The Captain I Married by Chance novel Chapter 188

She would have started to lose herself, falling into a pit she could never climb out of.

Nathan's gaze swept across the room, his eyes landing on the still-unopened takeout container. "Who ordered that?"

Nora felt a bit more at ease, grateful that he was tactfully avoiding asking what Aaron had said.

"I don't know. A delivery driver brought it. It had my address and phone number on it."

Nathan handed the spicy noodle soup to Nora. "You eat first. I'll take a look."

Nora took it and went to the kitchen for a bowl and utensils. She began slurping the noodles while looking over at Nathan. "Aren't you eating?"

Nathan was still examining the delivery. He answered without looking up, "I already ate."

Nora hummed in acknowledgment. Seeing that the soup had all sorts of ingredients, including some surprisingly tasty pickles, she smiled. "That first delivery guy took some of the heat meant for you. Aaron basically yelled in his face."

Nathan knew Nora was referring to his earlier, frequent knocking. He raised an eyebrow. "I really didn't have any of those things at my place."

Nora glanced at him. "Mhm, I believe you."

Meeting her teasing gaze, Nathan awkwardly rubbed his nose.

"Something's not right with this delivery."

To break the awkwardness, Nathan changed the subject.

"What is it?" Nora slurped a mouthful of noodles, her voice slightly muffled. "Is it someone's leftovers?"

"Not that."

Nathan untied the delivery bag and took out the contents.

A container of still-steaming dumplings.

A packet of vinegar.

A serving of fried rice.

And… a stack of photos.

"Who puts these things in a takeout order?"

Nora brought her bowl of noodles over, but Nathan stopped her, saying softly, "Finish eating first."

Nora was confused, but she was genuinely hungry. She made short work of the remaining noodles before approaching Nathan.

"What did you find?"

Nathan laid the photos out on the coffee table one by one.

It was covered in a thick layer of calluses from years of training.

A wave of warmth spread from his palm to hers, flowing through her body and thawing the blood that had frozen in her veins just a moment before.

"Thanks."

Nora fought back the moisture in her eyes.

She wasn't timid; otherwise, she wouldn't have become a forensic pathologist.

But it was because she was a forensic pathologist, because she had seen so much of the ugliness of the human heart, that Nora was more sensitive than the average person.

The person who took these photos was definitely not acting out of goodwill.

A nauseating, sticky feeling clung to Nora's heart, making her feel agitated and terrified.

"Are these the photos Ben took last time?"

Many of the angles were similar to the photos Ben had used for his edited images, so Nora naturally came to that conclusion.

"No."

Nathan said with certainty, "The distance is different. Ben always shot you from far away. But these photos—the person was clearly very close to you. This photo of you sleeping confirms that the photographer was only a step away from you at the time."