No Escape from Love novel Chapter 144

In the car, I felt uneasy. There was so much I wanted to ask Alex, but I didn't know where to start.

"If you have something to say, just say it." Alex suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. "Do you think I falsely accused Lucas?"

I shook my head. "I know you never lie. If what you said wasn't true, Lucas would've defended himself."

"It's not that big of a deal," Alex said as he turned the steering wheel, guiding the car in another direction. "He's young. Making mistakes is inevitable."

I frowned. "You're right, but… this isn't the way to my place."

He only glanced at me. "You're staying at my place tonight."

"At… At your place?" I was dumbfounded. "Why? That's… That's not appropriate. I'm not going."

"Can't you see how heavy the rain is?" His voice held a hint of disbelief.

It was only then that I noticed the windshield. The rain had turned it into a curtain of water, and the wipers were working furiously to no avail. But that still wasn't a reason for me to stay with him. I resisted the idea.

"I live in a villa," he said casually. "Unlike your place, which is so cramped you can barely turn around."

His tone was relaxed, but I still felt deeply offended.

"Are you an elephant or something?" I shot back, looking at him in disbelief. "Besides, I'm just renting. You're the actual owner of that place."

He fell silent.

When he finally pulled into the garage and parked the car, he unbuckled his seatbelt. "You're just as sharp-tongued as you were when you were a kid."

"And you're just the same," I retorted as he walked over to open the door for me. "Your words are so poisonous that if you licked your own lips, you'd need to go straight to the ER."

He lowered his head even further, his pale lips inching closer and closer to mine.

Maybe it was the rush of emotions or maybe it was the lingering alcohol in my system, but for some reason, I closed my eyes.

I felt his breath getting closer. My heartbeat was so loud I thought it might burst from my chest.

The sudden shrill of a phone shattered the moment. I snapped back to reality and immediately pushed him away.

I didn't dare turn back to look at him. Silence stretched between us until he finally answered the call. "Dad, it's late. What's so important?"

On the other end of the line, Mr. Hastings Senior sounded amused. "Did you sign the contract? Serena did great today. You should encourage her more instead of always bullying her."

"I got it," he replied in a voice tinged with annoyance.