As Sandra spoke, she slowly slid her shoulder strap off. Her skin seemed to glow under the dim light.But Hendrix only glanced at her briefly before saying firmly and coldly, "I thought I made myself very clear the last time we were at Freeman Manor."Sandra froze. She couldn't help but recall that moment when he had pushed her away after she tried to kiss him at the entrance of Freeman Manor.This time, she cast away all of her dignity and threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around him tightly."Rix, I really, really like you. Even if we don't get married, I just want to do it once with you. I want to give my most precious first time to the man I love the most. So Rix, please take me!"Sandra's eyes were filled with tears. Her tear-streaked face made her look so delicate and pitiful that anyone who saw it would find it hard to remain unmoved. However, after glancing at her, Hendrix calmly pushed her away. "I only see you as a sister.""Impossible! You were so kind to me be
"Why didn't you answer any of my calls, then?" Hendrix questioned."I didn't hear it because my phone was on silent," Noelle replied.Hendrix suddenly stood up and stormed toward her. His tall figure filled the narrow entryway, and as he approached, Noelle instantly felt the pressure radiating from him. She instinctively tried to step back, only to bump into the door, leaving her with nowhere to retreat.She had no choice but to lift her eyes to look at him. Her gaze seemed to carry some confusion, but there was not a trace of guilt or fear in it.Hendrix lowered his eyes, locking his gaze with hers. After a moment, he said, "Sandra called me earlier and told me you were drinking with her.""With her?" Noelle scoffed. "Do you really think that's possible?"Hendrix nodded. "Yeah, I know it's impossible. But she told me you were drunk, and since you weren't at home or answering my calls, I thought I'd go check on you."His piercing gaze seemed to look right through Noelle. She o
Sandra and Ruth ran into each other in the restroom. Their interactions had noticeably decreased since Sandra's engagement to Maxwell, though not to the point of outright hostility. Now, upon seeing each other, they exchanged polite nods and brief pleasantries."How's Maxwell doing?" Ruth asked, glancing at Sandra, who was touching up her lipstick in the mirror."He's doing quite well. In fact, he's already discharged from the hospital."Even though Sandra was behaving as usual, Ruth couldn't help but feel something was different about her. But before she could probe further, Sandra had finished washing her hands and left the restroom.Back in the private room, the party was already in full swing. However, when Sandra entered the room, she found the crowd surging toward the exit in a chaotic rush. She couldn't dodge in time, but luckily, Ruth managed to pull her back."They're heading to the terrace," explained Ruth when she noticed Sandra's confusion. "It's nearly time for the ci
"What the… It really is her!""Sandra, when did Noelle and Hendrix get back together?""Wait. What does Hendrix even see in her?"The endless chatter buzzed around Sandra, each word a sharp sting that exploded in her mind. Not a single reaction or word came from her. She simply kept her eyes fixed firmly on the couple ahead while her whole body trembled faintly with a mix of anger and agitation.On the terrace, Hendrix noticed something was off. He frowned when he noticed the group watching them. Without hesitation, he pulled Noelle into his arms, shielding her protectively."Hendrix, what a coincidence!" someone in the crowd called out to him immediately. "Is this your new girlfriend? Why didn't you tell us you got yourself a new girlfriend?"Tonight's group were all young people roughly the same age as Hendrix, so no one bothered with formalities.Since earlier, Noelle had been facing away from the group, and now, Hendrix had her pressed against his chest. If Ruth hadn't calle
Hendrix and Noelle didn't stay long. After watching the fireworks for a while, they took their leave from the group. Noelle even smiled and waved goodbye to them. But the smile on her face disappeared the moment she turned around.Then, she immediately tried to pull Hendrix's hand off her waist. However, Hendrix only tightened his grip, as if he wanted to crush her waist with his hold.Noelle couldn't help but hiss in pain. "Don't think I won't bite you!""Oh, yeah? Where are you going to bite me?"Noelle was stumped, and Hendrix couldn't help but laugh at her flustered, speechless expression.Finally, Noelle said through gritted teeth, "I want to go home.""Alright. Let's go home together," replied Hendrix matter-of-factly."Don't you find my humble abode stifling at all?""Well, you could come stay with me at Percy Gardens, or Nivis Villa would work, too.""No. I'm not going to either of those," Noelle answered without a second thought.Hendrix glanced at her but said nothi
It felt as though their souls had merged into one.The neighbor had already moved out, but Noelle still didn't dare to make too loud of a sound. When pushed to the edge, she could only bite down on Hendrix's neck. Hendrix didn't flinch at the pain. Instead, he gently held her chin after she was done biting him and kissed her lips.The room remained shrouded in darkness. They could hear the distant bursts of fireworks coming from outside, and mixed in with the sound was the ringing of a phone. Noelle heard it, too, and immediately tried to push him away. But Hendrix didn't stop, nor did he seem inclined to answer the phone, either.The person on the other end of the line was persistent, and unable to take it any longer, Noelle called out to Hendrix several times. It was only then that Hendrix finally answered the phone in annoyance."Hello?" His voice was raspy and tinged with obvious impatience.The person on the other end must have said something, because Hendrix's expression
Ophelia had always been known for her disciplined lifestyle. At this hour, she was usually long asleep. And most of the Freeman household followed her lead, adhering to her routine like clockwork. But tonight, the entire manor was still ablaze with light despite it being nearly 1:00 am.Grant had been waiting in the courtyard for some time, and his eyes lit up the moment he saw Hendrix's car pull up. He quickly rushed forward. "Mr. Freeman, you're finally back!"Hendrix glanced at him. "What's going on inside?""Mrs. Freeman Senior is furious. Mrs. Freeman has returned as well, but their conversation didn't go well. You must try to calm them down once you're insi—"Hendrix had already strode into the manor before Grant could finish his sentence. It was just as Grant had described—the atmosphere inside was suffocating.Ophelia sat on the couch, her face taut with anger. Her fingers were gripping the armrest so tightly that her knuckles had turned white. Standing across from her w
The teacup shattered against the back of Hendrix's head, and blood began to seep through his hair, trickling down his neck.Ophelia froze in place while Grant rushed forward. "Mr. Freeman, are you alright? This—"Before he could finish, Hendrix raised a hand, blocking Grant from checking on his injury.He then pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the blood off his neck. Once that was done, he turned to Beatrice and asked in a cold, emotionless voice, "What's his name?"Beatrice visibly trembled at the question before looking at him in disbelief. Hendrix simply stood there, meeting her gaze, as if patiently waiting for her answer. After a moment, when it became clear she wasn't going to respond, he simply nodded and pulled out his phone to have someone investigate the matter.Beatrice knew Hendrix well, so she immediately understood his intentions the moment he took out his phone. Without hesitation, she grabbed his hand to stop him. "What are you doing?""If you won't tell me, I
"Do you not trust me?" Noelle asked.Hendrix was momentarily stunned, then he slowly frowned. "What did you say?""Do you not trust that I can protect myself or that I can help you? Or do you think I'm just a burden?""Of course not," Hendrix immediately denied it, his expression growing darker. "How could you think that of yourself? If I thought that, why would I bring you here?""Since it's not that, then why don't you want to—""Because I don't want you to be in any danger," Hendrix said in a low voice. "Clearly, we could have used other methods, couldn't we?""But right now, this one is the fastest and most convenient, right?"Hendrix couldn't answer.Noelle smiled. "See? You're admitting it, too. And honestly, you don't have that much time, either. So, weighing the pros and cons, doesn't it make the most sense to choose the most efficient option right now?""No," Hendrix said through gritted teeth.Yet, he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong.After meeting his gaze
"I know things aren't that simple," Noelle said quietly.Her sudden change of topic caused Hendrix to furrow his brows slightly.He wanted to say something, but Noelle continued, "If it were that simple, you wouldn't have agreed to let me use this method to lure Dylan out from the start. This isn't Coppersville, and more importantly, the people around you now are only driven by self-interest."So, it would be impossible for them to help you find Dylan and make him lose everything. That is—unless he makes a move against you first. But in that case, Dylan would definitely be extra cautious. He might even hide for years or decades."As Noelle spoke, Hendrix suddenly laughed. "So what? You think I can't wait?""I know you won't wait." Noelle looked up at him. "I know you're not as indifferent as you appear to be about what happened to the Swifts. If I don't do this, you'll definitely think of other ways, right?"And I also know that those ways of yours would be even more dangerous tha
The text message Hendrix had received just now was from Noelle. It contained the motel's address and the room number she had booked.The two of them hadn't seen each other at all these past few days—not even a phone call. Noelle wasn't sure if Dylan had sent anyone to watch them, and even the slightest trace of contact could become the reason everything fell apart.Noelle knew she wasn't clever enough to cover every detail flawlessly, so instead she put on a performance so convincing, even she almost believed it.She understood that in Dylan's mind, he always believed himself to be a noble man. The belief came from the way his family had raised him and the public image he maintained.Dylan and Hendrix were completely different. Hendrix had never cared about what others thought of him. Even in public, if he disliked someone or found them disgusting, he wouldn't bother pretending otherwise. The fact that he didn't humiliate someone outright was already the limit of his courtesy.Wh
Amy figured that maybe Hendrix had somehow found out what she had been thinking earlier and wanted to kill her now to keep her quiet. After all, no one who could survive in that circle was really normal.She knew how this worked. To people like him, women like her weren't even human. If he was in a bad mood and decided to use her to vent, that would be totally normal to him.She licked her lips, just about to try explaining, when she realized that he wasn't even paying her any attention. He got out of the car without a word and walked straight inside.That reaction left Amy completely thrown. For a moment, she was at a loss for what to do.Should she follow him? But what if he really was planning to do something to her? If someone like her died here, no one would even notice.But if she didn't follow, and he wasn't planning anything, wouldn't she be missing a golden opportunity?Amy felt completely torn.As she watched him disappear into the motel, she threw all her concerns away
This was the second time Amy had seen Hendrix. The last time, he had picked her out of a group—and today, he did the same.More importantly, Amy was now wearing the jewelry he had bought her. That piece alone had cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and he hadn't even blinked at the price.From that alone, Amy was certain that she had won. She had stood out among the prey and become the object of his favor. The only thing she wasn't sure of was how long his interest toward her would last.In the social circles of Nuvark, women like Amy had their own internal rankings—a list sorted from most to least desirable targets. Hendrix wasn't on that list, but Amy knew that he was easily one of the top players in the game.She could tell that just by how Erwin and the others treated him. So, the fact that she hadn't hesitated and went straight for the win was the right call. And now, all the others could only look at her with envy and jealousy.The uniquely styled sports car sped down the
Then, Dylan hesitated a little. "Are you pitying me?""No, no!"Noelle quickly shook her head. "I just feel like I dragged you into this. It's like because I almost married you back then, Hendrix has been targeting you ever since. If not for that, you'd probably still be doing fine back home, and the Swift family wouldn't have ended up like this. So, I feel guilty."Her voice grew more hoarse as she spoke.Dylan stared at her for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed like he had just heard the funniest thing in the world, completely delighted."So, now you finally see Hendrix for who he really is?" he asked. "I told you before—he's never treated you right. Otherwise, why would you have taken Rosie and run to another city in the first place?"And back then, if it hadn't been for me, you never would've been forced to marry him. So, Noelle, have you remembered now? The one you actually love is me."Noelle stared at him, stunned.Dylan stood up at that moment, closin
As soon as Noelle asked that, the man across from her clearly froze for a moment. Then, he chuckled softly.Noelle didn't say anything else. She just stared at him, steady and sure. There was something in her gaze—something unmistakably certain.Dylan no longer tried to keep up the act. He simply raised a hand and took off his sunglasses.His appearance had changed a bit since the last time. His beard was longer, his eye sockets deeper, and his overall presence had taken on a sharper, more dangerous edge.But when he looked at Noelle now, he smiled slightly. "So, you remember me?"Noelle didn't respond. Of course, Dylan hadn't forgotten the last time they had seen each other. And he wasn't sure if Noelle actually remembered everything, which made his smile a little stiff.But the next moment, Noelle asked, "Why are you here?""I'm working here. I couldn't survive in Coppersville anymore, remember?" Dylan replied.As he spoke, he kept his eyes on her, clearly watching for her r
Erwin was even beginning to wonder if Hendrix had actually lost his mind.But Hendrix just looked at him and countered, "Weren't you always the one telling me to live this way? Now that I'm finally enjoying it, why are you calling me crazy?"Erwin had no comeback for that.Hendrix glanced at him, then suddenly slung an arm around Erwin's shoulders and pointed at a woman up ahead. "Check her out. What do you think?"…Noelle spent three days alone in the hotel. During those three days, Hendrix never came back.She ate alone and sat alone in a hotel lobby, staring blankly into space. In the end, she decided to book an early flight home.Just as she lowered her head to check flights on her phone, someone suddenly sat down across from her.It was still bright outside. The hotel lobby lights were on, and a hanging lamp above them cast the man's shadows long across the floor.Noelle kept her head down. But the moment the man sat down, it was as if she could sense something. Her hand
Noelle hadn't gone far. When Erwin came downstairs, she was standing at the entrance of the hotel, lost in thought.This wasn't Coppersville. Even in a place this well-lit, as a woman, she was still in danger. Moreover, she had obvious traits that made her an easy target—an innocent face, small frame, and delicate appearance.Hendrix had brought Noelle to Nuvark before. But at that time, he treated her like a fragile porcelain doll. Wherever she went, he followed closely, as if terrified that the slightest accident might befall her.But tonight…Erwin felt the situation was a bit too complicated. This, he thought, was more complicated than having to analyze hundreds of data sets at work.However, he didn't say much. As a host, he simply walked over to Noelle and told her he would have someone send her back to the hotel.Upon hearing his voice, Noelle slowly turned her head to look at him. When their eyes met, Erwin immediately frowned."Thank you," Noelle said softly, her eyes ev