Chapter 2 Framed
657 Words
A chilling realization washed over her. As she was pushed onto the bed last night, her body tense with apprehension, the man's low voice had murmured in her ear, "Relax."
Nolan's voice was colder, entirely different from the man's last night!
"How... How could this be...?" Olivia stared at the photos scattered on the bed, her face paler than the camera flashes. Who was that man who had slept with her?
"Ms. Austen, we heard you and Mr. Barton were childhood sweethearts. Why did you betray him?"
"Was it just a fling?"
The reporters, relentless in their pursuit of a scandalous headline, continued their barrage of questions, their cameras capturing every inch of her, every fleeting expression.
"Get out! All of you, get out!" Olivia screamed, waving her arms, trying to drive them away. But they wouldn't budge. One reporter even dared to ask, "Ms. Austen, you have so many love bites. Did you and that man... do it for a long time?"
The reporters' brazen, intrusive questions pushed Olivia over the edge. With a piercing scream, she fainted.
Across the street from the hotel, a black Maybach idled. The rear window slowly lowered, revealing the cold, indifferent profile of a man. He watched as Nolan emerged from the hotel, engulfed by a throng of reporters. His gaze darkened.
"Nolan... be gentle..." A woman's sweet, flirtatious voice echoed in his ears. He rubbed his fingertips as if he could still feel the lingering warmth of her touch.
Nolan was the adopted son of the Austen family, and now, he seemed the CEO of the Austen Group...
"Investigate Nolan," the man's low voice commanded.
"Yes, sir."
Within an hour, headlines like "Ms. Austen Was Caught Cheating on Husband" and "Olivia's Public Affair" flooded news websites. Videos of Nolan's supposed "discovery" and Olivia's exposed body fueled the online frenzy. The Austen Group saw its stock plummet, teetering on the brink of collapse due to Olivia's "indiscretions."
Meanwhile, aided by a servant, Olivia returned home in a state of utter despair. Her phone number, leaked online, was bombarded with calls and messages, rendering it useless. She borrowed the servant's phone to call Nolan, desperate to explain. But he refused to answer.
Olivia submerged herself in a bathtub filled with cold water, desperately trying to scrub her skin clean. But even after rubbing herself raw, she could still detect the faint scent of that man lingering on her. The memory of Nolan's icy gaze as he left sent fresh waves of despair crashing over her.
How had things spiraled so far out of control?
After an unknown amount of time, the phone on the shelf rang. Olivia scrambled out of the tub, her body numb from the prolonged exposure to the cold water. She answered the call.
"Honey..."
"Come to the Clerk’s office!" Nolan hung up.
Only then did Olivia realize she had spent most of the night in the bathtub.
Her body was alarmingly pale. She stumbled out, pulled on some clothes, and hailed a taxi to the Clerk’s office.
On the way, she used foundation to mask her haggard appearance. She had to explain everything to Nolan, she couldn't let him divorce her!
At the Clerk’s office, Olivia spotted Nolan standing at the entrance. Dressed in a black suit, his expression was as cold as ever. The absence of reporters suggested he had made arrangements to keep them away.
"Honey, please let me explain..." Olivia rushed towards him, clutching his arm, her eyes welling up. "Last night, I received a text saying you were with a woman at the Remington Hotel. Your phone's location was there too, that's why I went..."
Nolan unlocked his phone and showed her his location history from the previous night. His gaze was glacial. "I only dropped a client off at the hotel last night. I left within ten minutes!"
Olivia stared at his phone, her legs giving way. Had she been set up?
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