her arms, holding her back.

"Wait, Sophie. Let me check on them first." Lucas worried that if Sophie intervened, the entire household would know what was happening. Dominic had already humiliated himself once; Lucas wanted to preserve what little dignity his friend had left.

"Let Lucas handle this!" Adrian pulled Sophie into a firm embrace. "Don't worry, nothing serious will happen as long as Lucas is there."

Meanwhile, on the second floor...

Evelyn stepped out of the shower wrapped in a white silk robe.

Having slept most of the day and enjoyed a satisfying dinner, she felt refreshed after her shower. So when she saw Dominic standing before her, she didn't doubt her eyes or think it a hallucination.

Dominic closed the distance between them in three long strides, his gaze burning into her. "You're starving yourself for Eric?"

The absurdity of his accusation made her blink.

She understood each word perfectly, yet the implication was ridiculous. That she would alter her eating habits for any man's approval? Preposterous!

'What kind of twisted logic produced that assumption? Do I need to change myself for a man's attention? Besides, if I wanted Eric, I wouldn't need to lose weight - he's never once commented on my appearance!' she fumed silently.

"Dominic, have you been drinking?" She wrinkled her nose at the alcohol fumes surrounding him. "Have you forgotten you're still recovering? Drinking now... are you trying to sabotage your own health?"

"Why won't you answer my question?" His jaw clenched as his patience evaporated. "You have no right to criticize when you look like death warmed over."

'Death warmed over? How dare he!' The insult burned through her restraint.

Evelyn had intended to avoid confrontation, still guilty about their last violent encounter. But Dominic's provocation shattered her resolve.

"Who I diet for is none of your concern." Evelyn pointed sharply toward the door, her voice icy. "Get out!"

Dominic's temper ignited at her dismissive gesture.

"Does he know about us?" Dominic sneered, his voice dripping with malice. "Would your precious Eric still want you if he knew we've been sharing a bed?"