Betrayed by Fiance, Embraced by Hidden Tycoon-Chapter 53: Heading To The Off-Grid Cabin

"Sorry, Sawyer..."

Those were the only words Abigail could say as she sat in the car. Her apologetic smile showed how bad she felt for making Sawyer wait. Earlier, she had been too distracted while talking to Lana.

Sawyer returned her smile.

After he saw her buckling her seatbelt, he asked, "Shall we go now, or do you want to do something else at the café? We still have a few minutes left..."

"No, we can go now." Abigail worried they might arrive after sunset, and she could imagine how dark the forest would be.

...

Later,

The car started moving and left the parking lot. They remained silent for a few minutes, not speaking until they hit the main road toward the nearest freeway.

Finally, Sawyer stole a glance at her.

"Abby, who was that woman you talked to earlier?"

"She’s my boss at the café. Her name is Lana Green," Abigail replied as she turned to him.

"I see..." Sawyer responded with a slight nod, his gaze still focused on the busy road ahead. "Then why are you afraid of your boss meeting me?" he continued.

Disappointment colored Sawyer’s voice, making Abigail feel guilty for overreacting earlier. She should not push him away, but she did it. She was worried that Lana would tease her in front of Sawyer.

"I’m sorry..." Abigail responds softly. "I just worry she might tease us."

"Come on, you don’t have to apologize to me, Abby," Sawyer said quickly, turning to look at her before returning his gaze to the road. "I’m just asking. There’s no need to feel bad about it."

"I just don’t want her to react like Brody, who thinks you’re my boyfriend." Abigail paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. "Well, Lana and the other staff in my cafe were already suspicious when you ordered coffee over the phone. They are guessing you are my boyfriend," she explained.

Sawyer chuckled at her words. So, she was only worried about what her colleague thought; he felt relieved.

When Abigail spoke with her boss earlier, Sawyer thought she was too embarrassed to introduce him to her friend. The thought made him feel unsure about himself for the first time in many years. How funny.

...

The car’s atmosphere shifted to silence once again. Neither of them spoke as the car sped toward the ring road, heading for the outskirts highway.

Sawyer stopped asking Abigail questions. He could see how exhausted she was and wanted to give her space to rest. However, after a short while, Abigail broke the silence.

"You know what, Sawyer? I just don’t get it... why does everyone who sees us together think we’re a couple?" Abigail asked, turning to him with a look of concern.

Sawyer was unsure how to respond to her sudden question. He was confused about it, too, because his people have such attitudes: Ethan immediately knew that he was interested in Abigail, and Brody was eager to match them.

He considered letting her question slide, but his thoughts again betrayed him.

"Maybe people are picking up on our chemistry. That’s why they think we’re dating."

Abigail thought carefully about what Sawyer was trying to express.

’Chemistry? Like the main lead in a drama? The audience can easily engage with the story if the lead has strong chemistry. Do the people around them notice that too?’ Abigail shook her head lightly, feeling puzzled and amused by her thoughts.

She didn’t want to overanalyze things, so she set aside her curiosity and tried to enjoy this first trip with him—the first experience of spending a few days in an off-grid cabin.

As a fan of YouTube channels, she already had a picture in her mind of the kind of environment waiting for her, inspired by a show about a city man who built off-grid houses in Alaska.

"Abby, you don’t need to feel distressed about people thinking we’re dating. Just let it be. You’re single, and I’m single, too, so it shouldn’t be a problem, right?"

She felt her thoughts scatter, unable to process how casual Sawyer was about the situation. ’Heaven! Why does it seem like he’s asking me to date him?’

Sawyer’s heart tightened as he noticed her silence. She appeared lost in thought. "Do you agree, Abby...?" he asked again.

Abigail clenched her fists, trying to calm her racing heart. Hearing Sawyer’s casual tone whenever he talked about fake relationships made it difficult to differentiate between real and fake.

"Sawyer, before I answer you, I need to clarify something..." She asked. She decided it was time to make things clear.

"Sure. You might ask—" Sawyer responded calmly, his gaze still focused on the road ahead.

She paused momentarily, looking at him as she tried to string her thoughts into simple words. However, it felt like she was in an algebra exam; expressing what was on her mind was proving far too complicated.

After a few seconds, she finally asked, "Are you asking me out on a date? For real?"

"Cough...! Cough...!" Sawyer instantly coughs. He suddenly loses his balance upon hearing her unexpected words.

The car shook slightly as he gripped the steering wheel tightly, trying to focus on the road. His surprise almost caused them to have an accident.

He quickly turned to see her and was surprised by how pale her face looked; she appeared shocked. Instantly, he felt terrible for frightening her.

"I’m sorry, Abby. Do you want to stop at the rest area?" novelbuddy.cσ๓

Abigail was still in shock after their car nearly collided with a roadblock. She shook her head and turned her gaze back to the road ahead.

"No. Let’s talk about it when we arrive."

"Okay," Sawyer agreed, anxious about what shocking question she might ask him next. "You can sleep; we still have two hours to go. I’ll wake you up when we’re nearly there—"

Abigail didn’t respond but decided to follow his suggestion. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but all the questions about his affection toward her began swirling in her mind, keeping her awake.

Not wanting to distract Sawyer again, she kept her eyes and mouth shut, pretending to sleep.