Chapter 45: Did Anything Happen?
Selene felt very surprised and went blank after hearing Austin’s declaration of love.
Austin kept silent, and he got no reaction from her. He smiled sarcastically. “Let me guess, I’m too late again. Right?”
Selene recovered herself but did not really understand what he meant. “What?”
“You’ve fallen in love with someone else, am I right?”
Selene was too shocked to speak, as if the biggest secret she had been keeping for a long time had just been revealed. Instead, she shook her head subconsciously.
“Is it Clint Denovan?”
“No, no.” Selene went completely pale and shook her head.
Austin touched her face and hugged her. “Selene, please don’t lie to yourself. I know you are the best in the world. I saw your love for him the moment I saw him in your store.”
Selene leaned herself onto his shoulder and kept silent for a long time. “I’m not going to deny it. I have a feeling for him, but I’ve never considered spending the rest of my life with him. He loves someone deeply in his mind, and someone is pursuing him very heavily. He’s in trouble, and I can’t stand that.”
Selene paused for a moment, then continued. “I’ve decided to forget about him.”
“Okay then. I guess I’ll just be patient and wait for that to happen.”
Selene let go of his arm and smiled. “Are you really willing to be my backup?”
While Selene did not feel uneasy about his confession, maybe she and Clint were too close just to dismiss it entirely.
Austin felt a little disappointed with her words. “I guess I’ll be your backup.” He said, forcing a smile.
Selene patted him warmly. “Austin. Other than my father, you are the most important man to me.”
“I really believe that I will marry you one day.” Austin smiled and looked up to the stars. “Okay. It’s getting late. Let’s head back.”
“I’ll admit, this feels a little awkward.”
“I know you’ve always treated me as your brother.”
“Yes. You’re not wrong.”
“That’s so unfair!”Original content from NôvelDrama.Org.
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Clint kept calling Selene, but she never picked up. He was worried-sick thinking about her.
One morning, when he had just tried to call her, but no one answered, he stared at the screen and thought for a while. He then started to edit a message and was ready to send it.
At that moment, however, the phone on his desk rang.
Clint picked it up and heard his secretary on the other end of the line. “Mr. Denovan. Jennifer Keller is here to see you.”
Clint frowned, knowing Jennifer’s intention. Jennifer had already revealed her affection towards him a long time ago, but Clint had always refused to acknowledge it. He doesn’t like her, yet this woman forces her way to him, making him feel annoyed.
At the themed party that had taken place a while back, Jennifer had acted very intimately with Clint and declared her love for him in front of everyone. Clint went along with it only because so many people had been watching, and he didn’t want to make Jennifer lose face.
Now that the media had written lots of articles depicting the two as “lovers,” Clint felt very embarrassed about the situation, and all he could do was avoid any contact with Jennifer. He hoped that if he would do this, then the media would eventually get bored and forget about it.
“Okay, let her in,” Clint said quietly.
Jennifer rushed in.
“Did anything happen?” Clint asked with furrowed brows.
Jennifer walked over to him and looked at him apologetically. “I’m sorry about the way I acted at the party. I know it has caused you trouble. Please forgive me.”
“It’s all right. Just remember that you’re now a public figure, so you should be more careful about what you say.” Clint replied with a cold expression.
“But I did not say anything wrong. I only said what I felt. Why is it so hard for you to realize that I love you? Why do you keep rejecting me again and again?”
“Jennifer. You’re like a sister to me. Johnson’s my best friend. I also respect your parents. We grew up together, and I treat you like family. So please don’t cross that line again. Put some respect on yourself; running after a man wasn’t good at all.”
“Why? Do you still love Selene Morris? You know that she only married you to take advantage of you, right? So how can you possibly have feelings for a woman like her?”
Clint listened to her words silently, then scoffed, leaning back into his chair. He gave her a cold look and sneered. “Oh, you just reminded me that I need to thank you for that. You took Joseph, Selene’s ex-boyfriend, out of the picture, which gave me the chance to marry her.”
Jennifer was frightened by his words. She took a deep breath and took out a pile of photos from her bag, throwing them on Clint’s desk. “I’m here to tell you that you will never have the chance to be with Selene again.”
Clint lowered his eyes and glanced at the photos. In one of them, a man and a woman hugged each other tightly under the moonlight by a riverbank. They looked very beautiful.
The woman in the photo was Selene, and Clint recognized the man as Austin. Shock washed across Clint’s demeanor, but he managed to hide it well.
He frowned and looked at Jennifer. “This is quite pathetic, Jennifer. Spying on them and secretly taking pictures of them. Please stop this.”
“Why are you suddenly in love with this woman you barely know? I’ve been here for you for so many years.” Jennifer said with an ironic smile.
“It’s love. Too complicated for me to explain to you right now.”
“This can’t be happening to me,” Jennifer murmured. “I hate her. I hate her….”
“Stop being so vengeful. This is not Selene’s fault, so don’t blame her for it.”
“But I really hate her!” Jennifer shouted, then rushed out, slamming the door behind her.
Clint rubbed his forehead and glanced at the photos on the desk. He picked them up and took another look at them. Suddenly, he felt extremely agitated and swiped all the photos on the floor.