“That’s fine, it’s no bother at all, then let’s just share a table for fun!” Unexpectedly, contrary to predictions, upon hearing this suggestion, Chloe breathed a sigh of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
She hurriedly stood up, grabbed her bag, and resolutely moved to the long bench to sit right next to Harper to make room for Hector.
Although with a woman’s intuition, she completely did not think this French guy Hector had any shady flirting intentions towards her.
But regarding the overthinking warnings Harper had just mentioned earlier, she still harbored some reservations and wariness.
After all, on current legal documents, she was still labeled as “Mrs.
Quinn.” As long as the divorce papers had not been officially stamped by the court and that label had not been torn off, she still had to adhere to moral standards and maintain her image to take responsibility for the day.
This was Chloe’s principle in life.
But putting private troubles aside, it had to be admitted that Hector was a man with his own unique charming charisma.
His way of speaking was incredibly elegant and polite, his professional knowledge was broad and rich, mixed with the very interesting sarcastic humor typical of an artistic person.
The luxurious Fine Dining lunch of the four people passed by incredibly happily and comfortably.
“I am so sorry, please excuse me to go wash my hands for a moment.” Chloe used a napkin to wipe the corner of her mouth, saying a sentence carrying an apologetic tone, then pushed her chair and stood up.
Walking to the luxurious restroom area at the end of the hall, she was politely but regretfully informed by a waiter in a black suit that this area was undergoing plumbing maintenance, and the lady was kindly requested to move up to use the restroom on the second floor.
Slowly stepping up the carpeted stairs, suddenly the door of a VIP room upstairs was pushed wide open by someone, and a rushing figure almost crashed into Chloe.
Chloe slightly furrowed her delicate eyebrows but did not reveal too much of an annoyed emotion.
Lowering her head to check the elegant cream-colored silk A-line dress on her body, ensuring it was still perfect without a single stain, she was turning on her heels about to leave when she heard a familiar shrill female voice ringing out full of suspicion: “Director Chloe Quinn?” Looking up, Chloe kept a cold face and bloomed a social smile full of distance, nodding slightly in response: “Hello, Director Serena.” Seeing Chloe’s sharp gaze sweep past her, Serena clumsily and hurriedly stepped back to close the VIP room door.
The silhouettes of a few people sitting flashing through the crack of the door inside made Chloe feel they looked somewhat familiar, but because the oak door closed truly too fast, Chloe hadn’t had time to focus and see clearly who they were.
“Did you also come to watch the shows in Fashion Week?” Serena asked in a hypocritical tone.
“Yes.” Chloe nodded coldly, completely lacking the mood to linger and entangle in nonsense talk with Serena, and was about to step around her.
Right at this moment, that VIP room door was pulled open once again, and a slightly plump middle-aged woman stepped out into the hallway.
The woman was covered in designer goods from head to toe, wearing gold jewelry studded with diamonds, her entire being exuding the ostentatious splendor of the nouveau riche, and beside her was a young lady in her twenties.
The moment that young lady came face-to-face and saw Chloe, her expression stiffened and darkened by half.
It was exactly the mother and daughter duo, Vivian and Madison.
Chloe bit her lower lip tightly, not bothering to cast a single glance of attention at Madison, and arrogantly walked forward two steps.
She never in a million years expected Madison to speak up and block her first: “Wait…
Chloe Quinn…” The insolent words having just left her mouth, Madison perhaps felt something was wrong and inappropriate.
Madison gritted her teeth, reluctantly swallowed her pride, and called out properly: “Sister-in-law…” Her footsteps in her Christian Louboutin high heels did not stop at all; Chloe truly did not want to lower herself to get into a one-on-one argument with this kind of person in a public place.
“Wait!” Madison grew anxious, clumsily jogging two steps to chase after Chloe, reaching out to grab Chloe’s arm and pull her back: “You…
you stay for a moment!” Being bothered to this extent, she was forced to stop.
Looking at the hand with an elaborate manicure tightly grasping her arm, Chloe politely but incredibly firmly removed it, only then holding her head high and speaking: “Is there something the matter?” “I…” Madison’s heavily powdered face suddenly flushed red with embarrassment: “I…
I…
I want to sincerely apologize to you.
The incident that day at the main estate was because my mouth and way of speaking had an issue without thinking, I hope you will be generous and forgive me.” While saying the words of apology, deep down Madison felt incredibly aggrieved and humiliated.
But whenever Madison thought of her cousin Julian’s murderous expression when warning her, she was so terrified that her legs trembled slightly.
Weighing things on the scale to compare, bowing her head to apologize to Chloe was still easier to breathe and easier for Madison to accept than angering Julian.
Over the past few days, Madison originally intended to drag her face to the GY headquarters to offer her life and apologize to Chloe, but half of it was due to her hesitant, prideful young lady nature, and the other half was fear of going and sitting idly in the lobby without being able to meet the busy big boss Chloe.
Thus, Madison hesitated and delayed until today.
She did not expect the earth to be so round as to bump into and offend Chloe here.
Although the circumstance in a public place was a bit strange, and there were also her stepmother and Serena watching and witnessing this humiliation, it was so hard to catch the person in the flesh—a rare golden opportunity!
“…” For Chloe to say she was not astonished would be lying to herself, but Chloe still maintained an indifferent attitude without bothering to reply, just staring blankly at Madison, who wore an embarrassed and awkward expression in front of her.
Chloe only silently wondered whether the Earth’s axis had changed its orbit lately, leading to an effect on the magnetic field that caused the nerves in some people’s bodies to short-circuit.
Why was her husband’s Quinn family, one by one, suddenly all behaving so abnormally like this?
Madison, seeing Chloe still maintaining an icy silence with no reaction, became a bit anxiously panicked, slightly lowered her head humbly, and opened her mouth to plead again: “I have truly realized my mistake, I swear on my honor that in the future I will certainly never speak insolently to you like that again.” Chloe had more than enough IQ to guess that Julian must have used his power to threaten Madison with something, but Chloe’s face still maintained its haughty nonchalance: “I accept your apology.” The words of forgiveness having just been uttered, Chloe saw Madison opposite her look as overjoyed as hitting the jackpot and abruptly raise her head, but immediately after, Chloe coldly poured another bucket of cold water: “I repeat that I only accept the apology to let the matter pass, but it does not mean that after this incident I have to play the role of a close, fake sisterhood with you.
Madison, as an adult, you must know how to take responsibility for your impulsive statements and behaviors.
I am nominally not your biological mother; I have no obligation or free time to tolerate and spoil your bad habits.” Madison pouted aggrievedly, but only dared to mumble softly in a tiny voice: “Regardless, it is good enough that you are willing to accept my apology…” Suddenly, Serena stepped forward, blocking the way in front of Madison with a protective expression.
Serena’s height, even when wearing high heels, was still half a head shorter than Chloe, let alone trying to compare auras when standing in front of someone with a model’s physique like Madison.
Serena at this moment brought about a comical feeling, exactly like a middle school student bristling up.
It was just that her self-directed, self-acted expression like a righteous knight defending the weak was very much an eyesore, making it difficult for people to ignore Serena’s existence.
Chloe frowned, a bad premonition rising in her heart…
“Director Chloe, although I am not clear on the root of what Madison misspoke and did wrong, there is a saying that one beats the person running away, but no one has the heart to beat the person running back.
Rumor has it that you are also a lady of a noble family born into silk and velvet; why is your way of speaking and lecturing others so lacking in tolerance and lacking in culture?” Serena put on a look of online moral indignation, while Madison, protected behind Serena’s short mushroom-like figure, continuously and frantically tugged at Serena’s shirt hem, trying to stop Serena from instigating and speaking further.
Sure enough, the folk saying goes that ivory cannot grow out of a dog’s mouth; if anything could be vomited out from that mouth, it would probably only be a pile of garbage.
Ah…
lady of a noble family, it had been a very long time since college that Chloe had been “praised” again with this beautiful, “elegantly unworldly” title.
“Oh really?” Chloe, on the contrary, was no longer in a hurry to leave, leisurely crossing her arms over her chest with the demeanor of a queen, staring fixedly at Serena: “In the eyes of an agency Director like you, Serena, what kind of moral standard is considered cultured?” “Madison has lowered herself to sincerely and wholeheartedly apologize to you like that, yet you, Chloe, stubbornly insist on clinging to uttering such bitter words to provoke and hurt her; you are someone harboring a vindictive ambition on purpose, aren’t you?” Serena slightly pitifully caressed and glanced at Madison: “With a good sister being bullied by you like this, does Julian know?” “…” Madison blinked her distorted eyes, signaling to stop Serena: “It was exactly cousin Julian who threatened and told me to come personally to apologize…” Her whispering voice was so small it could not be any smaller, like the buzz of a mosquito.
Hearing this bridge-burning accusation, Serena clearly froze and turned to ice: “So have you been brainwashed into being stupid?
Julian is a gentleman who, despite his cold exterior, is the most tough-talking but soft-hearted person.
Don’t I understand him better than she does?” While boldly declaring this, Serena provocatively jerked her chin up, smirking and blooming a victorious, seductive smile at Chloe.
Madison wore a helpless expression that could not be put into words: *Oh my grandma, you are truly severely delusional and mistaken.
Cousin Julian’s mouth is as hard as stone, and his heart is also as ruthless as iron!
This matter is absolutely not a joke at all.* Chloe suddenly felt doubtful about her eye for people and her past judgment.
It seemed that everyone eventually goes through a period of impulsive, reckless youth.
Back in Julian’s young and youthful days, his aesthetic taste in choosing a girlfriend was truly so blindly trashy that it was hard to fully describe…
“Director Chloe, sometimes an outsider like me also finds it very miraculous, how an elite man with a proud personality like Julian, could possibly…” Serena swept her scrutinizing eyes over Chloe from top to bottom once, then jerked her chin and continued speaking: “…
resignedly live together with a woman bearing a bitter and harsh personality like you.” Chloe was so angry she burst into a sarcastic laugh: “Miss Serena, I am very sorry to announce the truth: no matter how strange or much of an eyesore you find this matter, legally, I am the rightful, official, legal wife sharing a bed with Julian Quinn.
You claim and broadcast that you understand him; I see that still needs to be reconsidered.
He is precisely a man with a heavy taste, only passionately addicted to this bitter and harsh personality of mine.
Oh my, you probably cannot imagine it, but every morning upon waking up, he has to hug me tightly refusing to let go, whispering that he loves me, being infatuated with me to the point of dying and coming back to life.” “Pfft…” Madison, merely imagining that goosebump-inducing scene, already felt unable to suppress her laughter.
Her cruel cousin?
Lingering in bed every morning hugging Chloe and saying cheesy, affectionate words?
Loving to the point of dying and coming back to life?
Pfft pfft pfft…
But even though Madison felt it was very ridiculously funny, thinking it over, it was not impossible for it to happen.
Even the act of autistically gluing his eyes to someone’s wedding photo every day to gaze at it in infatuation could be done; saying a few cheesy sentences was nothing!
Deep down in her heart, Madison had now essentially completely extinguished the matchmaking delusion of setting up Serena and Julian to get back together as a couple.
Through the recent events, she now even clearly and thoroughly understood Chloe’s exclusive, unmatched position in her cousin’s iron heart better than Julian himself understood it.
It was just that she never in a million years expected her tycoon cousin to be someone so secretly infatuated in love.
If it weren’t for Serena returning to the country from studying abroad this time and making a fuss causing so many eyesore incidents, this earth-shattering secret truly would not have been discovered by anyone.
Chloe looked at Serena’s angrily flushed red face, suddenly feeling that this theatrical play was truly dull and tasteless.
What kind of cat trick was she playing here?
Childishly standing and having a verbal one-on-one argument with her husband’s delusional ex-girlfriend?
People often say the truth is that the more you care, the easier it is to lose your calm rationality.
Ultimately, she was still led by the nose and cared too much.
“Apologies for this conversation, I am busy and cannot continue talking.” Chloe, having managed her expression well, gave a slight, haughty nod, then turned on her heels and walked straight toward the restroom door, not bothering to linger and cast another glance at the expressions of Serena and Madison.
She only faintly heard from behind the shrill, suspicious voice of that slightly plump woman ringing out as she walked away: “Who is this arrogant brat?…”