Chapter 330

Three years ago, Nathan Blackwood only had eyes for Vanessa Holloway.

Why would he bother remembering the face of someone he'd casually rescued? Nathan simply didn't care. So,

Evelyn can't swim because she nearly drowned? Nathan's expression darkened.

His obsidian eyes swirled with stormy emotions. "I'm sorry." All the words he wanted to say condensed into those two syllables.

Evelyn found it amusing and let out a bitter laugh. "You should be."

"You didn't think those underground fighters would seek revenge after I saved you, did you? That they'd come after me instead?" The words struck Nathan like lightning. His face drained of color.

He seized her wrist with sudden intensity. "What did you say?" His reaction puzzled Evelyn as she gave a careless shrug.

At this point, clarity was better than ambiguity.

It no longer mattered who saved whom. Between them, the scales of debt had tipped beyond measure.

"Mr. Blackwood, I could swim perfectly fine three years ago. The reason I refuse to learn again? Because someone held my head underwater until I nearly drowned."

"Is that reason sufficient for you?" Evelyn spoke with icy detachment, pushing away the suffocating memories. She'd made her choices.

She'd never regretted saving Nathan, even with the consequences. In the past, she might have resented him. But that was then.

Now that she'd freed herself from her obsession, none of it mattered anymore.

Nathan's expression turned thunderous. Shock morphed into white-hot rage and consuming hatred.

He'd always assumed those men would never find him if he stayed away. The night air grew colder around them.

Evelyn shivered - she'd always hated the cold. She turned to leave this suffocating space.

"What difference does it make if he knows? If he had any decency, he'd disappear from my life forever!" Before she could step away, strong arms yanked her back.

Her spine collided with a solid chest as his familiar cedar scent enveloped her. The unexpected contact froze her in place.

Nathan's voice came out rough with emotion. "Evelyn, I swear to you - I'll find them. Every last one. And I'll make them pay." She wrenched free immediately.

Her voice could have frosted glass. "It's irrelevant. The past is dead." Just then, their respective drivers pulled up.

As Evelyn moved toward her car, Nathan grabbed her again. "Nathan Blackwood!" The night swallowed her protest.

The wind howled between them. Evelyn's teeth chattered - she needed to escape this frozen purgatory.

"Knowing changes nothing! If you feel any remorse, you'll vanish from my life!" She spun to leave, but he caught her waist.

Pressed against his warmth, surrounded by his scent, she momentarily forgot to breathe.

Nathan's voice dropped to a dangerous whisper. "I'll hunt them down, Evelyn. I promise you that."

"And then what? Kill them?" She shoved him away, her tone arctic. "Let it go."

"It's ancient history." The arrival of their drivers interrupted the confrontation.

Evelyn reached for her car door when Nathan's grip tightened. "Nathan Blackwood!" The name tore from her throat.