Chapter 16 Celeste clenched her fists . " I thought I made myself very clear , Mr. Ashford . There will be nothing more between us . " [ ] She took a deep breath , not wanting to dance around it anymore , leaving no room for ambiguity . She bit her lip and said , " I have a boyfriend now . My boyfriend and I are very happy together . Please stop bothering me . " Dominic stared at her intently , then suddenly said , " Your boyfriend - is this him ? " ] Celeste froze . The mirrored wall beside them suddenly became one - way glass . From this side , they could clearly see into the adjacent room . A frail - looking young man sat trembling on a sofa , surrounded by large men in black . Adrian stood before them , head lowered , speaking to them . [ ] One of the men laughed cruelly and smashed a liquor bottle against the wall . Flying shards left a shallow cut on Adrian's cheek . [ ] Celeste's heart constricted violently . She walked over , staring at Adrian . His expression was blank , almost detached , but the blood on his cheek stained the collar of his white shirt , shockingly vivid . [ ] want ? " Celeste turned back to Dominic . " What exactly do you want ? Tm here to help him . " [ ] Dominic walked to Celeste's side , watching her distressed expression , eyes narrowing slightly . [ ] " His brother owes twenty million in debt . The Ashford family's entire assets are barely worth ten million . Tell His brother owes twenty million in debt . The Ashford family's entire assets are barely worth ten million . Tell me , should I help him or not ? " ] Celeste bit down hard . " I never knew you'd stoop to such despicable tactics , Mr. Ashford . " ] " Despicable ? " Dominic gave a cold laugh . His expression suddenly turned icy , dark eyes filled with barely restrained fury . [ ] " Maybe you never really knew me at all . That's why you thought you could just run away from me . " He reached out , gripped her chin , and forced her to look away from Adrian , to look only at him . [ ] Celeste clenched her fists . She tried to pull away . The next moment , Dominic lowered his head and crushed his lips against hers . ] In the suffocating silence , Dominic's voice was cold and overwhelming . " Celeste Wren , you are mine ! " ] Celeste's face went deathly pale . She shoved Dominic away violently . " Dominic Ashford ! She looked up angrily to see Dominic standing before her , watching her calmly . [ ] The dazzling lights fell across his features - exactly as they had the first time she'd seen him . [ ] The fury in her chest suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon . She staggered back a step . She leaned against the one - way mirror and slowly covered her eyes . [ ] " Dominic , I'm begging you . Please let me go . " ]] She really didn't want to go back to the past . She really didn't want to live that way again . ] Staying in an apartment , waiting for one person to come home . [ ] Jake a bird in a gilded cage , waiting for her master's affection . Everyone said she was different . She was the one who looked most like a real canary among all the " canaries . " [ ] But only she knew there was no difference . No difference at all ] ] They were all just rotting in the same filth , sinking deeper , unable to climb out ... [ ] Now she finally escaped . She could finally be someone's equal . She really didn't want to go back [ ] Celeste reached out and slowly grabbed Dominic's cullar , her voice almost pleading " Dominte , please let me go " [ ] Chapter 16 Dominic looked down at the tears streaming down her face . His chest felt like it had been struck by a sledgehammer . [ ] His hands clenched into fists at his sides . After a long moment , he finally spoke . " Fine . I'll let you go . " Celeste froze and looked up sharply . Dominic's dark eyes stared deep into hers . [ ] " Break up with him , and I'll let you go . "