CHAPTER 177: JEALOUSY: THE GREEN- EYED MONSTER

"It's okay now.I'm here to protect you!" Wendy glanced up at his face.

Ryan wore his characteristic cold expression.

However, Wendy inherently felt an inexplicable sense of security.

‘'Who was afraid? Not me, for sure! I was just a little sad and disappointed because the audience pronounced me guilty based on the cutting words of a total stranger.Even my fans didn't spare me.But I never imagined in my wildest dreams that you would come to my rescue like my knight in shining armor so quickly.It's certainly not true that I was not moved" A myriad of phones ploughed onto Ryan's body.

He took off his coat, covered Wendy with it and lifted her up like Superman.

Surprised, Wendy grabbed his clothes subliminally.

"Ryan!"

"Trust me!"

His tone had a calming effect on her.

She closed her eyes, leaned against his chest and surrendered to him.Her body language gave him permission to handle the situation.

His heart pounded like a drum in his chest.

It gave Wendy a sense of relief and purpose.

With her head covered, Wendy was oblivious of what was happening around her.

All she remembered were the rush of footsteps from the studio and then there was absolute silence.

The raucous abuse had stopped.

The entire world had now fallen deathly silent.

The sound of Ryan's footsteps on the floor were the only echoes she could hear.

Wendy's curiosity was aroused.

She didn't know what modus operandi he had applied to exit the studio so smoothly.

When they reached the lounge, Ryan gently put her down.

He removed the coat from Wendy's head.

She suddenly remembered something important.She grabbed Ryan's sleeve and said anxiously, "Ryan, catch that man before he disappears!"

The cold expression on Ryan's face transformed into tenderness.

He held her hand and said, "Don't worry.Luke will handle it."

Upon hearing that, Wendy breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Ryan pulled her to sit on the sofa next to him.

The two still held hands unconsciously.

Ryan's large palm was warm and welcoming.

He held her hand firmly, fearing that if he let go, she would disappear.

But the dry and warm sensation of his touch consoled Wendy endlessly.

Wendy blushed and was surprised to find that she didn't pull her hand away as she would ordinarily do.

Then she tried to release her fingers, but Ryan tightened his grip.

He turned his face and looked at her unemotionally.

"Don't move!"

"Okay!"

Wendy then looked around the lounge wearily.

It was a VIP lounge.

But it was unlike the one in which she and Roger had waited in earlier.

Here, the sofas were made of expensive leather and there was a huge flat screen TV on the opposite wall.

All kinds of fancy recording equipment could be seen all over the place.

There were even crumbs lying on the tea table in this lounge.

"Ryan, for how long have you been here?"

"Not too long!"

Wendy upturned her nose.She certainly didn't believe him.

Just then her phone rang and an unknown number popped up.

She scowled and just as she was about to answer it, Ryan snatched it from her.

"What are you doing?"

"It was a pesky reporter's number!"

"Okay!"

After hanging up the phone, less than three seconds later, the phone rang again.

This time too, an unknown number popped up.

Fed up of the intrusions, Ryan scoffed and turned off Wendy's phone.

During the whole process, he didn't let go of her hand, nor did he question her about the fracas during the live broadcast.

"Ryan..."

"Yes!"

"Aren't you curious to know what happened?"

Ryan sat there quietly, like a shadow concealed in its own darkness.He was gloomy and distant but his eyes were filled with sadness.

Wendy's heart palpitations increased.

It was the first time that she had ever seen him like this.

"a " Roger told me that you adopted Ray in the US."

Wendy was stunned.

She didn't know that Roger had shared such information with Ryan.After some introspection, she concluded that Roger must have wanted to protect Ray, so that the media would not hound him.

Just as she was about to utter something, Ryan interrupted her with his cold, deep voice.

"But after getting to know you better, I knew that it was not true.He is your biological son!"

Wendy saw no reason to deny it.

"Yes! Ray is my child.My own child!"

Ryan's eyes filled with sorrow and he held her hand more tightly.

"I have been wondering who Ray's biological father is! I was trying to understand what kind of a man was he like that it made you willingly to give birth to his child at the tender age of twenty.I'm insanely jealous of him!” Wendy lifted her head in astonishment.

‘'Jealous? Was this an emotion that Ryan was ever capable of expressing?’'

"I'm jealous that he knew you earlier than me, and more jealous that he had the pleasure of being intimate with you!"

Cupping her chin in his hands, Ryan looked at her piteously.

"But I was so relieved when I saw that man just now."

"W-why?"

"Because he is no competition for me at all!" Wendy was dumbstruck.

"That man could very well be Ray's biological father, right?"

Wendy smiled bitterly and shook her head. Content © copyrighted by .

"I don't know either!"

Stunned, Ryan stared deeply into her eyes.

"Don't look at me like that.I honestly don't know."

Wendy pushed away his hand and avoided eye contact with him.She took a deep breath then remarked, "Our seven-day agreement comes to an end tomorrow.I was planning to tell you something very important tomorrow.But since such a huge drama unfolded today, I think that it's better that I reveal it to you today.Ryan's heart literally stopped.He held his breath and listened attentively.

"Brian is your nephew..."

Ryan's expression froze.

Wendy rolled her eyes and said, "There's no need to hide this fact.I already know everything."

"I didn't mean to hide it from you.I just didn't know how or when to tell you."

Wendy rolled her eyes again.She didn't believe in such excuses.

"Since you are Brian's uncle, it is obvious that you would know something about us."

"Yesl"

"Then I'll make it simple.When I was in love with Brian, Eris stole Brian from me.In order to ruin my romance with Brian, she drugged me and threw me into a room with a stranger, who raped me.I never got to know his identity."

After hearing that, Ryan's face resembled an iceberg.

"When I discovered that I was pregnant, Brian took full responsibility for the baby, lying to me that it was him that night and he was the father, just to protect Eris.I had to stop going to school and planned to give birth to the baby.However, when I was eight months pregnant, I experienced the worst nightmare of my life.Wendy calmly narrated in detail to him everything that had happened in the past.Including why Eris hurt herself on purpose, the process by which she was 'murdered' by Cacia and her desperate journey to the US.

She graphically relived her hellish nightmare for Ryan's benefit.

Honestly, her calm exterior deceived the trauma she hid within.

Those were the most painful and life shattering memories of her past.

Each time she relived it, it was like ripping off a scab, which would make the wound bleed again.

Wendy straightened her back and clenched her fists, trying to make herself look relaxed and in control.

"Hmm, that is it.My checkered past is full of highs and lows.My life was full of drama and had all the ingredients to make a popular soap opera.From a young boy meets a young girl, to their falling in love, then a love triangle and finally betrayal, deceit, a murder plot and even an innocent baby.I'm afraid, seventy episodes won't cover my story."

"So, is this the reason why you always refuse me?"