Chapter 179



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The scariest part of Cleveland was that he was able to identify your weakness even after knowing you for a short period of time. To top it off, he was able to openly attack that weakness.

Shortly before, she had mocked her relationship with Joseph, commenting that the root of the problem was never her sister. In fact, the basis of their relationship was already shaky from the beginning, which is why they could easily drift apart.

At the same time, Hayden couldn’t help rolling her eyes as she couldn’t suppress fits of laughter as she made fun of herself for having her eyes on an oblivious guy. And she was even thinking about changing this part of him.

In the end, they both didn’t want to take a step back. They were neck and neck when it came to spouting derogatory and disparaging words.

The situation persisted until Joseph showed up.

“When you see that your beloved man has such a good relationship with his ex-girlfriend and her family, do you feel aggrieved?”.

“You can shut up now.” Hayden rested his gaze on Cleveland, “If I had known that you are connected with Addison, I would never have given you my attention in Guangdong.”

This family was evil.

Cleveland raised his eyebrows, looking unconcerned, as he continued to tease, “If you want, I can help you turn the tables on her.”

“How?”

Before she could respond, Joseph had finished exchanging greetings with Cleveland’s mother on the other side, and was now heading their way.

“Why are you here?”

Joseph stood in front of them, and his aura was truly impressive.

Hayden replied with some annoyance, “Do I have to tell you all about my whereabouts? Don’t forget that I no longer work at the hotel.”

“You’ve been suspended, they haven’t accepted your resignation.” She was corrected by Joseph with a cold expression.

“When my suspension period is over, I will no longer resign. Whatever…”

Joseph was about to get upset, but the corner of his eye caught Cleveland. Then he tried to calm his anger as he grabbed Hayden’s arms, “Come with me.”

“Wait a minute.” Cleveland’s voice rang out behind Joseph, “Joseph, where are you planning to take someone else’s girlfriend?”

Girlfriend?

Hayden’s expression changed drastically as he shot a startled look at Cleveland.

This man had a carefree expression on his face. He didn’t even hesitate to spout such blatant lies.

“If you’re just kidding, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything.” Joseph looked at Cleveland with an unfriendly expression.

“Stop being in a hurry, I never said she was my girlfriend.” Cleveland looked strangely calm, “It’s just that Freddie had told me she’s his girlfriend.”

Hayden felt a jolt in his heart. Cleveland was truly a sly, devilish fox.

He was trying not to attract any trouble for himself while deflecting anything risky to others.

As expected, Joseph’s face darkened almost instantly. Oblivious to the onlookers, he dragged her into a break room without room for discussion. After slamming the door shut, he threw her onto a couch.

Hayden’s spine crashed against the couch and it made her involuntarily gasp for air. She lifted her head as she tried to tidy up her messy hair, “What are you doing?”

“I remember you telling me that you and Freddie are just brothers. Nothing more.”

Joseph rested his palms firmly on the armrest of the couch and caught Hayden. His domineering demeanor really instilled fear and unease in his heart.

Hayden swallowed hard and explained with great difficulty, “We really are brothers, and even if we weren’t, what does that have to do with you? We’re done.”

“I’ll-never-agree-with-that.”

She articulated those words forcefully, not planning to give Hayden any chance to rebut.

He was leaning over her, casting a shadow over Hayden’s face. There was a fragrance wafting in the air, and his brain suddenly conjured in his imagination Addison’s wretched face.

Her face shadowed at once, “Give me some space.” Her frail hands pressed against his chest as she said in frustration, “I don’t like the way you smell right now.”

Joseph noticed the disgusted expression on her face and suddenly realized something. Without a word, he straightened up and sat down next to her, much calmer.

“What about Cleveland, how did you meet him?”

“I met him on the plane when I went on a field trip.” Hayden sounded very disjointed.

A flash of arrogance shone in Joseph’s eyes as he warned her, “He’s not the type to approach someone without a reason, you’d better leave him alone.”

“So you think your ex-girlfriend has no ulterior motive in approaching you?”. Hayden looked like he had a lot to say before he got to him with another question, “Do you really think she was selfless when she saved Noah? Do you really think all she thinks about is you?”

Joseph frowned, “There must be some hidden truth in that incident. I’m looking into it.”

“Of course I know you’re looking into it.” Hayden’s gaze slowly lost its luster, “There is nothing that can blind you, and yet your first instinct is to doubt me. Am I right?”

She never doubted Joseph’s intelligence and judgment. After that affair, he would naturally send someone to investigate the details thoroughly. He is no fool, and since she was able to discover some anomalies in that matter, it was not possible for him to overlook that.

Therefore, he was never worried about the truth sinking forever into the depths of the ocean.

Plunging their relationship into such an uncomfortable state was his way of resolving that matter.

“What happens when you finish your investigation? You know it’s not a coincidence that Addison showed up in the kitchen, so what are you planning to do, are you really willing to accuse her of meddling in that matter?”

Hayden lowered his head as he ironed the wrinkles out of her evening dress with his hands. She took a deep breath and answered with a straight back, “Of course not. Just because you would care for Addison and her mother’s dignity, you won’t suspect her.”

Cleveland’s words that painted a picture of him as close to Addison’s mother as real mother and son told me only one thing. No matter what Addison did, she would always be forgiven by Joseph.

Joseph was always sentimental when it came to Addison, yet he was very level-headed when it came to Hayden.

That was the difference.

Joseph felt himself becoming more and more agitated as he raised his head slightly and turned his gaze towards that woman. “My relationship with Addison is not that complicated, you don’t have to use that as an excuse to vent your anger. It was my mistake to blame you without having the full picture of that incident, but I still have something I want to ask you.”

“Tell me whatever you want.”

“If there comes a day when something happens to both Stella and Noah, who would you save first?”

“You should ask yourself the same question.” Hayden unreservedly rebutted him, “Who would you save?”

“Noah.” Joseph answered without a second thought.

Despite knowing perfectly well the answer Joseph would give, the moment Hayden heard it with her own ears, she felt a sudden coldness wash over her. It was as if her entire body was confined in a freezer.

“Your question alone is cruel in nature. I don’t mind you taking my word for it, but I truly see Noah as my own son. Despite that, this question puts me between a rock and a hard place.” Hayden stared at Joseph with an emotionless, distant look, “But you’re different from me. You’re so direct and determined, I bet you’ve never seen Stella as your own daughter.”

There was no trace of resentment when she blurted out those words. She was doing her best not to spill the truth. She wondered, if Joseph had known that those two were her biological children, would he regret asking such a question?

Maybe he would be speechless for some time or even frustrated, but she couldn’t bear the consequences of telling him the whole truth, at least not now.

“No matter how it goes with Freddie or Cleveland, or any man for that matter, you have no more to do with it. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again now, we are now separated.”

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