Ch. 1281..1285: My Wife Is A Hacker Chapter 1281-1285

Chapter 1281

“Actually, you could have dropped me a hint. I shouldn’t have taken Kelly off the plane and left you at the airport by yourself.” Harvey said, regretting what he had done at that time.

Kelly was left stunned and frozen upon hearing what they said and looked at them in shock.

“It’s all behind US. Am I not sitting here fine?” Nicole said, forced to assure Harvey that she was fine.

“Mr. Johnston, why did you let that man walk free after Nicole told you that the guy was the one who was stalking her?” Harvey suddenly pointed his finger at Jared, questioning him sternly.

“Harvey, I did what I did. Don’t poke your nose into that which does not concern you and mind your own business,” Jared said with a blank stare.

“Nicole’s business is my business. I was on that flight back with her, so I had the responsibility to deal with any threats to her,” Harvey retorted.

“Harvey, let me take care of this.” Nicole gestured for him to stay out of it.

Harvey shot Nicole a glance and could only keep his rage down.

“Jared, since you’ve let the man loose, you’re responsible for capturing him and handing him back to me. Otherwise, I won’t be done with you.” Nicole turned to look at him, her eyes fierce and her demeanor stern.

“Don’t you believe anything I say to you now?” Jared turned to meet Nicole’s eyes.

“We are all friends, so don’t get so worked up. There are some details in this matter that we’re not aware of, and I believe that Mr. Johnston will not let a scum loose by mistake.’ Martin hurriedly stood up

to mediate as soon as he noticed them saber-rattling.

’Martin, you have no business defending him here. This matter doesn’t concern you.” Nicole glanced at Martin.

“Oh well, Mr. Johnston, I guess I have no choice but to tell her about it in this situation.”

Martin could not help it. If he did not tell Nicole the truth, the misunderstanding between them would only deepen.

“Don’t say it,” Jared interjected.

“Stop pretending here. Just get that guy back and I will let it slide.” Nicole said, as she did not want to make things difficult for Jared either.

She was just too eager to find out who was trying to harm her.

“Nicole, the fact is, it was Mr. Johnston who gave me the information I forwarded you before, and that includes the day when we spoke. Mr.

Johnston was right there with me. Although I have not seen the guy who followed you, do you think Mr. Johnston would simply allow someone who wants to hurt you on the loose?” Martin spoke with emotion about what Jared had been doing for Nicole in secret.

Nicole’s eyes shrank as she heard this. ‘I didn’t know that all that information came from Jared. He has done so much for me. Why have I suddenly stopped believing in him? Was I really blinded by impulse?’

After a long pause, Jared said, “This is a reception, so let’s not talk about that. It has been a long time since we have had dinner together. Let’s get back to the topic of the day.”

“Right, what we have today is a reception. Let’s talk about something happy. ” Martin quickly echoed with a smile.

“I was getting too emotional earlier. I’m sorry for ruining everyone’s mood.” Nicole raised her glass in a toast and downed it.

Everyone else followed by raising their glasses and took a swig before the tension in the room died down.

Nicole hesitated before picking her glass up and turning to look at Jared.’ Why do you always do stuff that causes misunderstandings? You are obviously helping me out behind my back, but you don’t tell me, and you never allow others to say it out loud either. Do you have this knack for being an unsung hero?”

Jared could tell that Nicole was being petulant with her, so he lifted the corners of his mouth into a smile, unfazed by what she had just said. He knew that letting the man go scot-free would surely raise Nicole’s hackles, but he could not tell her the truth about the man, as it would be embarrassing for her. Hence, he would rather put up with a misunderstanding with Nicole. He knew that she would come to understand what he had done one day, but he did not expect that day to come so soon.

Chapter 1282

Jared grabbed his glass and struck it against Nicole’s with a clink, after which he looked at her with affectionately. “You are wrong. I just like being your unsung hero.”

One minute, the two of them were arguing, and by the next, they started to act all lovey-dovey. Everyone at the scene was stunned, amazed by a man as smooth as Jared himself.

“Okay, let’s get dinner started. Everyone has been waiting.” Jared signaled to Nicole with his eyes that everyone was watching.

Nicole quickly sat back down and said, “Sorry to keep everyone waiting.”

Harvey snapped out of his daze. “At least you know.”

Nicole shot Harvey a glare. ‘Who said anything to you?’

“Okay, let’s get started.” Martin smiled as he noticed that everyone was at ease, restoring the hospitable atmosphere that was there before.

“Nicole, this is good. Have some.” Harvey said, about to serve a dish to Nicole.

But before Nicole could say anything, Jared chimed in. “She doesn’t like that.”

Then, he scooped a chunk from another dish and placed it directly onto Nicole’s plate. “This one is good. It is what you have always wanted to eat.”

“Yea, yea, yea, Mr. Johnston ordered this dish specifically for you.” Martin echoed from the side.

It was Martin’s idea to host Nicole today, but after he had informed Jared about it, everything became Jared’s call. From the venue to every dish on the table, everything had been carefully selected by

Jared.

“This is not the only dish, but most of the dishes were ordered by Mr. Johnston.” Martin looked at Nicole.

What he meant was self-explanatory, and everyone in the room understood it.

This made Harvey very upset. ‘Had Martin not said that he had planned the reception, this scenario would not have happened, let alone an opportunity for Jared to show off. Since Jared was the one who ordered all the food, what is the point of serving them to Nicole? It was just an icing on the cake for her.’

Harvey picked the wine dispenser up and refilled Nicole’s glass. “Let’s drink, Nicole.”

She glanced at Harvey and raised her glass thereafter. “To ourselves.”

To ourselves.”

Harvey placed his glass down as soon as someone knocked on the door of their private room.

It was then that Martin said, “Come in.”

But once a man walked in with a cake in his hands, Martin asked, “Are you in the wrong room? Nobody celebrates birthdays here.”

“I ordered it,” Harvey said.

All eyes were on Harvey, as the man with the cake walked up to him. “Sir, this is the cake you’ve ordered.”

“Put it right here.” Harvey pointed right at where Nicole was sitting. The man did as he was told by putting the cake down, and left.

Nicole looked at Harvey in puzzlement. “Why did you order a cake?”

“I wanted to celebrate, as it is our reception today.”

“Open it up.” Harvey looked at Nicole and gestured.

Nicole reached out to open the box in front of her, and a dainty three-layer cake came into view. In there was a picture of the three of them on a trip abroad, and a row of letters that read, [Celebrating our triumphant return!] on the cake.

Although Nicole seemed cold, the child within her still existed. The instant she saw Harvey’s thoughtful gift, she was so touched that she began tearing up

‘Harvey, when did you become so thoughtful?” Nicole looked into his eyes and gave him a heartfelt compliment.

Chapter 1283

"Remember what I said on the rooftop at the base?" Harvey looked Nicole in the eye, and the two locked eyes, sharing a relieved smile.

Jared was watching them when he suddenly interrupted their fond memories.

"Shouldn't you share such a delicious cake with everyone?"

Having bested Jared by a slight margin, Harvey glanced at him with a smug look on his face. "What is the hurry? We will share the cake right away."

"Nicole, you make the first cut." Harvey handed Nicole a table knife.

"Me?"

"Yeah."

Nicole took the knife and thought about it for a moment, after which she turned to Kelly and beckoned her over. "Come over, Kelly."

Then, she he looked at Kelly and Harvey. "Since we are celebrating the return of all three of US, it is only right that we cut the cake together. Come on, let's do it together.”

“Okay.” Harvey looked at her and grabbed her hand while Jared watched on.

The three of them proceeded to cut the cake together, after which Harvey took the knife from Nicole, took the first slice of cake, and handed it to Nicole. "Here you go."

Nicole gladly accepted, while Jared watched without uttering a word, though he was quite upset.

Then, Harvey cut the second slice of cake and handed it to Kelly.

"Other than Nicole, you are the only woman here.”

“Thank you, Harvey,” Kelly said, smiling happily as she claimed the slice of cake which Harvey had cut for her.

After that, he cut another slice for Martin and handed it to him.

‘Thanks Harvey," Martin said.

Finally, he cut a slice for himself and placed the knife down without giving any for Jared. Nicole looked around and was about to pick the knife up to cut a slice for Jared when he refused.

"I haven't been enjoying sugary food items lately, so you guys can go ahead. Then he grabbed his cutlery and enjoyed his meal alone.

Harvey's mouth curved up in a smirk. He proceeded to enjoy the cake while chatting with Nicole, completely ignoring Jared.

Jared was listening in on Nicole and Harvey's conversation, ready to chime in whenever he had the chance. However, they were talking about everything that had happened abroad, making it difficult for him to interrupt. In fact, Harvey was doing this on purpose. He knew that Jared certainly would not have the opportunity to chime in if he talked about things at the base abroad.

Nicole suddenly issued a sigh midway through the conversation, and that was when Jared knew that his chance had come. "What's wrong? Why are you sighing all of a sudden?"

Harvey knew that he had screwed up. He was too engrossed in the conversation and had totally forgotten about Jared's presence, allowing him to exploit the situation.

As expected, Nicole turned to Jared with a look of sadness in her eyes.

"The reason we came back this time round is that, when we were manufacturing chips abroad, my proposed solution didn't work. I was so frustrated that I decided to return home.” Nicole confided her frustrations in him as soon as she looked at him.

Jared finally understood why Nicole had been wearing the frown from the time he saw her until now.

As it turned out, something had been bothering her. "I didn't know that. Can you show me your proposal later?"

Nicole glanced at Jared in surprise, then she remembered what he had told her before.

She smiled. "Okay."

Chapter 1284

Harvey was waiting for Jared to falter in his attempt to comfort Nicole so that he could swoop in. He thought that Jared would not understand the situation back at

Lanningbourg, and that it would not help no matter how hard Jared tried.

Harvey had even thought of what to say to her should that be the case, but was surprised when Jared successfully comforted Nicole in a single sentence. ‘How did he do it in just one sentence? Gosh, I'm still waiting for my opening!"

"Nicole, the plant will be ready to resume production soon. You can come over for a visit whenever you have time." Martin looked at Nicole.

‘I'm planning on visiting, even if you don't bother to mention it, but it might take a few days for me to free up. I have a few things I need to take care of first.” Nicole explained, looking at Martin.

“It is okay. You can come whenever you wish. Just take care of your side of things first. There is nothing going on at the plant right now. I'm just checking in with you,” Martin said with a smile.

"Okay."

"Martin, any progress on the arson case?" Nicole asked as the question suddenly came to mind.

‘There are some. The guy who started the fire the other day was meeting someone in a small store. We've already placed a few men outside to keep an eye on and ambush him. We're just waiting for the key person to show up so that we can capture him."

Martin told them all of the information he had received, as there were no outsiders in the room.

"Hmm, keep an eye on that side first. Have you beefed up the security at the plant?” Nicole asked.

"Yeah, I have entrusted the job to the people I trust,” Martin said.

"Good. As equipment is arriving these few days, there will be many people coming and going. Be extra careful. I'm worried that the guy might take advantage of the opportunity to sabotage our stuff again,” Nicole said with concern.

"I have also thought about that. This time, however, the equipment is different from the ones we had. It requires the manufacturer’s technicians to come over to install and debug, which makes it easy for malicious agents to exploit the situation.

This is what I'm worried about.” Martin said with a look of worry on his face.

Nicole took a deep breath and pondered. “Can we send our own employees to the manufacturer to learn about installation and commissioning?"

‘That's impossible. The manufacturer is counting on this feature to make money. They are not going to teach you," Jared said.

“Now, that would suck,” Nicole said.

"Perhaps you could recruit a few experts in this field." Harvey suddenly spoke up.

"Recruiting experts?” Martin looked at Harvey in puzzlement.

"Yes," Harvey said.

‘Experts who can install and debug can't be lying around doing nothing. It is impossible for us to recruit any." Martin laughed the idea off.

"You may not be able to recruit them, but who is to say that Mr. Johnston can't?" Harvey looked at Jared, and everyone else followed suit.

"Yes, it will be much easier if Mr. Johnston is the one approaching them. That way, it won't be as risky as well." Martin looked at Jared, his eyes lighting up.

‘Yes, not only does it minimize the risks, we also won't need to spend a fortune to hire the manufacturer's technicians if there are any problems with the equipment in the future, as we can repair it ourselves. Now that's a twofer," Nicole said.

"Well done, Harvey! You didn't travel with me for nothing. You have gotten smarter, it seems.” Nicole looked at Harvey and complimented him.

‘Thanks.” Harvey rolled his eyes. 'ls she complimenting me or herself?’

"Jared, we will count on you for this,” Nicole said as she turned to look at Jared.

‘She appears to be asking for my help, but in reality, she is just telling me,’ Jared thought. ‘They didn't even ask for my opinion when they were discussing about it. Now that they have come to a decision, they are expecting me to do it.’

Evidently, the interaction had left Jared feeling a little upset. However, since it was Nicole who had asked, he could not refuse. Besides, he had an investment in the company,

and so, he had to think in terms of the Beacon's interest.

Chapter 1285

‘Okay, I will ask Max to take care of it." Jared agreed, knowing that he was the only one who could help Nicole feel better.

Otherwise, she would be left to fend for herself again.

"Mr. Johnston, thank you very much. Here's a toast to you.’ Martin looked at Jared and raised his glass. But Jared did not respond to him, as his eyes were on Nicole, who got the hint and raised her glass to Jared. “Thank you. I will drink to you.”

After saying that, she tilted the glass and was about to chug it all down when Harvey attempted to stopped her.Nicole..."

However, Jared beat him to the punch and grabbed Nicole's arm before lowering it slowly.

Then, he looked at her with affection in his eyes. "You don't have to. I'm sorry that I didn't explain everything to you. I know it

made you anxious, and it was on me because I didn't think it through properly, so I will down this glass as an apology to you."

Instead of drinking from his own glass, he took Nicole's from her hand and downed it in one go.

Nicole was touched by the sincerity in his eyes and his attitude, and at that very moment, all of the dissatisfaction that she had with him vanished.

"What a surprise today. I have never seen Mr. Johnston making amends to anyone before." Martin commented.

Harvey shot Martin a glance, his eyes filled with jealousy. Then, he grabbed his glass of wine and took a swig.

Seeing this, Kelly said, "Harvey, that is not good for your health."

"It is okay. I'm happy.” Harvey took another swig after having said what he did not mean.

Nicole did not see any of this. She was now so focused on Jared that she did not even notice that Harvey was drinking out of jealousy beside her.

The group then proceeded to chat until late night before calling it a day. Just as Jared and Nicole walked out, Max approached them and helped Jared into the car along with Nicole.

‘Max, let me know when you have gotten Jared back to the villa safely." Nicole looked at Max.

All of a sudden, Jared grabbed Nicole by the wrist and pulled her into the vehicle.

“Jared, I can't get out of the car if you're going to keep doing this," Nicole told him, but Jared was so drunk that she could not free herself from his grip no matter what she did.

"Why don't you take Mr. Johnston home instead?" Max said.

Nicole had no choice but to give Max a nod. She figured she would have to find a way to return home after getting Jared back to his villa.

"Harvey, Jared is very drunk. I must take him home. You don't have to drive me home today, as I see that you aren't really sober, either.

"Kelly, I will leave Harvey to you." Nicole looked at Kelly, who was holding a clearly inebriated Harvey.

"Okay, don't worry, I will get Harvey home safely." Kelly looked at Nicole and assured her.

Harvey, supported by Kelly, was watching Nicole. He had heard everything she had just said, but he could not find the strength to respond. Before this, Nicole had told him that she wanted him to take her home, but now that she was in Jared's car, he could only watch in a state of helplessness.

"Martin, are you okay?" Nicole looked at Martin.

"I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me. You should take care of Mr. Johnston." Martin said, as he had a driver there to pick him up.

"Well, we are leaving now."

"Max, drive." Nicole slammed the car door shut.