The CEO Gets What He Wants novel Chapter 499

Chapter 499 A Dissatisfied Puff Of Smoke

When Nina was brought back by Cayden, there were still traces of tears on her cheeks.

The badly-traumatized look on her face infuriated Avery.

Grabbing Nina by the arm, she scrutinized the former from head to toe as she raged, “Did Xander do this to you? That b*stard actually...”

Avery's accusatory gaze subsequently fell upon Cayden, as if she was blaming him for not protecting her friend.

“No. Xander only gave her a scare. He didn't hurt her in any way.” Shrugging his shoulders, Cayden explained in a tone that was free of guilt.

Having been friends with Xander for ages, he knew the other man like the back of his hand.

Even though his methods were ruthless, he kept a distant attitude toward women and would never force himself on them.

After all, there were plenty of women who threw themselves at him due to his good looks and social status.

Other than his first crush, Xander would never succumb to the charms of any woman even if they climbed into his bed stark naked. Instead, he would throw them out without a second thought.

Cayden knew that to be the truth because there was a precedent.

Some time ago, a gorgeous socialite from a prestigious family, who had admired Xander for many years, snuck into his bed in the middle of the night. In the end, she was literally kicked out of his house before she had the chance to climb on top of him.

Back then, not only was the lady's spine fractured, but her family's business was also bankrupted by Xander in his rage.

Consequently, the socialite became the laughingstock of high society. The incident struck fear into the women who coveted Xander, deterring those who had insidious desires from acting on them.

After all, no one would dare marry a man who had no qualms about beating up a woman. Doing so would be no different from asking for trouble.

However, Avery was oblivious to that fact. All she saw was how terrified Nina was after the latter's encounter with Xander.

As such, her anger boiled over. “If Xander didn't do anything to her, why would she appear so terrified?”

After gesturing for Avery to calm down, Alina poured Nina a glass of water and patted her arm sympathetically. “You're safe now. How did you end up getting into trouble when you just went out to get some takeaway? Who would cause someone as kind as you any trouble?”

Alina was cognizant of how close Avery and Nina were.

The latter had a vibrant and straightforward personality in contrast to the gentler and more introverted Avery.

Although Nina had the tendency to get too reckless and carried away, her heart was in the right place, which was the reason why Alina had a soft spot for her.

Blake added warmly, “Child, you're Avery's best friend and like a granddaughter to me. If you have suffered in any way, you have to tell us. We will seek justice on your behalf.”

Teary-eyed, Nina took the glass of water from Alina's hand. “Thank you, Old Mr. Moore, Ms. Rumpley, Ery... I'm fine. Fortunately, Mr. Moore arrived in time, so Xander didn't do anything to me, really.”

At that moment, Nina was touched by the attention she received.

Even though she wasn't related to the Rumpley family by blood, they treated her as if she was one of them. Furthermore, they didn't just pay lip service, as the concern they felt for her was genuine.

They were the opposite of her own blood-sucking family who only cared about the money she had. Even when she fell seriously sick, her own family couldn't be bothered to show any concern.

“I'm glad to know nothing happened.” Avery heaved a sigh of relief before inquiring curiously, “How did you end up getting on Xander's nerves? What in the world happened?”

In a droning tone, Nina explained, “I ran into Aaron and his fiancée near the mall. After they left their car, I used the opportunity to vandalize it with paint. Unfortunately, Xander caught me on the spot and demanded I pay for the damages, which was ten percent of the car's list price. Since it cost three million, there's no way I can afford the three hundred thousand required. I'm sorry to have caused you and Mr. Moore trouble again, Ery...”

Given how expensive the Bugatti Veyron was, she just didn't have the money for compensation.

Left with no choice, she could only seek Avery's help despite her reluctance to do so. In truth, she didn't know Avery knew Xander and assumed that only Cayden did. Thus, she had hoped that Cayden would help her persuade Xander to reduce the compensation amount on Avery's account.

That aside, the real reason Nina ended up traumatized was due to Xander's collection of exotic pets—a terrifying python, a ferocious mastiff, and many more.

Due to the altercation between them and something she had said, Xander locked her up in a dark room full of snakes. As long and spineless creatures were Nina's worst fear, she almost peed her pants in terror.

Although it was subsequently known that the snakes were not venomous, Nina could never forget the cold and disgusting feeling of them curling up her body.

Upon hearing Nina's explanation, Avery immediately understood what happened as a look of outrage descended upon her face.

She proceeded to reassure her friend upon recalling what Aaron had done to Nina. “You didn't do anything wrong. That b*stard, Aaron, deserves karma and to be taught a lesson. In fact, I think you're being too soft by vandalizing his car only with paint. If I were you, I would have burnt his car with a bucket of kerosene. However, the legal repercussions...”

Cayden was left speechless.

Since when did my gentle wife have such a violent side?

“Ery, I...” Nina suddenly felt bad.

She had expected Avery to reprimand her. Instead, the latter chose to provide her with unconditional support.

Nina's past would forever be a scar on Avery's heart.

If Nina didn't find happiness, Avery would feel guilty for the rest of her life.

Meanwhile, Xavier knocked on the door in the midst of their discussion.

After greeting everyone in the ward, he walked off with Cayden to a quiet part of the corridor before entering a smoking room.

With his smoking addiction acting up, Cayden took out a cigarette for himself before handing Xavier one.

After lighting Cayden's cigarette, Xavier took a puff from his as he cut straight to the chase. “Mr. Moore, based on the model and plate number of the car provided by Mr. Zachary, we discovered that the plate is a fake. That said, we found a lead after combing through the surveillance feeds of Ackleton's streets. The perpetrator is a thirty-five-year-old male who is one-hundred-and-seventy-five centimeters tall. Before running over Ms. Rumpley, he received a call, but the voice over the line was using a voice modulator. The SIM card was also destroyed after the accident. This shows how cunning the mastermind is.”

As Cayden broke into a smirk, the smoke he puffed out seemed to carry a hint of his displeasure. “Does this mean that you have not found anything?”

Stumped by his boss' remark, Xavier took a puff of his cigarette before continuing, “Not entirely. The perpetrator is cunning and good at hiding his tracks, so I reckon he has some countersurveillance skills. But even so, half an hour ago, Jake picked up his signal and tracked him down via satellite.”

Jake Jackson was Avery's driver who, together with Xavier, was in charge of investigating the accident.