Chapter 15

15 NO LOVE ARIEL’S POV “I found your purse,” Luke said, holding it up for me to see.

Thank you. Can I have it back?” I approached him, extending my hand.

As I reached for the purse, I couldn’t help but notice how close we were standing. His cologne smelled pleasant, though I refused to let myself be swayed by his charm. It would have been nice if he matched his attractive appearance with a good personality, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. I knew that the good side wasn’t coming any time soon.

I collected my purse from him, surprised by his action. And I thought he was going to start acting crazy again. But it looked like some people had come to their senses. Or maybe he was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to start being stupid.

“Thank you,” I said, my tone devoid of any warmth. I was not going to joke with this man anymore, nor was I going to be friends with him. But one thing was for sure: My mission here. would be accomplished.

I started to walk away, but Luke called out to me, prompting me to stop. I turned around, wondering what he wanted to say. I wasn’t in the mood to engage with him, but maybe being a little polite wouldn’t hurt, right?

“What is it now?” I asked without facing him.

“Why did you come back?” he queried.

I gave him a disapproving look as I turned to face him. “What kind of question is that?”

“I need to know, Ariel!” Luke raised his voice and approached me. He grabbed my arm, and I glared at him in response. “I don’t know why, but I feel like you came back because of me.”

I chuckled. “Don’t make me laugh.”

“It’s true, isn’t it?” His grip tightened as he spoke.

“If you think you’re still important in my life, you’re only fooling yourself,” I said, my tone cold. “You were erased from my life the moment we separated.”

“Are you sure about that?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Why are you even bothering yourself with this?”

“What do you mean?” he asked, puzzled.

“You have a girlfriend, Luke, and you claim to hate me. So why do you keep following me around like you love me or something?”

“Pfff,” Luke scoffed. “Who said I was following you around?”

“Don’t play dumb. You’re the only person here with me, and the only person I’m talking to.”

“Hey, don’t flatter yourself.” Luke released my arm. “Don’t get it twisted. I do not love you. I never loved you and never will. You’re not even worth my time.”

“Oh, really?” I crossed my arms, leaning closer to him. “If I’m not worth your time, then why bother asking me those pointless questions?”

“I was just curious, okay?” he tried to explain himself.

“Why would you be curious about someone who’s not worth your time?”

“Don’t try to act smart.”

“I’m just being clear with you,” I retorted. “And don’t over think things, Luke. I do not love you.”

“I don’t need your love,” he said, after staring at me for a moment.

“I know, but you need answers to your questions, so let me give them to you.” I spoke with so much boldness. “First of all, I came back for work. There are lots of projects, including this on with your company. And secondly, I don’t want anything to do one, that we’re working with you anymore. If it weren’t for this ongoing project, do you think I’d be standing here with you right now? So please, Luke, don’t approach me again with all these silly questions. The only thing we should be discussing is business, nothing else. I don’t know you; you don’t know me; we’re just business partners. Okay?”

Luke redirected his angry gaze away from me and focused it elsewhere. “You can leave now.”

“Just what I was about to do,” I promptly replied, vanishing from his presence.

The moment I got out of the building, I noticed Andre leaning against his car. He seemed to be engrossed in a text conversation, as indicated by the constant smile on his face. It appeared evident that he had found himself a girlfriend. I mean, considering his expression at the party and now, it was quite obvious. I couldn’t help but wonder who the lucky girl was.

“Alright, we can start going now,” I said aloud, walking toward Andre.

“What took you so long?” He asked without sparing me a glance, still focused on his phone.

“I was talking to someone,” I replied, slightly annoyed as I thought about my recent conversation with Luke.

Andre briefly glanced at me and then returned his attention to his phone. “Who were you talking to?

Luke?”

“Yeah, how did you know?” I asked, slightly surprised.

He simply shrugged and continued to give his phone undivided attention.

“I’ll be waiting for you in the car,” I informed him before getting into his car.

I intended to make a phone call, so I rummaged through my purse, searching for my phone. To my surprise, it was nowhere to be found.

Oh no, please don’t tell me I forgot it as well. What the hell is wrong with me? I lightly slapped my face, disappointed in myself. This meant I would have to go back to that building, and I sincerely hoped I wouldn’t run into my good–for–nothing ex husband. This was truly frustrating–incredibly frustrating.

Andre got into the car, whistling. He settled into the driver’s seat, fastened his seat belt, and placed his hands on the steering wheel. “Alright, time to hit the road.”

“Hold on!” I exclaimed, and he turned to look at me. “I forgot something.”

“Again?” He wore a tired expression.

“I can’t find my phone in my purse, so it’s obvious I left it back there,”

依舊 Are you sure about that?”

“I’m a hundred percent sure I had it with me in the building,” I replied, though not entirely convinced.

Andre gave me a skeptical look. “Are you sure you brought it along?”

“Come on now, mister. You saw me using it during the meeting.”

“Did I?” Andre furrowed his brow at me.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I don’t have time to waste, sir. Can I please go now?”

“Yeah, yeah, you can go. Nobody was stopping you anyway.”

“Thanks!” I grinned at him. “You know, this might actually work out for both of us. I’ll go find my phone, and you can continue your conversation with whoever you’re chatting with.” I gave him a playful smile, acting a bit silly.

Andre chuckled, shaking his head. “Just go.”

“You got it, sir.” I pointed my finger at him, smirking “Just be quick, okay?”

“I’ll be back before you know it!” I exclaimed, jumping out of the car and heading back into the building.

As I hurried towards the meeting room, I accidentally bumped into a guy, causing the files her was holding to scatter on the floor, “Sorry,” I apologized, quickly retrieving the files from the ground. I handed them back to him and swiftly walked away without even glancing at his face.

As I approached the room, I could hear faint sounds of a woman whimpering, indicating that something unpleasant was transpiring inside, Initially, I considered turning I was walking around and not entering the room, but just as my phone rang from within, I pushed the door open. And lo and behold!