Chapter 271

Chapter 271:

A slow, dangerous tension settled over Eric, his hostility spiking in an instant. His entire presence became menacing, his sharp gaze locking onto the man like a predator that had just found its prey.

“Who the hell are you?” Eric’s voice cut through the air like a blade.

The sheer iciness in his tone sent an involuntary shudder down the man’s spine. For the briefest second, he was sure he saw something terrifying flicker in Eric’s eyes—something that made his blood run cold.

If eyes could kill, he had no doubt he’d already be dead.

The man swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing as panic seized him. He quickly turned his pleading gaze to Hadley.

Hadley let out an exasperated sigh. What was he looking at her for? Did he really expect her to save him?

“Are you stupid? If you know what’s good for you, run!”

“Oh! O-okay!”

It finally clicked in his head. The man didn’t need to be told twice—without a second thought, he spun around and took off.

“Do you really believe you can just take off and get away?”

Eric’s expression darkened even further, and without waiting for an answer, he was already moving, his long strides closing the distance between him and his fleeing target.

“Don’t!”

On pure instinct, Hadley shot out her hand and grasped his wrist, bringing him to an abrupt stop.

“Hadley!” Eric’s frustration spiked, his voice laced with simmering anger. “Are you seriously trying to protect him?”

Her grip on his wrist tightened, unwilling to let go. She already knew if she so much as loosened her hold, he’d be off again in a flash. For a second, Hadley just stared at Eric, dumbfounded. Then, irritation flared in her chest, and she snapped, “How the hell did you get that idea? Which part of this looks like I’m protecting him?”

Eric froze. Now that he thought about it… she had a point. She had been fighting him off, not siding with him in any way.

𝓥𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓯𝓲𝓮𝓭 𝓫𝔂 𝓼𝓲𝓽𝓮: 𝗀𝖺𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀﹒ⅽ𝗈𝗺

Hadley shot a sharp look at Eric, unimpressed with his agitation. “Are you seriously about to throw your life away for someone like him?” Neither of them mattered to her—Eric was terrible enough, but the middle-aged man who had just fled? He was the very source of her pain, the person she despised most in this world. And yet, despite how much she hated that man, she wasn’t about to let Eric get himself into trouble over him.

Eric went still. Then, something flickered in his eyes. Was she… worried about him?

A strange warmth spread through his chest, and just like that, his sour mood shifted completely.

His gaze dropped, landing on her hand, which was still firmly wrapped around his wrist.

Slowly, the corners of his lips curled into a smirk. He cleared his throat deliberately.

The moment Hadley noticed it, a jolt of surprise shot through her, and she instantly pulled her hand back as if she had been burned. Eric’s smirk stretched wider, satisfaction flickering in his gaze.

“That settles that, then,” he remarked, his tone laced with amusement. “No point wasting another second thinking about him. But while we’re on the subject, who exactly was he?”

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