Escaped My Ex, Got Snatched by His Rival - Chapter 369

Chapter 369: Hired Shooters
“Ariana.”

The familiar voice snapped Ari out of her daze. She paused in her stride and turned to look at Noah who seemed to be waiting for her return.

She cursed herself for being unlucky, if she had known that she was going to run into Noah, she would have stayed with Nicolai a bit longer.

‘When did he even arrive here? I didn’t see him coming.’

“What are you doing here, Mister Nelson?” Ari asked with a frown. Ari was surprised to see Noah because she thought that she had clarified that the two of them no longer had any connection left between them.

Strictly speaking, he shouldn’t be here.

Noah was leaning against his car but when he saw Ari, he kicked himself off the car and walked over to where Ari was standing. “I came here to apologize. It appears that the incident which happened that day had something to do with Glynn.”

As he spoke he raised his left hand in which he was carrying a carry bag. “I brought Spencer’s Theory Of Mind, Mayhem, and Desire as an apology. You once wanted it right? I heard you cry when you failed to get it.”

She indeed did in fact, she very much wanted it even now. It was one of the popular books of psychology and Ari had wanted to read it for the longest time.

But she could never buy it.

However—

“There is no need,” she refused to take the apology gift that Noah had brought. “I no longer want to read it anymore.” She paused and added, “Instead of bringing an apology gift, don’t you think it’s better to control your sister? I mean she is no longer a child. If I wanted, I could have sued her.”

“Please don’t refuse, Ariana. This is just a small token of goodwill” Noah said to her. He still had a solemn expression on his face as he continued, “And yes. You are right, Glynn requires strict teaching and guidance. Don’t worry we have already made the necessary arrangements.”

Ari did not question him about what kind of arrangements he had made. “Then that’s enough, I guess.” Her gaze fluttered to the bag in Noah’s hand before she said, “There is no need for this gift. Just make sure that your family doesn’t make trouble for me again.”

“I might not be as generous as I was the last time.”

She turned on her feet to walk away when she felt someone catch hold of her wrist. Startled, she turned around and saw Noah holding her wrist with a pained expression on his face.

“What do you think you are doing?” She asked while trying to get her hand free from his grip. “You are hurting me.”

“Is it because of him?” He asked. Though he did not take any name, Ari knew about whom he was talking about.

“No. This has nothing to do with him,” Ari replied with a frown on her face. “I just don’t want to accept anything from you. Is it that challenging to accept?”

However, Noah did not let go of her hand. Instead, he continued to hold her with a kind of desperation that did not fit him.

“Why?” He asked and Ari didn’t have the slightest bit of idea what he was talking about. But that was until she heard him say, “Why are you willing to accept him? And not me. Where am I lacking, if you can give him a chance, then you can do the same for me.”

His voice cracked as he said, “Just once, Ariana. I am asking you to trust me once—I promise that I will certainly not let you down.”

Ari’s brows furrowed even more. She ignored Noah who was peering closely at her as if waiting for an answer.

“It’s not what you think,” Ari said to him, while she continued to pull her hand from his grip. “I never cared about your wealth, wisdom, or anything else, Mister Nelson. You should know it by now.”

“Then why—”

“I don’t think it’s one of your concerns!” Ari said in a hard voice while eyeing Noah coolly. “You have never paid attention to me for three years. Certainly, don’t start now. You can continue ignoring me as you have done for years now.”

Noah, however, seemed to have not heard her. He continued to hold on to her wrist and said weakly, “At least tell me why. I need to know why, if it is something that I can change, then I will… I will do anything for you, Ariana.”

“You can’t,” answered Ari. “You cannot change anything.”

“How do you know that I can’t? Maybe if you tell me the truth then—”

“Because —Nicolai has never hurt me,” Ari snapped harshly.

Under his persistent questions and actions, she knew that there was no way he would leave if she did not answer his questions.

“There you have it. Can you change our past? Could you please give me a past where you have never hurt me? Abandoned me and left me to become the butt-end of a joke for every tea party?”

“I have never shed a single tear for that man, and he had never made me cry. Is it so wrong for me to be with someone who brings me a bit of comfort?”

“But if you think that you can do better than him then —turn back time to the day when you left me on the altar.”

“If you can then certainly, be my guest.”

Maybe her response shocked Noah or there was something else, but the man let go of her hand and Ari pulled it right away.

Ari could feel people staring at her and Noah, and she wondered why Noah had even bothered to come here. There was no reason for him to even try now when the dust had already settled.

“Ariana,”

“Don’t,” said Ari with a firm voice. “I know you will say that you can make up for what you have done, but I don’t want you to do anything. I just want you to leave me alone, can you, Mister Nelson?” Her voice was shaking now.

“You know I can’t,” Noah answered in a whispering voice.

“Then—”

That was when Ari saw them. Two men sitting on a motorbike, their guns aimed at Noah.

Her eyes widened, and she screamed, “Watch out!”