He rushed out just in time to see my back. It was familiar enough to make his heart race.
He almost chased after me. But then Estelle’s voice called him from inside the room.
He hesitated just for a second. In the end, under her increasingly urgent calls, he returned to the private room.
I didn’t even know how I made it back to the villa.
All I knew was, the second I stepped inside, Conrad’s call came through.
“Ophelia, I just called you. Why didn’t you answer earlier? Were you not home?”
His voice was still as gentle as ever, yet I could hear a trace of suspicion in it.
I stayed quiet for a moment, and when he spoke again, his tone carried a hint of panic.
“Did someone tell you something? Don’t listen to them. Whatever it is, I’ll explain when I get back.”
He sounded just as affectionate as he did in the beginning; there wasn’t the slightest hint of lying.
But the way he acted in front of Estelle? He was a completely different man.
Thinking about everything he’d done to me, I didn’t hesitate anymore. I finally asked, “When are you coming back? I have something to tell you.”
The moment he heard that, he simply said, “Wait for me,” and hung up.
A second later, a message from Estelle popped up.
[Did you really think calling him home like this means you’ve won? As long as I want him, all I have to do is curl my finger and Conrad will come running right back to me. You heard it yourself earlier. Neither Conrad nor his buddies like you. If I were you, I wouldn’t even want to keep living.]
After everything I’ve been through, reading that message didn’t even stir anything in me anymore.
I just closed my phone and waited calmly for Conrad to show up.
The trip should’ve taken thirty minutes. But he shoved it into ten. When he rushed up to me, he was even out of breath.
He came over like he always did, gently supporting me.
“Ophelia, what did you want to talk about?”
I subtly avoided his hand and handed him the divorce agreement.
“Sign it.”
He froze for a second, then took the documents, asking, “Is this the fragrance project contract?”
He was just about to flip it open when his phone suddenly rang.
Even though he grabbed the phone fast, I still clearly saw the caller ID. It was Estelle.
When the call connected, all I heard on her end was her saying, “Conrad… I miss you so much…”
His expression shifted slightly. He lowered the volume and whispered a few comforting words to her.