At this moment, faced with irrefutable evidence, Karina finally broke down.
She grabbed Xavier's pant leg and burst into tears, "Xavier, I was wrong! Everything I did was because I loved you too much! It hurt like hell seeing you treat Serena so well! Why does she get your attention, while you're always so cold to me?!"
Xavier stepped back in disgust, pulling his pant leg from her grasp. "Your biggest mistake is never knowing your place! There's nothing between us. What right do you have to meddle in my affairs?! Who I like, who I want to be with, who I care about-none of it is your business!"
With that, he turned to Serena, bent down, and gently held her hand. "Let me tell you-this lifetime, I will only love Serena Knowles! No matter what tricks you pull, I will never feel anything for you!"
Hearing this, Karina collapsed to the floor in disgrace, crying in despair.
Brody stepped forward to ask, "Sir, shall we escort Miss Carter and the drunkard to the police station now?"
"No rush," Xavier replied coolly. "Didn't she say she liked this presidential suite? Then let her enjoy it a little longer. Once she's cried her fill, we'll hand her over to the police."
Then, he looked down at Serena and asked gently, "Serena, let's go. This room is full of bad vibes-we shouldn't stay here. Let's go home."
He took the wheelchair from Vega and personally pushed Serena out of the presidential suite.
Once they entered the elevator, Serena finally asked, "Are we going straight home now? What about that maid from the Carters, Dara?"
"I originally got close to Dara so she could help gather evidence on Karina's hypocrisy-to show my father and make him give up the idea of marrying her into the family. Now that we have her crimes recorded, we don't need Dara anymore."
"But... didn't Dara get hurt? She's probably not fully recovered yet!"
Xavier gently pinched the tip of her nose. "Silly girl, you're injured yourself and still thinking about others?"
Serena looked down at her swollen ankle. "It's just a small injury. I'm fine."
Xavier's heart clenched. "Thank God you're okay. Otherwise, I don't know what I'd have done..."
Not wanting to upset him further, Serena quickly changed the subject. "We were talking about Dara-how'd we end up back on me?"
He sighed. "Don't worry. Karina will likely be stuck in the police station for a long time. She won't be returning to the Carters anytime soon. Dara will have enough time to heal. Later, I'll find a chance to ask her-if she's willing, I'll arrange a position for her in the company, so she can finally escape the Carters's clutches."
"That's good!" Serena nodded.
Xavier pushed her through the hotel entrance toward the parking lot.
As they turned a corner, a familiar figure suddenly appeared in front of them.
That person also saw Serena and approached with a smile. "Miss Knowles, you're here too!" Then noticing Xavier behind her, he added, "Xavier, you're here as well. You two... what's going on...?"
Serena looked up, visibly shocked.
After a moment, she quickly replied, "We're... just friends. I hurt my leg, and he's just helping push me. What... what brings you here?!"
"Oh, my grandson Christan asked me to come. He said there would be a stone exhibition here in the next couple of days and invited me to check it out."
"Stone exhibition?!"
Serena looked at Xavier in confusion.
He shrugged innocently. "Not that I know of. I don't have any plans to host a stone exhibition anytime soon."
"Well, that's strange." She turned back to Grandpa Bryan with curiosity. "Are you sure that's what your grandson told you?"
"Of course!" Grandpa Bryan pulled out the message Christan had sent him and handed it to Serena. "Look, it's written very clearly. My eyesight may be going, but I can still read!"
"It does say that," Serena said, blinking, unable to figure out what Christan was up to this time.
Still, considering how much he had helped her when Karina and Poppy plotted against her, she had to admit she owed him a favor.
Her hostility toward him had mostly faded, and she no longer felt the need to overanalyze his motives.
So she replied politely, "Grandpa Bryan, maybe your grandson made a mistake-there's no stone exhibition here. But the hot springs at this hotel are nice. Since you've come all this way, why not stay for a few days and relax?"
Grandpa Bryan stroked his beard and murmured, "I wonder what Christan is up to this time..."
After a pause, he looked at Serena with a smile. "By the way, I forgot to ask-where are you headed, Miss Knowles?"
"We're getting ready to leave."
"Leaving? But this hotel just opened! Miss Knowles, won't you stay a few more days?"
"No, thank you. I twisted my ankle and just want to go home and rest."
Grandpa Bryan glanced down and examined her swollen ankle carefully.
His eyes lit up as he said, "To be honest, I studied medical texts for a few years and know a bit about injuries like this. From what I see, it's just a surface injury-not a bone fracture. Even if you go home, all you can do is stay in bed. There's no special treatment. But I've heard the hot spring water here is rich in minerals-it's excellent for relaxing muscles and aiding recovery. Why not stay and soak for a few days?"
Serena was about to refuse.
After everything that happened with the drunken man, she still had a psychological shadow about staying in this place.
But Xavier immediately perked up. "Grandpa Bryan, can the hot spring really help Serena recover faster?"
"Well, it's not a miracle cure, but it definitely helps!"
"That's great!" he said, looking down at Serena excitedly. "Serena, did you hear that? The hot spring can help you heal. Why don't we stay a few more days and wait until you've recovered a bit before going home?"
"But..."
"I get it! We're definitely not staying in the presidential suite again! There are two rooms on the 35th floor. Karina was in one, but the other one's empty-you can stay there, okay?"
Grandpa Bryan also chimed in warmly, "Miss Knowles, we haven't seen each other in a long time. I'd love to catch up and chat about gemstone and tea. Would you do me the honor?"
Since the elderly man himself had said so, Serena could no longer refuse. She reluctantly agreed.
***