?Chapter 386:


    “Why are you looking at me? Don’t tell me you think I orchestrated their rtionship?” Eric narrowed his eyes. He exhaled a sharp breath and pulled out a cigarette, taking a slow drag.


    From the very beginning, he had said Denver and Hadley were not a good match. A divorced woman with no powerful family backing? How could a high-standing family like Denver’s ever approve? Only N had indulged in such wishful thinking.


    Barrie shifted his focus back to Marshall. “So where is Denver staying now? Is he managing?”


    “He still has friends, alright? He’s crashing with one of them,” Marshall replied, shaking his head. “But word is, Hadley is not speaking to him. She blocked him.”


    “What?” Barrie gawked. “So he is left with nothing?”


    Then, after a beat, he nodded to himself, as if making sense of it. “Well, Hadley’s not wrong. Clinging to Denver now would be reckless.”


    “Why would that be reckless?” Eric, who had been silent until now, suddenly cut in. He stubbed out his half-burned cigarette in the ashtray. “Was she the one clinging to Denver? Wasn’t it Denver who insisted? Denver knew what he was getting into from the start.”


    “If he chose this path, he should see it through.”


    The weight of his words settled over the room like a dense fog. Barrie and Marshall exchanged nces but said nothing.


    The next day, at Lightning Studio.


    Eric had been parked outside for ten minutes, his sharp gaze never straying from the entrance. Afraid to even blink, he waited, his patience wearing thin.


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    Atst, she appeared.


    “Hadley!”


    Eric stepped out of his car and closed the distance between them with purposeful strides.


    Hadley turned, startled by his sudden presence. “Is there… something you need?”


    “Yes.” Eric nodded toward the vehicle idling at the curb. “Get in first.”


    Her fingers tightened around her bag strap. “What is this about? We can talk right here.”


    Did she think he was some sort of threat? The way she was acting, one might assume he was out to get her. Eric felt a dull ache in his chest. If he hadn’t been the reason she ended up a divorcee, he wouldn’t be wasting his time here.


    Clearing his throat, Eric spoke with an awkward stiffness. “Well, Denver is holding up for now. But rtionships are a two-way street. He can’t be the only one fighting for it while you stand on the sidelines doing nothing.”


    “What?” Hadley was caught off guard, the weight of his words throwing her off bnce.


    “I heard,” Eric continued, his voice steady with purpose. “You blocked Denver—so what now? Are you nning to erase him from your life entirely?”


    Hadley stiffened. How did he know? More importantly, why was he here? Was he about to strong-arm her into reconsidering just because she turned Denver away?


    “Are you being reckless?”


    Eric had no idea what thoughts were racing through her mind. His tone was sharp. “Denver got thrown out because of you! The man refuses to back down, yet the moment you hit a rough patch, you throw in the towel? Did you not say you liked him? Is this your version of devotion?”


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