Chapter 286: Night Affairs V
Hypocrite?
Aiden felt like shaking Athena until her stubbornness cracked—her words piercing into his skin like needles and
echoing incessantly in his head.
She had compared him to Ewan, the very person who had allowed his sense of duty to misguide him. How could
she possibly draw such a parallel?
Yet, he swallowed his annoyance and chose to admit that he had messed up by keeping their feud alive for days.
He should have caround since then, at least.
He should have been the mature one; he should have stepped up to resolve the issue. Seeing they were not just
friends but partners, he ought to have ignored her taunts regarding his ex-wife, understanding that she had been
riding a wave of unstable emotions.
Yes, he was wrong in that respect, and he should apologize.
"lI am sorry, Athena," He finally spoke, his voice low, filled with sincerity. "I shouldn't have allowed my pride to
cloud my judgment, especially considering the strength of our friendship and partnership. You deserved the truth
from me, and | am sorry | didn’t give you that. Please..."
He paused, the weight of his request pressing against his chest. "Find it in your heart to forgive me."
‘Please don’t refer toas a hypocrite again.’
That word always triggered bad memories for him. It was the first tAthena had used it against him, and while
he considered correcting her, he decided against it for the moment. She was still fuming.
Seeing that she remained silent, just staring at him with a mix of emotions, he closed the distance between
them slowly and sat on the edge of her bed. "Athena, please say something..."
But Athena felt no inclination to speak to the man beside her; her emotions were still in turmoil.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Athena..."
"Fine!" She snapped softly, her voice laced with irritation. If that was sufficient to send him out of her room, she
would gladly agree.
"Thank you very much," Aiden replied, visibly relieved despite the tense atmosphere surrounding them.
"So, tell me, where did you get the information you shared with the group? I didn’t know you were researching
this... you should have letknow..." Aiden’s eagerness was palpable, and Athena wouldn't be surprised if that
was the main reason he had cto visit.
"Why should | have?" She calmly asked, crossing her arms defiantly.
"Because we are in this together, whether you like it or not." He met her gaze with intensity, his eyes piercing
into hers. "And | need to know everything about this case so we can work together effectively. Remember, it's
not just about Nimbus now; the government is involved, and | am part of the secret security service."
"Well, | didn’t ask to work for the government..."
Aiden cursed softly at Athena’s nonchalant dismissal.
"It was a contract; it's only until this matter with the Grey virus has been resolved completely, along with the
gang and whoever is sponsoring them."
With a sigh of exasperation, Athena accepted that she wouldn't be sleeping tonight. It was best she handled this
briefing now because tomorrow was already filled with too many activities. Hence, she shoved his infuriating
demeanor out of her mind and focused solely on the task ahead.
"Fine." She said sharply, though her voice softened. "Let's talk about the update, but if you cross me, Aiden,
again, you won't have to worry about Morgan; I'll be the one coming for you."
As she spoke, she placed the gun back on the dresser, and Aiden let out a sigh of relief he hadn't realized he was
holding. He nodded, the weight of remorse evident in his expression. "I promise it won't happen again."
Athena wasn't entirely satisfied, but having no choice, she informed Aiden about Ewan’s input in the document
and the role he would need to play tomorrow.
"Do you think it’s okay to trust him with such work?" Aiden asked after she finished, his eyes narrowing to a spot
on the floor as he contemplated Ewan'’s credibility in this mission.
Athena chuckled. "Ewan may not be loyal to anyone else, but he is fiercely loyal to his children. I'm sure you've
seen that; he would do anything to the tail end, perfectly, because of them. Don’t worry about him—he will do
his job. And weren't you singing his praises just a few days ago? Worse, he already knows so much about our
operations. If he wanted to snitch on us, he would have done so already."
Aiden scoffed lightly. "You seem to have done a complete 360-degree turnaround from the person who distrusted
his motives when we were in the cave..."
Athena chuckled. "Well, | noticed that since the emergence of the truth in the court case, his character has been
quite exceptional..."
"So, you're cutting him sslack?" Aiden interjected, raising an eyebrow at her.
Athena furrowed her brows, wondering what had crawled up Aiden’s backside. "Not exactly. | just don’t want to
be a bitter person, especially since my children have accepted him. It wouldn't hurt to be friends with him. If
‘friends’ is too strong a word, then | can settle for acquaintances. | don’t think there is anything wrong with
that..."
"I see," Aiden muttered, though Athena wondered if he truly understood. What was he even thinking?
Meanwhile, at Sandro’s apartment, Ewan was still awake, staring at Athena's message, half-expecting her to
send another, even though he hadn't replied.
The truth was that he was holding back now so that he could reply later; trying to ascertain if she would still be
awake whenever he dropped a reply.
If she was, then...
He pursed his lips. What would he do? He shook his head, dropping the phone onto the bed. Why was he acting
so overeager when they would still meet tomorrow?
Sighing tiredly, he turned over on his bed, ready to force himself to sleep.
Just then, his phone dinged with a text.
With speed faster than a bullet, he grabbed the device, letting out a dejected sigh when he saw it was just
Spider.
Was there more information to share? He wondered, opening the message.
His eyes widened slightly as he read its contents.
Athena had emailed Spider with a request?! How did she get Spider's contact?
He took his lips in when he saw Spider's last message.
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