Noelle didn't respond to his words. Instead, she simply glanced at this retreating figure before slowly turning her gaze back to the portrait of the deceased. The woman in the photo was Matilda in her younger years. Ironically, she looked almost exactly like Noelle.On the day of the funeral, rain suddenly began to fall in Coppersville, and the temperature seemed even lower than it had been during last year's winter.Noelle had already put on her coat, but as she stood in the cemetery, she could still feel the cold wind seeping deep into her bones.The urn containing Matilda's ashes had already been laid to rest. It was only when the sound of the pastor's voice echoed through the cemetery that Noelle, almost as if waking from a daze, fully realized that Matilda was truly gone.Whether it was love or hate, it all seemed to vanish with Matilda's death. Noelle suddenly recalled the day Matilda closed her eyes for the last time. She wasn't sure whether it was guilt or something else, b
"Ms. Swanson, are you sure it's a good idea to have dinner alone with Mr. Carter? I mean, he—" Her assistant, Oliver Shaw, hesitated, leaving the rest unsaid.Noelle, of course, understood their concern. Ethan's reputation in Vinton City was far from stellar. His insistence on having dinner alone with her tonight naturally set off Oliver's alarm bells—and rightly so."It's fine. It's just dinner," Noelle replied calmly.After that, she opened the car door and stepped out onto the pavement. She had chosen the restaurant herself and, to avoid any potential "surprises", arrived half an hour early to order the food in advance.Ethan arrived just as Noelle finished filling up her glass with water."My apologies for keeping you waiting, Ms. Swanson.""No worries. I just got here myself," Noelle replied with a smile.Their first interaction was smooth, and everything seemed normal so far.After a few glasses of red wine, the conversation began to shift."Ms. Swanson, you've been here
The woman continued her conversation, her eyes lighting up as she spotted something. She waved excitedly in that direction.Then, Noelle saw it, too—a sleek black car in the rain-soaked night. The license plate was unfamiliar, but the car's model was one Noelle recognized all too well. After all, it was Hendrix's favorite.She paused for a moment before turning her gaze away. Instead of calling for a ride, she decisively turned around and walked off into the rainy night.…"You're here!" Lana Ray didn't seem to notice anything else.As the driver stepped out to open the door, she eagerly got into the car.Hendrix was already seated inside, dressed in a black shirt with dark gold cufflinks featuring an intricate, elegant pattern. His slender hand rested on his knee, and his strikingly handsome face was devoid of any expression. His deep, piercing eyes stared ahead, shadowed by a hint of somberness."Mr. Freeman?" Lana called him again and followed his gaze for a moment, but she d
Noelle nodded, showing no doubt about Dan's explanation, and then pressed the button for her floor.Dan glanced at the two lit-up numbers and asked, "Ms. Swanson, how are you—"Before he could finish his question, Noelle's phone rang. She gave Dan an apologetic smile before answering the call."Mr. Russon? Yes, it's me. Oh, you were there at the restaurant, too? Sorry. If I'd known, I would have come over to offer you a drink," Noelle said with a smile. "I'll make it up to you by treating you to a meal next time. Of course, you can pick the place."There were only two of them in the spacious elevator, and while Noelle was speaking softly, Dan could still hear each and every one of her words clearly. In the end, he swallowed back the question he was going to ask her.It wasn't until the elevator reached Noelle's floor that she ended her call. Then, she turned to Dan. "Mr. Hurley, what were you about to say?""It's nothing, just… My girlfriend lives here by herself. If it's okay wi
Noelle smiled at the man, Dominic Russo. "How could I forget, Mr. Russo? I was just worried you might be too busy. After all, there are so many people vying to have dinner with you—I was afraid I wouldn't make it on the list."Her smile was dazzling, and even if Dominic had been annoyed moments before, her charm smoothed over any displeasure.Dominic slid a hand toward her waist. "Well, I have time now. So, Ms. Swanson, when are you planning to fulfill your promise and have dinner with me?"Noelle deftly sidestepped his touch, grabbing a glass of wine from a nearby server and placing it in his hand instead. "I'm always ready, of course. How about this? I'll contact your assistant tomorrow to set up a time.""Why go through so much trouble? Don't you already have my personal number?" Dominic said as he accepted the wine glass, his hand brushing lightly against the back of Noelle's.Though Dominic wasn't overweight, and his features could even be considered refined, the gesture stil
Noelle hadn't actually drunk that much tonight. It wasn't noticeable during the event, but after everything was over, the itch in her throat became unbearable. As she walked, she couldn't stop coughing.And as soon as she stepped outside the hotel, the wind made her throat itch even more. Her driver seemed to be off doing something, and no matter how many calls she made, there was no answer. Just as she was about to call Oliver, she suddenly heard someone calling her from behind."Ms. Swanson!"The crisp voice made Noelle feel uneasy. When she turned around, she indeed saw Lana walking toward her."You're still here?" Lana asked with a smile.Noelle nodded at her."Your driver hasn't arrived yet? How about I give you a ride?""No, it's okay," Noelle quickly declined. "He should be here any moment.""It's fine. It's getting late anyway, so let me give you a ride," said Lana, linking arms with Noelle as if they were already familiar with each other.Noelle frowned and was about
Moreover, now that she was standing in front of the elevator with Hendrix, Lana couldn't help but wish there were countless reporters lurking nearby. Ideally, they would catch them in a live broadcast, as that would solidify her position even further.The elevator arrived quickly, and Hendrix entered first. He seemed calm and composed, unlike Lana, whose palms were already sweating.Once they reached the room, Lana immediately said, "I'm going to freshen up first.""Okay."Lana's face turned even redder. She glanced at Hendrix meaningfully before walking into the bathroom.As for Hendrix, he felt no stir in his emotions. After standing in the room for a moment, he slowly walked over to the floor-to-ceiling windows.The night in Vinton City was much quieter than Coppersville. However, with the ongoing development, the skyline was gradually filled with towering skyscrapers.Hendrix stared at the lights in the buildings for a long time. Then, he suddenly thought of Noelle's eyes. T
Hendrix first heard Noelle's name from Beatrice, who told him that Noelle was the fiancée Gerald had arranged for him. At that time, Noelle had just been brought back by the Swansons, and Beatrice used this as an excuse for him to go meet her.But Hendrix never agreed to the engagement, nor did he ever take the idea of Noelle being his fiancée seriously. Even so, he ended up marrying Noelle anyway.Everyone thought he had compromised because of the contract between the two families, and even Hendrix himself believed that to be true. But now, he realized that Beatrice was truly the person who knew him best in the world.If he hadn't wanted it himself, no one could have made that decision for him. The reason he agreed to marry Noelle was simply because he wanted to marry her. But now, this reason might be joined by another—he liked Noelle. And because he liked her, he was willing to marry her.Hendrix had once thought that his feelings for Noelle were born out of physical desire. She
"Look at what they did to my son! My son was perfectly fine, and now he's lying in a hospital bed! I'll make sure that bastard rots in jail forever!"Joanne's shrill voice pierced through the door.Noelle sat on a chair, clutching a cup of hot water. Beside her sat Irene, her face dark with fury.The yelling outside continued, "Nelly is nothing but a slut! I knew from the start she was no good! Just look at that face. Who wouldn't she try to seduce? Sid isn't that kind of person! She must've failed to seduce him and then conspired with her lover to frame my son!"Irene couldn't take it anymore. She flung the door open, and the shouting stopped instantly.It was no surprise that Joanne would be scared of Irene since the old woman was holding a hoe in her hand."Get lost," Irene said simply.Joanne paled but stood her ground.Seeing this, Irene was just about to charge forward with her hoe when Joanne panicked and quickly turned to leave.But the onlookers lingered nearby, watch
But that was only if Sid had been willing to accept it. The way Hendrix had looked at him back then—cold and disdainful.And when he'd spoken, his voice had been so certain, as if he'd known Sid would take the money. And in the end, he had. But that didn't give Hendrix the right to look down on him.The more he thought about it—the way he'd been overjoyed when he first met Noelle during their matchmaking, the time and emotion he'd wasted on her—the more resentment burned in his chest."What do you want?"Noelle could feel the danger radiating off him. She kept stepping back, but Sid only advanced, step by step."What do I want?" Sid let out a cold laugh. "Simple. You just need to sleep with me once.""What did you say?" Noelle stared at him in disbelief.For a moment, she thought she must have misheard."Stop playing dumb!" Sid snarled impatiently. "Cut the act! I know you're no longer pure. I saw that bastard sneaking out of your house this morning. You've got some nerve. You
Noelle ended up leaving the room first. The moment she stepped out, she shut the door firmly behind her.Irene thought that was weird. "Why did you close the door?""No reason. Just a habit."Noelle's cheeks were still faintly flushed, and she avoided Irene's gaze, brushing off the question with a vague reply.Irene found it odd but didn't press further.After breakfast, Irene announced she was heading to the back mountain to gather herbs to sell at the market in a few days.Noelle had been thinking about how to divert her, and this played right into her plans."Come with me," Irene said. "And bring two more bottles of water."Noelle hesitated for a moment. She usually accompanied Irene on these trips, so refusing now would seem suspicious. In the end, she nodded.But before leaving, she suddenly called out, "I'm closing the door!"Her voice was loud, ensuring the person inside her room could hear.Irene gave her a strange look. "Who are you talking to?""You.""I'm standi
"I haven't slept all night. Can you just let me rest for a while?" Hendrix asked."Why don't you go sleep in your own place?" Noelle argued."I can't sleep without you."The moment Hendrix spoke those words, Noelle's cheeks flushed bright red.She wanted to argue, but in the next moment, Hendrix's breathing seemed to steady.Surprised, she lifted her head and saw the dark circles under his eyes. Even his usually clean-shaven jaw now bore a faint stubble.Her hand, which had been ready to push him away, slowly dropped.Hendrix hadn't expected to fall asleep so quickly. Though he had finally found Noelle, he hadn't been sleeping well these past few days. Aside from constantly being jolted awake, the terrible conditions here only made things worse. But in Noelle's room, none of that seemed to matter.Even in this cramped, damp little house, even on this rickety wooden bed that cracked beneath him, he could still catch the faint scent of her skin and the sun-warmed fragrance of the
Night fell quickly.Hendrix had been restless since evening. With no Internet here, he couldn't even distract himself with work. He could only lie in bed, flipping through the photos on his phone while listening intently for any movement outside.He didn't like having his photo taken, and neither did Noelle. So there were very, very few pictures of the two of them on his phone. During the time Noelle was missing, he had already memorized every single one of the photos.After scrolling through them several times, he finally couldn't take it anymore and got out of bed. To prove he wasn't joking, Hendrix was really planning to climb over the wall to find Noelle.But then, he quickly remembered something—his arm was still in a splint. So there was no way he would be able to climb that wall.In the end, he could only stand outside the wall, staring at the door. Only after confirming that Noelle wasn't coming out did he turn and go back inside.As dawn broke, he finally heard movement
And was the man in front of Noelle really her husband? Because they had once been the closest people in the world, he knew everything about her.That was why Noelle had felt an inexplicable familiarity toward Hendrix before and why she had instinctively wanted to get closer to him.Sensing her concern, Hendrix asked, "You don't want to leave your mom, do you?" After a moment of hesitation, Noelle nodded."Don't worry. I'm not planning to take you away right now," Hendrix said. "There are still things to deal with in Coppersville. I have to wait until everything is settled before we can go back. As for your mom, we can take her with us when we go back. Don't worry. I'll take good care of her for saving you."But you can't just listen to her and marry someone else. You're already my wife. If you marry another man, you'll be committing the crime of bigamy. And more than that, it would be completely irresponsible to me."Noelle didn't respond.Hendrix couldn't help but frown when h
Hendrix hadn't planned on telling Noelle all of this. As the doctor had said, once the blood clot dissipated, she might remember everything on her own. So, he didn't want to push her.And if she never remembered, that was fine, too. He had come to think that staying here for a while longer might not be a bad idea because Noelle could get the maternal love she had always longed for from Irene.As for their relationship… Well, it had been an arranged marriage from the start. The moment she was of age, they had wed without hesitation. Even their first kiss had happened during their wedding photoshoot.So Hendrix thought, if she had forgotten all of that, he could just court her again. It would be a chance to make up for the romance they had missed out on before.But now, he had no choice but to tell her. He had finally found her, and it would be the biggest joke of all if she ended up marrying someone else because of what others said. There was no way he would ever allow that to happe
Noelle couldn't help but frown.But before she could say anything, Hendrix suddenly asked, "Why didn't you come?""What?""I'm asking why you didn't come to the hospital. Was it because you were too busy getting married?"As Hendrix spoke, he took a step closer to her. His intense gaze felt as if he were trying to pull something out of Noelle.Noelle froze for a moment but quickly replied, "I never said I would definitely go.""You said you'd take care of me.""I didn't say that. That was your own assumption," Noelle quickly retorted. Then, she looked up at him. "Besides, I'm pretty sure you have plenty of people taking care of you.""What do you mean?""You've definitely had a lot of women before, right?" Noelle forced a smile. "I don't know why you're staying here, but I'm not like those women. So, if you're just looking for some fun, don't waste your time on me."Noelle's voice was laced with sarcasm. But her eyes were slightly red, and her throat moved as if she was tryin
The woman who had shouted was about to continue making a scene, clearly intent on drawing the entire neighborhood's attention. But Hendrix quickly turned around.To her, a thief should have looked guilty. Yet, when he looked at her, his eyes were sharp and piercing. That gaze made the woman swallow her words before they could leave her mouth.Just then, Irene came out, holding something in her hand. When she saw Hendrix, her expression darkened. "How dare you show your face here again, you scoundrel? Do you have a death wish or something? Fine. I'll send you straight to hell right now!"As she spoke, she raised the object in her hand, ready to strike Hendrix—just like she had done several times before.But this time, Hendrix didn't dodge. Instead, he expressionlessly grabbed her hand. One of his arms was still in a splint. But even so, it was enough to stop Irene completely. Her eyes widened in shock.Noelle also came out from inside. When she saw Hendrix, she was momentarily stun