Chapter 343
I still had a bit of my wits about me and dodged Neil’s hand again. My action was a bit too sharp, hinting at my irritation.
After a few drinks, my temper was a tad bigger than usual. I blurted out the question that had been gnawing at me, “Why weren’t you with Bonnie?”
“Mitch called. I was nearby, so I swung by.” Neil sat down next to me. That’s when I noticed Alicia was gone.
He took my hand, casually rubbing the back of it, then asked, “What was that you said earlier? Are you mad because I haven’t been in touch?”
I didn’t answer him. I only pointed to where Alicia had been sitting and asked, “Where’s Alicia?”
“I had her sent home. Don’t worry about it,” Neil explained nonchalantly, then circled back to his previous question, “You still didn’t
answer me.”
Since Alicia was taken care of, I could have left on my own. So, I ignored Neil, stood up, grabbed my bag, and made to leave.
A few steps in, I felt lightheaded and dizzy, instinctively reaching out for support.
Neil extended his arm, and I grabbed his shirt, barely managing to steady myself.
“I don’t need your help!” I said, shrugging him off once more, the pent-up frustration bursting forth under the influence of alcohol.
“Are you really mad? Did you see those pictures?” Neil asked, his tone seeming almost happy.
I was indeed mad, a feeling I couldn’t control. Maybe it was because Neil had been so good to me lately, making me somewhat dependent on him. If he suddenly changed, it would have made me feel uneasy.
That sort of dependence was terrifying. When Neil initially refused to divorce me, I even suspected that he was so used to me that he couldn’t accept any change.
I stuttered, “No, I’m just…work’s been stressful. I’m not in a good mood.”
“I’ll take you home.” Neil didn’t argue with this drunken mess of me any further. He simply picked me up and carried me out of the bar.
Sitting in Neil’s car, I was feeling irritable. I was not sure if it was because of what my mom had said, or Neil and Bonnie’s situation, or both.
In the midst of my agitation, I noticed a small red flower stuck on the passenger-side dashboard. I immediately remembered the same red flower Bonnie used to wear.
Did she stick it there?
At that moment, my mood plummeted. I told Neil to pull over, “Stop the car. I’m getting out!”
“What’s wrong?” Neil glanced at me, seemingly clueless about my sudden outburst.
“I can take a cab home!” I retorted loudly.
“You’re drunk. How are you going to take a cab home by yourself?” Neil frowned, “Stop messing around. We can talk about whatever is bothering you when we get home.”
I pointed at the flower and asked, “Don’t you understand what this means?”
Neil glanced at the flower, seemingly oblivious to such details, and appeared taken aback, “Is there a problem?”
I took off the flower, looked at it, and then stuck it back on. ‘In those few seconds, I seemed to have regained some of my sobriety, “Nothing. I just noticed that this flower wasn’t here before.”
“Maybe Bonnie stuck it there,” Neil answered casually, not worried that I would get angry.
I didn’t want to talk anymore. I closed my eyes and rested, waiting for Neil to drop me home.
After a while, the car stopped in front of my house. I wasn’t flustered because I had already talked to my mom earlier. I was even more accepting of what my mom had said. Why would I want to fall back into that painful relationship?
As I was about to get out of the car, Neil asked me again, “Why didn’t you answer my question? Are you mad?”
“I’m not mad,” I denied it irritably, and then got out of the car and left.
Neil also got out and watched as I stumbled a bit. He came over to help me, but I shut the gate right in his face.
Then I gave him a glance and walked into the living room, trying to keep a clear head.
Hannah was still up. She sniffed the alcohol on me and immediately asked with concern, “Ms. Finch, have you been drinking? I’ll make you some honey water.”
I collapsed onto the couch, waving Hannah off to do her thing.
Just as I was about to doze off, I heard the doorbell ring, followed by Hannah opening the door and asking, “Mr. Whitmore, what brings you here?”
That woke me up a bit. I opened my eyes and looked at the entrance to the living room. Sure enough, there stood Neil, tall enough to have his gaze easily pass over Hannah and land on me.
“She’s drunk. I came to check on her.” Neil didn’t try to hide his concern for me in front of Hannah.
Hannah glanced back at me and understood. She placed the honey water she had made on the table and went upstairs to rest.
Sometimes I wondered if she was a spy sent by Neil.
Then it was just me and Neil left in the living room. I forced myself to sit up, picked up the cup of honey water, and drank it without saying a word.
After finishing my honey water, I got up and went upstairs, not in the least bit worried about leaving Neil alone in my house. He was the CEO of Whitmore Co. He wouldn’t have stooped so low as to steal from my house.
Neil quickly followed me upstairs. He grabbed my wrist and said, “Stop messing around. You know I have no feelings for Bonnie. I’m just hoping to find some dirt on Ethan Foster from her.”
“You don’t have to explain anything to me. I don’t care. If you keep this up, my mom’s going to wake up and kick you out. Do you understand?” I struggled to free myself from his grip, but to no avail, which only fueled my anger.
Neil ignored my resistance and just held me in his arms, speaking softly, “Alright, alright, Don’t be mad. If there’s something you’re not happy with, just tell me. If it’s something I overlooked, I’ll be more mindful.”
That only made me angrier. Was he expecting me to teach him how to win me back?
I don’t know where I got the strength, but I managed to push Neil away. Then I pointed at him and lost my temper before saying, “Get out of my sight. Now!”
“Do you really want me to leave?” Neil furrowed his brows.
“Yes, leave now. Go find Bonnie!” I was full of jealousy, but I didn’t realize it. Neil seemed to be pissed off by my attitude. He didn’t notice my jealousy; he just turned around and left with a cold face.
Once the living room door was shut, Neil was really out of my sight. I clutched my forehead, feeling super crappy, but I still managed to drag my tired self back to my room to get some rest.
