###Chapter 37: Ungrateful
"You look a little pale. Didn’t you sleep last night?" Zachary Hawthorne walked over to her side naturally, draping an arm around her shoulder as he asked.
Nina Wainwright had thought he would at least explain what happened last night.
But instead, he was testing her, probing to see if she had seen the photo he’d sent by mistake.
The frustration that had been building all night was suddenly replaced by self-mockery.
"Better than you, at least," she said indifferently, pushing his hand away.
"Soone else took the picture," he said as she turned away. "Nina, are you jealous?"
"I’m going for a walk. Do whatever you want," Nina Wainwright said calmly before turning and heading for the door.
He wasn’t even willing to explain why he and Luna Sterling were so intimate. As a married man, he had absolutely no sense of boundaries.
Most importantly, he seed happier with Luna Sterling than he was with her.
She couldn’t forget the relaxed, happy look in his eyes in that photo.
’His wife in na only has been making a scene for so long, he must have wanted to escape ages ago. But for so reason, he has to keep placating , enduring my willfulness...’
She wanted to ask why they were so close, but then she thought better of it. ’A man who wants to cheat will just lie, even if I force him to explain.’
"Nina." Zachary took a few quick steps to get in front of her, blocking her path. "If you care about that photo, you can just say so. I’ll have the person who took it delete it."
"I don’t care. There’s nothing to care about." ’He can do whatever he wants.’
Nina had waited from dusk until dawn. She’d waited for that photo, waited for his probing questions, and now, her heart had gone cold.
She shouldn’t have held onto any illusions about him.
She’d thought that because he’d insisted on her coming ho, because he’d tried so hard to be good to her, that he must have at least a little affection for her.
It turned out to be nothing more than her own wishful thinking.
"Nina." Zachary lowered his gaze to et her unnervingly calm eyes and sighed in exasperation. "If you don’t say anything, how am I supposed to know what you’re thinking?"
’He broke his promise, and now he’s blaming for not saying anything?’
A flash of anger sparked in Nina, but it was quickly extinguished into apathy. "I’m not thinking anything. What do you want to say? You paid off my debt, and I’m eternally grateful. Even if you don’t co ho night after night, I won’t mind."
The relaxed expression on Zachary’s face vanished instantly. He raised a hand, grabbing Nina’s chin, and frowned. "You won’t mind? Then what do you care about?"
"See? No matter what I say, you’re not satisfied. You just get angry. What am I supposed to do?" Nina sighed.
Zachary felt a lump of frustration lodge in his chest, but he quickly forced a smile. "Nina likes to get jealous. From now on, if I say I’m coming ho at night, I’ll co ho."
Nina’s face was a mask of indifference. "Suit yourself. It’s not like I can’t sleep just because you’re not here."
’I’ll force myself to stop expecting anything from this man. I’ll make myself eat well, sleep well, live well... My world doesn’t have to revolve around Zachary Hawthorne. Once he gets tired of , I’ll be able to leave him.’
Zachary pinched her cheek. "Let’s have breakfast first. I’ve booked a restaurant for lunch; you’re coming with ."
Nina looked at him and offered a faint smile. "Okay."
She was clearly acting like her old self again, yet Zachary felt no joy in it.
Nina got her breakfast and went downstairs.
Zachary followed behind her, watching as she ate her breakfast in dead silence, not saying a word to him.
He walked over to her side, put his arm around her shoulder, and asked, "Is it good? To your liking?"
"Mhm," Nina answered faintly.
Zachary was fuming internally. After a mont of brooding, he finally said in a low voice, "Nina, you’re doing this on purpose because you’re blaming for not coming ho last night, aren’t you? If you want to bla , just say it directly. You don’t have to put on this act. It makes uncomfortable."
He had broken his promise last night, but he had given her a new one today.
He felt that he had already humbled himself for her, but Nina was being rather ungrateful.
Hearing his words, Nina instinctively looked into Zachary’s eyes.
His gaze was domineering, possessing an innate sense of superiority.
Nina hadn’t forgotten that besides being her husband, he was also the primary authority of the Hawthorne Family in Zetania, their only son. No one ever went against him, and no one dared to disobey him.
"Tired of waiting on , are you?" The corner of Zachary’s mouth twisted into a sarcastic sneer. "What, you want to get on my knees and beg for your forgiveness?"
Nina was about to speak when he continued, "I haven’t even called you out for secretly accepting Adrian Pemberton’s card. Have I been too good-tempered lately? Has it made you forget your place?"
Every word was a barb.
His barbs pierced her heart, leaving it to bleed.
Zachary stood up and straightened his clothes. "I’ll text you the location of the restaurant for lunch. Co if you want, don’t if you don’t. But I should remind you, I’m not just going to let the Adrian Pemberton thing go. It all depends on my mood."
His blatant threat made Nina unconsciously clench her fists.
The aning was clear: if she continued with this attitude, he would deal with Adrian Pemberton.
"Zachary, I’m sorry. I was being willful," she said, getting up and walking over to take his hand. "I was being petty. I shouldn’t have obsessed over it."
Though she felt incredibly wronged, Nina had no other choice.
Even if he trampled her into the dust, she had to placate him, to curry his favor.
Zachary turned back, his eyes holding a mocking, mirthless smile. "For Adrian Pemberton, you really know how to bend and stretch, don’t you?"
Nina wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his lips. "I’ve only ever thought of him as a brother. I was angry because I was jealous. I waited all night and couldn’t sleep. I was so upset that you didn’t co back. I won’t do it again."
"Aren’t you only acting soft now for Adrian Pemberton’s sake? Before I brought him up, what was your attitude from start to finish? Have you forgotten?" Seeing her being so proactive only made Zachary angrier.
Nina’s body stiffened, the expression on her face nearly crumbling.
Her heart filled with grievances, her lips trembling uncontrollably. "Then what do you want from ? Zachary, just say it! Tell what to do, and I’ll do it, okay?"
Her tone was pleading.
Zachary slowly pushed her away. "Alright. I want you to personally take Silas Sinclair to the hospital and tell them to fire Adrian Pemberton. I’ll make sure no hospital in all of Zetania will hire him. I want to see him destitute and desperate. Can you do that?"
Nina stared at him, speechless for a long ti.
"Can’t do it?" Zachary taunted, grabbing her chin.
"Zachary, do you have to be like this?" she asked, taking two steps back, her eyes filled with sorrow.
"What if I said I just can’t stand the sight of him?" Zachary pressed, his tone aggressive. "Didn’t you just say you’d do anything? Having second thoughts?"
"I’m not! I don’t like him, so please, can’t you just stop?" Nina didn’t understand. He was the one with the ambiguous connection to Luna Sterling, so why was this suddenly her and Adrian Pemberton’s fault? *****
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