CHAPTER 196: CHAPTER 196: I WANT TO BE WITH IVAN UNDERWOOD

Sure, here is the translated text:

I felt increasingly uncomfortable, and reason forced me to endure it.

But soon I heard Ivan Underwood’s voice, "Zoe Hathaway!"

His voice carried anger and urgency.

A knife suddenly pressed against my neck, and someone threatened Ivan, "Go drink that bottle of water on the table, or I’ll kill her immediately!"

I struggled to open my eyes. My vision was blurry, and I could only see Ivan walking to a table not far away, picking up a bottle of water and drinking it.

I wanted to tell him not to drink it, but my voice was weak, "Ivan..."

Once Ivan finished the bottle of water, the man beside me immediately ran away, and then I heard the sound of the door being locked.

Ivan was oblivious to everything else; he ran to my side, holding me in his arms. Only from this close could I clearly see his face, which was filled with worry and anger.

"Ivan, hurry and call the police, there’s something in the water..." I was so hot, I could barely speak and gasped for breath.

"Something?" Ivan turned his head to glance at the empty bottle.

I caught a whiff of a pleasant fragrance from him, some kind of body wash scent, as if I was in the midst of a bright, verdant wilderness, with the fragrance of flowers around.

Was this the feeling Henry Preston had when he was drugged before? It was indeed hard to control oneself.

Even though I had no romantic feelings for Ivan at all, I was finding it difficult to hold back, considering he was such a handsome, well-built man... a living, breathing man...

I sensed he was not quite himself either, with the same heat radiating from him, and his eyes growing darker.

"Ivan, keep your distance from me!" I really couldn’t hold it in anymore, my head filled with inappropriate images.

But Ivan didn’t let me go; his Adam’s apple moved, and he suddenly lowered his head to kiss me, but not on the lips, on the cheek.

Silently chanting "I’m single" a few times in my heart, I steeled myself and pushed Ivan to the ground, then flipped over and sat on him, my hands randomly starting to pull at his clothes.

Ivan’s chest rose and fell violently, as he was enduring just like me.

His eyes, always so cool and composed, now filled with madness. Just as I was ready to abandon all restraint, a noise came from outside.

The next second turned into a loud banging on the door!

The villa was already old and in disrepair, and the door couldn’t withstand such forceful kicking, so it fell after two kicks, revealing Henry Preston’s silhouette slowly becoming clear amidst the dust. His voice came to an abrupt stop, "Zoe—"

I was in Ivan’s arms in disarray, appearing quite disheveled and confused.

Henry’s expression froze in an instant, his eyes fixed on Ivan and me.

His hand gradually clenched into a tightly-wound fist.

Accompanying Henry were others, including my parents, Crystal Dawson, Leah Lane, Tiana O’Connell, and Silas Lockwood, Jason Forrest, even Julian Jennings was there.

They had all come to rescue me, but didn’t expect to see this scene.

My mother cried out in shock, "Zoe!"

Silas swiftly took off his coat, while Crystal ran over to cover me with clothes, giving Ivan a look filled with complexity, "Ivan, you two..."

Overwhelmed by the great shock, the passion was suppressed. Ivan seemed to regain a bit of clarity as he held me off his body, and I also regained some sanity, wrapped myself tightly in a coat, uncertain what to say to everyone.

Everyone gathered around, my father, with a stern face, said nothing, taking off his own clothes to wrap me inside another layer.

Only Henry stood at the doorway, motionless like a statue, cold and devoid of life, his gaze colder and sharper than a blade.

Looking at him through the crowd at this moment, Ivan spoke up, "Uncle, Auntie, I’m willing to take responsibility."

His words had just fallen when Henry rushed forward like a madman, landing a punch squarely on his face, instantly drawing blood from his mouth.

Henry remained silent, eyes bloodshot, pinning Ivan to the ground, punching him repeatedly.

Ivan didn’t fight back, allowing Henry to beat him mercilessly.

"Brother Henry! Brother Henry, stop! This is a misunderstanding!" Silas and Jason hurried forward to intervene.

Henry disregarded them, forcefully shrugging off a few of them, continuing to pummel Ivan.

I went forward to stop him, "Henry, what are you doing? Do you want to kill him?"

"Don’t touch me!" Henry shouted at me, and his eyes were already wet.

"He and I are both single. Is there a problem? I said that as long as she’s willing to let me take responsibility, I’m more than happy to." Ivan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, with a provocative smile.

Henry grabbed his collar, aiming to punch again.

I directly pounced on Ivan, ignoring the others’ gaze, "The two of us were drugged to act like this. I am wrong too; you might as well kill me too!"

"You!" Henry looked at me in disbelief.

"Ivan’s not wrong. We are both single, and since this happened, there’s nothing more to say. We might as well get married." My voice didn’t even sound like my own; I spoke icily and rationally.

Crystal quickly grabbed my hand, "Zoe, don’t talk nonsense. You two didn’t really do anything, just a hug, don’t be impulsive!"

Silas and Jason also hurried to persuade Henry, "Calm down, Zoe was in danger, and Ivan came to save her. There must be some misunderstanding in all this!"

Henry stared at me, his slightly trembling pupils revealing his current emotional agitation.

He asked me, "Is it a misunderstanding?"

Ivan also watched me, his face full of injuries, the deliberately smug smile at the corner of his lips now gone, waiting for my answer.

In front of these friends and family, I thought it was time to completely end things with Henry.

"Today, I was brought here by Sean Lawson and Azure Vaughn, and Ivan came to rescue me. We were both drugged, which led us to make those actions," I stated, easing Henry’s expression slightly.

"But this is not a misunderstanding." I shifted my tone, bending to help Ivan up, "I’ve decided to try dating Ivan; feelings can be developed, and from now on, he and I are a couple."