Chapter 12
In that moment, Aria mentally ran through every sad thing in her life.
She felt that she must be having terrible luck tonight, otherwise she wouldn’t have created such a disaster.
Archer was wearing a black shirt, and the milk she had been drinking was quite thick. Spilled on his shirt, it was extremely
noticeable.
She could already smell the strong milk scent coming from him.
Aria covered her face, finding it difficult to speak. “Mr. Duncan… I’m so sorry for ruining your clothes.”
At that moment, she couldn’t bring herself to meet Archer’s eyes.
“It’s just a shirt. As long as your clothes didn’t get wet, it’s fine.”
Archer unbuttoned the top two buttons of his collar. A large section of his shoulder was wet, and the fabric sticking to his body
was uncomfortable.
“Do you have a spare shirt in your car, Mr. Duncan? Would you like to change?”
Aria suggested.
Archer paused, looking up at her. “Change here?”
Aria belatedly realized how inappropriate that sounded. Archer let out a soft laugh.
“Not appropriate now. Perhaps next time.”
It really wasn’t appropriate. Taking her home was already pushing the boundaries–she and Larry weren’t divorced yet, and
some lines shouldn’t be crossed.
Aria cleared her throat, aware that she had spoken carelessly out of nervousness.
For the rest of the ride, she didn’t say a word. The journey continued in silence.
After Aria got out of the car, Archer called to her.
“Take this.”
He handed her a paper bag. Aria paused before accepting it, and saw that it contained a tube of ointment.
“Since you know your skin is delicate, try not to get hurt.” His voice was deep and rich.
In the warm summer night, as she looked into his eyes, she felt she could see countless stars hidden within them.
She nodded and made a sound of agreement.
1/5
“I’ll remember that.”
Aria nodded slightly and turned to leave.
She didn’t hear the car drive away. She knew Archer was still there, probably watching her through the window.
At that moment, she found herself looking forward to life after divorce and remarriage.
Only after Aria’s figure disappeared into the night did the driver finally pull away.
On the road, they received a call from Ethan.
“Where the hell are you, man?
“Weren’t you the one who invited me for drinks tonight? Where did you go?”
Ethan had a cigarette between his lips, making his words less clear, with a touch of roguishness. Anyone who saw him now would think he was just another rich young playboy from the city–no one would guess that when wearing a white coat, he was a
practicing physician.
“Almost there,” Archer replied coolly.
“What do you mean? Almost there? You told me you were at the entrance an hour ago! Where exactly are you?” Ethan’s voice rose
in frustration.
“Almost home,” Archer answered graciously.
“?” Ethan asked, “Are you messing with me?”
Archer didn’t respond. His silence was answer enough.
Ethan was so annoyed that he couldn’t even enjoy his cigarette, extinguishing it after just a few puffs. “Wasn’t it you who invited
me tonight?”
Archer made a sound of agreement, “I saw the person I needed to see, so there was no need to enter the private room.”
The driver, listening to this conversation, wanted to hide.
When his boss had mentioned this to Miss Jackson, he’d said “the appointment is over,” which wasn’t exactly a lie–the
appointment had indeed happened, just not in the private room. Unbelievable.
Ethan had grown up with Archer and could easily read between the lines.
“Oh, so you ran into Aria outside, right?”
“Yes.” Archer confirmed directly and efficiently.
Well, was there any need to ask further?
2/5
Ethan laughed in disbelief, “Bros before… never mind.”
Archer made another sound of agreement.
Ethan exhaled deeply, thinking to himself how fortunate he was to know his friend well enough not to wait alone, suspecting that no good would come from Archer’s late–night invitation.
After it became clear that Archer wasn’t coming, Ethan had a few drinks with his other friends and decided to call it a night.
As they left the private room, they passed through the crowded dance floor in the main hall.
Casually glancing around, Ethan spotted a familiar figure pressed against a beautiful, fair–skinned woman, dancing intimately.
The night hadn’t been wasted after all.
Ethan took a photo and contacted the club manager to request tonight’s surveillance footage. After arranging everything, he sent the photo he’d taken to Archer.
[Ethan]: Your rival.
The reply came almost instantly.
[Archer]: Is he worthy of that title?
Ethan thought to himself that Larry truly wasn’t worthy.
[Ethan]: Then I’ll send you this pic to your future wife.
This time, Archer didn’t respond.
“Hmph, what a poser. He’s probably just waiting for me to send Aria.”
While Ethan was mocking his friend for acting cool and nonchalant while in fact he cares a lot, his fingers didn’t stop moving. Having previously exchanged contact information at the hospital, he sent the picture directly to Aria from his own number.
At home, having just finished washing up, Aria received the message.
In the dance club, Larry was practically glued to a scantily dressed woman, their bodies pressed tightly together. Even through the screen, one could feel the heat and intimacy as the two entwined.
Aria looked down at the photo and found it ironically amusing.
Larry hated her, couldn’t forget Linda, yet constantly sought replacements for Linda–a female model with eyes like Linda’s, a female idol with a mouth like Linda’s, a college student with a personality like Linda’s, and finally Lucy, whose features were seventy percent similar to Linda’s.
He spoke romantic lines on the surface while never stopping his collection of Linda substitutes behind the scenes.
He claimed to care about Lucy, yet here he was at a nightclub, nestled against another woman.
3/5
It was disgusting.
The fresh, bright Larry from her memories seemed to exist only in her recollections.
The current Larry had developed all the worst traits of men.
Fickle and arrogant.
Fortunately, her heart had already been hurt beyond repair. She wouldn’t continue living this kind of uncontested life.
She would leave.
At the nightclub.
On the dance floor, Larry held a slender woman close as they danced intimately. Felix had only stepped away to take a phone call,
and when he returned, this was the scene he found.
Felix spat in disgust as he walked over and pulled the two apart.
“Larry, have you had too much to drink?
“Look clearly, she’s not Aria, and she’s not your mistress either!”
Larry had been drinking but wasn’t actually drunk. He was still perfectly lucid.
He pushed Felix away and embraced the tall woman, looking at her face that somewhat resembled both Linda and Aria, his
interest gradually rising.
“I want her!
“If not Aria, then I’ll have her!”
Felix watched as Larry acted wild on the dance floor. When he tried to intervene again, Larry impatiently said, “Felix, I’m not
drunk. Don’t meddle in my affairs.
“I have plenty of lovers. One more makes no difference. Coming to a nightclub is all about having fun.”
Felix completely gave up on trying to manage him.
So, if Aria wanted to separate from him, Larry truly deserved it.
Go ahead and make a mess. There would inevitably come a day of regret.
Felix abandoned him and walked away. As he left, he could still hear the surrounding men cheering and laughing, encouraging
Larry to take the woman to a hotel. Provoked by this, Larry embraced the woman and left.
Hotels were everywhere near the nightclub. Directly across from the exit was a luxury hotel.
