Overbearing CEO's Contract Love
Chapter 446: Grounded Again

Chapter 446: Grounded Again

Despite feeling unhappy, life had to go on. Emma Hart still woke up in the morning and prepared everything for Damien Sterling as usual.

A low, hoarse voice came from behind her, "You don’t need to go to the office today."

"What?" Emma Hart exclaimed, turning her head to look at Damien Sterling, a puzzled expression on her face.

"You shouldn’t go to the office for now," Damien Sterling said calmly.

"When can I go back?" Emma Hart wasn’t truly eager to go to work; she was just scared by Damien Sterling’s sudden change.

"That’s hard to say," Damien Sterling replied coldly.

"So, you’re going to keep me locked up at home?" Emma Hart’s mood soured. The thought of being confined again by Damien Sterling brought her great distress.

"You better behave and stay put at home this time." His words, like those of a demon, deeply pierced Emma Hart, reminding her of the exact words he had used when he first imprisoned her.

"I won’t accept this," Emma Hart said bluntly, voicing her thoughts. How could this man have the right to treat her this way?

Unexpectedly, Damien Sterling’s anger flared, and he tightly grasped Emma Hart’s throat. "You know what you’ve done. If you have any sense left, you’d understand you should stay away from other men." From his words, Emma Hart could tell that he knew about her interactions with Matthew Taylor almost completely.

However, she had never intended to cheat. Damien Sterling’s accusation felt like a needle piercing her heart.

"I understand," Emma Hart struggled to say these four words from her nearly suffocated throat. Only then did he release his grip on her.

As expected. Over the past year, Emma Hart had come to understand this man well, almost grasping his every mood.

"I’m off to work. Stay home and behave," Damien Sterling’s voice whispered in her ear like a ghost.

She nodded, using her hands to soothe her throat where he had just strangled her.

Mrs. Harris, who had been hiding in the kitchen, only came out to comfort Emma Hart after hearing Damien Sterling’s loud closing of the door. "Are you okay, child?" Her words brought a hint of warmth to Emma Hart.

Mrs. Harris quickly helped the collapsed Emma Hart up, who was now deeply trapped in a nightmare-like state of mind.

"Mrs. Harris, I never intended to betray Damien Sterling. But why is he treating me this way?" Hadn’t the past year been enough to build a bridge of trust between them? What kind of marriage was this, then?

Emma Hart couldn’t help but burst into tears, and no matter how Mrs. Harris tried to comfort her, it was of no use.

Damien Sterling sat in his car, a rare moment of appreciating the street scenery. He envied the couples walking hand-in-hand, laughing and playing. Deep down, he knew it wasn’t Emma Hart’s fault, but his intense possessiveness warned him that if he didn’t lock her up, she might leave him. He couldn’t bear the thought of that day coming.

Inside the Sterling family villa, Emma Hart finally managed to pull herself together and eagerly joined Mrs. Harris and the maids in doing housework. She wanted to numb her nerves with exhaustion.

Just then, the annoying sound of the phone rang again. It was her unreliable brother.

"Make it quick," Emma Hart snapped. She was at her breaking point, and the fact that she didn’t start swearing at Max was already very considerate of her.

"Sis, are you financially comfortable lately?" Max asked cautiously.

But his words already hit a sensitive nerve in Emma Hart. She immediately started to scold Max harshly.

Despite this, Max continued to apologize humbly and beg for money.

"I don’t believe that Grandma could spend so much money in such a short time. Tell me, what exactly are you using the money for?" Although Grandma was a gambler and a big spender, she couldn’t possibly need thousands every few days. Plus, Max had never been this polite before. His behavior made Emma Hart deeply suspicious.

"I don’t care. If you don’t tell me what you spent the money on, I won’t lend you any more." Emma Hart wanted to give Max no room for negotiation.

Hearing his sister say this, Max became truly desperate. He pleaded on the other end of the phone, "Sis, please help me. Just give me the money, or I can’t go on living." His voice dropped to a whisper on that last sentence, as if afraid someone might hear him.

Emma Hart’s heart softened. She always ended up giving in to her family. "Alright, how much do you need?" she sighed deeply.

"30,000, sis, just 30,000!" Max exclaimed, his hope rekindled.

"Fine, I’ll send it right away. But this is the last time, at least for this month," Emma Hart said helplessly.

Without waiting for Max’s response, she hung up and immediately transferred 30,000 to his account. Emma Hart couldn’t help but mock herself for being such a fool. Why was she so frugal with her own money, only to end up sending it all into the bottomless pit of the Hart family?

On the other side, Max received the transfer notification and nearly jumped for joy. He excitedly shouted to those around him, "Look! I have the money! Let my grandma go!"

The man next to Max gestured to his subordinates, and an elderly woman, her hands tied with a long red cloth and suspended in mid-air, was freed from the rafters of a small dark room. Max rushed to her side, crying out with his hoarse voice, "Are you alright, Grandma? Please wake up!"

Before Max could touch his grandma, a large man dumped a bucket of cold water over both of them. Grandma Hart coughed violently and slowly sat up.

Max, shivering and with his eyes tightly shut, wished that when he opened them, none of this would have happened.

The man who had been standing beside Max walked over with a sneer, gripping Max’s chin. "We’ll see you next week," he said with a malicious grin.

Max helped his frail grandmother walk back to their dilapidated apartment building. The place they had just left was an illegal factory, only a few miles from their shabby home.

Once they arrived, the first thing they did was strip off their soaked clothes and take a shower. Then, they hid under the covers in fear, doing nothing else.

That night, Damien Sterling did not come home to sleep again. Emma Hart turned on all the lights in the room and played videos on her phone. Only then could she barely manage to fall asleep.

Emma Hart had a nightmare. She dreamed she had lost everything and was deeply in debt. In her despair, she went to the seaside to drown herself. She woke up at that moment, finding her pillow drenched with tears.

She sat up helplessly, looking at the brightly lit yet empty bedroom, feeling a wave of fear.

Emma Hart, shivering with fright, curled up under the blanket but still couldn’t sleep. She decided to move to the couch in the baby’s room to spend the night with the children.

So, Emma Hart took a small blanket from the wardrobe and, carrying it, tiptoed to the baby’s room. Just as she was about to open the door, the door to the guest room opposite the baby’s room opened. The room’s light was still on, and Damien Sterling, dressed in a dark blue silk robe, appeared before her.

"Mr. Sterling," Emma Hart whispered.

"It’s late, why aren’t you asleep?" Damien Sterling’s voice was low and hoarse. His face was pale, and dark circles had formed around his eyes from staying up late.

"I couldn’t sleep and wanted to be with the kids," Emma Hart replied softly.

"Do you want to be with the kids, or do you want the kids to be with you?" Damien Sterling snorted, laughing.

Emma Hart lowered her head. This man was so strange. He was fierce in the morning and now showed concern for her. His hot and cold attitude was hard to bear.

"Mr. Sterling, you should get some rest," Emma Hart said, pushing open the door to the baby’s room to go inside.

Damien Sterling stepped forward, grabbed Emma Hart’s arm, and pulled her into his room.

With a bang, the door closed.

"What are you doing!" Emma Hart shouted, frowning.

"Do you really not want to see me?" Damien Sterling pressed Emma Hart against the door, sneering.

"Come on, it’s you who didn’t want to see me," Emma Hart said, turning her head away. She didn’t want to look into Damien Sterling’s cold, deep eyes that both scared and mesmerized her.

"When did I say I didn’t want to see you?" Damien Sterling said with a bitter smile. He was only angry at Matthew Taylor.

"Then why haven’t you slept in the room for two days?" Emma Hart suddenly shouted.

"Shh! Don’t wake the kids," Damien Sterling said as he picked up Emma Hart.

"What are you doing! Put me down!" Emma Hart yelled, kicking her feet wildly in the air.

Damien Sterling gently patted her butt and said, "You boarded the pirate ship and now want to get off? No way." With a sudden movement, he threw Emma Hart onto the bed, then leaned down and bit her earlobe. Emma felt a jolt of electricity spread from her ear to her entire body.

After an intense workout, the tension between them gradually dissipated. Emma Hart, as usual, turned her back to Damien Sterling to sleep. Suddenly, Damien turned Emma around and held her tightly in his arms, whispering in her ear, "Emma, don’t leave me."

Emma’s drowsiness vanished. She hugged Damien’s sturdy waist, her head pressed against his chest. She could clearly feel each beat of his heart.

Tonight was filled with a strong sense of security. Emma reflected on the past two days spent alone in the large bed, which had been torturous. If the world could stop at this moment, without the troublesome people and things, just the two of them embracing each other, how wonderful that would be.

That evening, they attended a charity gala hosted by the Turner family. Damien, bringing Emma along, felt utterly bored by these events, which happened three to four times a month. These so-called charity galas were just gatherings for the wealthy to chat and build connections.

Suddenly, Riley Turner, dressed in a white dress and eight-centimeter high heels, approached Emma.

"Emma, Mr. Sterling, welcome to our company’s event," Riley said politely, extending her hand.

"Thank you, Riley. I still haven’t properly thanked you for that meal last time. We should get together again soon," Emma replied.

"Absolutely!" Riley smiled back.

"Riley, where’s your father? We need to greet him," Damien asked.

"He’s just over there. I’ll take you to him. You’re in luck, Grandpa Sterling just arrived too," Riley said, leading Emma by the arm toward the other side of the hall.

As they walked, many people acknowledged Damien with nods and bows. A few brave ones approached to toast him, but he politely declined, having learned from past incidents involving alcohol. Now, he avoided drinking whenever Emma was around.

Soon, they saw two distinguished elderly men. "Damien, Emma, come over here!" Mr. Sterling Senior warmly greeted them. Mr. Turner, standing beside him, also waved enthusiastically.

"Grandpa, Mr. Turner, it’s been a while," Emma greeted them politely.

"Good, good," Riley responded, while Mr. Sterling Senior, slightly inebriated, nodded seriously. Having drunk a lot, he was already quite tipsy. Reluctantly, Damien and Emma decided to take him home early.

In the car, Damien drove while Emma took care of Mr. Sterling Senior. He babbled incoherently, and neither could make out his words. Suddenly, he raised his right hand, waving it in the air and muttering something repeatedly. Thinking he wanted water, Emma brought a bottle to his lips, asking, "Grandpa, do you want some water?"

But Mr. Sterling Senior remained unresponsive, continuing his murmuring.

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