He Never Loved Me Until the Day I Finally Left Him novel Chapter 559

Humiliated by the blatant brush-off, Janetta quickly masked her embarrassment and scurried after him.

"Sebastian, Kyle is waiting for us," she cooed, eagerly clinging to his arm. "I heard The Jade Palace in this hotel has a Michelin-starred menu. I'd love to try it."

Sebastian just stood there with a bored, apathetic expression, utterly ignoring her rambling. Sensing his sour mood, Janetta didn't dare push her luck immediately. She watched him carefully, turning her words over in her mind before finally trying a different angle.

"Sebastian, I have an audition for Destiny's Choice tomorrow. Would you come with me?" she begged, pouring every ounce of honey she could into her voice. That finally earned her a reaction.

"You're going to an audition. Why would I tag along?" he shot back, his tone a flat-out rejection.

Janetta feigned ignorance. "I'd just feel so much more confident if you were by my side. My comeback hasn't landed me many top-tier scripts, so I really need to secure the lead in Destiny's Choice. It's a highly respected production that's bound to sweep the awards circuit. Wouldn't my success reflect wonderfully on your company's image too?"

Sebastian remained utterly unmoved. "I only came to Seapearl City today to appease Kyle. Tomorrow, I am flying him back to Riverton. You don't need me sitting around while you audition."

It was a firm, undeniable dismissal. A spike of pure rage flared in Janetta's chest, but she had enough sense not to throw a tantrum in public.

"Fine," she forced a stiff nod, backing down.

As the doors opened, Sebastian strode out with long, purposeful strides. Janetta scrambled to keep up as they made their way to a private dining room at The Jade Palace.

Meanwhile, Julian and Helena had safely arrived on the restaurant floor. The moment the elevator doors closed behind them, Julian had fixed her with an intense stare.

"I was heading down to dinner and ran right into him," Helena preemptively explained, knowing exactly what he was thinking. "He didn't step out, and I couldn't just turn around and flee—it would have looked pathetic, especially since we're business partners now. We took the ride together, but neither of us could have predicted the power failure."

"Julian, the past is dead and buried. To the rest of the world, I am simply Mrs. Campbell, the CEO of IGM. The horrors of five years ago will never touch me again. Please, relax," she urged gently, smoothing a hand over his tense chest.

Julian didn't say a word, simply pulling her into a desperate, bone-crushing embrace. Helena let out a quiet sigh, resting her chin on his shoulder and letting him hold her. The nightmares of five years ago hadn't just shattered her—they had left deep, bleeding psychological scars on Julian as well.

He had spent years drowning in survivor's guilt, convinced that his negligence had allowed Sebastian to destroy her, even though Julian had absolutely nothing to do with it. That guilt still manifested as a suffocating overprotectiveness.

"Okay," Julian finally rasped.

As they stepped out onto the restaurant floor, Julian finally wrangled his emotions back under control. He released her, securely entwining their fingers as they walked toward the host stand. Ironically, Sebastian and Janetta emerged from a different hallway at the exact same moment. Neither couple acknowledged the other, silently splitting off to their respective private dining rooms.

Inside, the atmosphere was a total 180. Skye kept up an adorable, bubbly stream of chatter that washed away all the lingering tension. Julian devoted his entire meal to cutting her food and keeping her entertained, while Helena relaxed, listening to their banter with a soft smile. By 8:53 PM, they finally wrapped up their dinner.