Chapter 124: Blacklist Tessa Morgan
"That’s not true," Noah said desperately, trying to make Elena believe him. "I never intended to humiliate Mr. Rowan. I simply didn’t know who he really was."
Elena looked at him coldly. "So because you believed he was powerless, you thought you could target him?"
Noah instinctively shook his head. But no words came out. He couldn’t defend himself.
"If Mr. Rowan hadn’t hidden his identity, none of this would’ve happened," Tessa argued. "We would’ve never doubted him, let alone humiliated him. Don’t blame us for something we couldn’t have known."
"Shut up, Tessa." Noah’s voice was sharp. "You’ve caused enough trouble already. Don’t make things worse."
Tessa stared at him in disbelief. "Noah... you are yelling at me?"
Her eyes quickly filled with tears. "I’m trying to help you."
"I don’t need your help." His voice was icy. "Stay quiet."
"No, I won’t," Tessa snapped back. "This isn’t our fault."
She swept a hand toward the guests. "None of them recognized him either. Why are only we being punished?"
She turned to Elias. "If Mr. Rowan hadn’t hidden his identity, none of this would’ve happened. How were we supposed to know that the owner of Novacrest Global would be working as the CEO of a small finance company?"
"Are you going to decide where Mr. Rowan is allowed to work?" Ryan’s furious voice echoed through the hall.
Everyone gasped. They had known Ryan for years. Never had they seen him lose his temper.
"AscendCore Finance is one of the many companies under Novacrest Global," Ryan continued coldly. "As the owner, Mr. Rowan can work wherever he pleases."
He took a step toward Tessa. "And as for hiding his identity..." His eyes turned icy. "That is entirely his choice. He has every right to reveal it—or keep it hidden—from anyone he wishes."
His expression darkened. "Today’s charity gala was supposed to be the day he finally introduced himself to the public and proudly introduced Madam Rowan as his wife."
His voice became colder with every word. "But you ruined everything."
Tessa’s face turned deathly pale. Instinctively, she moved closer to Noah.
Ryan looked at her without a trace of sympathy. "For everything you’ve done, you will pay the price."
His voice was final. He straightened his suit. "I, Ryan Brook, CEO of Novacrest Global, officially blacklist Tessa Morgan throughout the entire city."
His gaze swept across the crowd. "If anyone dares to hire her, Novacrest Global will consider them an enemy and immediately terminate all business relations with them."
Silence filled the banquet hall. Not a single person dared to object.
"You can’t do this to me," Tessa cried desperately.
She grabbed Noah’s arm. "Noah, say something. You can’t let this injustice happen."
Noah stood there motionless. His mind was in complete chaos. He didn’t respond. He couldn’t.
Elias had turned out to be someone he couldn’t afford to offend.
And Elena... She was now Elias’ wife.
Watching the two of them together was like a knife twisting inside his heart. His hope of winning Elena back had become almost impossible.
On top of that, Sinclair Group had just lost its biggest business opportunity. He couldn’t risk provoking Elias or Ryan any further.
Seeing his silence, Tessa finally panicked.
"Noah!" she screamed hysterically. "Stop them. I’m your wife. I’m carrying your child. Are you really going to let them humiliate me like this?"
The guests began whispering again. Some looked shocked. Others stared at her with open disgust.
"Pregnant with his child?" Elias suddenly spoke, his tone lazy and amused. "Are you certain about that?"
Every eye in the room turned toward him.
Tessa’s face drained of all color. She suddenly remembered the anonymous messages that had been threatening her for weeks.
’Could he have been the mysterious sender all along?’
Her knees weakened. She nearly stumbled.
Noah frowned. The confidence in Elias’ smile made his heart sink.
A strange feeling crept into his chest.
He suddenly had the unsettling feeling that Elias knew something about Tessa. Suspicion and uneasiness crept into his heart.
"What do you mean?"
Tessa immediately shoved the bodyguards aside and rushed toward him. "Noah, don’t listen to him."
She grabbed his arm tightly. "He is trying to drive a wedge between us. This is his revenge."
"Oh, really?" Elias raised an eyebrow. "My revenge?"
He let out a faint chuckle. "You are not nearly important enough for that."
His eyes grew cold. "I’m simply exposing the web of lies you’ve spun around the Sinclair family."
"What lies?" Noah demanded impatiently. He turned sharply toward Tessa. "What else have you been hiding from me?"
Tessa frantically shook her head. "Noah, please. They are trying to destroy us. Don’t listen to them."
"Then who should he believe?" Elias asked calmly. "You? A habitual liar?"
Tessa felt a chill run down her spine as she met his icy gaze.
Then Elias spoke the words that shattered her world. "The child she is carrying isn’t yours."
His calm voice echoed throughout the silent hall. "It belongs to her ex-boyfriend."
A collective gasp swept through the room. Whispers spread like wildfire.
Even Elena stared at Elias in shock. She hadn’t expected such a revelation.
"That’s a lie," Tessa shrieked. "You are slandering me."
Noah’s expression darkened instantly. He grabbed her arm so hard that she winced.
"Is it true?" Storms raged in his eyes.
"No..." Tessa cried desperately. "It’s your baby. I swear."
"Really?" Elias scoffed. "You never stopped seeing Dante after getting together with Noah. You became pregnant with Dante’s child and then lied to Noah. You planned to use that baby to secure the Sinclair family’s fortune."
He nodded toward Owen.
Without a word, Owen stepped forward and handed Noah a thick envelope. Inside were photographs of Tessa with Dante.
Some showed them holding hands. Others captured them embracing.
Noah’s hands trembled violently as he flipped through them. His face gradually lost all color.
Tessa felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath her feet.
Every lie, every carefully crafted plan, everything she had worked toward for years had collapsed in an instant. The man who had destroyed it all was Elias.
But she wasn’t willing to give up yet.
"Noah." She grabbed his sleeve desperately. "Please believe me. Those pictures are old. I haven’t seen Dante in a long time. Don’t let him destroy what we have."
Noah ripped his arm away and threw the photographs at her.
The pictures were scattered across the marble floor.
"Believe you?" His voice trembled with rage. "How am I supposed to believe you now?"
Tessa broke into tears. "I’m your wife. Are you really going to believe an outsider instead of me?"
Hearing those words, Elena let out a quiet, bitter laugh.
She had said those same words to Noah in the past. She had begged him to trust her. But he had chosen to believe Tessa instead.
Now, she wanted to see what he would choose this time.
Would he finally see the truth? Or would he once again believe Tessa’s lies?