Chapter 321 Withdrawn Messages\u00a0<\/p>\n
64\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Back at the restaurant, after Scarlett and the others had left, Damian removed his arm from around the actress\u2018 waist and set down the fork he had been using to feed her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stared coldly at the table full of dishes without saying another word.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing his expression, the actress didn\u2019t dare speak either.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until Nolan\u2019s voice came from the entrance-\u201cAre you alright?\u201c\u2013that Damian suddenly turned. He saw Scarlett leaning into Nolan, supported by his arm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In that split second, a flash of bitter, scorching jealousy blazed in Damian\u2019s eyes. The silver fork he\u2019d been twisting between his fingers snapped clean in two with a sharp \u201ccrack\u201c.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As the metal splintered, a jagged edge sliced into his palm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The cracking sound made the actress flinch. She shrank back into the booth, watching Damian with wide, nervous eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Putting on an act like this in exchange for a solid decade of safety and career security in Hollywood\u2026 who wouldn\u2019t take that deal?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once outside with Nolan, Scarlett stood by the curb waiting for a cab.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Remembering that Xavier was still at Ravenshade Villa, she realized she\u2019d likely be spending the night there again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was no need to hurry back just yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNolan, let\u2019s walk for a while,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m feeling a bit too full from dinner.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Naturally, Nolan wanted to spend more time with her. He agreed right away. \u201cSure.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
So they walked side by side along the seemingly endless street.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With Nolan, conversation drifted mostly toward hospital matters and work.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before they knew it, nearly an hour had passed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing how late it was getting, Scarlett decided it was time to head back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan offered to drive her, but she politely declined.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Inside the taxi, her phone buzzed with notifications\u2013not just once, but over a dozen times in quick succession.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
20:09 Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 321 Withdrawn Messages\u00a0<\/p>\n
:\u00a0<\/p>\n
64\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
That kind of frequency usually meant either work emails or a message thread from Claire.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Unlocking her phone, she opened her messaging app and saw Damian\u2019s name with 18 unread\u00a0<\/p>\n
messages.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But when she tapped into the thread, all she found was a screen filled with \u201cThis message has been deleted\u201d placeholders.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Puzzled, Scarlett typed back a simple question mark.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Damian replied almost instantly, \u201cWrong thread.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett paused, then sent, \u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That was the end of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, back at the restaurant, Damian kept refreshing his messages, but no further reply came from Scarlett.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A heavy, frustrated sigh escaped him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The actress beside him stayed perfectly still, not daring to make a sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After a few more sighs, Damian\u2019s eyes widened as if he\u2019d just remembered something. He picked up his phone again and opened his chat with Sabrina.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His thumbs hovered over the screen, typing and deleting several times before he finally settled on a message, \u201cWanna hang out tonight?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
At that moment, Sabrina\u2013who was in the study with Vincent\u2013got the text and nearly dropped her phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent was reviewing documents; Sabrina had been looking up research topic references online.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even though Vincent had pressured Thomas to secure a research topic for her through Nolan, until it was officially finalized, Sabrina didn\u2019t dare relax.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had worked too hard to get into this Ph.D. program to let it fall apart now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A doctorate would open doors to a different circle\u2013different people, different opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing Damian\u2019s name pop up sent a cold sweat down her back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent noticed her reaction and set down his papers. \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
213\u00a0<\/p>\n
20:09 Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
:\u00a0<\/p>\n
64\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 321 Withdrawn Messages\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sabrina\u2019s face warmed. She turned her phone screen\u2013down on the desk. \u201cN\u2013nothing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hearing her stammer, Vincent guessed she was hiding something and reached for her phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sabrina quickly pressed her hand over his. \u201cVincent, it\u2019s just a silly video a friend sent.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent raised a brow. \u201cAnd I can\u2019t see it?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing his insistence, Sabrina softened her voice. \u201cPromise you won\u2019t get upset if you do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curious now, Vincent agreed. \u201cFine.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Only then did Sabrina pick up her phone. She opened the video link from a friend in her social app\u2013a generic relationship advice clip\u2013and handed it to Vincent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As soon as it played, a woman\u2019s upbeat voice began, \u201cIf you want to win a man\u2019s heart, here\u2019s what you need to do\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent watched a few seconds, then lost interest. He handed the phone back. \u201cJust be yourself. You don\u2019t need to study things like that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hearing that, Sabrina finally released a breath she hadn\u2019t realized she was holding.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Thank goodness Vincent hadn\u2019t pressed further\u2013otherwise, he would\u2019ve seen Damian\u2019s text.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since Vincent had said that, Sabrina tilted her head and asked lightly, \u201cBut if I don\u2019t learn this stuff, how am I supposed to win your heart?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent paused. Instead of answering directly, he gently tapped her forehead with his finger and said in a more serious tone, \u201cRight now, your only focus should be your research topic. Everything else can wait.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1.1K\u00a0<\/p>\n
W\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Editorial Board: Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.<\/p>\n
Silent Dreams Never Die \u2014 Author: John Miller 32`1 Chapter 321 Withdrawn Messages\u00a0 64\u00a0 Finished\u00a0 Back at the restaurant, after […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[81],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-impossible-condition-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27685\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}