Obedience No More He's the One I Deserved novel Chapter 326

He stood facing the woman in front of him, his deep voice smooth and magnetic.

"Roxanne," he said softly.

"You've been in my heart for a long time. No matter what happens in the future, that won't change. We'll always be ... us."

It wasn't sweet talk, but the low, steady tone carried a sense of emotion that made people's hearts stir.

Roxanne covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes glistening red with tears.

She looked at him with such love that it almost spilled from her gaze.

"Ethan, this is the best birthday gift I've ever received."

Ethan didn't reply. He just shoved the bouquet into her arms.

Roxanne lowered her head and took in a deep breath. "Smells amazing," she sighed, then looked up and smiled at the crowd around them, whispering and clapping. "Thank you, everyone! We're heading to dinner now."

The two of them turned and walked away side by side—never noticing Dawn standing behind them.

Her face went pale, and the more she heard people's comments about how beautiful they looked together, the paler she became.

"Ms. Dawn ... "

"Shut up!"

Dawn snapped at Victor before he could finish, her eyes cold and sharp. "Who told you to bring me here? Was it Daniel or Jonathan?"

Victor pressed his lips together and looked down in silent. This wasn't something he could answer.

Dawn stared at his face, trying to read the truth, but she couldn't tell.

Not that it mattered—both Daniel and Jonathan were snakes.

She clenched her teeth and marched toward the parking lot.

She had told herself over and over that it was fake, that Ethan couldn't possibly be serious with Roxanne. But her mind kept replaying the scene like a broken record.

Was Ethan forced into it?

Maybe.

But ...

There was no "but."

He had a thousand ways to reject her, and he didn't. He knew exactly what a public confession like that meant.

By tomorrow, every tabloid headline would scream about how the CEO of Jackson Group was breaking up with his wife and finding a new lover.

And she—Dawn—was the one left completely in the dark.

She was sick of it. Sick of being the last to know.

Back home, she took a quick shower, but it didn't clear her head. The chaos inside her only grew worse. Then, out of nowhere, a wave of nausea hit her. She dropped to her knees and threw up over the toilet.

When she finally lifted her head, her body felt drained, weak, and hollow.

She looked at herself in the mirror.

What's wrong with me? Am I trained to take pain now? Or am I just a masochist?

But to her surprise, this time, he didn't argue.

The next morning, the bodyguards drove her back to the office.

There were only two now instead of four.

When Dawn walked into the Dreammaker Studios office, everyone froze. For a long moment, no one spoke. "I thought you took a long break," someone finally said. "Why are you back already?"

Dawn smiled faintly. "Got bored sitting around. Figured I might as well work."

"Uh ... "

Several of them glanced awkwardly at the two bodyguards behind her.

"Don't worry," she said. "Just think of them as extra security for the front door."

...

Of course, no one believed that. But her coworkers in the Business Department were smart enough to play along. They were polite to the bodyguards, even offering them drinks and a place to sit in the lounge.

Dawn ignored it all and went straight to her office.

Janice came rushing in as soon as she heard the commotion. "Oh my God, you're getting more mysterious by the day! You just show up out of nowhere?"

Dawn didn't answer. She opened her laptop and started checking through all the messages and work she'd missed.

"Hey!" Janice shut the office door behind her and leaned closer.

"What's going on between you and Mr. Jackson? The news today is insane. I called someone at Jackson Group's PR Department—they said there's no statement coming out. You're really just letting the rumors run wild like this?"