The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne) novel Chapter 1156

Graham and Brooke, acting like a comedy duo straight out of a sitcom, were on the verge of tearing into a man they barely knew.

Anna quickly waved her hands, "No, no, you guys got it all wrong. I'm not seeing anyone at the moment, and if I were, you'd be the first to know," she said, desperately signaling to Arnold to jump in with some support.

Just as Brooke was about to unleash her secret weapon of interrogation, Arnold smoothly cut in, "Mom, why keep grilling her? Can't you see she's about to faint from hunger? Look at her, clear as day, she's single. Next time she's here, you can check in again. Progress update, right? Gives us something to look forward to, doesn't it?"

Arnold had a knack for diverting attention, and soon enough, the couple started to fuss over Anna with food, dropping the interrogation like a hot potato.

Anna breathed a sigh of relief.

On their way back, Anna was quiet, lost in thought, which didn't go unnoticed by Arnold.

Trying to lighten the mood, Arnold joked, "What's with the silence? Didn't like the third degree from Mom and Dad?"

"It's my fault," Anna finally said. "I should have considered how you felt before blurting it out. I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable."

Arnold's words brought Anna back to the moment. She looked ahead and shook her head, "I just don't get it."

"Get what?" Arnold was puzzled.

"How did you know about it?" Anna's voice was barely a whisper. Was it really that obvious?

Arnold chuckled lightly. "You seem to miss most of the messages I send you, don't you?"

Anna pulled out her phone, scrolling through their messages from the day he arrived up to last night, piecing everything together.

So, Arnold had already run into Soren.

"But, was he really that harsh to you?" Anna couldn't believe Soren would be so quick to judge.

"Harsh is an understatement!" Arnold grumbled. "That night, it was only by my sheer virtue that I didn't snap at him. Any other guy would've been pissed!"

Anna gave an awkward smile, sensing Arnold's lingering anger.

"But he doesn't like me, so why the hostility? Maybe he sees you as a threat? After all, to my friends, you're just a neighbor."

Arnold couldn't help but think how naïve Anna was.

"He sees me as a rival! Did he follow you home yesterday and then quickly get drunk? It all lines up," Arnold said, a smirk spreading across his face as if to say, 'Told you I'd figure it out.'

Anna realized the timeline matched perfectly.