Nyla lowered her gaze to the soup bubbling in the pot and fell silent.
The kitchen was quiet, save for the sound of Damon chopping vegetables and the faint hum of the range hood.
When Damon finished slicing the potatoes, Nyla glanced at him. "You can go sit in the living room. I'll handle the rest." Their relationship wasn't the kind where they should be cooking together. Nyla was already starting to regret not turning him away at the door. Damon stared at her for a few seconds before nodding. "Alright." Once he left the kitchen, Nyla breathed a sigh of relief. She poured the soup into a bowl, quickly washed the pot, and began stir-frying the potatoes.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtAbout ten minutes later, she brought the dishes out, surprised to find Damon asleep on the sofa. She instinctively softened her footsteps.
After setting the table, Nyla hesitated to wake him. In the end, she decided to give him another 30 minutes. If he was still asleep by then, she'd wake him. Fortunately, Damon woke on his own after just over ten minutes.
At first, there was a brief moment of confusion before clarity returned. He turned to look at Nyla, who was typing on her phone. Clearing his throat softly, he got her attention. "Why didn't you wake me?" he asked.
Nyla looked up, her expression calm. "You were tired and fell asleep on the sofa. I figured I'd give you half an hour before waking you." Damon hadn't expected to doze off like that. He had been working nonstop and was more exhausted than he realized. Rubbing his temples, he stood up. "Next time, just wake me." Nyla nodded, though she thought to herself there probably wouldn't be a next time.
"Do you want to wash up before we eat?" she asked.
"Sure," Damon replied.
By the tthey sat down to eat, it was already past 7:00 p.m.
Damon looked apologetic. "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep like that." "It's fine. You didn't sleep long. Let's eat," Nyla replied dismissively. Throughout dinner, Nyla wanted to e ask about the investigation into the data leak, but Damon seemed focused on his meal, leaving her no opening to bring it up.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmIt wasn't until Damon set down his cutlery that she finally asked, "So, what did you find out about the data leak?" Seeing her anxious expression, Damon guessed she'd been holding this question in for a while. His tone turned serious. "We discovered that Gabriel was in contact with Robert Palfrey from Contelligence. Based on their conversations, it's clear he's the one who leaked the data." Nyla pressed her lips together, showing no excitement despite learning the identity of the culprit.
Since Gabriel had left the country, they hadn't interacted. As far as she knew, she had never done anything to offend him. She couldn't understand why he would do something like this to her.
"What's the company planning to do next?" she asked.
Damon's eyes grew cold. "We're going to formally press charges. And he will certainly not have a future in this industry." Nyla's grip on her cutlery tightened as she lowered her head in silence.
Noticing her reaction, Damon frowned. "What's wrong? Don't tellyou're feeling sorry for him?" Nyla shook her head. "No, it's not that. I just don't understand why he did it."
"You don't need to understand. Just know that he wanted to hurt youn Stay away from him from now on, and that's enough," Damon replied. "Okay," Nyla murmured.
After dinner, Damon insisted on helping Nyla clear the table and do the dishes, despite her protests. In the end she gave up trying to stop him. Once the dishes were loaded into the dishwasher, she turned to him. "It's getting late. You should head home. I'm going to rest soon."
A hint of bitterness flashed through Damon's eyes. "Alright. Don't worry about the data leak anymore. I'll handle everything." X