Chapter 2 Shameless

• “Kicking me out isn’t the way to go, Jasmine!”
• Jasmine crossed her arms and sneered. “This is what your father wants, too, Noelle. Your scandal has turned our family upside-down. Reporters have been camping outside our house for days. Do you really think that your father would be able to recuperate with you at home?”
• “You...”
• “You may not care about others, but you should at least be considerate of your father! He’s getting old and he’s unable to take that kind of verbal abuse. Besides, it’s in your best interest to hide from the media to avoid the gossip, so move out and live elsewhere for now.”
• “Why should I hide when I haven’t even done anything wrong?”
• Even though Noelle looked tough on the outside, her heart stung when she met Jasmine’s disdainful gaze.
• She couldn’t remember how she left the hospital, or how she ended up at the Hayes residence in the South district.
• It was early autumn and the weather was still relatively hot. Cicadas could be heard buzzing in the trees overhead. As Noelle stared at the guards who were standing duty by the iron gates, her heart turned cold.
• She had examined the nude photos and found that they were photoshopped. Advanced technology was used, making the pictures appear real, down to the details. As for the woman who had interrupted the wedding, her husband was a fat man, whereas Noelle could clearly recall that the man from that steamy night had a good figure. If not, she wouldn’t have mistaken him for Jackson.
• It was tragic, really. After loving Jackson for more than ten years, she finally became his bride. Unfortunately, she had somehow lost her virginity just the night before their wedding.
• Even though the events at the wedding were but a conspiracy, she still owed Jackson an apology.
• Noelle had half-expected the guards to stop her from entering the Hayes residence; however, they didn’t.
• There was a row of luxury cars parked in the courtyard, indicating that the Hayes family had guests over today.
• Noelle was currently a trending topic, albeit in a bad way. She didn’t want to bring shame to the Hayes family in front of others so she chose to enter the villa through the back door.
• All was quiet at the back. Noelle quickly climbed the stairs and stood in front of Jackson’s bedroom on the third floor.
• The door to his bedroom was left slightly ajar.
• “Tell me... Do you love me?”
• “Yes... Yes, I love you so much... I’ve loved you ever since... ever since our first time three years ago...”
• The muffled sounds of a woman’s sweet voice and a man’s groans could be heard through the narrow opening of the door, causing Noelle’s hand to freeze on the door handle.
• Her stomach churned as a wave of nausea washed over her. She covered her mouth before she swiveled around to leave.
• At the bottom of the stairs, frantic to escape, she almost knocked over Jackson’s mother, Juliana Graham, who had just sent off their guests.
• “Hey! Watch where you’re going!” Juliana cursed. When she saw Noelle with her hand on her mouth and tears pooling in her eyes, she looked up the stairs and instantly understood everything.
• “It’s you. Why are you looking for Jackson again? Haven’t you already done enough?” As soon as Juliana recalled how the seemingly well-behaved and sensible Noelle had cheated on her son, her anger instantly skyrocketed.
• Noelle had tried her best to suppress her nausea, but she was unable to hold it in any longer. She threw up all over Juliana.
• “You... You filthy piece of garbage!” Juliana pinched her nose in disgust as she called for a servant. Looking at the sorry state that she was in, a mirthless chuckle escaped Noelle’s lips.
• “Shameless b*tch! If it weren’t for you, Jackson would already have gotten married...” Juliana’s eyes darted up the stairs again as she left her sentence hanging.
• If the Hayes family hadn’t needed Noelle’s help back then, she would never have agreed to allow her son to marry Noelle. After all, her ideal daughter-in-law was Noelle’s half-sister, Estelle.
• “If it wasn’t for me, your son would have been dead long ago!” Noelle wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as she sniffled, desperately trying to hold back the tears that had threatened to fall.
• “That’s right, Noelle. You were never the one that Jackson liked. We only agreed to allow you to marry into our family because you’d saved him. It was nothing but a deal. Nevertheless, you were the one who didn’t appreciate it. We should have known that you were a manipulative and promiscuous woman! Anyway, the Hayes family doesn’t owe you anything now. So, get lost!”
• Juliana signaled a servant with her eyes. Soon, the servant approached with a paper box. Juliana took the box and rudely threw it at Noelle’s feet. “These are the letters that you’ve written to Jackson over the past few years. Take them with you!”
• Noelle bent down and picked up the box that was filled with all of her girlish feelings. Forcing back her tears, she soon laughed coldly. “These aren’t the only things that I have given to Jackson. Shouldn’t you return all of them to me now?”
• “What else could there be?”
• With pale and slender fingers, Noelle stroked the right side of her body just below her chest to feel the faint scar through her clothes. “There is still 520 grams of my liver in Jackson’s body. Since you want to settle the scores between us, please return everything to me in one go!”
• “You... You... You’re insane!” Juliana pointed at Noelle as her body trembled in fright. “What are you still standing there for, Emma? Send her out!”
• “Jackson still owes me!”
• Two years ago, Jackson, who was at the peak of his career, suffered from severe liver disease. It was Noelle who cut nearly half of her liver and donated it to him, thereby bringing him back from the brink of death.
• Noelle had never once regretted sacrificing so much for the man whom she had loved——until this moment.
• Perhaps it was because of the emotional roller coaster that she had been subjected to recently, Noelle felt weak upon leaving the Hayes residence. A dull ache spread through the part of her body that had undergone surgery, as if her liver was missing its other half. She hung on as best as she could and put one foot in front of the other. Suddenly, her vision went black...
• Noelle opened her eyes, only to see white everywhere. Then, her nose instantly picked up the smell of disinfectant in the air.
• Where am I? Rubbing her swollen eyes, she turned her head and was met with a pair of cold and unreadable eyes.
• “You’re awake?” On the sofa in the middle of the ward, a handsome man sat with one leg crossed over the other, holding a business magazine in one hand. He had been immersed in reading when he heard the slight movement coming from the bed. Soon, he glanced fleetingly at Noelle before returning his gaze to the magazine in his hand.
• Noelle was slightly short-sighted. Without her glasses, everything seemed foggy at the moment.
• In spite of that, the man’s perfect profile as well as the noble and distant vibe he emanated made Noelle’s heart skip a beat.
• This is the hospital. Memories flooded back into Noelle’s mind and she remembered that she had passed out after leaving the Hayes residence.
• “You saved me?”
• “Mm,” the man responded in a low voice.
• “Thank you...” Noelle wanted to sit up, but the scar from her liver operation throbbed painfully.
• “Lie down!” the man commanded.
• His baritone voice was pleasing to the ear. Noelle had initially wanted to push through the pain but she ended up lying back down as if she was in a trance.
• “You’re already missing half of your liver, yet you still dared to indulge in alcohol? You’re the most suicidal woman I’ve ever met!”
• “How did you know...” Noelle wanted to ask him how he knew that she was missing half of her liver, but upon recalling that she was in the hospital, she deduced that the doctor must have informed him after examining her. “Anyway, thank you for saving me!”
• She had indeed been drinking a lot lately. The incident at the wedding had gone viral and the online verbal abuse had overwhelmed her.
• Best Actress, Noelle Hooper, planned a sham marriage, causing her father to collapse on the spot from a heart attack!
• A b*tch is only deserving of a dog! Mistress Hooper, please let go of Mr. Heartthrob!
• Get out of the entertainment industry, Noelle Hooper!