Better Late, But Never His Again novel Chapter 88

Back at the lab, Hazel was quietly analyzing data, completely unaware of the storm heading her way.

Her workload for the day was brutal. Audrey had dumped all the most complicated tasks onto her desk, masking the blatant retaliation behind the excuse that "the most capable should do the heavy lifting." Hazel couldn't be bothered to argue. She just wanted to finish up and go home. Professor Finch had made beef stew for dinner and was waiting for her.

Suddenly, the lab door was shoved open with explosive force, slamming into the wall with a deafening crack.

Hazel's fingers paused on her keyboard. She looked up to see Julian standing in the doorway.

His face was a mask of terrifying fury. His eyes blazed with a murderous fire, and his chest heaved violently. Everyone else in the lab jumped in their seats. Hiding in the corner, Audrey visibly flinched at the noise, her brow furrowing in confusion. Wasn't this Dr. Vance's boyfriend?

Evelyn wasn't even here, so what was he doing? Wait, was he here for Hazel? Did they know each other? The scent of fresh drama immediately piqued her interest.

Julian marched straight over, looming over Hazel with an intimidating presence. His voice dripped with raw, barely suppressed rage, his jaw clenched so tightly the muscles jumped. "Hazel, I'm giving you one chance to come clean."

Hazel stared at him, utterly bewildered. She frowned, examining his distorted, angry features, entirely clueless as to what he was ranting about. "What are you talking about?"

The fire in Julian's chest flared completely out of control. He took a sharp breath, fighting a losing battle for self-control. "Are you really going to play dumb? Hazel, I know everything."

Hazel's heart sank.

A single thought flashed through her mind: *Did he find out about the divorce agreement?*

Almost instantly, her palms began to sweat. Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs.

She pressed her lips together and looked down, the data on her screen blurring into an unreadable mess.

"How could you throw Evelyn to the wolves?!"

Hazel froze, the fight draining entirely out of her. "...What did you say?"

Julian released her wrist, taking a step back as he looked at her with overwhelming disgust. "Even now, you're still playing the victim. It was you. You gave Evelyn's location to Sean. Hazel, you know exactly how much she's suffering right now, and you still did this to her. I have never been so disgusted by you."

Hazel sat frozen in her chair, staring up at him. She swallowed hard, a cold sweat breaking out on her forehead. *So that's what this is about. Not the divorce agreement.*

She hadn't the faintest idea what he was talking about. This had to be another one of Evelyn's unhinged schemes.

Before she could say a word, Julian grabbed her arm again and violently hauled her out of her chair. "You're coming with me to find Evelyn! And you're going to apologize to her face!"