CHAPTER 922: ORION AND KATE (PART-2)

"You could have moved my heart a little, had to put up a fight," she said sharply, her voice low but firm. "If you’d fought with everything you had to protect your lady’s pride, gotten beaten up, hospitalized even... even if you had lost your limbs or been paralyzed, I would have been moved enough to serve you for the rest of my life, but no. You ended up as a fuc*ing coward who doesn’t even attempt to protect your lady. What if that intruder from yesterday turned out to be rap*st and sexually assaulted me? I bet you would simply run away or just stare at us..."

Mark’s anger reached a boiling point. His grip on her arm tightened and applied more force, trying to drag her from the seat. "Come with me, now..." Kate let herself be pulled, but her voice rang out, sharp and commanding, toward the third party who was watching the scene.

"What are you watching? A movie?" she said, her eyes narrowing at Orion. "Do your duty. Protect me..."

Orion blinked, momentarily caught off guard. "Uhh... what?"

Mark froze mid-motion, confusion and shock crossing his features.

Kate twisted in his grip, her tone incredulous. "Why are you standing there in silence when a man is assaulting me?"

"Assault?" Mark’s voice rose, startled, as he realized Orion’s calm but penetrating gaze.

Orion’s lips curved slightly. "He is your fiancé," he said simply.

Kate’s eyes narrowed, a spark of mischief and authority lighting them. "Does your service extend to my family and friends too?"

Orion shook his head. "No. I only protect you."

A sly smirk tugged at the corner of Kate’s lips as she leaned back slightly. "And didn’t I say that when the time comes, you even have to protect from my own fiancé?"

Orion raised an eyebrow, "Yes?"

"Throw him out," she then replied, almost growling in a command.

Mark’s face turned red with a mix of anger and disbelief. Kate’s gaze remained steady, unwavering, and Orion could only shake his head slightly at the sheer audacity of the woman he was sworn to protect.

Mark’s face contorted, a raw snarl tearing from his throat. "You fuc*ing bitch—" he spat, fury making his hand rise.

Before it could come down, Orion blurred. Fast and silent, he snapped forward and caught Mark’s wrist in a vise-like grip. His voice was low, cold as iron. "Leave it."

"Stay out of it—this is none of your business!" Mark growled, trying to wrench free.

Orion tightened his hold, fingers like steel. He spoke with quiet, absolute clarity. "As the lady said, I only work for her. For the next three days, she’s under my protection. If she says you’re a threat, then whether you’re fiancé, husband, or father, I’ll beat you to death."

For this, he didn’t need divine power to pressure his target. His mere bone strength was enough to lock onto Mark’s arm. Mark gasped at the force, resisted for a few seconds, but finally had to let go.

Orion then calmly stepped back and spoke with his eyes as hard as flint. "You heard the lady. Now, Get out."

Mark glared between them for a long, furious second, then spun and stormed away—each step heavy with bruised pride.

When the door closed behind him, Orion exhaled, a slow, controlled breath. He looked at Kate, "Was it necessary to humiliate him like that?"

Kate’s lips curved into an amused chuckle. "Did you think I offered you the job to coddle him?" she asked. Her eyes now looked quite playful, making him wonder which is the real her. He couldn’t help but ask, "Are you planning on using this as an excuse to rile him up until he destroys what little chance he has at keeping this marriage?"

Kate, however, laughed at his question. She shook her head, "He won’t break the engagement even if I slept with someone else."

Orion blinked, a wry smile tugging at his lips. "I guess your families are really desperate to marry you two."

Kate shrugged, her tone casual. "I guess." Then, her expression shifted slightly, a hint of irritation crossing her face. "Anyway, my mood’s soured. Wait here—I’ll freshen up. After that, we go out and have some fun. I really want to play those arcade games."

Orion nodded. "Sure. Whatever..."

She got up and took a couple of steps, but he quickly called out. "Stop."

Kate turned, curiosity flickering in her eyes. "What now?"

Orion took a step toward her and extended his hand.

"What?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Your arm," he said simply.

She extended it in curiousity, and he placed his hand gently over the skin, noticing the redness on her porcelain skin from the tight grip earlier. As he shut his eyes and poured his soul energy, he murmured. Heal."

The golden specks of light shimmered between his fingers.

Kate hissed softly at the sudden glow, but Orion’s calm voice soothed her. "It’s alright."

He let the soul energy flow and the swelling and redness slowly disappeared. The lingering pain faded, leaving her hand looking as good as new.

She looked at him, a mix of surprise and unreadable thoughts in her eyes.

Orion stepped back, a small, reassuring smile on his lips. "All good now. You can go."

Kate gave him a faint nod, an almost imperceptible smirk playing at the corner of her mouth, before she headed off to freshen up.

Kate closed the restroom door softly behind her and caught her reflection in the mirror. For a moment, she just stared—at her pale face, at the faint tremor still running through her hands.

Mark’s expression earlier replayed in her mind like a bad film: his clenched jaw, that ugly flare of possessive anger. She felt something tighten in her chest.

She splashed cold water on her face, the shock of it steadying her. When she pushed her hair back and looked again, her gaze fell to her hand. The skin there was smooth, unbruised—the redness gone. Orion’s touch, the strange, golden glow he’d used to mend her arm, hovered at the edge of her memory.

A small, private smile instinctively tugged at the corner of her mouth. "So, he isn’t just handsome and powerful, he also has kindness and caring on his side, too, huh?" However, after a pause, a thought appeared in her head, "Let’s test his character later, see if he is worthy of trust and friendship, too."

Meanwhile, outside the room, Mark slammed his palm against the marble wall hard enough to make the chandelier jitter. "You fu*king bitch..." he spat under his breath, breath ragged and hot. "You humiliate me in front of that easterner—your own future husband? You think you can treat me like that?"

His voice dropped to a low, dangerous rasp. "If I don’t teach you a lesson, I’m not Mark..." The words were a promise and a threat tangled together.

A while later, Kate stepped out of the hotel, the sun bouncing off the penthouse glass and catching in her blonde hair. The valet was hustling toward the car, opening doors and adjusting mirrors. Orion’s eyes, however, were fixed elsewhere.

The roar of a motorcycle broke the hotel’s quiet, and he came sliding to a stop beside the sleek black limousine. Kate turned, eyebrow raised, a little surprised.

"You’re not coming with me?" she asked, voice carrying equal parts curiosity and amusement. "Are you going to fly instead?"

Orion shook his head calmly. "You go ahead—I’ll ride my bike."

"Motorcycle?" Kate blinked. Then she glanced at him, and a mischievous smile tugged at her lips. Without another word, she strode past the limousine, looping an arm over his shoulder.

"All right," she said lightly, almost casually. "I’ll come with you."

Orion froze for half a heartbeat, surprise flickering across his face. "You really want to ride a motorcycle?"

She shrugged. "It’s not my first time."

He handed her the helmet he pulled from his backpack. "Here, take this. I don’t have a pair for you."

Kate raised an eyebrow, tilting her head. "What about you?"

Orion smirked faintly, sliding on his own helmet. "I’m a hunter. I don’t need to follow such safety steps."

She laughed softly, the sound carried in the morning air, and slid carefully behind him, gripping his waist lightly but firmly.

The motorcycle’s engine purred to life before leaving toward the gates.

Up on the sixth-floor balcony, Mark stared after them, jaw clenched so tight the vein at his temple throbbed. He slammed his fist onto the railing, the metal ringing under the blow.

"This bitch—" he muttered, each word grinding out like stone. "She’s gone too far. Now she wants to openly cheat on me because of some little shit who’s stronger than me... No. He is not the problem." He breathed fast, eyes burning with something colder than anger. "She is the problem..."

He paced a single step, then stopped, and the promise left him in a low, dangerous tone. "Fine. Just you wait."

Below, the motorcycle became a speck as it went farther and farther away from the hotel.