I Forgot I Ever Loved You (Zoe and Hayden) novel Chapter 44

New York was a city that never slept, and even in the early hours of the morning, traffic congested the downtown avenues.

The endless stream of headlights intertwined, forming a dazzling, moving galaxy against the dark pavement.

Nadia only heard Asher let out a quiet scoff.

"You can barely save yourself, yet you still have the energy to meddle in others' affairs."

Nadia was growing anxious.

"You don't understand. Hayden doesn't love Zoe at all. I'm terrified she's going to suffer when they get back."

Hayden was a notoriously difficult man to read, much like Asher himself.

If she hadn't been raised by Asher, she would never have dared to look Hayden in the eye.

A flicker of darkness flashed through Asher's somber eyes, mingled with a sense of helpless frustration at her stubbornness.

Yet, the gaze he turned on Nadia held a faint trace of indulgence.

"If I hadn't cleaned up your mess, do you honestly think Hayden would have let you off so easily? Drugging him, scheming to make him marry a woman he doesn't love—you dragged the Thorne family's pride through the mud."

If Nadia wasn't under his protection, the grass on her grave would be tall enough to weave into wreaths by now.

Nadia shut her mouth.

She had meant well, but it had resulted in five years of disaster.

Harming Hayden was one thing, but dragging Zoe down was the real tragedy.

She stared out the window at the brilliant, flowing galaxy of lights. Now that Asher had dragged her back, she was certainly in for a harsh punishment herself.

She couldn't save Zoe; she could only pray for her luck.

Blackwood Manor.

Hayden carried a blacked-out Zoe over his shoulder. She was draped across him, her long, raven-black hair cascading down like a dark waterfall.

He tried to pull her out of the car, but Zoe flat-out refused.

Hayden's expression had been ice-cold ever since leaving the police station.

His mind had already conjured a thousand different ways to strangle her.

"Huh, you look like... Hayden? Am I drunk?"

Hayden yanked her hands away, gritting his teeth. "Zoe, exactly how many times have you made a fool of me behind my back these past few years?"

Cheating on him and then demanding a divorce? She was truly unbelievable.

Zoe mumbled something incoherent, nothing that resembled the answers Hayden was looking for.

But the one thing she kept repeating was that she wanted a divorce.

Hayden was infuriated.

No matter how much he threatened or intimidated her, Zoe refused to get out of the car. Finally, her head lolled to the side, and she fell fast asleep right against his chest.

The skin of her slender neck was so pale it was almost translucent. In his arms, her body was as pliant as soft clay, trembling faintly with every breath. Hayden took one look and felt his resolve snap, his Adam's apple bobbing hard.

Zoe's body held a fatal attraction for him. He leaned down, intending to capture her lips, only to hear her murmuring softly, over and over.

"Hunter... Hunter..."