Outside the hospital...
Elena had just reached her car when her phone rang.
It was Nina.
"Hello?"
"Ma’am, Owen called me just now," Nina said anxiously. "He wanted to know if you were still at the office."
Elena frowned slightly. "Okay?"
"He sounded serious. When I asked if he needed something, he brushed it off and said Mr. Rowan only wanted to confirm whether you were still there."
A smile immediately appeared on Elena’s face. She could almost imagine Elias sitting in his office, his brows furrowed with concern.
"He is probably hiding something," Nina continued. "Do you think he found something about the traitor?"
"Relax, Nina. If there is something important, Elias will tell me. Finish the work I gave you. We’ll find the traitor eventually. The important thing is the project. We are preparing for the launch, so we don’t have time to waste."
"Understood, ma’am. You’ll have the complete report by tomorrow."
"Good. I’ll see you tomorrow."
Elena ended the call.
"Elena."
A familiar voice suddenly came from behind her.
Her steps stopped. Her entire body stiffened. She knew that voice.
’Noah?’
Slowly, she turned around. The moment she saw him, the warmth disappeared from her face. Her expression hardened.
"You again..." She quickly slipped her phone into her handbag. She stared at him coldly. "Can you stop showing up wherever I go?"
"Elena, listen to me." Noah strode toward her.
"I have nothing to say to you."
She turned away. But before she could take another step, Noah grabbed her arm.
Elena recoiled at his touch. "What are you doing?" She struggled to pull herself free. "Let go of me."
Noah tightened his grip. "You are coming with me."
He began pulling her toward his car.
"Noah... Stop..." Elena struggled against his hold. "If you don’t let go of me, I’ll shout."
His grip only tightened as he hauled her toward his car. "Do whatever you want. You are coming with me. And this time, I won’t listen to you."
He opened the passenger door and tried to force her inside.
Elena resisted with all her strength, pushing against him. "Are you crazy?" she exclaimed.
"Yes, I am," Noah shouted back. "You made me crazy. "There isn’t a single day when I don’t think about you. Every day, I think about how to earn your forgiveness, how to make you love me again."
His eyes were filled with desperation. "I know you don’t want me anymore. But what to do with my own heart?"
His grip shifted to her shoulders. "It only wants you. It longs for you."
He stared at her helplessly. "Come back to me, Elena. I need you."
Horror flashed in Elena’s eyes. "Noah, you are hurting me."
But Noah was consumed by desperation. He barely seemed to notice the pain in her expression.
"We can start over," he pleaded. "I promise I’ll treat you well. I’ll keep you safe. I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for everything I did."
Elena raised a hand and slapped him.
Noah froze. His cheek burned. The echo of the slap seemed to ring loudly in his ear.
For several seconds, he simply stared at her in shock.
"Start over? You really think I want this?"
Her entire body was shaking now, a mixture of rage, fear, and desperation coursing through her.
"Get this into your head, Noah. I’m already married. And I am happy with my husband. I won’t leave him – not for you, not for anyone else."
Noah slowly touched his burning cheek. A bitter, painful smile touched his lips.
"Happy with your husband? Really? You think you can hide things from me?"
Elena frowned.
"Stop lying to yourself, Elena. I know about the crisis you are facing at the workplace."
"What?" Her expression changed.
She had assumed everything happening inside the company was confidential. Yet somehow, Noah knew.
"Your husband, whom you think so highly of, isn’t even helping you," Noah continued. "Tomorrow, if you can’t prove your innocence, you’ll be fired. And he isn’t doing anything to stop it. Yet you claim that you are happy with him?"
Elena almost laughed.
She had already proven that she hadn’t leaked the project. The only thing the company hadn’t discovered was the identity of the real culprit. And she had complete faith that Elias would uncover the truth. But Noah knew none of that.
"I came here to help you. I won’t abandon you as he has." He extended his hand. "Join the Sinclair Group, Elena. The vice president position can still be yours."
"You won’t abandon me?" Elena scoffed. "Have you forgotten how you left me to die? You chose Tessa. And you were willing to let our child die."
The words landed on him like a punch to his gut. Noah felt as if the air had been knocked out of his lungs. His legs moved backward unconsciously.
"Every time, you abandoned me," she added fiercely. Her eyes glistened with tears, but she refused to let them fall.
"Because you wanted Tessa in your life, you destroyed everything we had. Now that I’ve moved on, you suddenly want me back."
Noah lowered his gaze.
He had lived with guilt and regret every day. He had never forgotten his mistakes, the loss of their child, or the suffering Elena had endured because of him.
That was precisely why he was desperate to make things right.
He closed his eyes briefly, forcing himself to regain his composure. "Whatever happened between us shouldn’t have happened." His voice was calmer when he spoke again.
"It was because of Tessa. Her lies and manipulation destroyed everything."
He looked at Elena. "I’ve already punished her. I know that doesn’t come close to making up for what you suffered."
He stepped toward her. "But I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you. Right now, you should listen to me and come back to the Sinclair Group."
"I don’t need your help," She interrupted him firmly. "I’m happy with my current job. I have no intention of leaving the company."
Noah’s frustration returned. "Why are you so stubborn?" His voice rose yet again.
"People there are calling you a traitor. Your own team has turned against you and demanded your suspension, yet you still want to stay? Don’t you care about your reputation?"
He reached for her hand. "You won’t get any respect there. Listen to me and come with me."
He tried to pull her toward his car again.
"I am not going anywhere with you." Elena twisted her wrist free and shoved him away.
The force caught Noah off guard. He stumbled backward and stared at her in disbelief.
"You are a selfish man, Noah," Elena exclaimed. "You haven’t changed a bit."
Selfish?
Noah’s heart ached.
He was trying to save her. He knew she was in trouble. He wanted to protect her and keep her away from danger. Yet she was calling him selfish.
"You always think about your own happiness," Elena continued. "Back then, you wanted Tessa. You thought only about your happiness with her."
Her voice shook with anger. "To be with her, you didn’t hesitate to hurt me, destroy our marriage, and let our child suffer. And you are doing the same thing again."
Noah’s face turned pale.
He stared at her helplessly. He knew what he had done was unforgivable, and he was willing to spend the rest of his life correcting his mistakes.
How could she still think he was selfish?
"You are still thinking only about what you want," Elena said. "You don’t care about what I want."
Noah felt as though his heart had sunk into an endless abyss.
"You don’t want me to be happy," she continued. "You want me to remain someone who exists for you whenever you need her."
Noah felt his heart sink deeper into the valley.
"You treat me like an emotionless, convenient toy. Something you can pick up whenever you want and throw away whenever you don’t."
"No..." Noah desperately shook his head. "That isn’t true."
"This is the reality," Elena shouted. "Otherwise, why would you want to destroy my marriage?"
She glared at him. "You can’t stand seeing me happy with someone else."
Silence fell between them. For a moment, they simply stared at each other.
Noah’s heart was filled with helplessness, while Elena was furious.
"But I’m no longer the Elena you knew."
Her voice became quieter, but every word carried certainty. "I won’t smile with joy because you give me something. I won’t wait for you anymore. I won’t cry for you again. Because I already found someone who completely captured my heart."
Noah’s nostrils flared. The words seemed to tear his heart apart.
He couldn’t accept that someone had replaced him in her heart.
"I don’t care," he spat stubbornly. "You are coming with me. That’s final."
He grabbed her hand again, this time even more forcefully.
Elena winced as his fingers dug into her wrist. "Let go of me." She tried to wrench herself free. "You are behaving like a thug!"
He ignored her. "You are coming with me, Elena."
He pulled her toward the car.
Elena fought desperately, refusing to move.
Noah opened the car door. Just as he was about to force her inside, a sleek Rolls-Royce suddenly swept into the hospital driveway and came to a sharp stop a short distance away.
The rear door opened. Elias stepped out. His gaze immediately landed on Noah’s hand wrapped around Elena’s wrist.
His face went completely still. Then his eyes turned dangerously cold.
"Let. Her. Go."