Noelle pressed her lips into a thin line. "If you knew getting exposed would be
humiliating, then why lie in the first ce?"
"I didn''t lie! Ask anyone here—do you really think you deserve Cedric?" Laura
snapped. She was clearly losing her usualposure, her voice sharp and high.
Cedric''s jaw tightened as he finally said, "Laura, I was the one who pursued her."
At that moment, Laura looked like someone had just cut off her oxygen. She
lookedpletely frozen and speechless.
She could not believe that he was the one who pursued Noelle. But why her?
What did Noelle have that she didn''t?
Noelle watched Laura''s crumbling expression and, for a second, was reminded of
herself back at the café—not so long ago. Maybe she had looked just as wrecked
that day, all because of the same man.
She stood up, ready to leave. She felt things had gotten so messy that discussing
work now seemed pointless.
Cedric noticed her movement right away and stepped in her path. Noelle''s
expression tightened. "What are you doing?"
"There''s broken ss on the floor," he replied. Then, he gently lifted her up, spun
her around to avoid the shards, and set her down safely. His lips were pressed
into a thin line. "We''ll talk business tomorrow at the office."
"Got it." She nced at the shattered ss on the floor, her cheeks suddenly
flushing for a reason she couldn''t exin. After that, she turned and quickly left
the room.
Laura watched the scene unfold, her voice hoarse. "Cedric, did you really have to
humiliate me like this? In front of everyone?"
"I told you long ago to clear up the engagement rumor yourself. If it were anyone
else, she wouldn''t have stood by me after hearing it."
His expression was stern, and it was obvious that there was no room for
negotiation.
Laura opened her mouth, but no words came out. She just watched as Cedric
walked away, feeling like her entire world had shattered.
Outside, Noelle returned to the team''s dinner gathering. Since most of her friends
had finished eating, she went to pay the bill.
The server smiled and said, "It''s already been taken care of."
She did not have to ask—she knew exactly who paid. As the group headed out
and walked down the stairs, she spotted Cedric standing near the entrance.
His figure was tall and steady, his presence unmistakable. He turned and looked
straight at her, locking eyes for a moment.
Her teammates began whispering behind her. "Isn''t that Noelle''s boyfriend? He''s
the same guy who waited outside campus all nightst month."
"Damn, he''s even hotter in person. Way better than the pics we saw."
Noelle''s ears burned with heat. She turned and looked at her teammates and
said, "I''ve got a car on the way. Let''s head back to campus together."
She followed the group toward the door, and as she passed Cedric, her heartbeat
suddenly skipped.
Noelle acted like she did not see him, but she could feel his eyes following her
every step. Outside the building, her teammates started piling into the cabs in
small groups.
Raymond appeared beside her. "Come on, let''s go."
Noelle nodded and slid into the back seat with Grace while Raymond took the
front seat. Before shutting the door, he nced back at the man standing by the
entrance.
However, Cedric did not even look
his way—his eyes stayed fixed on
Noelle the entire time, and Raymond
waspletely ignored. That small
dismissal made something sour stir
in Raymond''s chest.
He turned and started making small
talk with Noelle, but she only
responded half-heartedly, distracted
and distant. As the car pulled away
from the curb, she found herself
ncing out the window.
There stood Cedric, head lowered, looking at his phone. But from the corner of
her eye, she saw someone else appear—Laura, tears streaking her face as she
chased after him.
Noelle quickly looked away, her
heart pounding. She fumbled for her
phone, hoping to distract herself.
Then, she saw Cedric''s message.
The moment her eyesnded on
that single line, her heart went into<pplete chaos.
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