CHAPTER 193: CHAPTER 193: JULIANA, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ME!

Juliana panted as she saw the man in front of her was Jared Langley, yet stubbornly turned away, continuing to wash her burning skin with cold water.

"Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold!"

Elias Langley strode into the bathroom and turned off the showerhead.

"Take care of your sister, get away."

Juliana pushed him forcefully, her face wet, indistinguishable whether it was cold water or tears, yet her body shivered uncontrollably due to his proximity.

Elias Langley grabbed her wrist, pinning her against the cold tile wall, his forehead against hers, feeling her abnormally high temperature.

His voice was deep and soothing, "I don’t have a ’sister,’ if I really had to say I do, right now isn’t it you?"

Juliana resisted his closeness desperately, but the drug’s effect left her body weak.

"Stop with the sweet talk... How do you explain today, denying it has nothing to do with Isabelle Sinclair?"

Injustice and heat surged together into overwhelming waves, almost drowning her.

First there was Stella Windsor, then Isabelle Sinclair.

Juliana felt that in this life she was destined to clash with "sisters."

Elias Langley caressed her face, "If it was her doing, I’ll give you an explanation."

She felt the fire inside her burning more intensely, wishing he would touch every inch of her skin, but reason still lingered.

"I don’t need you, go away!"

She struggled to pull her hand back, yanking at her long hair, trying to counter the itch and pain on her body akin to insect bites with physical pain.

Elias Langley quickly seized her hands, pinning them behind her back, holding her tightly in his embrace.

It was only when he embraced her fully that he realized the alarming heat of her body, not just her forehead but all over, as if on fire.

Such a strong drug had actually been used on her.

The man’s heart twisted in agony, a turmoil of anger and tenderness.

"Your previous suspicions, I’ve thought carefully about. Over these years I haven’t often returned to the Langley Family, and I do know little about the changes within, but if your friend’s matter is truly linked to people of the Langley Family, I will not condone it."

Juliana bit her own tongue, maintaining a last shred of clarity through the slight pain.

"What if it’s someone you cannot touch?"

Elias Langley gazed into her eyes filled with a shimmering mist, her enticingly red lips seemed to strongly invite him.

Clearly she was the one drugged, yet he felt his own reason was nearly burning away.

"I’ve never loved anyone like this in my life. Since I decided on you, from now on, anything related to you, I have no principles, I don’t ask right or wrong, your position is my position, whoever touches you is my enemy."

Juliana looked at him in astonishment for two seconds, while the powerful drug’s effect again tried to devour her remaining reason.

"These words, take them to coax someone else."

She writhed restlessly in his embrace, turning her face away, trying once more to bite her tongue for a moment of clarity.

But Elias Langley was quicker, grabbing her chin, his heated gaze even more enigmatic than hers.

"Juliana," he rasped, his eyes swirling with dark tides, "be responsible for me."

As the words fell, Juliana was enveloped by his domineering yet gentle desire.

From the bathroom to the bed, the cool air briefly awakened a bit of her consciousness.

Suddenly, she cupped Elias Langley’s face, "That... won’t work."

The flustered man, "?"

Juliana, "I have a cold, I’m contagious."

Elias Langley laughed, his eyes filled with unfathomable desire, his voice hoarser than ever.

"I have a strong immune system, immune to all poisons."

With that, he swiftly drew her into a deeper vortex...

Meanwhile, Victor Langley returned to the room, staring at Leona Sheridan without speaking.

Leona Sheridan was putting on a face mask, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, she said irritably, "What are you looking at, the drug was bought by Isabelle herself, it has nothing to do with me."

"Do you think I’m a fool?" Victor Langley said.

"I helped her drug Juliana, but somehow she ended up taking it herself. But even if I did poison Juliana, so what?"

Leona sprang to her feet, her voice sharp.

"I’m your lawfully wedded wife, are you going to call the police and arrest me for that vixen?"

"You’re simply unreasonable!" Victor Langley was furious, "Letting such despicable actions occur in the Langley Family, how do you think the Sinclair Family would perceive it? Even if it was the Sinclairs who were initially at fault, do you think they wouldn’t hold us accountable? If it weren’t for Elias’s quick thinking tonight, suppressing this incident as a sudden illness, once it becomes public, you’d lose every last ounce of dignity!"

"Victor Langley!" Leona Sheridan’s tone turned even more vicious, "You and your son are both bewitched by that vixen. If that’s the case, don’t blame me for using old methods to make her disappear."

Victor Langley’s voice turned abruptly cold, "Those filthy things you’ve done to other women, I’ve turned a blind eye for the sake of marital harmony. But if you now seek pleasure without caring for your son’s wellbeing... Leona Sheridan, don’t push me to be unkind to you."

"Oh, look at you!" Leona looked at him arrogantly, "Think you’re capable? Have you forgotten who got you where you are today? Without me, you’d still be hauling bricks on a construction site right now!"

Victor Langley frowned.

The thing men despise most is a woman who constantly brings up favors.

"All these years, I’m not unaware of the unspeakable things you’ve done. Did you also have a hand in that incident involving Juliana’s friend?" Victor Langley questioned.

Leona’s eyes flickered for a moment, but she quickly laughed even more arrogantly.

"So what if I did? So what if I didn’t? Victor Langley, you’d better realize, if it weren’t for the Sheridan Family, would the Langleys be where they are today? You’re angry at me for that wench? Can you bear the consequences of the Sheridan Family’s wrath?"

Victor Langley looked at his wife’s ferocious face, the last vestige of warmth in his eyes dissipating,

"Leona, to think we’ve been together for almost thirty years, and there’s still not a shred of equality or respect."

He sighed deeply, his tone filled with weariness.

"Enough, from now on I won’t force you to do anything. The matter with Isabelle, Elias will handle it. But this is the last time. If the Sinclairs insist on directing their ire at you, I hope you can still keep mentioning the Sheridan Family as your protective charm like you do now."

With that, he turned and headed towards the door.

Leona was burning with rage, "Where are you going?"

"The study." Victor Langley didn’t look back.

"Fine! Great! Then sleep in the study forever!"

Leona slammed the door shut.

...

As the night passed, Juliana had no idea when Elias Langley had left.

She only vaguely remembered that after the drug effect wore off, she softly begged for mercy, but it only led to his even more relentless entanglement.

Until she couldn’t help but cry, did he finally relent, holding her in his arms and soothing her with gentle kisses and whispers.

She fell into a deep sleep, and when she opened her eyes again, it was the present.

For the first time staying overnight at the Langley Family, she woke up this late, and Juliana’s heart tightened, quickly getting out of bed to freshen up.

But as she barely touched the ground, her legs buckled even more, almost causing her to fall, her waist and hips so sore and weak that even walking was difficult.

She cursed that man several times in her heart before managing to support herself into the bathroom.

After a hurried wash, just as she opened the door, she was startled to find Jared Langley standing at the entrance, her breath catching in surprise.