Ruth looked at Abel. She hesitated and said, “Okay.”Abel nodded at her. Then, he bypassed her and left.Ruth stood where she was. She lowered her head to hide the emotions in her eyes.This was what Ruth had hoped for. However, she still had a complicated feeling when it happened for real. She took a glass of champagne from a waiter beside her and slowly walked into the event hall.Callum and Bella quickly exchanged glances when they saw the interaction between Abel and Ruth.They were surprised to know that Abel did not come as Ruth’s partner. Did he come as a representative of the Blakewell family to show that they approved of Nicholas and Luna’s marriage?This further proved that Abel did not care about Ruth as much as they had thought. In that case, the talk with Ruth later would be much easier.To knock Ruth down a few pegs, Callum ignored her despite having asked her to stay. He walked around the hall and introduced Luna and Nicholas to his business partners as his daught
However, if Ruth did not admit that she was Seema, then she would be “forced” to side with him. After some thinking, she said, “What do you want me to do?”Callum smirked and said, “You’re good friends with Seema. Talk to them in my place and see whether they’re willing to null the contract.”Ruth nodded. “Sure.”Callum was delighted. “Really? You’re not drunk, are you? Will you remember your promise when you wake up?”“I’d be helping myself by helping you. You said it yourself. Lockton Corporation will be mine eventually. You also promised me that you will transfer Lockton Corporation’s shares to me if Lockton Entertainment does well.”“Alright. I’ll think about it. You—”“I’m not drunk, Mr. Callum,” Ruth interrupted him coldly. “Hand over the shares my mother left for me, and I’ll negotiate with Seema. I don’t know how much money you’ll need to pay for breaking the contract, though, so be prepared to pay compensation.”“I—”“That’s all I have to say. If you agree to it, han
But Callum could not let her leave so easily, not when he finally got her to come back. He ran after Ruth. But, when he reached the courtyard, he saw Abel’s signature Rolls-Royce parked under a dim street lamp.He stopped, stunned. He was not the only one surprised. Ruth was, too. She stood still for a few seconds before she smiled and strode forward. Before Kallan could step out and open the door for her, she got in herself. But there was no one in the backseat. Ruth’s smile froze on her face, but she refused to give up hope and looked toward the passenger’s seat. Abel was not there. Kallan returned to the car. When he saw Ruth’s confusion, he said respectfully, “Mr. Abel asked me to send you home, Madam.”Ruth positioned herself properly in her seat. “Does he not like me anymore?” she asked dejectedly.The question seemed to be directed at Kallan, but also like she was just talking to herself. “Um…” Kallan said. He did not dare to answer the question. Not that
Kallan knew it. He should not have believed a drunkard’s words. He closed the door quietly and high-tailed out of the place. Abel was dressed in casual clothes and sat on a one-person couch. He was reading something on his tab and looked toward the door when he heard some noise outside. He frowned. “Did you drink too much again?”“No! Also, do you not like me anymore because I don’t want children? Your love for me was so short-lived! You stopped loving me in an instant! While Katie told me that you’ve liked someone else for a long time!” Those thoughts had been at the back of Ruth’s mind for days. She was finally unable to hold herself back from saying them out loud. With a couch between them, they stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds before Abel asked, “This isn’t about children. Also, who’s this ‘someone else’ you mentioned?”Ruth kicked away her heels, threw her handbag near the door, and strode to him, as if she wanted to talk about this at length with him.“B
In the end, Abel sent Ruth back to her bedroom while he returned to the guest room. Ruth lay in bed. Since only one light was turned on, the room was dim. She stared at the chandelier above her head for a long time. Then, as if she remembered something, she got up and headed outside. The guest room door was shut tight. She knocked on it twice. When she got no reply, she opened the door, only to have Abel also open it at the same time. Ruth already had one foot raised to walk in. She did not manage to stop in time and crashed into Abel. He instinctively brought his arms up and caught her by the waist to help her stand on her feet. He looked at her. “What’s wrong?”Ruth felt as if she had crashed into a bouncy rock. She staggered back and felt dizzy. When she finally regained her footing, she looked up and was stunned. Abel had just come out of the bathroom and had a bathrobe on. Its collar was loose around his neck and showed his pecs. Water dripped from his hair and slid dow
She stretched and nuzzled against her blanket, only to realize that something was wrong.This texture, warmth… and the firm abs…“Are you done groping me?” a cold, emotionless voice asked. The man sounded a little raspy and really sexy. Ruth gulped and looked up slowly to see a familiar pair of black eyes. Abel was leaning against the headboard with Ruth wrapped all around him and looking at her. It seemed like he had been awake for a long time. But he could not get up because she was hugging him really tightly. Ruth let go of Abel, and her eyelashes fluttered from the guilt of keeping him in bed. She pursed her lips and decided to strike first. “Why are you in my bed?”“This is my room.”What?!Ruth shot up and looked around. She was not familiar with the room. This was, indeed, the guest room. She then looked at Abel. He appeared calm, as if nothing could faze him, and like he could see through everything. A thought popped up in Ruth’s mind, and she made a bold g
Abel took Ruth to the master bedroom, put her on the bed, and straightened up to look at her with stormy eyes. Ruth felt awkward under his gaze and wrapped herself up in the blanket. “Why are you staring at me like that? I’ve already said everything…”“You just said you can’t fully respond to my love.”“I did, yes...”She had just returned to Lockton Corporation. She could not afford to divert her focus to responding to Abel’s love. Abel’s expression lightened a little. “Does that mean that you have thought about responding before?”Ruth was momentarily stunned. “Of course! Only sc*mbags won’t respond to other people’s love or reject them properly. I’m not that sort of person!”Abel suddenly smiled in a relieved but resigned fashion. At that moment, the suffocating atmosphere between them disappeared, and the wall that had been erected between them over the past few days broke. Ruth was confused. “Why are you smiling?”“I don’t think you getting into your husband’s bed is a
“I don’t want any children now. I’m not ready for them yet.”“We won’t have them, then.”The man who indulged Ruth’s every whim was back.She was beginning to think that he was possessed a few days ago.When Abel saw Ruth’s curious and inquisitive gaze, he cleared his throat awkwardly without answering the complex question in her eyes. He stood up and ended their conversation.“Once you clean up, go downstairs to eat. I’ll send you to your company. Lockton Corporation sent news. The board has made an important decision about you.”……Ruth was in a daze while on her way to the company. It was not because of Lockton Corporation. She had no need to think about it. After all, whatever decision the board made was already set in stone. It was because of what Abel said. She had yet to puzzle it out. When she asked him about it again, Abel only said, “I don’t want to meet Seema anymore. We don’t need to work with him either.”She had a feeling that something happened, but she did