Chapter 111

Pearly's stomach growled with hunger. She hadn't had a snack yet because she thought she would be eating out with Jaden Gabe after he picked her up. "I'll be late getting home to Dalisay because of this," she decided. She would just eat there. She was sure Lucille had prepared dinner.

She texted the private chauffeur of Vox in Manila. He was the one who drove her back to the villa in Dalisay whenever none of the triplets were available.

A black brand-new BMW arrived in front of her shortly. She got in right away.

During the ride, she tried to contact Jaden Gabe, but his line was busy. Pearly thought he might be busy and might have an emergency with his business.

After three hours, her car entered the town of Dalisay. It passed through an arch with the words 'Welcome to Dalisay' written on it. "It's okay, I'm almost there."

The driver left after dropping her off in front of the large gate of the villa. No Vox staff entered through the gate.

Criss was in the mansion's living room. He was dressed to the nines, exuding a mix of the scent of aftershave and expensive men's cologne. He also smelled like mint candy and wine. He seemed to have somewhere to go.

"Hi!" she greeted him.

Criss just looked at her, looking bored.

"Are you coming to my graduation, even without a gift? I know you'd hate to give me a present," she joked.

But he ignored her. He was busy with his iPhone. It seemed like he was calling someone who wasn't answering.

"Bullshit!"

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Please, Pearly, I'm not in the mood," he snapped.

"Okay," she shrugged. "Where's Jaden Gabe?" She walked towards the staircase.

He looked irritated when he turned to her. "He's in the study room. He'll be leaving soon."

"Huh? Where's he going?" she asked, stopping on her way up the grand staircase of the mansion.

He scratched his head and pocketed his cell phone. "Europe. Don't you know?"

She was surprised. She didn't know Jaden Gabe was going to Europe. He hadn't mentioned it to her.

"Poor you." She was suddenly in front of him.

Since she found out the Vox family's secret, Criss had been flaunting his abilities.

She gasped when he appeared in front of her in the blink of an eye.

"Damn, this feels so good. It's hard to control myself in this house. I'm glad I don't have to hide my abilities from you anymore." Criss messed up her hair.

"What the heck?" She pushed him away. Her hair was already messy from waiting for Jaden Gabe in the heat earlier, and Criss made it worse.

When she pushed Criss, he fell down the stairs. It was obvious that he had let himself fall.

"Get up!" She was annoyed that he was staring at her. "Leave, it's obvious you have somewhere to go. You're probably going to deceive another woman."

He scowled. He lay on the shiny floor of the mansion, looking at her. "I'm not leaving."

"Then don't." She glared at him. "I'm going to see Jaden Gabe, I need to talk to him."

"Fix your anorexia first."

Her eyes widened. "You're crazy!"

He just smirked at her. "You should gain some weight, or your dad might look for someone else."

"Idiot!" She turned away, seething.

Did she look anorexic? She wasn't that thin! Jaden Gabe even said she was just right. Criss was really crazy.

She went to the second floor of the mansion. The door to the study room was open. She immediately saw Jaden Gabe standing in front of his office table.

She paused when she saw his serious expression. He didn't even notice her presence.

It wasn't normal for him not to notice her immediately. He always knew when she was coming, even when she was still at the entrance of the

mansion.

What was wrong with Jaden Gabe?

She gently knocked on the open door.

He looked at her for a moment. He was wearing black-rimmed glasses, a white polo shirt with the sleeves folded, and black jeans.

She felt a pang in her heart at his coldness. She didn't pay attention to Jaden Gabe's strange behavior. She just thought he might be tired, so she didn't mind it.

She sweetly smiled, even though she wanted to confront him about what she had found out. She wanted to sulk, act out, and be pampered by him. But Jaden Gabe didn't seem to be in the mood to be sweet and affectionate. He was just different now. There was something about him that she couldn't pinpoint.

"You're leaving?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"To Europe? And tonight?" She wanted to act cool, like it didn't matter to her. Like she didn't care that he was going so far away from the

Philippines. Like she didn't care that they would be miles apart when he left.

She really didn't understand why he was leaving without telling her. He didn't even mention to her that he had booked a flight to Europe.

If she had come home late, she probably wouldn't have caught him. He might already be on the plane when she got home.

Even though her chest felt tight, she forced herself to stay calm. She approached him. "Do we have a problem?"

"A problem? No." He didn't even look at her. He just continued to sort through the folders on the mahogany table.

"You're leaving without even telling me..." she pouted. She swallowed her pride, even though she was angry that he had ignored her and decided to leave without a word.

"It's important, Pearly." His voice was as cold as ice.

Important? More important than her?

She bit her lower lip. "I-is that so? I wish you had at least told me. I wouldn't have stopped you. You should have texted me so I could have come home early and helped you pack—"

She didn't finish speaking because it seemed like Jaden Gabe wasn't listening to her. He was busy stacking papers. When he finished, he looked at his wristwatch, seeming impatient.

She couldn't help it. "My love, c-can we talk?"

"I'm in a hurry, we'll talk later." His response lacked emotion.

She just stood there, feeling weak as Jaden Gabe walked past her. She wanted to run after him, but she couldn't move her feet. She suddenly felt weak from the coldness he had shown.

"D-did I do something he didn't like?" Pearly asked herself, her mind in turmoil and her heart aching.