Chapter 10: Denise's Promise

Words : 2001 Updated : Nov 20th, 2025

Two days flew by in the blink of an eye. Inside Asher's room at the Mendes Residence, several younger members of the Mendes family had crowded in to fuss over him. Asher dismissed everyone except his daughter, Denise. "Denise, I saw what you've done these past few days," he said, his weathered voice warm with pride. "You worked hard." Denise had not only shown dazzling talent in business but had also been unfailingly filial. Handing the Mendes family to her felt right, and he could rest easy. "Denise, I heard you made a promise to Dr. Easton. Two days have passed. Did you keep your word?" Asher had always prized integrity. It was one of his cardinal rules. A promise could not be made lightly. Once created, it could not be broken. Denise paused in thought. Over these two days, she had sent people to investigate Dante's background. She learned that, two days earlier, Dante and Ashley had divorced. Ashley had returned from her mysterious disappearance, and the Swift family had been scouring the city hunting Dante. The truth of Ashley's disappearance had been sealed within the Swift family, but the hell Dante had suffered there for three years was laid bare in Denise's investigation. Even that absurd farce, staged by Kara and Ashley, only to backfire on them, had been traced and confirmed. The weight of Denise's promise was suffocating. "Dad, I'll go tonight," she said. "I'll keep my word." Compared to her father's life, her body felt like a small price. She had promised to sleep with Dante, and she wasn't going to back out unless Dante refused her. She was beautiful and brilliant, one of the top three beauties of Junbert, with more suitors than she could count. She didn't believe Dante would turn away a woman offering herself so plainly. She wasn't thrilled, but a promise came first. She had to go. Asher caught the flash of struggle in his daughter's eyes. His heart tightened. "Denise, what did you promise?" "Dad, I promised, and I will follow through. Please don't worry." Denise steered the topic aside, a murderous edge in her eyes. "In our family, the only branch with contact with Skoeland voodoo is the fourth uncle's family. I plan to purge him on Grandfather's eighty-sixth birthday." Asher lifted a hand as if to brush away Denise's murderous intent, then sighed. "Denise, not so fast. Your fourth uncle was the kindest. There must be some misunderstanding. Give me a few days. I'll speak to him first." "For now, the Ecological Summit commissioned by the Davidson family is the most urgent matter. Handle that first, will you?" ... Meanwhile, Cloude Mountain Peak. Dante channeled the essence of heaven and earth, pouring the vitality of all living things into his mother's depleted body. Her spirit had been growing steadier, and the signs of decline were giving way to new vitality. Mother and son kept busy. One focused on healing, the other receiving. Both avoided the heavy subject looming between them: the Swift family, Pamela Group, and that carefully engineered car crash. The air felt gentle, but inside their hearts, waves crashed and broke. Pamela watched her son's focused profile, a mix of ache and resolve welling in her chest. She would avenge her family in her own way. Her child shouldn't have to carry such burdens. Dante's fingers moved, guiding the last thread of life into her. A cold blade of resolve slid through him. The Swift family wouldn't escape. He would restore Pamela Group to its rightful owner. His mother would rest and heal. He would scrub away the filth. "Mom, dinner's ready." His voice broke the hush, soft but warm. He carried in the food he had cooked himself. Steam rose, the fragrance pushing back a little of the mountain chill. Pamela reached for the spoon, but Dante gently took it from her. She couldn't help teasing him. "I can do it myself." Dante served her a plate and set it down within easy reach. "Mom, isn't this what you raised me for? Try it. I learned this recipe today." It was a heart-warming scene. At the gate, Dave, posted on watch, caught a glimpse of mother and son in the villa kitchen and felt a pang of envy. Without thinking, he smiled. "Aren't you Denise's bodyguard? Is Ms. Mendes here?" A voice sounded at his shoulder. Dave turned sharply, all alertness. A breathtaking beauty stood there. It was Kara Piper. She was one of Junbert's top three beauties, notorious for hating men, with her orientation the subject of constant gossip. She rose on her toes, gaze sliding past Dave's shoulder as she peered toward the villa's dining room. When her eyes settled on the mother and son inside, her pupils widened. "Is that Dante Easton... and Pamela?" Dante had taken her for the first time. Yet lately, she kept savoring it, something nudging at her, telling her it was not so simple. She hated him, yet she couldn't stop revisiting that new world he had forced open. Kara and Ashley set him up, and it backfired. It seemed unfair to blame Dante. Kara had misjudged and lost her virginity. Maybe Dante wasn't so hateful after all. "Ms. Piper, please stop peeking here. You need to leave," Dave warned. He was only a bodyguard, but he knew Kara by reputation. Kara said nothing. She left, disgruntled. She had barely gone when Denise arrived, pausing as Kara's silhouette slipped off into the night. Denise watched for a moment. "Dave, did she see who was inside?" Dave hesitated, then nodded. "Ms. Mendes, that was my failure." Denise waved it off. "It's fine. If she saw, let her be." She didn't enter at once. She stood near Dave for a long time, glancing toward the villa whenever her nerve faltered. She had come to give herself, yet she had never touched a man. Even as the CEO of a billion-dollar group, this felt different. Her chest tightened, and her mind twisted with doubt. She paced, turned back, paced again, her brows drawn together, unlike her decisive self in the business world. Only when Dante and Pamela finished eating and returned to their rooms did she draw a deep breath. She found her resolve, stepped forward, and walked into the villa. In the moonlight, she walked with the resolve of someone headed to her fate. She came to Dante's door, lifted a slender finger, and knocked. Dante, in sleepwear, opened the door. A woman with light makeup, an almost otherworldly beauty, stood before him. He didn't look surprised. He was very calm. "Come in." Back inside, he sat on a chair by the window and watched Denise's face, lit by the lamp. Denise had steeled herself before she came. Meeting his gaze, she didn't flinch. She put both hands on the sash at her neckline. She drew it loose. Silk fell without a sound, clothes drifting over her shoulders to gather at her feet. Light poured down. Her black underwear couldn't hide the lines of her body. Her skin was pale and delicate, touched with rose tinge, so tender it seemed a breath might mark it. She acted composed, yet her tension showed in tiny ways. Dante's open admiration did not help. Her forced calm strained, and her body trembled, just a little. "Mr. Easton, I'm here to keep my promise." Dante had seen Ashley's brazenness, Gemma's allure, and Kara's naïvety. Now, the calm Denise stood before him. Her figure, her bearing, her chill beauty stood above the others. Desire surged. In the Cultivation Realm, the Ice Phoenix Physique was rare. If he slept with her, his cultivation would surge. The beast in him roared, yet he clamped down hard and asked, "Denise, your decisiveness surprises me. You weren't trying to test me, thinking I would refuse you, were you?" He stripped off his shirt in one smooth motion. He had tanned skin and a muscular body, brimming with strength. He stepped closer. Denise balled her fists, swallowed, then kept her composure. "Not a test. I keep my word. Please take me."

Chapter 10: Denise's Promise

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