Chapter 4

Beatrice had initially pretended to be asleep, but in the end, she had genuinely dozed off.

Eleanor was also in a daze, her eyes glassy from the alcohol.

Sebastian looked at the two inebriated women and sighed helplessly. He gestured to the Nocturne Floor Manager to arrange a ride home for Beatrice.

Then, Sebastian simply scooped Eleanor up into his arms and carried her outside.

She grabbed Sebastian's collar and squinted her drunken eyes, trying to get a closer look at him. However, she was so intoxicated that she felt dizzy, and the figure in front of her eyes kept swaying.

Annoyed, she raised a hand to hold Sebastian's cheek. Eleanor muttered in displeasure, "Stop moving around. If you keep shaking your two or three heads, I won't be able to see you clearly."

Two or three heads...

Sebastian was speechless. He let her hold his face steady as he climbed into the back of the car.

His driver, Hayes, was stunned for a moment, but calmly started the engine.

"Sir, where to?"

Sebastian gently pulled Eleanor's hand away and asked in a low voice, "Where do you live?"

"My home? Let me think about it..."

Eleanor tilted her head, pondering the question seriously. Suddenly, her eyes widened, and she pointed an accusatory finger at Sebastian.

"Why are you asking me where I live and what I do! Let me tell you, I'm very much on my guard. Don't think you can follow me to my flat and try something funny. If you dare to get any wicked ideas, I promise to beat you to a pulp! I've trained in martial arts, hmph!"

Sebastian looked down at the petite woman whose soft body was currently leaning heavily against his chest. He secretly decided that he would have to keep a close eye on her in the future. Otherwise, if she got this drunk and was sold off by human traffickers, where would he ever find this cute little woman again?

"If you don't tell me where you live, how can I take you home?"

Eleanor frowned and considered his logic.

"Well, what you said makes sense. I live in Flat 4B, Maple Court, on High Street!"

She had simply and neatly exposed her exact address in complete detail.

Sebastian was speechless. Hayes let out a burst of laughter from the front seat, but received a sharp glare from Sebastian a second later.

"Sir, this young lady's sense of self-preservation is... ahem... truly impenetrable!"

A smile flashed in Sebastian's eyes as he looked down at the girl, who was curled up against him like a drunken kitten. A sense of protectiveness surged in his heart. Although this protective urge was entirely different from how he felt looking after Theo, he found that it wasn't a bad feeling at all.

She squirmed around for a while, found a more comfortable position to lie in, and offered a sweet, lazy smile to Sebastian. She looked thoroughly drunk and incredibly cute.

Sebastian's eyes darkened. He hesitated for a moment, deciding it was best to just ask.

He stared at Eleanor, lowering his head to speak slowly near her ear.

"Eleanor, who is James?"

He had wanted to ask this question ever since he heard Beatrice mention the name back in the bar. However, he was a reserved man; naturally, such a private question should only be asked when no one else was around.

Her misty eyes clouded with sadness, and she smiled bitterly. Her small hands unconsciously gripped Sebastian's shirt, her mouth pulling into a pout as if she were about to cry.

"If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to!" Sebastian blurted out. He didn't want to admit it, but in that moment, his heart genuinely ached for her.

Eleanor offered a hazy, distant smile.

"There's nothing I can't say, it's just a man. Vows of eternal love couldn't satisfy his desire for wealth and fame. He went off to find a shortcut to the top and threw away his promises to me. The funny thing is, his shortcut to the top is actually my... it's my... my..."

"Your what?" Sebastian asked instinctively. He leaned in closer, waiting for Eleanor to finish her sentence.

"It's my... bleugh!"

Sebastian's entire body went stiff. He looked down at the girl lying in his arms as she proceeded to throw up all over him.

After a long moment, he raised his head stiffly.

"Hayes. Top speed to the nearest hotel!"

Sebastian booked a suite and asked a female member of staff to help Eleanor get cleaned up, while he went to another room to wash the sick off himself.

He couldn't help but smile wryly while rinsing off in the shower. It seemed this woman really knew how to test his limits.

If anyone else had put him in such an embarrassing situation, he would have definitely thrown them out onto the street. But with this little girl, he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

After taking a shower, Sebastian stepped out wearing a bathrobe.

On the bed, Eleanor had already been cleaned up and was sleeping soundly, hugging the duvet. Her long black hair was spread messily across the white sheets, revealing a palm-sized face. She was a restless sleeper, yet she still managed to look incredibly sweet and lovely.

Sebastian looked down at her, then unconsciously sat on the edge of the bed. He reached out and gently stroked Eleanor's small face.

The skin beneath his fingertips was soft and firm; the feeling was exquisite.

"Mum, don't disturb me, let me sleep for a while..."

She frowned, muttered something, and raised a hand to bat Sebastian's hand away before turning over to continue sleeping.

As she turned, her already rumpled nightdress became even messier. Under the loose neckline, her collarbone and a small expanse of soft, pale skin on her chest were exposed.

Sebastian's eyes darkened.

This woman really had no sense of danger. She had gotten drunk at a bar, been carried away by a man, and now she was sleeping completely defenceless.

Because it was him today, she was safe. If it had been any other man, they definitely wouldn't have missed this opportunity to take advantage of her.

"Eleanor, you idiot!"

Muttering in annoyance, Sebastian pinched Eleanor's cheek in dissatisfaction. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to look away from the pale skin of her neck.

It was taking a bit of restraint. Sebastian suppressed the throbbing in his chest and let out a breath. However, he had no intention of taking advantage of her.

Although he thought Eleanor was perfectly suited to be Theo's stepmother, he didn't plan on acting like a beast when she had drunk too much.

Of course, the 'pure and honourable' Sebastian had forgotten the old joke: a man who takes advantage of a drunk woman is a beast, but a man who doesn't is worse than a beast!

"James, you bastard..."

She muttered again, tossing and turning for a moment, tears glistening in the corners of her eyes.

Sebastian's eyes fell on the crystal-like tears. He hesitated for a moment, then raised a hand to gently wipe them away.

She opened her eyes in a daze and saw a figure sitting next to her. Against the light, she couldn't see his features clearly, only his dark, intense eyes.

She sat up suddenly and, without a word, pushed Sebastian directly back onto the bed.

Her body pressed against Sebastian's, her slender white fingers pointing accusingly at his chest. Her beautiful eyes looked somewhat sober but were completely out of focus.

"James, you are a bastard. Are you going after Cassandra just because she slept with you? Don't think I don't know that you hooked up with her in the first place because she put out! You bastard, we were together for three years, and you ran off to cheat on me just because I wouldn't sleep with you. Well, you bastard, I'm going to sleep with you today and drain you dry! Let's see if you dare to go out and fool around after that!"

Eleanor was truly drunk, rambling in her daze.

What's more, her hands unceremoniously grabbed Sebastian's bathrobe and forcefully pulled it open.

Under the light, his honey-coloured chest was exposed. His muscle lines were smooth and defined, and his firm abdominal muscles could be clearly seen further down.

Eleanor sat up straight suddenly and pulled the bathrobe wide open.

"One, two, three... eight! Damn it, you actually have an eight-pack! My god!"

As she counted, Eleanor's hands traced right over them.

She hadn't expected James's abdominal muscles to be so perfectly sculpted. She couldn't keep her hands off them; she simply couldn't get enough!