He Said Of Course to Everything, and I Stopped Loving Him Chapter 05

Something occurred to me, and I stopped resisting. I followed Nolan without another word.

During the drive, I sat back in the rear seat, quietly watching the scenery pass. I didn’t look at Nolan once.

He, on the other hand, kept watching me, his expression impossible to read.

Eventually, he broke the silence.

“You’ve been acting… different since you got back. Did something happen?”

Before I could answer, the driver spoke up.

“Mr. Cross, we’re here.”

Nolan glanced at me again, but my expression gave nothing away.

Suppressing his questions, he took my hand and said seriously, “No matter what happens out there, don’t say a word.”

“I’ll explain everything when we get home.”

He led me out of the car.

Within seconds, we were surrounded by an angry crowd.

“There they are!”

“Shame on Cross Group! We want answers!”

Before I could make sense of what was happening, Nolan shoved me forward without hesitation.

“Everyone, I promise Cross Group will give you an explanation. This woman, Lena Marlowe, was in charge of the project.”

“If you have any complaints, take them up with her!”

Then he stepped away and intercepted Sienna as she hurried toward us.

The crowd immediately closed in on me, shouting accusations and insults.

“She deserves to be torn to pieces!”

“We want answers!”

Someone even started throwing rocks at me.

“Lena!”

Nolan’s first instinct was to come to me, but Sienna suddenly cried out beside him.

“My hand!”

Without another glance in my direction, Nolan turned to protect her.

Blood was already running down my forehead.

Standing amid the furious crowd, I raised my phone and spoke with icy calm.

“Take a look at this.”

On the screen was a project document.

Near the bottom left, the document clearly named Sienna Hale as the person in charge.

Confusion spread through the crowd.

“Me? The person in charge?” I asked.

“I’ve been overseas for the past seven years. If you don’t believe me, look up Nolena Technologies.”

Someone immediately pulled out their phone.

“She’s… she’s telling the truth. I found her! She’s the CEO of Nolena Technologies. Everything I’m reading says she works nonstop. She’s so busy she doesn’t even have time to come back to the States.”

Another person suddenly pointed at Sienna, who was trying to hide in the crowd.

“Look! Here’s her picture! That’s Sienna Hale!”

The crowd’s attitude changed instantly.

They turned on Sienna, surrounding her instead.

This time, Nolan was trapped alongside her, too, after having lied to everyone.

I stood outside the crowd, silently watching Nolan with an impassive expression.

I was about to leave when I heard him call out behind me.

“Lena!”

I turned around.

Our eyes met across the crowd, and I could see the silent plea in his expression.

But I merely gave a faint, dismissive smile and looked away as though he were a stranger.

Then I left without hesitation.

When Nolan came home, I was in the kitchen making dinner for myself.

I’d just finished plating the last dish when he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me.

There was an unusual tenderness in his voice.

“Lena, I’ve called you so many times. Why haven’t you answered?”

“Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?”

When I remained silent, he tried again, clearly trying to gauge my reaction.

“Lena, why… why won’t you talk to me? Are you mad at me?”

I pulled myself forcefully out of his arms, picked up the last dish, and carried it to the dining table.

Something seemed to occur to Nolan, and he smiled as he followed me.

“Lena, you haven’t changed a bit. Even when you’re mad at me, you still make sure I’ve got dinner.”

“Let’s see what you made for me this time.”

He looked at the table and stopped dead.

When he turned back to me, he sounded genuinely incredulous.

“Lena, did you forget? I’m allergic to chili peppers! You put them in every single dish. How am I supposed to eat any of this?”

As he continued, he actually began to sound wounded.

“Lena, what’s gotten into you since you came back? You don’t seem to care about me at all anymore. Have you… stopped loving me?”

“You…” he began.

But before he could finish, I calmly served myself dinner and spoke as casually as if we were discussing the weather.

“Nolan, let’s end this.”