What She Overheard in Her Own Marriage novel Chapter 170

Every internal alarm going off, Noelle spun on her heel to walk back inside.

"Hey now, Ms. Lawrence, what's the rush... Let's get to know each other. I've been dreaming about you for a long time..."

The man lunged forward, trying to throw an arm over her shoulder. Noelle yanked herself sideways, but the corridor was narrow. Intentionally cutting off her escape, Mr. Sterling's meaty hand clamped down hard on her waist.

"Get your hands off me!" Noelle shrieked, thrashing wildly. But trapped in stilettos and buzzed from the champagne, she couldn't break his grip.

Feeling the woman of his dreams struggling in his arms, the disgusting creep completely lost his mind and aggressively leaned in, trying to force a kiss on her.

Out of nowhere, a fist came flying through the air.

CRACK! The sheer force of the blow lifted Mr. Sterling off his feet, slamming him violently into the brick wall. In the blink of an eye, a massive silhouette grabbed the creep by his collar and drove another savage punch straight into his jaw.

"Wait... stop! I'm sorry! I won't do it again!" Dazed and bleeding, Mr. Sterling couldn't even focus his eyes, but he threw his hands up to shield his face, sobbing for mercy.

"Get the hell out of here!" Mr. Sterling was tossed aside like a garbage bag.

Wiping his face, his hand came away slick with blood. Terrified, Mr. Sterling looked up. Standing under the glaring porch light like the Grim Reaper himself, Finnian was glaring down at him.

"M-Mr. Sanders." Seeing the sheer, homicidal rage blazing in Finnian's eyes and the thick vein throbbing in his temple, Mr. Sterling scrambled backward and fled into the night, stumbling over his own feet.

Finnian whipped around to face Noelle. She was ghostly pale, her hair mussed, hyperventilating in sheer panic.

"Are you hurt?" he asked, his voice rough and tight with adrenaline.

Noelle was paralyzed with shock. Staring at him, reality finally crashed over her. With a choked sob, she threw herself into Finnian's chest. "Finnian, I was so scared! I didn't even know him! I don't know why he attacked me..."

Finnian took a jagged breath. Stripping off his suit jacket, he draped it forcefully over Noelle's trembling shoulders. Shooting one last murderous glare toward the restaurant doors, he said, "Let's get you home."

Sobbing uncontrollably, Noelle let him half-carry her out to his waiting car. Dexter already had the backdoor open. Noelle slid into the backseat, and Finnian rounded the car, pulling the passenger door open. "Take her back to her place," he ordered Dexter.

The black Bentley purred to life, roaring off into the city night.

The cabin was dead silent. Drowning in Finnian's oversized jacket, Noelle curled into a tiny ball against the leather seats, staring blankly out the window as the city lights blurred past. Her face was entirely drained of color.

Glancing at her through the rearview mirror, Finnian couldn't stomach the thought of what would have happened if he had been even a minute later.

"Stop crying. I'm going to make sure that bastard never works in this town again," Finnian promised, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous hum.

It was late. Past ten o'clock. Brynlee was tossing and turning, unable to settle down. Kaia had been trying to coax her to sleep for nearly half an hour, but Brynlee just stared up at her with bright, alert eyes. "Mommy, why isn't Daddy home yet? Does he have a different family somewhere else?"

Kaia had been gently stroking her daughter's hair, hoping the rhythm would soothe her. Hearing those words, her fingers went dead.

"Don't be silly," Kaia whispered softly. "He probably just worked really late and ended up sleeping at the office."

"Can I call him, then? I'm worried about him. What if the bad guys get him?" Brynlee was a highly sensitive and imaginative child; her mind always jumped to the worst possible scenarios.

Kaia's heart broke a little. Her daughter was far too sweet to be burdened with this kind of anxiety.

"Okay. Go ahead and call him. But once you talk to him, you have to go right to sleep, promise?" Kaia knew that if Brynlee didn't get closure, she would be up all night.

Nodding, Brynlee grabbed her smartwatch from the nightstand and tapped Finnian's icon.

The line rang a few times before Finnian's low voice came through the speaker. "Brynlee? You're still awake?"

"Daddy, where are you? Are you coming home tonight?" Brynlee asked in her sweet, babyish voice.

"I... well, I won't be coming home tonight, sweetheart."