“You think closing a gate silences the truth? This is far from over!”
“Stop!” Brady whirled on his mother, his eyes blazing with accumulated fury.
“Just shut up!”
The raw violence in his voice struck Noreen like a physical blow, shocking her into silence.
Brady’s finger stabbed toward her accusingly.
“Get out of my sight! I want you gone. This instant!”
In the car, Hadley’s attention jumped between her phone screen and Eric’s profile.
“Is there any way to increase our speed?”
“Sure,” Eric agreed, leaning forward toward the driver.
“Pick up the pace, please.”
“Right away, sir.”
“I really appreciate this,” Hadley said, her voice warm with sincerity.
“My pleasure,” Eric replied, studying her intently. When he spoke again, his question carried a different weight entirely.
“How long have you and Ernest been in a relationship?”
Hadley sat there, momentarily speechless. Of course, Eric had lost all his memories and now assumed there was something going on between her and Ernest. The idea almost made her laugh.
He hadn’t regained his memories, but his personality hadn’t changed at all. He always jumped to conclusions when he saw her with another man, instantly suspecting some romance.
Noticing her hesitation, Eric grew even more suspicious.
“Is it that hard for you to answer?”
“No,” said Hadley, pulling herself out of her thoughts and giving a gentle shake of her head.
“I simply have no interest in answering that.”
Your update hub: g?lησνs?c?m
“And why is that?” Eric studied her, suspicion flickering in his eyes.
“Is it because you’re hiding something from me? If you were Ernest’s girlfriend, surely you’d have run into me before.”
Curiosity got the better of him, so he asked, “Did I do something to upset you before? Is that why you’re so distant and even pretend we didn’t know each other?”
He placed a hand on his temple and met her gaze, his voice earnest.
“I genuinely don’t remember anything from back then. But if I ever treated you poorly, I apologize. I mean that.”
She stared at him, surprised by the apology. Did he really just apologize for things he couldn’t even recall?
Hadley hesitated, searching his face as memories threatened to surface. Half a year had passed, yet it seemed like a completely different era.
“That’s not it at all.” A small smile touched her lips as she shook her head.
“You never did anything wrong. There’s no reason for you to feel sorry. We haven’t met before, and we’re strangers.”
“But you’re close with my grandmother…” Eric’s doubt lingered. He wondered if he had misunderstood everything.
“How come we’ve never met until now? How does that make…”
“Any sense?” Hadley let out a faint laugh.
“Just because your brother brought me to meet her doesn’t mean he has to check in with you every time.”
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