Chapter 1972


    Chapter 1972


    Balfour wasn’t in the mood to probe further, simply murmuring a response as his gaze shifted to the


    gashes on her arm. “What happened to your arm?”


    “I identally scratched it.” Ivy had been so emotionally scattered that she hadn’t even noticed her


    own injury. It was only when Balfour’s grip tightened that she felt the sting.


    She had scratched ra’s face in the heat of an argument, and ra had retaliated with equal


    measure, leaving several deep gashes on Ivy’s arm.


    Balfour’s brow furrowed. “Hurting that bad from just a scratch? Come on, tell me the truth!”


    “It was ra, my With a resigned sigh, Ivy ryed what happened earlier to Balfour. “It was ra,


    half–sister. She used me of being loose,pletely messed up my interview, and then she hit me. I


    lost it and hit her back.”


    The look in Balfour’s eyes was hard to decipher.


    What kind of life had this woman led to grow up into the person she was today? What had she been


    through?


    “Why didn’t you tell your family about your current status as Mrs. Howard? If you did, they wouldn’t


    darey a finger on you.”


    Ivy fell silent at his question.


    Indeed, the name of the Howard family could keep the Dunhills at bay.


    But that would only lead to more trouble. The Dunhills were insatiable in their greed, knowing her


    connection with the Howards would only make them more eager to exploit her for climbing the social


    ladder.


    She wasn’t the real Mrs. Howard and didn’t want to cause trouble for the Howards.


    “You can’t imagine the depths of the Dunhills‘ shamelessness. They’d do anything for their own benefit.


    Not even three million dors would make them leave me alone. If they knew about my connection to


    the Howards, they’de knocking for favors. Better to let it be


    Ivy turned her head, spreading her hands in resignation. “I can only use the Howard name for a year,


    and then fill be back to nothing. Why bother telling them?”


    Balfour watched her with a mysterious smile. You seem quite clear–headed now! When pushes to


    shove, you still know to call for my help


    His slight smile caught ivy off guard, she had pegged him as an ice mountain, never


    ng him to have such a pleasant smile.


    lo darectly for a moment, she suddenly realized it was impolite to keep a gazing at l


    and quickly averted her eyes. “I was concerned about the Harris Group pursuing my responsibility,


    potentially embarrassing the Howards. I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful from now on to avoid causing you


    any trouble.”


    Balfour continued to watch her with an unfathomable gaze. “Next time something like this happens, feel


    free to reveal your rtionship with me.”


    Balfour’s words seemed like permission for Ivy to use the Howard name as a shield in the future.This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    For anyone, that was a blessing. Having the Howards backing her, she wouldn’t have to fear anything.


    Yet, Ivy nced at him and stayed silent.


    She would not use the Howard family as a shield; that protection had an expiration date of one year,


    and that year would pass quickly.


    To live independently in the future, she needed to learn to stand on her own feet and grow. “If you knew


    that the CEO of the Harris Group was Nn, would you have still messaged me?” Balfour’s question


    came out of nowhere


    Ivy pursed her lips, hesitating before answering, “Probably not. At least Nn wouldn’t. have made


    things difficult for me, and you wouldn’t have had to go save me.”


    Balfour’s reaction to her answer was unreadable; he started the car in silence.


    Ivy had assumed Balfour would take her back to the Howard estate, but realized his intentions only


    when he parked in the hospital lot. “Why are we at the hospital?”


    He nced at her and said, “What do you think? We’ll get your arm treated before we head back.”


    Ivy thought it was an overreaction and waved her hands dismissively. “I’m fine. It’s just a scratch,


    nothing serious. I’ll just clean it with some iodine at home.”


    Though ra had been brutal, it was still just a scratch, and it wasn’t deep enough to warrant a


    hospital visit.


    Exaggerating a bit, if the hospital had been any further away, her wound might have. healed by the time


    they arrived!


    “Let’s just get


    get it treated, or Grandma will have a fit when we get back.” Balfour stepped out and opened the


    passenger door for her. “Get out.”


    Ivy looked at him, annoyed but resigned to his logic. Arguing would only waste more time; better to get


    to the hospital and get it over with quickly.