Chapter 126—b

Chloe shook her head softly. Why was her ex-husband calling her for no reason at all? Had she been neglecting Leonel all this time? Completely disregarding his existence? Her behavior also gave the impression that Leonel was a nuisance. Chloe didn't want to answer the call, but she couldn't help it. Agatha's face haunted her. If it weren't for Agatha Theodore, Chloe would be reluctant to respond to anything related to Leonel. She still felt uneasy.

"Hello, are you busy now?" Leonel asked through the connected call to Chloe. But before Chloe could answer, she scanned her surroundings, and her eyes stopped at one of the silver cars in front of her house's gate. She recognized the owner of the car, none other than her ex-husband Leonel. The man seemed to look up toward where Chloe was. It made Chloe take a step back and enter her room.

What does he want here? Tisa wondered to herself. She also gripped her phone tightly. There was frustration she was holding back due to Leonel's behavior tonight. How dare he!!!

"Hello, why are you silent? How about we go out now?" Leonel asked again through the call. But Chloe didn't want to answer him at all. Once again, Leonel stared in the direction where she believed Chloe was just now. "Chloe?"

But before she could respond, Chloe immediately ended the call. She didn't want to have anything to do with Leonel anymore.

"Oh my God, I wanted to take her to see the beauty of Beverly Hills at night," Leonel complained.

***

This morning, Chloe got ready to head to the cafe. Although there were lingering questions about Leonel's presence last night, Chloe ignored them. It's not like she wanted Leonel to come to her, right? Besides, the man seemed to have nothing better to do. Chloe also wanted to return to her postponed activities because she took a day off yesterday. That's right. Leonel's presence around her often made her lose concentration. Even though she didn't entertain his disruptions, the discomfort still lingered.

The aftermath of her day off had a noticeable effect. She felt more relaxed and refreshed because she could enjoy fresh air without being chased by work.

Still getting ready in front of the mirror, Chloe suddenly received another notification from the flat object she had placed on her vanity table. Initially, Chloe was reluctant to see who the sender was. She still remembered Leonel's disturbances last night. She suspected that the incoming message on her phone was from him.

But her curiosity outweighed her indifference, so Chloe reached for the flat object and saw who had sent the morning message. If it was Adrianna, she was sure she wouldn't want to reply to it at all. They could talk on the phone, right?

However, Chloe's assumption was wrong. It was Darren who sent her the message that morning.

"Darren?" Chloe whispered. Even from his last message last night, Darren still needs to reply. Maybe he was busy with airport matters? This morning, Darren informed her about his presence in Beverly Hills.

Tring!

"How have you been in the past week?" Chloe read the message from Darren, and a slight smile appeared on her face. Because of Darren's concern, she immediately typed a reply to his message.

"I'm fine, Darren. How about you? Are you working today? I suggest you take a rest."

Send.

Chloe wrote her message and sent it to Darren. She was worried about Darren's condition. Exceptionally since he had just returned from Surabaya last night, he might have been exhausted if he had to go to work this morning. But there was a furrow on her forehead. Did Darren not mention her request to meet today? Was it true?

Tring!

"Maybe I won't work today. Maybe tomorrow. I still feel tired, Sa. But I want to drop you off and pick you up while you work. Are you ready? I'll pick you up this morning, but before that, I want to talk about something."

Chloe's heart raced even more as she saw Darren's message, which talked about something to her.

"Of course, I'm ready."

Tring!

"Come down. I'm downstairs now!"

Her eyes widened as she read Darren's message, realizing he was already in front of her house. She quickly tidied herself up as beautifully as possible. She remembered to spray her favorite perfume a little bit. Chloe hurried downstairs.

"Brad, I'm being picked up by Darren," Chloe said as she reached the bottom of the stairs. Her driver was ready to take her this morning.

"Yes, ma'am. Mr. Darren met me earlier."

Chloe's smile widened. "I'll let you know if I need to be picked up."

"Understood, ma'am. Hopefully, there won't be any messages for pickup."

"What?" Chloe blinked in disbelief.

"Yes, ma'am. You must miss him because you haven't seen your lover for a week."

Chloe didn't expect Brad to tease her now, especially with Tia and Peni, who still needed to leave for the cafe. They all seemed to be smiling because of Budi's comment.

"You guys," Chloe pretended to pout, although she wasn't at all. Her face emitted happiness again. "I'll go now."

Left with their happy smiles, the three people Chloe trusted also prayed for her happiness. Despite her strong and somewhat indecisive feelings, Chloe deserved happiness, right? That's what Peni hoped for shortly. After all, Darren was the best thing in Chloe's life.

Seeing Chloe's arrival, Darren immediately opened the car door for his lover and greeted her warmly that morning. Likewise, Chloe settled herself in Darren's car. After a week of not seeing each other, they hugged and felt comfortable being close.

"What do you want to talk about?" Chloe asked Darren, who looked at her for a moment before smiling.

"I'll tell you later. Be patient, Chloe." Darren felt the urge to pinch Chloe's cute nose playfully. "But for now, we should hurry to the restaurant. I'm sure you haven't had breakfast, right?" Darren always seemed to guess correctly regarding things related to Chloe, so she nodded softly in agreement.

Unbeknownst to them, Leonel was following Chloe's every move, and he felt annoyed when he found out that Darren had returned from Surabaya and Chloe was going with him this morning. Seeing the closeness between Darren and Chloe, Leonel felt frustrated and quickly followed the car driven by Darren.

"Damn it! Why did you come back and ruin my plans to get closer to Chloe?" Leonel grumbled as he angrily hit the steering wheel of his car. But Leonel didn't want to give up now. He continued tailing Darren's car, now leaving Chloe's residence.

Eventually, Darren's car stopped at one of their favorite restaurants for breakfast.

Upon arrival, Darren immediately exited the car and opened the door for Chloe to enter the restaurant together. He didn't forget his special treatment, which made Chloe widen her smile even more. Moreover, how he treated her was so special, holding her hand as they entered the restaurant, just like they always did. Also, the employees and security guards there were already familiar with the couple.

"Good morning," Darren greeted the staff, and Chloe responded by bowing her head.

Seeing Darren's extraordinary treatment towards Chloe at that moment, especially when he held hands with his ex-wife, Leonel felt highly frustrated. He felt an urge to punch Darren, but what could he do? He was no longer Chloe's husband but her ex-husband.

Leonel didn't stay idle; he entered the restaurant and sat near the couple. Leonel grew even more frustrated and jealous as he saw Darren and Chloe becoming closer after Darren's return from Surabaya. Leonel appeared desperate after all his efforts to get closer to Chloe, gain her attention, and try to improve himself in her presence seemed to be pointless.

"What would you like, sir and miss?" the waiter asked Darren and Chloe, who promptly picked up the menu and ordered their desired food. Meanwhile, Leonel occasionally saw Chloe laughing that morning. In contrast, when he could meet her, she seemed reluctant and behaved differently compared to when she was with him.

Jealousy welled up in Leonel's heart that morning, and he felt frustrated. But what could he do? He was no longer anyone to her. He had to accept this disgusting sight. Leonel also witnessed an intimate scene that angrily burned him as Darren tucked Chloe's hair behind her ear.

"How was your business in Santa Monica? Is it finished?" Chloe asked Darren, who suddenly fell silent. He wanted to discuss this with Chloe but needed help figuring out where to start. He couldn't just blurt it out; he was worried it would panic and confuse Chloe.

"It's finished, but there are a few things I need to do with you to complete everything," Darren said to Chloe, embracing her body and drawing her closer to his chest. Chloe continued because being in Darren's embrace was incredibly comfortable.

"Oh? What is it about, and why must I be involved?" Chloe asked again. The restaurant Darren chose provided enough privacy for them. They weren't too disturbed by the people around them. Darren, trying to calm his emotions at the moment, decided to kiss the top of Chloe's head. He loved the woman in his arms so much. He loved her deeply. But he didn't want to worry her about the sudden news he would give her.

Before Darren could answer, the waiter who had offered the menu earlier approached with their orders. It allowed Darren to think about what he could say to Chloe. He still had fears about their relationship.

"Thank you," Chloe and Darren said almost simultaneously, exchanging glances and smiles.

Leonel, who witnessed Chloe and Darren's growing closeness, felt his jealousy burn even hotter.

He had hoped that Chloe still had him on her mind, but it turned out that after Darren's return, Chloe seemed to be getting closer to her ex-husband.

"Damn it!"