After weighing and considering all the consequences that would happen, Chloe finally decided to visit Edward during lunchtime. For her, it didn’t matter if this time she gave in by following Samuel’s advice to visit her husband at his office first.
Driving her own vehicle, the beautiful woman arrived at the Quantum building and was warmly welcomed by the employees there. After all, who didn’t know Chloe? The beautiful woman who had recently married the newest CEO of Quantum.
Along the corridors of the building, Chloe kept smiling. She was friendly to anyone who deliberately greeted her as they crossed paths.
When she was about to take the elevator, she even accidentally bumped into Nicholas. Politely, Edward’s assistant greeted her and even offered to accompany her to his office.
“Mr. Edward has just finished a meeting. Right now, he’s in his office.”
Chloe nodded. “Has he had lunch?”
“As far as I know, not yet, ma’am,” Nicholas replied. “In these past few days, your husband has been skipping lunch because he’s been overloaded with work. Sometimes I worry he might get sick if this continues.”
Chloe was taken aback. She didn’t expect her husband to be so busy that he would skip lunch. At home, Edward had even ignored breakfast that was prepared for him more than once.
“What kind of work is he handling? I’m even puzzled by how rushed Edward is to leave for the office every day.”
Nicholas raised his face, looking at Chloe with a questioning gaze. Her eyes revealed deep curiosity.
“Your husband is busy meeting a deadline for a building project requested by Emaar Properties.”
“What’s the benefit so great that Edward is so enthusiastic about this project?”
Nicholas nodded confidently. After all, who in the world didn’t know about Emaar Properties? It was a giant real estate company that always attracted widespread attention with its ambitious projects creating unmatched buildings.
“Don’t even ask about the profits Quantum will gain,” the man said. “One thing for sure, this is an ambitious and prestigious project. The day after tomorrow, Mr. Edward even has to go back to Turkey and Dubai for more meetings.”
Chloe nodded rhythmically, trying to understand Nicholas’s explanation. But who could predict what was going on in her mind.
“It seems intriguing if I play around with the big project Edward is currently working on. Surely a massive chaos will occur. Edward and his company might collapse together, just as I planned.”
After spending some time inside the elevator, Chloe and Nicholas finally arrived at the floor where Edward’s office was located. The sturdy man immediately escorted them to the front of the room.
“Ariana…” Nicholas called out when they were at the door. “Is Mr. Edward inside?”
Ariana stood up and bowed respectfully before responding, “Yes, Mr. Edward is inside, but he is currently with a guest.”
Nicholas furrowed his brow. “A guest? There’s no one on my agenda who had an appointment with Mr. Edward today.”
Ariana nodded briefly and replied, “I’m not sure who the guest is, but it seems to be an old friend of Mr. Edward’s.”
Nicholas then turned his gaze to Chloe. “You should go in directly, ma’am.” He then refocused on Ariana. “Please get a drink for Mrs. Chloe. Also, bring coffee for Mr. Edward.”
While Ariana went to the pantry, Nicholas excused himself to continue his work. “I’ll leave now, ma’am. Don’t wait outside. Your husband doesn’t seem to be meeting with an important guest. So, it’s better to go in and join him directly.”
Once Nicholas left, Chloe stepped forward to enter the room. She slowly turned the doorknob until the door fully opened. The first thing she saw was Edward engaged in conversation with an unfamiliar woman. Chloe couldn’t quite make out what they were talking about as she couldn’t hear them clearly.
Chloe observed silently until she saw her husband suddenly being embraced by the woman. Edward accepted the hug passively, not resisting, as if he was enjoying whatever was happening between them.
Chloe continued to watch in silence until Ariana came from the pantry carrying a tray with drinks. The secretary reminded her to enter the room.
“Ma’am, why are you just standing at the door?”
Ariana’s loud voice redirected Edward’s attention. Still in the embrace of the woman, he looked up and saw his wife standing silently right in front of the door.
“Chloe…”
Reflexively, Edward let go of the woman in front of him. He chose to stand there without taking his eyes off his wife.
Meanwhile, Chloe remained unmoving, her sharp gaze indicating deep annoyance.
“It’s not what you think,” Edward whispered. He intended to approach her.
But before he could take a step, Chloe decided to leave in silence, ignoring her husband’s repeated calls. She walked away without giving him a chance to explain.
“All men are the same!”
***
Upon returning home from work, Edward took long strides, rushing upstairs to catch up with Chloe, who might already be in their bedroom.
His guess was correct; when he opened the door, there was Chloe, leaning casually on the bed while reading a book.
Edward approached Chloe with an intense gaze and took a deep breath before softly and calmly speaking, “I want to talk to you.”
“If you want to discuss what happened in your office this afternoon, I don’t think it’s necessary,” Chloe retorted. She didn’t divert her eyes from the book she was reading. “I don’t care about what you do out there.”
Edward rolled his eyes. “But you have to listen to my explanation.”
Chloe, who had been reading her book, stopped instantly. She raised her face and spoke in a low but forceful tone. “There’s nothing to explain. Isn’t that how a Playboy behaves? Honestly, I’m not surprised by your actions at all!”
“Chloe-”
“Ssstss…” she raised her index finger to her lips, signaling Edward to stop talking. “Just so you know, this afternoon I deliberately went to Quantum to try to make peace with you. But, instead, I was greeted with an inappropriate sight.”
Oh no! Edward cursed himself for his stupid, accidental actions. He knew all along that Chloe resented him. Now, the problem became even more complicated with the misunderstanding that occurred between them. How could he convince her that he’s not the person she imagines him to be?
“Well, if you don’t want to hear my explanation, I won’t force you to believe me either. Feel free to speculate or form your own opinions,” Edward calmly responded.
Edward decided to leave the room. He stepped out, leaving Chloe once again stunned by the man’s attitude.
Instead of trying to persuade her, Edward nonchalantly left Chloe alone in the room, making her angry as she felt neglected once again.
Edward, damn it! Instead of trying to woo me, why did he just leave like that?
***
Two days later, after the unpleasant incident at the Quantum Building, Chloe and Edward were still giving each other the cold shoulder. They didn’t greet each other and remained silent.
Neither of them wanted to give in. Even when the time came for Edward to leave for Turkey again, he only bid a brief farewell after finishing his breakfast.
“I’ll be going on a business trip abroad this afternoon. If you need anything, as usual, you can ask Leta for help.”
Edward didn’t bother waiting for a response from his wife. He got up and left the dining room casually, leaving Chloe, who was still indifferent as if she didn’t care.
After handling some work at the office, Nicholas immediately took Edward to the airport. After going through a bit of immigration check, Edward was finally allowed to board the plane.
Edward walked casually into the aircraft. When he was close to his seat, he noticed his wife was already there.
Confused? Definitely.
Edward’s mind was filled with question marks, wondering why Chloe suddenly appeared inside the plane and what she intended to do.
“Chloe…” Edward greeted, taking a seat right next to his wife. “What are you doing? How did you end up here all of a sudden?”
Chloe lowered the sunglasses she was wearing and stared intensely at Edward as she spoke, “Consider that I’m accompanying you wherever you go.”
“Huh?” Edward looked at his wife with astonishment. “You mean you’re going to Turkey with me?”
Chloe nodded. “Of course. After all, there’s no rule prohibiting a wife from accompanying her husband on a business trip abroad, right?”
“There isn’t,” Edward quickly responded. “But I’m curious who helped you arrange all this, so you could sit next to me?” He was still curious, as he assumed someone must have assisted her since Chloe knew the flight schedule, departure time, and even the seat number she was occupying, even though Edward had never told her.
“It’s not difficult for me to find out about you.”
In reality, Chloe did obtain all the information about her husband’s business trip from his assistant, Nicholas. On the same night she saw Edward with another woman, before going to sleep, Chloe called him.
“Nic, is my husband going on a business trip tomorrow?” Chloe asked on the phone.
“Yes, ma’am. But in the morning, before leaving, Mr. Edward will be leading a meeting first.”
“In that case, please prepare another ticket for me,” she ordered.
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but what do you mean?” Nicholas asked, confused.
“Yes, I’ve decided to accompany my husband wherever he goes on this business trip. So, please arrange everything I need.”
Nicholas didn’t immediately respond. After all, preparing a flight for someone on such short notice was not an easy task, especially for an international flight where various permissions needed to be sorted out.
“Well, Nic?” Chloe urged, seeking immediate confirmation. “Can you handle it?”
A sigh was heard from the other side before Nicholas finally replied, “Alright, ma’am. I’ll arrange everything for your departure.”
So, Nicholas was the one responsible for making sure Chloe could be on the same plane as Edward.
“Tsk…” Edward clicked his tongue. “I really don’t understand your thought process. Yesterday, when I asked you to join, you flatly refused, and now-”
“Enough…” Chloe cut off Edward’s sentence. “Just enjoy your business trip. You should feel happy that I’m willing to sacrifice my time to accompany you,” she teased.
However, Chloe had her reasons for doing all this. She followed Edward out of curiosity about what he does that requires him to travel back and forth to foreign countries. At the same time, she wanted to find an opportunity to implement the plans she had prepared well in advance. Yes, Chloe wouldn’t forget her main goal.
“So, please stop your questioning and curiosity,” she continued. “Right now, I’m feeling tired and need to rest. We can continue this conversation after I wake up.”