Dylan had considered all kinds of responses Noelle might give him, but this was the last thing he expected. And she wasn't just brushing him off—her gaze was serious, like she was genuinely asking.Before Dylan could respond, Noelle continued, "If I remember correctly, we had already broken up by then. And while we were together, I never had any contact with Hendrix. In that regard, I never did you dirty or wrong."After Noelle finished speaking, Dylan's smile slowly faded. "So are you implying that I did you dirty?" he asked hoarsely.Noelle was caught off guard by his question. She was about to explain when Dylan said, "I know I hadn't been entirely honest with you during our relationship. But Noelle, do you think I really had a choice back then?"Noelle frowned and stared at him for a long moment before asking, "So, you were lying to me back then, weren't you?""What?""Didn't you tell me before that you could handle having nothing, that it didn't matter if everything was take
Noelle's words might have been tactful, but Dylan understood her meaning all too clearly. She found him repulsive—so much so that she couldn't bear to look at him.And why didn't she hate him? How could she not hate him? If she truly felt he had wronged her, then she should hate him! But why didn't she even feel hatred? Was it because he wasn't even worthy of her hatred?Dylan's expression slowly faded, his face turning grim. But Noelle didn't seem to notice.She simply nodded at him and stopped walking. "I'll leave you here."Only then did Dylan realize they had reached the hospital entrance.Without waiting for Dylan to respond, Noelle turned and walked away.Dylan watched her leave and suddenly laughed, his lips curled into a twisted smile.After a long moment, once Noelle had disappeared from his sight, he slowly wiped the smile from his face. Then, as if nothing had happened, he turned and walked away.Noelle quickly returned to the hospital room. It was quiet now.Marla
"Where are you?" Hendrix asked in a tense voice the moment Noelle answered his call."The hospital," Noelle answered truthfully.Hendrix fell silent for a brief moment.But Noelle didn't wait for his response. Instead, she said, "I have things to do, so I'm hanging up now."With that, she ended the call.When she entered the hospital room, Marshall and Marla had indeed fallen silent.Noelle paused, then took the initiative to break the silence. "I just saw Dylan off.""Oh, okay." Marla nodded. "Thank you."Noelle pressed her lips together and added, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop earlier. I'm really sorry.""It's fine. It's not like we were talking about anything that you shouldn't be hearing," Marshall quickly said with a smile. Then, he even added, "We weren't, were we?""No, of course not," Noelle immediately replied, waving her hands.Marla couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. She then offered the apple in her hand to Noelle. "Want some?"Noelle was completely at a los
Hendrix didn't care about any of that. As soon as he entered the room, the first thing he did was pull Noelle behind him."No matter how great you think Dylan is, Noelle is now my wife. And that's something you can't change," he said firmly.Marla fell silent.Seeing this, Noelle quickly stepped in to smooth things over. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Swift. He didn't mean it that way."She then turned to Hendrix and said, "Can't you tell Mrs. Swift was just joking? Apologize to her now.""No, that won't be necessary," Marla interjected before Noelle could pull Hendrix's hand. "In fact, I think what you said earlier was correct. This matter truly has nothing to do with me—I've overstepped."The doctor said Marshall needs plenty of rest. I appreciate you both coming to visit him, but I think it's best if you leave now."Compared to earlier, Marla's expression had noticeably darkened.Noelle wanted to explain further, but Hendrix seemed almost eager to leave. He simply nodded without waiting f
After Hendrix finished speaking, Noelle suddenly fell silent.The silence only made Hendrix feel more suffocated. Just as he was about to say something, Noelle asked, "What are you thinking about?"Caught off guard by her question, Hendrix blurted out, "What?"Noelle looked at him calmly. "Is that how you really see me? How irrational do you think I am to do something like that?"Even though she looked calm, her voice carried a clear undercurrent of anger.Surprisingly, Hendrix felt relieved."Do you know what Dylan said to me earlier?" Noelle asked."What?""He said you deliberately hid the news about Mr. Swift's illness from me," Noelle replied. "But I told him then and there that I trust you. Hendrix, is this how you repay the trust I've given you?""No, that's not—"Hendrix finally realized the gravity of the situation. He stepped forward, ready to explain. But Noelle stopped him in his tracks. "Stay right there."Her tone was firm, leaving Hendrix no choice but to h
Rosie even sounded a little gleeful, to be honest. Wasn't it said that daughters were supposed to be their parents' little angels? So, what did that make her?Hendrix remained standing where he was, his brows slowly furrowing.Noelle stayed locked in her room until dinnertime. She didn't say much, remaining silent throughout the meal. In fact, she didn't even spare him a glance.After dinner, Hendrix finally found a chance to ask her, "Will you come back with me later?""No," Noelle replied without even needing to think about it.Hendrix couldn't help but frown. He reached out to take her hand, but Noelle brushed him off before he could.Just as he was about to grab Noelle's shoulder, Beatrice said, "Hendrix, why don't you go back first?"Hendrix turned around and said in a low voice, "Mom."But Beatrice acted as if she hadn't heard him. Instead, she said to Noelle, "Since tomorrow's the weekend and Rosie doesn't have school, why don't the two of you stay here for a couple of d
"Do you think Hendrix is the type to argue with me?" Noelle countered.Beatrice was momentarily caught off guard by her question. Then, she chuckled and said, "You're right. Now that you mention it, he's not.""But knowing him, it's totally possible he said something infuriating," Beatrice added slowly. "Though, given how things are between you two now… I doubt he would, right?"Noelle didn't respond to that. She simply averted her gaze and took another sip of wine before saying, "I'm not actually angry with him.""Oh?""I just don't want to see him right now. That's all," Noelle said with a frown. "It's not so much anger as it is exasperation. I'm exasperated at his lack of trust in me."I'm even starting to wonder if I've done something to make him misunderstand me. Does he really think I'd choose someone else just because of a few words from others?"Beatrice had already heard the full story from Hendrix. Now, as she listened to Noelle's version, she couldn't help but let out
Beatrice shared a lot with Noelle that night.When she first invited Noelle to have a drink, Noelle had assumed she was going to persuade her on Hendrix's behalf. But instead, Beatrice ended up telling her countless stories about Hendrix's childhood.At one point, she even went to pick up an album of Hendrix's photos to show Noelle. It was clear that while part of Hendrix's personality had been shaped by the Freeman family's upbringing, another part was simply innate.While other children's first birthday and kindergarten photos were full of lively, mischievous expressions, Hendrix's was always the same—serious and composed. The man he was now seemed like an exact, grown-up version of the boy in those pictures.By the end of the night, Noelle had almost forgotten the original purpose of her conversation with Beatrice. The two of them spent hours flipping through the photo album and chatting about Hendrix. They even managed to finish two bottles of wine.Although Noelle didn't expe
Dylan's gaze darkened. Just as he was about to step forward, someone else beat him to it.Hendrix crouched down in front of Noelle. "What happened?"Seeing this, Dylan almost laughed. He knew things wouldn't be that simple. With how devoted Hendrix had been to Noelle before, how could he possibly fall out of love so quickly?As expected, this was just a show the two of them had put on for Dylan. With that though, he didn't linger. He turned and was about to leave when he heard Noelle's voice."Let go of me!"Her voice wasn't loud in the noisy hospital, but Dylan heard it clearly. He immediately turned his head.Hendrix was holding onto her other hand, seemingly trying to take her away.But Noelle kept struggling. "Let go of me!""Noelle Swanson!""You already have another woman, so why do you still care about me?" Noelle gritted her teeth and glared at him. "Let me tell you—I don't want anything you gave me! And I don't want to see you right now, either!"As she spoke, she tr
Dylan still didn't believe what Noelle had said, including the plan she gave him. He thought the whole thing was just an act staged by Hendrix and Noelle together. But now, Hailey's words were starting to make him waver.Hailey was one of his people. He had deliberately instructed her to approach Amy today—something Hendrix definitely didn't know about. If this really was all an act, would they really go this far?More importantly, the plan Noelle gave him was airtight. It detailed Fuer Fund's upcoming plan to acquire and merge with Julius Fund. From strategy to step-by-step execution, everything was laid out with incredible detail.He had even gone over it with George Hardin. If the plan was genuine, they could move on Julius Fund before Fuer Fund did—selling it off at the right time.This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.Even if the plan was fake, it must have cost Hendrix an enormous amount of time. Dylan didn't believe he would waste so much effort crafting this elaborate
Amy spun around instantly and saw Hendrix walking toward her.Even though their relationship was purely transactional—and even though Amy knew better than anyone that catching feelings for a client was the worst mistake she could make—she still had to admit something.Even without Hendrix's status, his looks and presence alone were enough to make any woman blush and her heart race. Being able to call him her boyfriend, even if only on the surface, gave Amy a kind of prestige wherever she went.Seeing that Hendrix was about to reach her, Amy was about to greet him when Hailey suddenly stepped ahead of her."Hi! Are you Amy's boyfriend?" she asked.Hendrix narrowed his eyes at her. "And you are?""I'm her friend. We were out shopping together today. What a surprise to run into you like this!" Hailey said with a grin. "Amy's always bragging about you. Now, I finally see why she's been hiding you from us."As she spoke, Hailey moved to slip her arm through Hendrix's. She was wearing
Lately, Amy had been living in the lap of luxury. Hendrix not only bought her jewelry and designer bags but even a sports car—a bright red one, with the emblem of an angry bull on the front.When Amy drove it out, she immediately attracted the envy of countless people. They spoke words of admiration and praise for Amy. But behind her back, they were practically grinding their teeth in envy.Of course, Amy could see through their little games, but she didn't care. Even if they cursed her behind her back, she acted like she never heard a word of it.To be honest, if they had been in her shoes, they probably wouldn't have been able to seize the opportunity. They would have likely been kicked out due to overstepping the first time Hendrix made them sleep on the couch.So, some things were just meant to be hers.Besides the jewelry, bags, and car, Hendrix had also given her a black card with no spending limit. Now, when she entered those stores, she no longer had to carefully check the
On the contrary, Hendrix seemed to care a lot about Noelle. Otherwise, he wouldn't have rushed over like that. Even Amy could feel the passion in the way he looked at Noelle—it was intense and almost burning. There wasn't a trace of the indifference he had shown back at the party.So, it was very likely the two of them were acting. But for what reason?Amy couldn't figure it out, but she knew one thing—she might have just uncovered a huge secret. And this secret could very well…Amy was still thinking when the door suddenly opened in front of her. Startled, she instinctively took a few steps back, staring in shock at the person before her.Hendrix was standing there, looking at her."I didn't say anything!" Amy blurted out without hesitation. She even held up her phone, as if offering it for inspection.He gave it a glance, then quickly looked away and said, "Come on out. We've got a business deal to discuss."…"Who sent this to you?" the tanned-skin man asked.Only then did D
"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