The Night I Let Go novel Chapter 18

After Wendy left, Zachary tried to push Ellen, who was still hugging him tightly, away.

But as soon as he did so, Ellen clung to him again.

Zachary sighed. "Ellen, she's already left. You can drop the act now."

His words stunned Ellen. She raised her head and fixed him with a fervent gaze as she said with a serious look on her face, "Do you think I was acting?"

Zachary replied confidently, "Of course. We haven't really interacted much. You can't possibly be in love with me. At most, it would only be a crush."

"Do you believe in love at first sight?"

Ellen's eyes were gentle as she closed the door and pinned Zachary against the wall.

Though Zachary was very much unwilling, the effects of alcohol had yet to fade. He was somewhat weakened and powerless.

Ellen stared into his eyes with a fiery gaze.

"I was attracted to you the moment I first saw you, but I was afraid to show it because of Wendy. Later on, whenever the three of us got together, I'd try to get close to you. But you always kept your distance from me. It was infuriating.

"Three years ago, I got drunk and couldn't resist forcing a kiss on you. However, I don't regret it. That's the reason why Wendy and I fell out, but at least… I got to kiss you. Although you blocked me and never let me get close to you again after that, I still don't regret it."

At that, Ellen tried to force a kiss on Zachary again. But Zachary turned his head away and kept her at bay.

Ellen was somewhat strong. Grabbing Zachary's neck, she jerked his head back and said in a lowered voice, "Zachary, you should know that I've learned karate. Be cooperative. Otherwise, I don't mind using violence."

After saying that, she pressed her lips against his roughly. Her kiss was as domineering as ever.

Gritting his teeth, Zachary struggled against her.

Ellen suddenly tightened her grip around his neck. Zachary grunted in pain, and Ellen seized the chance to deepen the kiss.

After a long while, their lips parted.

Zachary rubbed his temples as he gulped for air.

Meanwhile, Ellen cackled with glee.

"Zachary, for the past three years, I couldn't get over you, but I'd never thought of approaching you either. You offered yourself to me this time. Since you've provoked me on your own, this time, I won't let you go."

She smiled, and her gaze was fiery as she declared, "You are mine!"

…

The next day, at the crack of dawn, Zachary fled from Ellen's house.

Last night, he had sat on her couch all night, forcing himself to stay awake.

He had wanted to escape in the middle of the night, but Ellen was insane. Wherever he went, she followed.

When he wanted to leave, she blocked the entrance. She even told him that he could leave, but he would have to wait until dawn.

She'd said, "If you leave now, Wendy might be waiting for you downstairs."

After failing to persuade her, Zachary could only stay, with resignation.

Still, regardless of how tired and uncomfortable he was, he had no intention of falling asleep. He had a suspicion that if he fell asleep, Ellen, that mad woman, would likely do something even crazier.

Fortunately, after daybreak, she didn't stop him from leaving.

Zachary left Ellen's house and flagged down a cab at the entrance of the neighborhood to head back to the villa in Bayville.

After getting into the car, he pulled out his phone and discovered that it had been turned off at some point.

He assumed that its battery had run out. Nevertheless, after trying to turn it on, he found out that his phone's battery was still at 50%.

Once his phone was turned on, he was met with a deluge of missed calls, text messages, and WhatsApp messages.

"Hah! So, you do know the way home, Mr. Lloyd. If you'd taken any longer to return, I would've called the cops."

There was a smile on Anya's face, yet for some reason, the smile made Zachary's skin crawl.

He smiled sheepishly and explained, "I had too much to drink last night."

Hearing that, Anya furrowed her brows and asked, "You drank? With who? Did they take advantage of you?"

"With a partner of the company. Yesterday happened to be their birthday, so…" Zachary explained patiently, then asked, "Aren't you overthinking? I'm a man. How could I possibly be bullied?"

After hearing his explanation, Anya secretly felt relieved. However, she said, "Mr. Lloyd, wretched women are everywhere. They'd just bully you. I'm the only person who truly cares about you."

Speechless, Zachary rolled his eyes at Anya before putting on some indoor slippers and walking past her toward the stairs.

Anya got up and said, "Mr. Lloyd, you don't look well. Why don't you take the day off?"

"There's no need. I'll be fine after getting some rest," Zachary declined as he went up to the second floor without looking back.

As Anya watched Zachary go up the stairs, she sniffed and frowned before muttering, "Why does he smell like a woman's perfume? Damn it. Who was it? Who dares to seduce my innocent Mr. Lloyd?"

Anya pouted, furious.

After a moment's hesitation, she rushed upstairs to question Zachary.

The door to Zachary's room wasn't locked. Not only that, the glass bathroom door wasn't locked either.

Thus, when Anya pushed open the bathroom door in a huff to ask Zachary why he had the scent of a woman's perfume on him, he was so startled that his face turned pale.

He snapped, "Anya, what's wrong with you? Can't you see that I'm taking a shower?"

"You don't need to yell at me."

Knowing that she was in the wrong, Anya pursed her lips. She ran her eyes over Zachary and then left the bathroom.