Chaos Girl Rewrites the Script novel Chapter 477

Alaric shot his hand out, grabbing her wrist in an iron grip. "Why are you running?"

What was it with these men tonight? Did they all suddenly think they had the right to interrogate her?

She forcefully yanked her arm free, channeling all the leftover rage from Cyril directly onto him. "So what if I'm running? Is it a crime to jog in my own backyard?"

Wesley Crain slowly turned his head to look at Alaric. If anyone else had spoken to his boss like that, he would have laid them out flat. But since it was Vivienne, Wesley wisely took three slow steps backward.

Alaric's expression remained dangerously stoic. "You just came from the Blackbriar Wing. Cyril agitated you, so you're throwing a tantrum at me?"

Her anger hit a wall. His somber, intense stare looked far too much like the ruthless man he was in her past life. Her deep-seated resentment made her inherently hostile toward him.

Her current policy with Alaric was simple: until he actually did something to harm her, she would just annoy him as much as possible. But seeing that chilling, familiar dominance resurface completely drained her desire to provoke him.

She let out a dry scoff and turned to leave.

Alaric sensed the immediate shift in her demeanor. Hesitating for a fraction of a second, he softened his expression and caught her arm again. "Stand still. I'm not finished speaking."

She covered her ears like a petulant child. "I don't want to hear it."

He gently but firmly pulled her hand away. "For the next few weeks, you need to stay out of trouble and keep your head down."

She caught the underlying warning in his words and cast him a sidelong glance. "What do you mean by that?"

Alaric let go of her arm. "The situation with Lara isn't going to blow over anytime soon. You need to watch everything you say and do. Don't leave the estate unless it's necessary, and don't give anyone ammunition against you. As for the vicious gossip at school, if you don't want to deal with it, I can pull strings to excuse your absences."

The gravity in his voice commanded attention, forcing her to temporarily put aside her animosity. "How do you know it won't blow over? Did you find something out?"

Alaric was clearly unwilling to elaborate. "It has nothing to do with you. Just remember what I told you."

Wesley dropped his gaze, sneaking a quick glance before looking away again. "The Whitmore family is throwing mud everywhere. It's incredibly easy for the girls living here to get caught in the crossfire. Bianca has her mother defending her. Aurelia has her father. The Patriarch, who usually shields Vivienne, is out of town. Aren't you standing out here in the cold because you were afraid she'd end up suffering alone?"

And the moment he saw her walking out of Cyril's courtyard, he got incredibly jealous and ruined his own moment. Oh, his poor, unsophisticated boss. He was absolutely terrible at playing the romantic lead.

"You think you're so clever," Alaric snapped, brushing past him. He took two long strides before halting. His back remained straight, his voice deceptively detached. "How exactly would I say it directly?"

Wesley instantly perked up, practically skipping in front of him. "Okay, so you say it like this..."

He cleared his throat, wiggling his eyebrows in a ridiculous display of emotion. "Listen to me, beautiful. I've been standing in the freezing cold for an hour just to tell you—don't be afraid. I'm right here. I will protect you..."

A muscle in Alaric's cheek twitched violently. Disgusted, he turned on his heel and strode down the corridor without looking back.

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