Chapter 78 Nancy's Attitude Suddenly Changed, And Her Complaints Shocked Me.

Elena Garcia's POV:

I was completely absorbed by Marco's kiss. But I didn't have the same feelings when I was with William. Now that I was with Marco, I finally understood what a real relationship should feel like.

After we kissed, I said, "Sorry, but I can't do dinner tonight. Got plans with friends."

Sophia thought Nancy and I were still a bit distant, so she wanted to give us a chance to talk things out.

I kissed the corner of Marco's mouth, watching his excited eyes turn a bit disappointed.

'We've been spending time together every day recently, so why does he still seem so unsatisfied?' Just like he said, he wished he could be with me every day.

But he quickly adjusted his mood and made a suggestion. "How about inviting your friends over for dinner tonight?"

Seeing my disapproving expression, he kissed my ear. "Please, I don't want to miss the chance to spend time with you today. If you mind having others around, I won't disturb you. I'll make up an excuse to leave you alone and wait in a secluded spot until you're done."

I couldn't refuse such a clingy and considerate Marco, especially when he looked at me with those beautiful eyes. So I agreed, "Marco... alright."

While Marco and I were chatting, we ignored Laura and her followers still in the classroom. She seemed to realize she should retaliate against me and angrily approached.

Her anger clouded her judgment, and she didn't even notice the terrified expressions of her followers.

Laura cursed, "Elena, you bitch, you..."

But seeing Marco's glance, Laura didn't dare to speak further and retreated in fear.

I couldn't see Marco's expression, but I could judge his mood by his tone.

Marco said, "Laura, I know you. I hope your father is doing well. The last time I saw him was during a business negotiation between the Sterling family and the Bianchi family. He was so angry that the Bianchi family almost had to call an ambulance for him."

Laura's face turned pale, and she looked anxious. "How do you know my father? Who are you?"

She looked at me, then at Marco. Our embrace made her realize something. "You're Elena's new boyfriend?"

Laura tried to hide her fear, avoiding Marco's gaze and looking at me with resentment. "So this is why you denied your boyfriend was William? Well, you found a better man to cling to, someone who stands up for you. It makes sense you'd be heartless and make lies for your new boyfriend. You're his mistress!"

"Laura, you look like a joke." I chuckled, showing her that her provocation couldn't anger me.

This made Laura's face twist in anger.

Marco held my hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed the back of it. Then he said to Laura, "Elena is not my mistress. And I'm the one always trying to please her, hoping for her favor. Thanks to William's slip-up, Elena saw his true colors. I wanted to give you a chance to apologize, but you don't seem to realize it."

Marco's voice was clearly angry, but probably because we were on campus, he didn't say anything too harsh.

Marco continued, "Tell your father that Marco Bianchi will visit him soon. If the Sterling family's heir is as stupid as you, the Bianchi family would be happy to take over your father's business to save the Sterling family's fate."

Marco's composure and his familiarity with Laura's father made Laura finally realize that Marco was not someone she could mess with, and his protection of me was serious.

After Marco and I left, I looked back and still saw Laura standing there in panic.

I called Sophia and changed our meeting place to the restaurant Marco had reserved.

Before Sophia and Nancy arrived, he stayed with me, holding my hand. This time, without his asking, I told him why Laura was targeting me and some of Sophia's troubles.

After listening, Marco told me he'd find a couple of reliable guys to handle Sophia's issues, and he'd also pay a visit to Laura's father, just like he said.

I asked, "Isn't that a bit much?"

Marco's eyes turned cold. "The Sterling family needs to know they messed with the wrong person. Don't worry, in the mafia, declaring crimes is basic."

Sophia and Nancy soon arrived at the restaurant. When Sophia saw Marco, she looked a bit surprised. She blushed and thanked him for his help.

After hearing her thanks, Marco raised an eyebrow at me, and I winked at him. I didn't want my friends to be afraid of my boyfriend.

Marco shrugged. "I was just passing by and couldn't stand those girls' behavior. You're Elena's friend, so it's only right for me to help you."

Sophia looked at Marco, then at me. Noticing our clasped hands, she showed a bit of awkwardness and disappointment but quickly hid it. She stammered, "You and Elena, you two...?"

"Just as you see, Elena is my girlfriend, and we're dating." Marco shook our clasped hands.

Then he glanced at his watch, pretending to be busy. "Well, it's getting late. I should head out. Have a great time with your friends."

Sophia asked, "Mr. Bianchi, won't you join us for dinner?"

"No, I have some matters to attend to. I was just here to drop Elena off." Marco lied, his fingers tickling my palm, then he 'left.'

After Marco left, Sophia looked a bit reluctant, watching the direction he left until I called her name. "Sophia?"

"What? Oh! Are we ordering?" Sophia snapped out of it and smiled awkwardly at me.

I keenly sensed that she might have some feelings for Marco.

Nancy remained silent, sitting quietly and lowering her head after glancing at her sister.

After the food was served, I noticed that my plate didn't have any carrots.

It seemed like Marco had asked the waiter to remove the carrots from my plate for me.

While eating, Sophia and I talked about recent events, and also about Marco.

I told her that I had found a way to solve her photo issue, and it just needed some time.

"Laura won't have time to bother us either." I also told her what happened today, and how I had stirred up trouble between Laura and Sofia.

I said, "She'll be busy for a while. I can't believe how stupid she was to trust Sofia's words."

Hearing about Laura's panicked reaction, Sophia looked relieved and pleased. "That's great, Elena. I really appreciate that."

"Sophia, we're friends." I didn't want to take all the credit. "In fact, if it were just me handling this, it might take a long time. It's Marco's help that made everything get resolved faster."

Sophia smiled gratefully.

After we finished talking, Nancy suddenly spoke up, "So Marco solved everything?"

I hesitated, worried Nancy would ask more. I didn't want to discuss too much about Marco's identity. "Yeah, Marco's family does business with Laura's family, so he helped out with that."

"Then why didn't you ask him for help from the beginning?" Nancy's tone became sharp. "You knew how much this issue hurt my sister. Why didn't you ask him for help right away, instead of using your slow and stupid methods, making my sister suffer even more?"

Nancy looked at me with venom. I didn't know what had happened to her recently. She didn't seem like what Sophia had described; instead, she blamed everything on me.

She didn't know how everything had developed, only inferring from the result.

She looked at me mockingly. "I can't believe what you've done. You're a hypocrite, Elena."

Sophia and I both showed expressions of disbelief.