Chapter 21
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If admitting that she had fallen in love with someone else would make Barron give up on the idea of remarriage, Valeria would rather tell this le
Valeria took a deep breath. "Yes, I've fallen in love with someone else?
As those words left her lips. Barron's expression turned ugly, a look of disbelief crossing his face. He seemed unable to process it for a moment. Meanwhile, Hackett's eyes narrowed slightly, fixated on Valeria as if trying to read her thoughts. He felt a slight suffocation in his chest, a feeling he could not quite comprehend or put into words.
Both Barron and Hackett remained silent for a long time, lost in their own thoughts, Valeria felt a bit uneasy at the prolonged silence. She did not know what was going on. It felt as if time had frozen. It seemed that they would just keep staring at her like this. Feeling uncomfortable under their scrutiny, she tentatively said. "So, Mr. James, we can't remarry. Please don't waste your efforts...
Suddenly, Barron slammed his palm onto the table angrily, his tone sharp. "I don't believe you! Unless you find that person and show him to me! I want to see who could take Hackett's place in your heart! Was your love for Hackett all fake? Can feelings change so easily? I don't believe it!"
She was truly speechless Barron was more stubborn than she had expected. And there was no way she could suddenly find another man. She did not even know where to find a man
"I well, he's swamped. He's currently abroad and won't be back for a while." she quickly came up with an excuse.
Barron retorted. Then we'll wait until he comes back. I won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes. Otherwise, you're just trying to deceive me."
Hackett narrowed his eyes slightly. He poured himself another cup of coffee and sipped it lightly. His tone was like an interrogator's as he questioned, "What's his name? What does he do for a living? What's his background? How old is be? Is his personal life clean?" As Hackett fired off a rapid barrage of questions, Valeria felt utterly perplexed. She could not fathom why Hackett would suddenly start stirring up trouble. With Barron already skeptical of her words, Hackett's interference made her claims seem even more dubious "What's it to you? Are you doing a background check? What does any of this have to do with you?" She wished she could tape over this man's mouth to shut him up.
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Hackett sneered. "Falling in love without even knowing anything about him? Have you grown older without growing wiser? Do you think you're still an eighteen-year-old girl?"
""Hackett!"
"What?"
"Shut up!"
Hackett chuckled. "If your mother knew about this, she'd be turning in her graveNôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.
She could hardly believe that Hackett was acting like a rabid dog relentlessly attacking her. She could not fathom which of her words had triggered his fury. She had said that she had fallen in love with someone else. She could not understand why such a straightforward statement had managed to anger Hackett so intensely.
She had had enough. She turned around and left the private room, not bothering to say goodbye to Barron.
III
Soon after. Hackett stood up and grabbed his suit jacket, also preparing to leave.
Barron observed the entire scene and could not help but ask, "Where are you going?"
"I have a dinner engagement tonight. You can eat here. I'll arrange for the bodyguards to take you back later
With that, he left the private room as well.
Left alone in the room, Barron could not help but burst into laughter. After witnessing their argument, he felt there might still be a chance for these two to reconcile.
Barron had cared for Hackett since he was young and understood him well. He knew that Hackett's sarcastic remarks towards Valeria had been driven entirely by jealousy
Valeria left the restaurant, full of anger and frustration, with no outlet to vent it. After a while, she still could not find a taxi to hail. Suddenly, a white sports car pulled up next to her. The window rolled down slowly, revealing Hackett's detested face. "Get in the car," he commanded.
Valeria did not even bother acknowledging him and continued walking ahead
The car followed her slowly, and Hackett's arm rested on the open window, his hand on the steering wher you don't mind causing a traffic jam, let's do it this way"
He lazily said. "If
As soon as he finished speaking, a chorus of car honks sounded from behind. Valeria turned around to see several cars stuck behind them. The road was narrow, and Hackett's slow speed had blocked their passage.
The blaring horns were making her head ache. She glanced back at Hackett inside the car, who seemed utterly unrepentant, and she was seething with anger.
But she held herself back.
She felt squabbling with this kind of guy was utterly pointless, only to lower her moral standards to match his own.
Taking a deep breath, Valeria resisted the urge to snap at him. She turned and opened the car's passenger door, sitting down without saying a word.
Seeing her nearly bursting with fury amused Hackett for some reason. His lips curled into a satisfied smile. He started the engine and slowly left the narroW SUICEL
"Where are you going?" he asked.
Valeria replied without much enthusiasm, "Nightfest Club"
Hackett raised an eyebrow slightly, a flash of surprise crossing his dark eyes.
It was such a coincidence. He was headed to Nightfest Club as well
"Perfect, it's on my way too," he said.
Valeria shot him a cold glance but did not respond further.
She had no intention of spending any more time than necessary with him. When her busy schedule ended, and Keith returned to the country, she would resign and disappear with Alex. She could not let the James family discover Alex's existence, or they might try to take him away. When they arrived at Nightfest Club, Valeria unfastened her seatbelt and pushed open the car door without looking back She walked into the club, her anger still evident.
Hackett watched her with arpusement. "Mr. James, it's rare to see you on time. Quite an achievement."
As soon as Hackett got out of the car, he bumped into his friend Finn, who wasted no time mocking him.
Finn approached him with a sly smile, looking at Valeria's retreating figure. "Mr. James, do you have a new target again? But I'd advise you to give up on this beauty. Her personal life is a mess. Who knows if she has any diseases"
Hackett's brow furrowed in anger. He looked at Finn and thundered. "What nonsense are you spouting? Do you want me to rip your mouth apart?"
Even though Valeria was now his ex-wife, he would not allow anyone to slander her like that casually.
Because he and Valeria had a secret marriage, very few people in the circle knew about it.
Finn, however, did not seem to take that response seriously. He lowered his voice as if he knew some earth-shattering secret. He said. "This beauty might be a stunning woman, but I saw her undergoing an abortion procedure at a gynecology clinic several years ago. Think about it, can she be clean? We all have royal positions to inherit. Being tainted by such a woman and the risk of disease isn't worth it.
Hackett's pupils dilated suddenly, his expression filled with shock. He spoke in a harsh tone, "Hold on! Abortion procedure? Are you sure you saw her!"
These words shocked him, as he had never expected to hear Finn utter such things.
His mind was in turmoil, and he suddenly recalled the time they divorced a few years back. Valeria had shown him a pregnancy test and claimed to be pregnant.
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