Chapter: 1807

Quickly concealing and pocketing her phone, Rosa replied, “Nothing at all."

After years of knowing her, Elliott could read Rosa like an open book. Spotting her lie was a piece of cake. "I don't know if you know but every time you lie, you tend to look away."

Rosa, caught in the act, glanced back at him and asked, “Oh, really?"

Elliott raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

Unable to keep up the facade, Rosa sighed and finally admitted, "A car nearly hit us when Maya and I were shopping earlier today."

“Are you okay?" Elliott's eyes widened out of worry. He instinctively reached for Rosa's shoulder, ready to check for injuries.

Rosa pushed away his hand, saying, "We're okay, just a bit shaken from the scare."

"Okay, okay. That's a relief." He exhaled slowly. "You mentioned a new friend. Was she there too during all this?"

"Yes, Shelia helped us dodge the car," Rosa explained with a nod.

Elliott's expression darkened as he took on a more serious tone.

"Aren't people usually careful around shopping malls because of the crowd? I still don't understand why something like that would happen.

Did you get a look at the driver? Did they make any attempt to slow down?"

Rosa was taken aback by his rapid-fire questions.

"No." She shook her head. "I couldn't see the driver clearly, and they didn't try to slow down."

Elliott frowned. His gaze hardened, indicating to Rosa that he sensed there was more to the incident than met the eye.

“How about you and Maya stay at my place for a few days? I can't be certain if the attack was deliberate or not, but this way it'd be safer for you both."

"Thanks, but no. I'll exercise extra caution in the future," Rosa declined.

"But..."

"Let's just drop it already. We should head back now. Isn't there a thank-you speech soon? The movie will be over shortly." Rosa redirected the conversation, glancing at her phone for the time.

Thinking about this, Elliott nodded. “If anything happens again, promise me you'll call me immediately.”

"Don't worry. Everything will be fine." Rosa reassured him with a smile.

"I'm serious. You should have told me earlier, instead of turning to someone new first. It seems like I'm the last to know," Elliott attempted to sound stern, but failed.

Rosa responded casually, “But nothing happened to me."

“You have a knack for downplaying serious situations." Elliott studied her face.