Eva paused briefly before continuing, “I can’t say for certain. However, I find it hard to believe he’d fall for someone else. I must find him and demand an explanation. Even if he truly wants to end things, I deserve to hear it from him directly.”
“If… What will you do if you find him and he tells you that he has fallen in love with someone else?”
“Then I’ll see what’s so good about that woman. If she’s better than me, I’ll try my best to be better than her and make my boyfriend fall in love with me again.”
“Better than her…” Cristofer murmured thoughtfully.
Just when Cristofer believed Eva had finished her words, she unexpectedly went on, “And once he returns to me, I’ll break up with him, sending him a message revealing that I’ve fallen for someone else. I’ll beat him at his own game.”
“Do you have the heart to give up your relationship?” Cristofer asked.
“Yes,” Eva said stubbornly, “It’s just a relationship of more than ten years. It’s nothing to me.”
As she spoke, her voice became lower and lower.
“Won’t you regret it if you do that?”
“I don’t know.”
“Never do anything that you will regret, or you will be in pain,” Cristofer remarked sadly.
“Okay,” Eva acquiesced. “Mr. Hans, have you ever taken actions you regret?”
Cristofer’s gaze turned distant as he thought about his past.
“Yes. Anyway, think twice before you do anything. And once you have done it, don’t cry over spilled milk,” he advised.
Eva grinned and remarked, “Right now, my only focus is the extra three hundred dollars I’ve earned from working overtime today.”
Without further words, Cristofer shut his eyes once more, continuing his rest.
Eva woke him up an hour later, “Mr. Hans, here we are.”
Hearing her voice, Cristofer opened his eyes and looked outside.
‘The Hans’ Residence is indeed remote,’ he thought.
At that time, only a handful of streetlights cast a faint glow on the road.
As he caught sight of the darkened house, a realization dawned on him that Garry and Luke were in the hospital, not at home.
“Start the car and take me to a hotel,” Cristofer instructed.
“What?” Eva was taken aback.
“Do it quickly. I’ll add an extra 5% to your performance bonus.”
“Sure thing! Let’s head out!” Eva responded with joy, promptly setting the car in motion.
Thirty minutes later, the car came to a halt.
Spotting the fountain before the Grand Hotel of Hadale City, Cristofer shifted his gaze to Eva, his expression devoid of emotion, as though inquiring, “Why did you bring me here?”
Eva raised her shoulders in a slight shrug and commented, “You didn’t specify which hotel you had in mind, so I opted for this one. It’s the finest hotel in our city. Besides…”
She paused and then continued with a meaningful smile, “Mr. Hans, Miss Hudson also stays in this hotel. I know her room number. It’s 0826.”
Cristofer stared at her with a sharp, penetrating look.
Being stared at by him this way, Eva was frightened and shrank her neck.
Then she said, “Mr. Hans, may I ask you a question?”
“Go ahead.”
“I may not be smart, but I’m not stupid,” Eva began, “You have a crush on Miss Hudson, don’t you?”
Remaining silent, Cristofer squinted at her with a deep frown.
“Please… Please don’t look at me like that, Mr. Hans. In my opinion, the two of you are truly an ideal match. Miss Hudson is gorgeous, kind, and easygoing. Honestly, I find her more appealing than Miss Wilson. It’d be wonderful if you two could be together,” Eva expressed.
Cristofer didn’t engage in the conversation, opting to swing open the car door and jump off.
Observing his actions, Eva quickly stepped out as well, holding his cologne. She caught up to him and handed the cologne to him.
“Before you meet her, please spritz on some cologne to mask your cigarette smell. If you’re pursuing her, you should leave a positive impression,” she advised.
Eva handed Cristofer the bottle of cologne and bolted, not even bothering to park the car. She was terrified that he would lose his temper and deduct her salary.
Cristofer glanced down at the bottle of cologne in his hand, took a deep breath, and then flagged down the doorman to park his car.
He lingered in the breeze for a while, allowing the cigarette scent to fade. Then he applied cologne.
Once he was confident the smoky smell had vanished, he stepped into the hotel and entered the elevator.
As the elevator ascended, Eva’s words echoed in his thoughts.
“I’ll find out what makes that woman so exceptional. If she outshines me, I’ll put in my utmost effort to surpass her and win my boyfriend’s affection once more.”
‘What’s so good about Mr. Mysterious?’
He only knew something about Mr. Mysterious from Estelle.
‘According to Estelle, Mr. Mysterious was a very gentle and caring man. He had a good temper and was considerate to her and the children.’
‘I can accomplish that as well. I’m capable of treating Estelle and the children just as well as Mr. Mysterious did.’
‘The only difference between Mr. Mysterious and me is that I misunderstood and hurt Estelle after the car accident nine years ago, which caused her great pain.’
Actually, in the past years, Cristofer had always thought about why he had treated her like that after the car accident.
Back then, he was convinced that Estelle and York had set up the car accident to get their hands on the Hans family’s property.
Now that he thought about it, he realized that his thought was totally wrong and made no sense.
‘If Estelle had been working with York, he wouldn’t have driven her and Aurora away from the Hudson’s House.’
‘If York and Estelle were working together, it wouldn’t make sense for York to get everything from the Hans family and Estelle to get nothing.’
‘If Estelle really wanted to get the property of the Hans family, it would be easier for her to get it by coaxing him to transfer all the property to her after they got married. She didn’t need to stage a car accident the day before their wedding day.’
‘Could it be that the culprits’ real purpose is to prevent Estelle and me from getting married?’ Cristofer wondered.
The car accident dealt him a severe blow. During that period, he experienced alternating bouts of manic depression and sorrow.
During his depressive episodes, Gretchen entered his life, offering him companionship. Nelson, too, reached out when he was grappling with despair, providing help.
Subsequently, he grappled with manic depression, and regrettably, Estelle became a target of his irritable mood swings.
Pain gripped Cristofer as he pondered about the past. He frequently struggled to maintain composure in Estelle’s presence in those days. His frustration would spill over onto her, leading to repeated instances of hurting her.