Riya didn’t expect such a retaliation. She had thought Zara would be drawn into doubts and disappointnt. Her fists tightened, ready to strike back. But the sound of approaching footsteps stopped her. She turned her head slightly and saw Nathaniel coming out of the house, carrying Zane in his arms.
In one instance, she changed her stance. She forced a pitiful pout and clutched Zara’s hand. "You’ve got it wrong," she said sweetly. "I’m not here to cause trouble."
Zara yanked her hand free.
Riya staggered and fell, trying to show Nathaniel that she had been pushed down.
Alard, Nathaniel hurried over. "What is going on here?" he demanded, his gaze flicking between the two won.
Zara rolled her eyes, tired of watching the sa drama over and over again.
"Don’t bla her," Riya said. "She didn’t an to push down. I just twisted my ankle and fell."
"This ti, she is telling the truth," Zara chid in dryly. "She fell on her own." She wanted to see whose side Nathaniel would choose. Would he fall for Riya’s lies again? Or would he see through her acts this ti?
Nathaniel’s gaze roved over Zara. "Are you okay?" he asked. The concern in his voice was unmistakable, and it almost caught Zara by surprise.
’What does he an by that?’ she mumbled inwardly. ’Is he siding with ?’ Baffled, she stared at him blankly.
"I’m the one who is hurt," Riya complained, brushing dirt off her skirt as she stood. "She is fine. You should be asking about ..."
Nathaniel glanced at her but said nothing. Instead, he opened the rear door, settled Zane inside, and shut it firmly before turning back to Riya. "What are you doing here?" he asked coldly, not bothering to check if she was hurt or not, as if he had already seen through her pretension.
His coldness only added to Riya’s resentnt. "I thought she might still be upset about what happened at the dinner. So, I ca to apologize to her. But she refuses to forgive ."
Zara scoffed, "Aren’t you tired already? Stop this childish act, Riya. I don’t have ti for all this nonsense."
"Nathaniel, say sothing." Riya tugged at his arm.
Nathaniel glared at her, making her retreat. Under his burning gaze, she recoiled, a shudder crossing her spine. She instantly rembered his threat.
"Go back to your room," Nathaniel muttered in a cold, warning tone. "Don’t make say it again."
Riya didn’t dare stay there. She turned and bolted, but the burn in her chest only intensified. His indifference cut deeper than his accusations, shattering her pride and fueling her resentnt.
She hated how effortlessly Zara grabbed his attention. Nathaniel hadn’t cared if she was hurt, hadn’t even offered her a hand to pull her up from the ground. Instead, he had directed his tenderness to Zara.
Her chest ached with humiliation. ’Why her?’ She wanted to scream. ’Why is she so special? What does she have that I haven’t? She doesn’t deserve his protection, his attention, and his love. I should be the one he loves, the one he shields, the one he can’t ignore.’
By the ti she reached her room, jealousy coiled in her chest. She realized she despised Zara more fiercely than ever. But what made her feel worse was the pathetic longing for the man who wouldn’t spare her a shred of warmth.
"You chose her over ," she muttered. "You will regret it, Nathaniel."
Outside the house...
Nathaniel turned to Zara. "Are you okay?" he asked, resting his hands on her shoulders.
Zara, although she had stood her ground and replied befittingly to Riya, was still upset. The sting of those words lingered in her heart. She wanted to question him, but she held herself back at the sight of his injured hand.
’Not tonight,’ she thought, swallowing her irritation.
"Let’s go ho. I am tired." She slipped into the car and settled into the passenger seat.
Even though she said nothing, her actions told everything about her discontent. Nathaniel let out a sigh of resignation. He had promised himself that Riya would never be allowed to trouble his wife again, yet he had failed. Sohow, Riya had still managed to provoke Zara.
Frustrated with himself, he rubbed the back of his nape, then strode around the car and slid behind the wheel.
The car started running on the road. Nathaniel glanced at Zara, hoping she would say sothing – anything about the evening, about the announcent of Riya and Liam’s marriage. But she said nothing – not even about her altercation with Riya. She remained seated in silence with her eyes closed and head resting on the back of the seat as if the outside world ant nothing to him.
Her silence seed to press heavily against his heart. Assuming she was still troubled by what had happened, he tried to steer her thoughts in a different direction. "What do you think about Liam and Riya’s marriage?"
"What is there to think?" She muttered, her tone cold and indifferent. She didn’t even bother about opening her eyes. "It’s the elders’ decision. Everyone is quite excited about this marriage. It’s good. Both families’ bonds will be strengthened. It’s beneficial for everyone."
"Yeah." Nathaniel’s expression changed as he turned to the outside, his mind anything but calm. He could no longer trust Riya. What surprised him the most was Riya’s decision to marry Liam while she was still entangled with Zachary.
’What is she planning?’ He couldn’t stop wondering.
"Aren’t you happy?" Zara probed, looking at him with curiosity and doubts in her eyes. "Your sister and your friend are getting married."
Happy?
How could he be? He could already see disaster looming. He would do everything to stop this marriage, but secretly.
"As long as everyone is happy and peaceful, I am happy." He flashed a grin at her.
Zara breathed a small sigh. The doubt that had raised its head a while ago slipped away quietly. But deep down, she was not at ease. Her thoughts kept circling back to the sa troubling truth — Nathaniel had yet to take any steps against Jaxon. And then there was the unresolved matter of the waitress who had been bribed. Besides, the identity of the person who had bribed that waitress also remained a mystery.
’Who else is Jaxon tied to?’ The question continued to haunt her.
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