The Sway and Slide of Love

Chapter 355

Noelle fell silent, so Hendrix assumed the

ersation was over.

But the next moment, she suddenly said, "Thank you."

Why was she thanking him? Was she thanking him on Dylan's behalf?

Even though that had been his initial goal, actually hearing those words coming out of Noelle's lips still left an uncomfortable ache in his chest.

He turned over and sat up. Staring at her intently, he asked, "And then? That's it?"

Noelle didn't resist. She simply met his gaze with her big, dewy eyes.

The moonlight grew brighter, cascading over her face, making her appear even softer, more serene.

Hendrix stared at her for a long time. Finally, he reached out and gently touched her cheek.

Strangely enough, they had already done the most intimate things one could imagine, and it was even the first time he had touched her face. But this gentle gesture felt different-like an electric current passing from his fingertips to her skin, only to loop back and surge through him again.

Hendrix instinctively curled his fingers slightly. Noelle, feeling a little uncomfortable herself, was just about push his hand away when he suddenly leaned down and kissed her.

ΤΟ

His movements were uncharacteristically geritle. He softly captured her lips, soothingly grazing and tasting them. His hand remained on her cheek, and his fingertips unconsciously brushed against her earlobe.

A wave of goosebumps rose instantly on Noelle's arms, and she couldn't help but shudder slightly. Taking advantage of this moment, Hendrix slipped his tongue in, intertwining with hers, exploring and caressing.

It was an exquisitely tender kiss. It carried no lust, no ulterior motives. As if they were two people deeply in love, and the kiss was simply an expression of their feelings,

After what felt like a long time, Hendrix finally pulled away He then gently brushed the comer of her lips, wiping away the faint trace of saliva.

"I don't accept verbal thanks," Hendrix murmured hoarsely. "This is just the interest, and as for the principal... you can pay me back later."

Noelle seemed unable to fully process what had just happened. She stared at him with confused eyes-so clear and innocent.

Hendrix nearly ravaged her again, but when he remembered everything she had gone through that night, he forced himself to hold back. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly by her ear. "Go to sleep," he whispered gently.

Noelle actually had questions she wanted to ask him. For instance, if Dylan was truly innocent, why had those people been able to implicate him? And why hadn't he defended himself?

After all, back then, Hendrix had used those very documents to force Dylan into giving up his engagement with Noelle. But as the words reached her lips, she swallowed them back.

Perhaps it was because the current situation didn't feel right for her to dig deeper, or perhaps, deep down, she already knew the answer. It was just that she wasn't ready to admit or face it.

In the end, Noelle said nothing She didn't push Hendrix's hand away, either. Instead, she gazed at the moonlight

1/2

Chapter 355

spilling through the window and slowly closed her eyes.

That night, she had no dreams.

When Noelle woke up, she was alone as usual. Though this time, Hendrix hadn't locked her in. But in truth, she wasn't sure where she could go.

As she idly flipped through the hotel's brochures for local tours, her phone suddenly rang.

"Ms. Swanson, you haven't forgotten about our wager from yesterday, have you?"