My First Love Died, Now My Step Uncle Wants Me-Chapter 10: Drunk

’No, I can’t stay here!’

Nina Wynn didn’t dare look up. Lowering her gaze, she reminded him softly, "Uncle, I haven’t finished my work yet."

She meant that she wanted to go out and continue working.

Caleb Rhodes’s gaze lingered on her soft lips for a second before drifting down to her fine figure, wrapped tightly in the cheongsam.

The thought of the other men’s eyes on her out there made a sudden rage flare up inside him. "Why did you take this kind of job at the university?"

Nina Wynn didn’t dare look up at him. Keeping her head down, she said quietly, "This is the kind of work all interns do."

She didn’t tell him that to secure a recommendation for graduate school, she had to complete all tasks assigned by the university. Today, she not only had to give a presentation but also close a deal.

Caleb Rhodes frowned. "You can do your internship at my company. Report for work tomorrow."

Nina Wynn had no intention of defying him. She nodded obediently, going along with his wishes. "Okay, thank you, Uncle."

Caleb Rhodes seemed quite pleased with her answer. He said nothing more and turned to leave the break room.

The moment he left, Nina Wynn took a deep breath.

She touched her burning red ears. ’That was dangerous!’

’This Caleb Rhodes is really too much to handle.’

’I wonder how much of what I said he actually believed.’

But it didn’t matter whether he believed her or not. A man as high and mighty and busy as him wouldn’t have time to bother with a nobody like her, who had almost no connection to the Rhodes Family.

Thinking of this, she breathed a sigh of relief.

「Time flew, and before she knew it, evening had arrived.」

That night, in a private room.

A group of university administrators were all smiles as they offered toasts. Caleb Rhodes responded to them with polite indifference.

Before long, Willson Lawson came in and whispered a few words in his ear.

Caleb Rhodes’s expression shifted slightly. He stood up, offered an apology, and walked straight out of the room.

Willson Lawson followed behind him and said in a low voice, "It seems to be a task assigned by the university. Miss Wynn needs to get Mr. Hale’s signature on a contract to have a chance at being recommended for graduate school. Mr. Hale is using that as leverage and has forced her to drink a lot. The situation is looking rather grim."

Caleb Rhodes stopped in his tracks, his tone frigid. "Which Mr. Hale?"

"Norman Hale, the eldest son of the Hale Family. He’s a director at Veritas Pharmaceuticals and one of the investors this time."

Caleb Rhodes’s eyes were sharp. "Who the hell does he think he is?"

As they spoke, they arrived at the door of another private room, and Willson Lawson pushed it open.

The heavy stench of alcohol hit them in the face. The floor was littered with spilled liquor and shards of glass, leaving no clean place to step.

In the middle of the mess, Norman Hale had his arm around Nina Wynn on the sofa. The liquor bottle in his hand glinted harshly as he waved it around.

He shoved the bottle into Nina Wynn’s hand, his smile grotesque. "Drink. Drink this, and I’ll sign."

Nina Wynn’s small face was deathly pale, but her lips were as red as dripping blood. It was clear she had already had a lot to drink and was feeling extremely unwell.

Indeed, she had drunk at least half a liter of baijiu, and now she could barely even see Norman Hale’s face.

"Mr... Mr. Hale, I’m begging you, please let us go..."

Norman Hale roared with laughter, pointing at two other girls who had already passed out on their chairs. "These two are lightweights. You’re the only one left who can drink. If you don’t, who will? If you don’t drink, they won’t be able to complete their task either."

He suddenly gripped Nina Wynn’s chin, his voice vicious. "Did you think I didn’t recognize you? You’re Nina Wynn, right? That time at Nightshade Bar, I ordered three bottles of wine worth over a million and asked you to keep me company, but you disrespected me in front of all my buddies. People are still laughing at me for not being able to pick up a bar girl."

He clicked his tongue. "And it turns out you’re a Jinton University student, the campus belle, I hear. Why pretend to be so pure? Aren’t you just selling yourself anyway?"

With that, he lifted the bottle and began to pour the liquor into Nina Wynn’s mouth.

Suddenly, a powerful hand seized his wrist.

"Where the hell did this dog come from, daring to meddle in my business?"

Norman Hale was furious and tried to pull his hand away, but the grip was like an iron vise, holding him immobile.

Norman Hale was used to being arrogant and domineering; he’d never been treated this way. He instantly cursed, "Get off me! I’ll fucking cripple you!"

He snapped his head up, ready to throw a punch, only to see a vaguely familiar face.

It was an incredibly noble-looking man, watching him with an expression of extreme coldness.

The man’s eyes held a piercing chill, and the overwhelming pressure radiating from him was so intense that Norman Hale barely dared to meet his gaze.

Norman Hale froze. His scalp tingled, and he sobered up instantly. His tongue started to trip over itself. "Th-Third Lord Master..."

’Damn it, who the hell led the Grim Reaper here?’

After all, even the princelings of Elysian City were sorted into different ranks.

And it was obvious that Caleb Rhodes was one of the few at the very top of that pyramid, while Norman Hale had barely scraped his way into the circle. He couldn’t afford to provoke Caleb Rhodes in the slightest.

All the rumors about Caleb Rhodes flashed through his mind.

Especially the one from a few days ago, about someone in their circle who spoke a little too freely at the Rhodes Family’s place and had his head smashed open by Caleb Rhodes himself.

He’d heard the guy needed over thirty stitches and was still laid up in the hospital. What’s more, the man’s father had been inexplicably demoted several ranks and transferred out of Elysian City.

The thought of all this made Norman Hale so terrified he could barely speak properly. He stammered, "Th-Th-Third Lord Master... W-what brings you here?"

Caleb Rhodes didn’t speak, merely staring at him coldly.

Under that gaze, Norman Hale felt the ground drop out from under him.

His body trembled. Just as he was about to speak, Caleb Rhodes suddenly gripped his five fingers, narrowed his eyes, and squeezed.

After a few sharp CRACKS, he snapped all five of his fingers.

Norman Hale let out a muffled cry of pain, his eyes rolling back in his head as he collapsed toward the floor.

But even in such agony, Norman Hale didn’t dare to scream. He just endured the excruciating pain, beads of cold sweat on his brow, and stared at Caleb Rhodes in terror.

Caleb Rhodes’s icy gaze swept over Norman Hale’s face like a razor. "Get out."

As if granted a pardon, Norman Hale scrambled to his feet and ran. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

He had just reached the door when Caleb Rhodes’s voice, as cold as a god of death’s, rang out: "Stop."

Terrified, Norman Hale trembled all over, standing frozen at the door, not daring to turn back.

Caleb Rhodes narrowed his eyes, twisting the silver ring on his finger. He uttered a simple, chilling command: "You are not to see a doctor before tomorrow morning."

Those few words struck Norman Hale like knives. The pain was so intense he almost lost control of his bladder, but he didn’t dare to disobey. He stammered, "Yes, Third Lord Master!"

"Get out!"

Just then, Nina Wynn, who had been slumped on the sofa, stirred. She let out a soft whimper and looked up dazedly at Caleb Rhodes, her eyes unfocused.

Caleb Rhodes stared down at her, the storm in his eyes gathering and deepening.

Nina Wynn’s palm-sized face was completely devoid of color, yet her lips were glistening and rosy, unbearably tempting.

Caleb Rhodes’s gaze lingered on her glistening lips for a few seconds before his dark eyes traveled down, inch by inch.

Her already form-fitting cheongsam was now soaked with alcohol. The thin, damp fabric revealed tantalizing patches of her jade-like skin.

With every inch his gaze traveled, his expression darkened, and the storm brewing within his eyes grew heavier.

’Is this what she’s like when she’s drunk?’

Caleb Rhodes’s eyes grew even darker. He stepped forward and pulled her up from the sofa, but Nina Wynn was completely unsteady on her feet and fell directly into his arms.