Chapter 128
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When Marina walked out of the bedroom, her face clouded with frustration, Daron was already waiting for her at the table.
As soon as he saw her, Daron called out, “Come on, let’s eat.”
Marina let out a deep, frustrated sigh before heading over and taking a seat.
Daron smoothly took out a brand–new phone, set it on the table, and slid it over to her.
Marina bit back her frustration and forced herself to apologize, “Sorry about last night. I got drunk.”
“It’s not the phone itself that matters. It’s the files and information inside,” she added.
Daron motioned for her to take a look at the phone.
Marina finally picked up the phone and checked it out.
All the data from her old phone had already been transferred to the new one.
Even the wallpaper hadn’t changed, all her stuff was there, and the SIM card was already in place.
Marina was stunned for a moment. “Did you go get it yourself this morning?”
Daron kept his eyes on his steak, cutting it calmly. “Is that really something I’d do myself?”
Marina was silent.
That tiny spark of gratitude she’d felt inside just fizzled out in an instant.
She just said, “Oh,” and picked up her fork and knife, about to dig into her breakfast, when Daron slid the steak he’d already cut up over to her and took the one that hadn’t been cut yet from in front of her.
Marina’s grip on her fork and knife tightened, and she eyed Daron warily.
‘Why is he being so nice to me?‘ she wondered. ‘Did he poison it or something?‘
Noticing the suspicion in her eyes, Daron picked up his milk, took a sip, and said calmly, “Not hungry?”
Marina said, “I’m hungry, but I’m scared.”
Daron let out a dry chuckle. “Funny, you didn’t seem scared at all last night when we were sharing a room.”
Marina shrugged, “You were so limp, you could barely move. There was nothing you could’ve done to me anyway.”
But to Daron, all that stuck in his mind was her calling him “limp.”
His face instantly darkened.
“You seriously don’t know that drunk guys can put on an act?” he shot back.
Marina asked, “So you were just putting on an act last night?”
Daron was speechless.
When did she get so good at cutting straight to the chase?‘ he thought.
“Just saying, you shouldn’t trust other drunk guys so easily. That’s risky,” he said.
17:45 Fri, Dec 26 @JO.
Chapter 128
Marina thought about those bite marks you left on her neck and nodded, totally agreeing with him. “Yeah, it’s dangerous. You’re just like a wild dog.”
Daron was speechless.
After breakfast, Marina took it upon herself to handle the dishes.
Daron lounged in the kitchen doorway, tossing out a few topics, but Marina just brushed him off with vague replies.
“I’ve got to swing by Ross Group later,” Daron said.
Marina nodded, not missing a beat. “Sure.”
Daron raised an eyebrow, then said casually, “I’m heading back to Vrufield tonight.”
48
That’s when it clicked for Marina. She quickly turned to Daron in the doorway and said, “Wait, you promised last night you’d take me with you.”
“Did I? Guess I forgot,” Daron said, turning and heading back to the living room.
Marina quickly put the dishes away and hurried after him.
“You totally did! If you don’t believe me, go ahead and call Eddy and ask him yourself,” she said.
Daron settled onto the couch, getting comfortable.
“I remember I had some extra conditions, but you didn’t meet them. So how does that count as me agreeing to take you?” he said.
Marina paused, thinking back. Daron really did mention some extra terms, but things got way too… steamy at the time.
Her heart couldn’t handle it, so when her phone rang, she jumped at the chance to answer and totally missed whatever Daron said after that.
Marina slumped onto the couch, giving him a pitiful look.
“Can’t you at least take me to the Clark family’s engagement party? I mean, I took care of you all night,” she said, trying to win him over.
Daron didn’t answer.
Marina scooted a little closer to him.
“You know, looking after you isn’t really in my job description. I went above and beyond for you…” she said, her tone soft and a little playful.
Daron didn’t like her distant reply. He reached out, cupped her head, pulled her in, and pressed his lips to hers.
That was the extra condition he hadn’t managed to say out loud last night.
His kiss was brief, just a quick brush of his lips before he pulled away.
Soft and burning, it was impossible to ignore.
Marina’s mind went totally blank.
Even when Daron finally said that was his extra condition, her mind was still frozen.
She just stared blankly as Daron got up from the couch, reached out, and ruffled her hair.
17:46 Fri, Dec 26 RJ
Chapter 128
“I’m heading to the office now. I’ve got a flight tonight, so I’ll swing by and pick you up after work,” he said.
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Marina honestly couldn’t even remember what she’d said back there. By the time she made it back to her office at Ross Group, that kiss from Daron kept replaying in her head, looping nonstop.
He hadn’t been drunk at all. He’d kissed her, and he’d been completely sober.
Her mind was all over the place as she sat in her office chair, and no matter what she did, she just couldn’t chill out.
That was when Lavern barged into her office.
He shoved right past the front desk guy, looking like he’d completely lost his mind.
“Marina, who was that guy last night? What did you two do together?” Lavern demanded, his voice sharp and accusing.
“We’re not even broken up yet! I never agreed to it. So how could you already be with someone else?” he shouted.
Marina’s head was pounding from all his yelling, and she snapped, “Since when do I need your permission to break up with you?”
“Since when do I need your permission to break up with you?”
“When you were hooking up with Shawna and got her pregnant, did you ever bother to ask how I felt about it?” she shot back, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
Lavern stood there, stunned, hurt written all over his face.
“Marina, you’re punishing me, aren’t you? Because I was with Shawna, you went and hooked up with some guy just to get back at me, right? Please, just tell me nothing happened between you two. Please.”
Marina couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
“Wow, you really think you’re that important? I don’t hook up with guys for you. I do it for my own pleasure. Get lost.”
Lavern shook his head, stubbornly refusing to accept it. “No way! You’re not like that.”
‘There’s no way she’d fall for another guy so soon,‘ Lavern thought, his chest tightening with pain.
Seeing how Lavern just wouldn’t quit, Marina steeled herself, tugged down her collar, and revealed the marks she’d been hiding.
“Last night, we did it all. Whatever should’ve happened, whatever shouldn’t have, it all went down. Want to see more? There’s plenty more on me,” she shot back, her tone icy and defiant.
The sight of the red mark on her pale neck hit Lavern hard, and he stumbled back a few steps, like he’d just taken a punch to the gut.
Marina didn’t even look at him. She just lowered her head, fixed her clothes, and hid the marks again.
Lavern staggered back and crashed right into someone entering the office. He was all set to unleash his anger, but when he spun around and saw Daron standing there, all that fury instantly fizzled into awkward silence.
“M… Mr. Zamora, what brings you here?” Lavern blurted out, his face going pale as he tried to recover.
Hearing his voice, Marina glanced up and locked eyes with Daron, who was watching her with that infuriatingly amused, almost mocking look. ‘God, could this get any worse?‘
Fri, Dec 26
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
