Beyond the Divorce

A Pleasant Surprise

Ava seemed to cling to me more after the fall. She remained glued to me, and I could not move without her, which drove me crazy at times. Meanwhile, Matthew didn’t give me space to figure things out.

His work hours were punctual, and I had no room to pinpoint issues with him. Everything he brought back yielded no clues. I even began to question if I was hallucinating at times.

After finally putting Ava to sleep at noon, I realized we were out of fresh vegetables and fruits at home. Since Ava was fast asleep, I knew I had to rush to the market before she woke up.

The market was nearby, and I was too lazy to change my clothes, so I hurried out the door and aimed to return as quickly as possible. However, I was dumbfounded when I returned from buying groceries because I didn’t have my keys.

I pondered for a while and smacked my forehead in frustration because I must’ve forgotten to bring them when I left. I decided to call Matthew, and he answered in a hushed tone. Afterward, I explained the situation, and he responded, “I’m in a meeting and can’t leave. Get Mel to bring them to you.”

Another meeting? That excuse was consistent over the years. Since I had no choice, I called Melanie. She also had the spare keys, which would be perfect if I could get the ones she had borrowed.

The phone rang for quite some time before Melanie finally picked up. There was a lot of commotion in the background, and her voice came through, “Chloe, what’s up?”

“I forgot my keys at home. Can you bring yours to me?” Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

“I’m out right now and pretty busy. I can’t do it,” Melanie responded swiftly, and then she shouted to someone nearby, “Hey! Wait a moment!”

“Where are you? I can come and take them from you,” I sputtered, seeing a chance to retrieve my keys.

Before Melanie could reply, I heard someone talking to her on the other end, “Miss, can you come and see if the closet is—”

Then, the call ended abruptly.

Closet? What closet? I was puzzled and wondered what kind of closet she had to go and see. Melanie had always been pampered, and people always handed things to her. I couldn’t understand why she would need to inspect a closet.

I grumbled, “She must be up to no good again. She always lazes around and is only happy whenever she receives money.”

With the heavy bags of groceries in my hand, I couldn’t help but sigh as I leaned against the door helplessly. I feared Ava might wake up and get scared if she couldn’t find me. Ultimately, I decided to go to the company building.

So I set the groceries by the door and hurried to the office to get my keys. Since I would be there, I could also see if Mattew was telling the truth about being in a meeting.

When I entered the cab a while later, I rested my forehead in my hands and fell into deep thought. I wondered how I could go to the company in my home attire, but I had no other option.

After getting off the cab at Galar Tower, I looked at myself and laughed bitterly. I knew I had made a fool of myself and regretted not changing before leaving home. I felt embarrassed to walk into a place like this in my home clothes.

I called Matthew again after a momentary hesitation, hoping he could bring the keys downstairs and save me some dignity. However, he didn’t answer his phone, so I reluctantly entered the building.

Also, I had to be quick, or Ava would wake up, and I wouldn’t be home.

As expected, I received many curious glances once I entered the lobby. After all, these socialites always cared too much about appearances. I hurried to the front desk, hoping to get upstairs quickly, but quite a few people were registering for visitation.

I tried getting someone’s attention, but everyone ignored me. Ultimately, I patiently waited for the receptionist to finish with the other visitors before I said, “Hi, I need to go to the tenth floor, Tanum Corporation, to see Matthew Murphy.”

I got straight to the point this time, not waiting for any questions from the receptionist. However, the receptionist habitually asked, “Do you have an appointment?”

I felt the person behind the counter seemed familiar and realized she was the one who told me that Mr. Murphy and his wife had gone out that day. Just as I was about to speak, the receptionist’s face lit up with a brilliant smile.

She sweetly addressed someone behind me, “Mrs. Murphy, you’re here!”

Those words blew my mind, and I quickly turned to look at the person behind me.