Chapter 60 Control Your Dog
Aria could almost hear her own heartbeat.
She looked at Arthur, who stood there with something like expectation in his eyes.
What was he expecting? Did he really want to see her pregnant?
What was the point? Just this afternoon, he was holding Sophie and saying affectionately, "I will definitely marry you!"
Even if she told him, what could he do? Would he completely break up with Sophie and wholeheartedly stay with her? Or would he wait for her to give birth and then just take the child away to keep by his side?
The former was impossible, and the latter was something Aria could never accept.
The best outcome would just be to pretend this child didn't exist.
If that was the case, why should she say anything and create trouble for herself?
"Aria?" Arthur called out again when he saw she hadn't spoken for a while.
Aria snapped back to reality and forced a smile. "You think I'm pregnant?"
Arthur paused. "Aren't you? You told me once before. I thought you were lying to me, but now thinking about it..."
"I was lying to you, because I didn't want to sleep with you again." Aria's expression was flat. "I'm not pregnant at all."
Seeing Arthur's disbelieving look, she simply picked up the pregnancy test. "Fine, let's test it then."
Seeing Arthur still standing there without moving, she raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to watch me do this?"
Arthur had no choice but to go out and close the door.
Aria slowly stood up, leaning against the sink, and took a deep breath.
Then she opened the toilet tank, dipped her finger in a drop of water, and dropped it on the test strip, letting the water slowly wet the detection area.
A red line spread up—one line, appearing in the invalid test area.
Aria pressed her lips together, tore open the outer box of the test, pulled out the test strip inside, tore it slightly and installed it upside down, then snapped the shell back on.
Still one red line. Negative. Not pregnant.
She flushed the toilet, and Arthur was standing right outside the door, looking at her with urgent eyes.
"Well?"
Aria handed him the test strip.
Arthur took it and stared at that single line in shock.
"No? How is that possible?"
"So you can relax now. I won't use pregnancy to tie you down." Aria smiled at him. "It won't affect your divorce and marriage to Sophie at all. Shouldn't you be happy?"
Arthur's expression immediately became complicated. After a long pause, he murmured, "I didn't think that way..."
His voice was too soft—Aria didn't hear it at all.
Over the next few days, Aria's leg slowly got better.
Although she still couldn't walk too fast or stand for long, at least she didn't have to sit in a wheelchair all day.
Arthur still left early and came back late every day.
The two of them still weren't sleeping in the same room, and the time they saw each other each day added up to less than half an hour.
Everything seemed to have gone back to how it was right after they got married.
As for Elizabeth, Aria went to see her once. She looked better than before, and she held Aria's hand and talked about many things from her younger days.
When she left the hospital, she got a call from a client—a new client who said they wanted floral decorations for their wedding, with a budget of around $10,000.
This wasn't a huge job, but Aria happened to be free, so she arranged to meet them at a coffee shop.
Because of her leg injury, she went a bit early, arriving ten minutes before the scheduled time.
She found a seat by the window, sat down, and ordered a lemon water.
Outside the window, people came and went. The sunshine was beautiful.
Aria looked at the street scene, her mind in chaos.
Too many things had happened in these past few months—so many unlucky events all piling up together, pressing down on her until she couldn't breathe.
Especially since Elizabeth would be moving in to live with her in a few days, and then... She shook her head, not letting herself think further.
While staring blankly out the window, two people walked in through the door.
It was Sophie, with her closest colleague beside her. Aria had seen her twice before. The two of them came straight toward her as soon as they entered.
Sophie had a smile on her face. "Ms. Hall, long time no see."
Aria picked up her lemon water. "Sorry, I'm meeting a client."
"I know—for floral decorations for a wedding." Sophie and her friend sat down nearby.
Aria's expression changed slightly.
She hadn't forgotten that not long ago, this Miss Smith had hired someone to place an order at her studio, then flooded the app with bad reviews, nearly getting her studio blocked by the system.
And now she was placing another order?
"I'm sorry, Miss Smith, you should find someone else. I won't do business with you."
Seeing her stand up to leave, Sophie quickly grabbed her.
"Ms. Hall, don't rush off. What happened last time was my fault. I apologize, and I can compensate you for the losses I caused."
"But you must take this wedding decoration job, because..." Sophie looked at Aria's face and smiled. "Because this is also Arthur's idea."
"This money has to go to someone anyway, so why not let you earn it, Ms. Hall? Don't you think?"
Aria shook off her hand. "I'm not interested in your affairs. You should find someone else."
At that moment, Sophie's friend suddenly spoke up. "Ms. Hall seems so unwilling—could it be you still can't let go of Arthur?"
Her eyes held undisguised contempt. "Well, I get it—handsome, rich, and considerate. Who would want to let go?"
"Otherwise, why would you insist on keeping the baby in your belly when you know you're getting divorced? Isn't it just because you want to use the baby to win him back?"
Aria was too tired to waste more words on this matter and was about to leave when the friend directly blocked her path.
"Ms. Hall, don't you think your tactics are despicable and shameless?"
"You're already divorced, but you still cling to him and won't let go, like a third party wedging yourself between the two of them..."
Her voice wasn't quiet—other customers in the coffee shop all looked over.
Sophie tugged at her friend's hand. "Vivian, stop it."
"Why should I stop?" The woman named Vivian glared at Aria. "I just can't stand people like this! Sophie, you're just too kind—that's why she's been bullying you all this time!"
She stuck out a finger, almost poking it in Aria's face. "Let me tell you, Arthur is marrying Sophie next month. If you know what's good for you, get lost! If you dare to cling to Arthur again, just watch how I deal with you!"
Aria looked at the woman baring her claws and Sophie playing peacemaker, and found it almost amusing. She turned to Sophie and said, "Is your dog done barking? If it's done, put a muzzle on it."
Both Sophie and Vivian froze, not yet understanding. Then Aria added, "Otherwise, if it bites people randomly, it's the owner who loses face."
Now both of them understood.
"Who are you calling a dog!" Vivian screamed and reached out to grab Aria's hair.
Aria's leg wasn't fully healed yet, and she dodged too slowly—Vivian caught her.
"Get off!" Aria swung her handbag at her.
Vivian got hit several times but wouldn't let go no matter what. Her strength wasn't small either, and no matter how Aria struggled, she couldn't push her away.
"Vivian, don't do this." Sophie urged from the side, but her eyes were full of excited light.