Titus Zane ate only half a bowl of rice before putting down his utensils.
He picked up a tissue and gently wiped the corners of his mouth, his gaze lowered.
"I’m done. You all take your time."
With that, he stood up and walked toward the stairs.
"Nathan, did you notice something strange about Titus today?" Olivia Zane frowned as she turned to watch Titus’s retreating figure.
"Mm," came a nasal hum. It was just a single syllable, but his indifference was unmistakable.
Olivia turned back to look at Nathan Moore, who was leisurely eating his dinner, his handsome face devoid of any particular expression.
Standing by the large bed, Titus Zane looked at the sheets, soaked completely with cold water, his face as composed and aloof as ever.
During his shower, he had racked his brain but couldn’t figure out what he had done to provoke Nathan Moore once again—what could have triggered this extreme method of being woken up.
At the thought of the word "extreme," a cold, bitter sneer flashed across Titus’s heart.
Actually, thinking hard about it now, had there ever been a single punishment from him that wasn’t extreme?
It seemed like, in Nathan’s dictionary, there was no "most extreme," only "more extreme."
Letting out a quiet sigh, Titus reached out to lift the wet sheets. His head still throbbed terribly, and he had no energy left. At this moment, he didn’t want to think about anything. He just wanted to lie down and have a good night’s sleep.
Titus yanked off the drenched sheets and bedding. Before even heading downstairs, he called out loudly.
"Auntie Liu, can you get me some clean bedding?"
"Oh, coming, coming," Auntie Liu called back as she jogged out from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron, a smile on her face as she replied.
"Miss, please wait a moment. I’ll go get you a fresh set right away."
"Don’t you dare!" The man at the dining table, still eating unhurriedly, looked up. One hand held his rice bowl, the other gripped his chopsticks. Though he was speaking to Auntie Liu, his sharp, menacing gaze was locked onto Titus.
"Huh?" Auntie Liu froze mid-step, turning back in surprise, thinking she had misheard him.
"I said, don’t you dare."
Nathan repeated himself, his handsome face clouded with gloom. His threatening gaze had now shifted to Auntie Liu.
"But Miss Titus, she..."
Auntie Liu pointed at the figure standing frozen mid-staircase, clutching the wet bedding, intending to plead on their behalf.
Though summer was approaching, the nights were still unbearably cold. Without a blanket, one couldn’t get through the night, let alone sleep on soaked bedding...
Nathan cast a fleeting glance at Titus, then retracted his gaze, continuing to eat methodically.
"Let him sleep on that bedding. Without some punishment, how will he remember today’s lesson properly?"
Auntie Liu couldn’t help but feel sorry for Titus, punished for drinking too much. On such a cold night, and so soon after finishing a confinement month, his body was already fragile. Catching a chill was minor, but what about the possibility of leaving lasting health issues?
"What? Are you saying that Titus’s status in your eyes is higher than mine, the master of the house?" Nathan’s cold, scornful interrogation instantly silenced Auntie Liu from pleading further.
She lowered her head and muttered reluctantly, "No, sir."
"If not, then go back to the kitchen and get on with your work!" Nathan’s voice rose, his displeasure evident, and even carried a warning intent, as if to make an example of her.
"This household has no room for saviors!"
"Understood, sir." Auntie Liu replied in a low voice, turning away. As she headed for the kitchen, she stole one last glance at Titus, standing in the middle of the staircase clutching the bedding, before lowering her head and disappearing into the kitchen.
Standing on the stairs, Titus’s fingers, gripping the wet bedding, had turned bloodless from the force.
A voice echoed faintly in his mind, saying, "Titus, as long as there’s a way for you to suffer, I’ll never let you off the hook..."
Titus bit his bottom lip so hard it had lost all color. Raising his gaze, he looked through the gaps of the staircase railing at the man sitting at the table.
He truly didn’t know whether he should feel despair or relief.
Nathan’s hatred for him was something he’d known all along. But in his naïveté, he had never thought that the man would actually torment him .
"What’s the matter? Waiting for me to come upstairs and help you make the bed again?"
A cold voice sliced through the air. Titus released his injured lower lip, taking a deep breath to suppress the fury rising in his chest.
He responded icily, "No need." After finishing his words, he turned around with the bedding and headed back in silence.