Following Belindaâs direction, Ellinor looked up to see the tall, cool silhouette of Theo passing by the glass walkway on the second floor. He was acompanied by a tall, beautiful woman with long legs and curly hair.
Ellinor pulled her gaze back, expressionless, her tone nonchalant, âJust ignore him.â
Belinda, still not fully recovered from a painful breakup and now drunk, was puzzled, âEllinor, your husband is upstairs with another woman and youâre not bothered?â
Ellinor casually sipped her juice, âI donât care.â
Belinda was outraged. âThis is not right! If youâre too afraid to confront your husband, I will! Heâs married and yet heâs with another. woman. Iâm so disappointed in my uncle!â She stormed off upstairs, fists clenched in anger.
Ellinor wanted to stop her but didnât. She massaged her brow, thinking, let Belinda go. Theo wouldnât do anything to his own niece.
She decided not to interfere in Theoâs affairs. They were only husband and wife in name, so it was normal for them to do their own thing.
Ellinor leaned lazily on the bar seat, observing the colors and people in the bar. She was feeling a bit tired. If it wasnât for Belinda, sheâd be home sleeping.
Just then, Chase and his crew briskly walked over. He said, âEllinor, you couldâve given me a heads up!
If the manager hadnât spotted you and run to tell me, I wouldnât have known you were here!â
Chase was the owner of this bar, which was part of Crescent Societyâs entertainment business.
Ellinor glanced at him, âIâm only here to pick someone up. Iâm not planning to stay and will be leaving shortly.â
Chase curiously sat next to her, âEllinor, who are you here to pick up?â
âMy niece.â Ellinor said.
âSince when did you have a niece? Why didnât I know?â Chase asked.
Ellinor couldnât be bothered to explain and instead asked him, âArenât you supposed to be at work?
What are you doing here?â
Chase opened a bottle of mineral water and handed it to her, âNetworking is part of my job! And there are others at the office. Everythingâs under control.â
Ellinor took a sip. âYouâre always networking!â
Chase chuckled, âBy the way, Theo didnât find out we know each other, right?â
Ellinor casually replied, âNo, I fooled him.â
âThatâs good! Too bad about that painting though.â Chase said.
âI got it.â Ellinor said.
Chaseâs eyes lit up, âYou got it already! How?â
âHe gave it to me.â Ellinor said.
âHe gave it to you? The painting he bought for five million dollars?â Chase was shocked.
âYes, he owed me a favor. The painting was his way of repaying me.â Ellinor said.
Chase was skeptical, âJust like that?â
Ellinor raised an eyebrow, âIs there more?â
Chase grinned, âMy guess is he likes you and is trying to win you over!â
Ellinor rolled her eyes, âCan you be serious? Shouldnât you be networking? Get going!â
Chase shrugged and got up, not daring to bother her anymore.
Before leaving, he asked the waiter to bring some fruit plates, snacks, and a cup of juice to Ellinorâs booth.
After Chase left, the lights in the bar were making Ellinor dizzy. She closed her eyes to rest, waiting for Belinda to return.
âExcuse me, may I sit here?â