𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞

Chapter 38

Zaidan's POV

I watched from behind a tree as my heart ached, witnessing my wife pour out her emotions in her brother's embrace. Moments later, they departed in their car, leaving me with a heavy burden.

I gently caressed my chest, feeling the pain resonate within. I would endure a thousand slaps if it meant she wouldn't leave my side. It was my fault, once again causing her pain. I struggle to forgive myself for the mistakes I've made. If only I had the maturity to confess that I never betrayed her. I distanced myself to shield from the pain, resorting to lies about other women. But in reality, my thoughts were consumed solely by her. And now, I've lost her.

Frustration overwhelmed me as I yanked at my hair and unleashed my anger on the tree, my knuckles meeting its bark. With determination, I made my way back to my house, adorned in my black leather gloves. My gaze pierced through Titan, who had allowed Kinza and the blonde girl entry. But dealing with him could wait; for now, I had to confront Kinza.

"Where do you think you're going?" I stood in front of Kinza, who was trying to sneak out. She looked up, a smirk forming on her lips. It took every ounce of self-control for me not to grab her by the hair and toss her out from my house.

"Well, my work here is done, so why should I stay? Or perhaps you really want to spend the night with me," she began to say, but before she could finish her sentence, I grabbed her by the hair and tugged it, causing her to scream in pain. "What work?" I gritted through clenched teeth.

When I entered my house, Titan failed to inform me about any visitors, and he will pay for that. I had a feeling that something was amiss, that someone was here when I reached my bedroom. And I was right, because there sat Kinza on my bed, and it made me furious. I should have immediately thrown her out instead of wasting time arguing with her. As I paced my room, contemplating how to remove her without physical contact, she deliberately placed her foot in front of me, causing me to trip and fall right on top of her. Fortunately, I managed to avoid touching her, but my wife saw the whole thing and got the wrong idea.

And out of nowhere, the blonde girl also appeared, making the already messed up situation even more chaotic. "My work of ruining your marriage!" She tightly grasped my arm as I pulled her hair with even more force. "Remember what your bodyguard did to me when I met you and your pathetic wife at the shopping mall?" I firmly held her chin, making her look directly at me. "Let me make one thing crystal clear: you disrespect my wife, you get tortured until you beg for your own death. And what my bodyguard did to you—slapping you, warning you, and leaving you stranded in the middle of nowhere, two hours away from your house and in the cold—was nothing compared to what I had planned to do." I twisted her hair and glanced at the blonde girl who was looking at me in fear.

"And you're the pathetic one, not my wife." I escorted her out and pushed her away from my gatehouse. "Lia!" Kinza shouted the blonde girl's name. She quickly came beside her and helped her off the ground. "You'll pay for everything, Zaidan Malik! My father won't forgive you for what you did to me." She glanced at me with pure hatred in her eyes before scurrying off.

I turned to Titan who looked at me fearfully. "Boss, I didn't–" I grabbed his collar and angrily stared at him. "How the hell did you make this mistake?"

"Boss, I-I genuinely didn't know she was your cousin. She had completely transformed her appearance and claimed that her life, as well as her friend's, was in grave danger. They pleaded for your help," he stammered out. "Her makeup was so dramatically different that she was unrecognizable," he added, his voice filled with remorse. I released my grip on him, attempting to regain control of my anger.