One Don Hates Me to the Bone, the Other Seeks My Ruin Chapter 11

One Don Hates Me to the Bone, the Other Seeks My Ruin Chapter 11

The man in front of me had clearly grown thin, his eyes locked onto mine.

Complex emotions swirled in the depths of his gaze.

He slowly raised his hand, letting it hover half an inch from my face, too afraid to make contact.

His eyes reddened as he held back tears, struggling for a long moment before a raspy whisper escaped his throat.

“Long time no see.”

Noah frequently came to visit my mother’s grave.

He had spotted the white chrysanthemums earlier and immediately chased after me.

The silence inside the car during the drive was suffocating.

As soon as we reached Manhattan, Mary made an excuse and got out first.

Only Noah and I remained in the vehicle.

He spoke first. “How have you been these past three years?”

I thought about it for a second, keeping my tone light. “I’ve been great.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed, his knuckles turning white against the steering wheel.

“I’m sorry. Back then, I misunderstood you.”

For a moment, I did not know if he meant my marriage to Oliver, or the time Jessica framed me for pushing her into the water.

But none of it mattered anymore.

When we arrived at the hotel, I stepped out and politely thanked him.

He suddenly called out to me.

“Helen!”

I turned around. Noah opened his mouth, forcing a smile that looked worse than crying.

“I’m just so glad you’re still here.”

I gave him a faint smile and walked into the hotel without looking back.

That night, I attended a business gala at the rooftop ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel in Midtown

Manhattan.

The venue was packed with New York’s elite, all gathering to network and talk business.

Over the past two years, my company had expanded at a staggering pace, taking the industry by storm

Attending as the CEO of Helen & Co., I was quickly approached by several executives eager to hand me their business cards.

Halfway through the gala, Oliver Martinez, the head of the Martinez family, finally made his grand entrance.

His arrogant, dismissive attitude had not changed one bit.

I ignored him, continuing my conversation with the business partners in front of me.

Just as I raised my glass again, a hand blocked me.

It was Noah.

“You’ve had too much to drink tonight,” he warned softly. “It’s bad for your stomach.”

Right after college, when I was helping him build his family business, I used to cover for him at drinking events, which had ruined my stomach.

Seeing this, a business partner teased with a laugh, “Mr. Williams really knows how to protect his lady. Tell you what, why don’t you drink this one for her?”

Without a second thought, Noah grabbed the glass and downed it.

The crowd erupted into cheers, drawing the eyes of everyone in the ballroom toward us.

Oliver, who hated socializing, had been smoking alone by the balcony railing.

Hearing the commotion, he glanced over.

Our eyes met.

The moment he saw the face he had dreamed of for years, Oliver froze, the cigar slipping from his fingers

unnoticed.

His eyes filled with utter disbelief.

He strode toward us.

Without warning, his fist slammed into Noah’s face.

“Noah! How dare you hide her from me!”

I stepped between them.

“I only ran into Noah today.”

Oliver ignored the explanation, reaching out to grab my arm.

Noah stepped in, blocking him, his voice icy “Don’t touch her.”

The scene was chaotic. Unwilling to stay a second longer, I turned and walked away.

Oliver caught up to me in no time.

His voice was hoarse, cracking with despair.

“Helen, if you were alive, why didn’t you come to find me? Do you have any idea how much pain I’ve been in, how much I missed you these past three years?”

The Oliver I knew was always high and mighty, completely untouchable.

His current pathetic, broken state actually surprised me.

He reached up, ripped off the necklace around his neck, and pressed it into my

hand.

It was the seashell necklace I had once treasured, the one Hanna had stolen from me.

Regret filled Oliver’s eyes as he confessed he had mistaken Hanna for me.

Only then did I realize that the man who had constantly hurt and humiliated me was the very boy I had saved on the beach in the Hamptons when we were kids.