Hendrix's gaze lingered on the baby store for a long moment before he finally opened the car door. Before he could get in, Noelle had already shifted to the far side of the seat, staring out the window, clearly trying to put as much distance between them as possible.

Hendrix noticed but said nothing of it.noveldrama

As the car moved forward, Noelle suddenly spoke, "Can you stop locking me up? Don't worry, I won't harm the baby anymore. I've thought it through. No matter what, the child is innocent.

"But you can't keep shutting me away like this. Even if I wasn't sick before, you're going to drive me insane."

Her voice was soft. It was as if she were calmly negotiating with him.

Hendrix narrowed his eyes slightly and replied, "If you don't want to stay home, that's fine. From now on, I'll take you to work with me every day."

Noelle froze and looked at him.

"I'm not joking," he added quickly, as though he knew exactly what she was thinking.

Noelle gave a faint, sarcastic smile. "Aren't you afraid I'll steal your company secrets?"

Hendrix simply chuckled.

She could tell exactly what that laugh meant-he never saw her as a threat.

Not because of their relationship, but because, in his eyes, she simply wasn't qualified. To him, all she needed to do was be his caged songbird.

Noelle closed her eyes briefly, then turned to him. "Fine. I'll go with you to the office."

After the last time Hendrix had dragged her into the company, her appearance there no longer caused much of a stir. He didn't try to hide anything from her at all.

While she rested on the couch, he conducted business as usual.

The transfer order for Nathan had already been issued. In the next few days, he would be heading to Vinton City to take over the Continental Reach project, accompanied by Aaron.

Nathan's departure wasn't much of a concern. The bigger issue was that Beatrice had been meeting frequently with several shareholders, seemingly making some moves of her own.

"Is that so?" Hendrix's expression remained indifferent. "Let her do as she pleases."

"But

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The person speaking hesitated, but Hendrix merely smiled. "No matter what, she's still my mother. Do you really think she would try to harm me?"

As soon as he said those words, Noelle couldn't help but look up at him.

His lips were curled in a faint smile, but there wasn't a trace of warmth in his eyes.

She felt a chill run down her spine.

Hendrix seemed to notice her gaze and turned to look at her

Noelle quickly averted her gaze.

The man he had been speaking with soon left. As he passed by, he glanced at Noelle, but she ignored him.

Then, out of nowhere, Hendrix called out to her, "Noelle."

She lifted her head.

"Do you want to rest inside for a while?" he asked.

She had already slept enough over the past few days, but it was clear Hendrix didn't want her staying out here any longer.

After a brief pause, she nodded with feigned obedience. "Alright."

Hendrix opened the door to the private room for her.

The space was massive, larger than most people's bedrooms, and it even had a private bathroom.

He smoothed out the bed for her and said, "The passcode is your birthday. You can come in whenever

you want. If you need anything, use the landline next to my computer and have someone bring it to you." With that, he turned to leave.

But just as he was about to step out, Noelle suddenly grabbed his hand.