The bodyguards swarmed in, causing the thugs to scatter like rats. But it was toote. All five were captured and brought back by Alex''s men.


    "Take them to the police station," Alex ordered coldly.


    Still trembling, I was pulled away by Alex and shoved into the passenger seat.


    "It scared you, huh?" Alex''s voice was unusually gentle as he took out a tissue and wiped the dirt from my face. "It''s okay now. It''s over."


    I stared at him nkly, taking a moment to calm down.


    Recalling the foolish thing I had done and the danger I had narrowly escaped, I couldn''t help butugh sheepishly in embarrassment. "How did you get here?"


    Alex''s tone hardened as soon as I calmed down. "How did I get here? If I hadn''t shown up, do you think you would''ve made it out of here today?"


    "I..." Guilt washed over me, and I fell silent.


    "Why were you following that guy?" Alex snapped.


    "What? Is he your new boyfriend? Were you so afraid he was just another rich kid trying to scam you that you decided to investigate him first? And you ended up walking straight into a den of thieves! You didn''t even realize you had one foot in the grave!" His voice was a mix of anger and sarcasm.


    "I..." For the first time, I felt truly ashamed and could only offer a weak excuse. "He''s not my boyfriend; he''s just a coworker."


    The car fell into an ufortable silence.


    Alex said with a bitterugh, "Serena, do you ever ask the right people for help when you''re in trouble?"


    I nced up at him, confused. "What do you mean?"


    He handed me a folder and started the car. "You''re not just half-witted; you''re also half-mute."


    I opened the folder, and inside was Kevin''s file.


    Overjoyed, I dismissed the reprimand in Alex''s voice. "Isn''t this..."


    "It''s exactly what you''ve been looking for," Alex replied, his hand resting on the steering wheel. A flicker of helplessness crossed his face. "Serena, why can''t you just ask for help when you need it?


    Clutching the documents, I scrambled for an excuse. "I didn''t want to bother you with something so trivial, so I thought I''d handle it myself. Who knew it''d turn out like this, haha..."


    Under Alex''s intense gaze, I wisely fell silent.


    With Kevin''s file in hand, a weight lifted from my shoulders. For the first time in days, I slept soundly.


    ...


    The next day at work, I ran into thest person I wanted to see.


    Julian had shown up again.


    "Serena, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me," Julian pleaded, dropping to one


    knee with a ring box in hand right at the door of the coffee shop.


    I looked at him, my brows furrowing together. "What are you up to now?"


    "Serena," he called out, his voice full of sincerity. "I really was wrong. I shouldn''t


    have kept my identity from you. Please forgive me."


    Seeing him like this, my irritation


    grew. My eyes drifted to Kevin, who was busy behind the counter. It suddenly urred to me that this might be the perfect chance to test his intentions.


    I discreetly turned on my phone''s camera and then said with a frown, "But you


    kept it from me for so long, and it really hurt."


    "I..." Julian faltered as a crowd began to form around us. Embarrassment flickered across his face. "I just


    wanted to see if you were the kind of girl who cared about material


    things."


    "And what did you find out?" I asked, raising an eyebrow, struggling to suppress


    the resentment building inside.