A Beautiful Misunderstanding

Chapter 56 His Ex

Valery had been Leila's rival in love for a decade now. Valery was arranged to be married to Zac, and she flaunted her engagement to him like a badge of honor. Now, Valery had her claws so deeply sunk in every aspect of Zac's life that he could never cleanly sever ties with her. That was the reason why Zac was forced to leave Dragon City: to escape her clutches.

"Let's talk about it later," Zac said in a cold tone, evidently reluctant to discuss the other woman. Leila dared not ask any more, but she guessed that he knew nothing about the situation, or he would have gone back long before then.

Marci took a glance at her nephew and inwardly sighed, keeping silent.

She had always said that Zac and Valery's relationship was a toxic one.

At the bar counter... NôvelDrama.Org holds text © rights.

As soon as she returned from the restroom, Essie asked for another glass of Bloody Mary. She studied Zac over the rim of her drink as she took a sip.

He and Leila seemed to be enjoying their conversation. In general, Zac was indifferent to women, but he was close to Leila. Evidently, Leila occupied a very special place in his heart. To Zac, she was probably unforgettable. Maybe their relationship was in the past, but nothing was stopping them from getting back together any time now.

Essie suddenly felt a weird sensation in her chest. Was the cocktail too sour? She did not want to dwell on the feeling, so she finished her drink silently.

She stepped away from her seat and did not come back for some time. On his way to the men's room, Zac passed by the bar counter and saw her.

Zac approached her, saying with some amusement, "Did you really think that I wouldn't allow you to drink, so that you had to hide here and knock back your wine in secret?"

"Yes. Do you have any problem with that?" she sniped back at Zac, her nose wrinkled in anger. 'Go back to sweet-talking your ex-girlfriend and leave me alone!' She really did not know why she was in such a strange, horrible mood. Eventually, she decided to attribute it to the two thousand dollars that just went down the drain.

How humiliating!

Zac leaned against the counter beside her. "You can drink as much as you want. I'll accompany you." He lightly ruffled her hair and ordered a glass of zero degree cocktail. It looked like he had no intention of letting her nurse her drink alone.

She was slightly confused at his action. Her heavy eyelashes flashing, she asked him, "Will you be going home tonight?"

He lowered his head to smile at her and answered slowly and carefully, as if talking to a drunk person or a child, "If I don't go home, where will I sleep?"

His ex-girlfriend had finally returned. Shouldn't he celebrate with his ex-lover and rekindle flames or something?

She raised her eyebrows in confusion. Zac was as unfathomable as the deepest sea and hid just as many secrets.

"I'm going back." She picked up her glass and headed back to where Zac's aunt was seated. Staying by the bar for too long would be too impolite toward the older woman.

Noticing how she was weaving on her feet, Zac quickly reached out a hand to help her, but she swatted it away. "No, thank you, I can walk by myself." If his ex-girlfriend saw Zac acting like that toward her, she might misunderstand again. She didn't want the other woman to blame her.

Sitting on the sofa, Zac poured Essie a glass of iced water. The cold drink quickly sobered her up.

The sight of the two of them left a sour taste in Leila's mouth. Hiding her churning thoughts behind a gracious smile, Leila turned to Zac.

"What does Miss Essie do?" she asked him in a low voice. As the saying goes, "Know the enemy and yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat."

"Fashion design." Essie had a polite smile on her face. Even so, she could tell that Leila was none too pleased because of her misreading the situation between her and Zac.

Leila slightly nodded and took a sip of the red wine, and her bright red lips shone like wine-soaked cherries. "Zac, after coming back home, I started working at aunt Marci's publication. I'm in charge of the magazine's newly established 'Women and Jewelry' section." She tried to draw his attention back to her.

"You did major in jewelry design, after all. That work suits you well," Zac replied in a careless tone, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"We have a jewelry show at the end of the month, so I will be staying here for some time. You wouldn't mind if I go and disturb you every once in a while, would you?"

She flashed a bright smile at Zac, her beautiful eyes curving like crescent moons.

Zac shrugged his shoulders and did not reply. To Essie, however, his response looked very much like acquiescence. She would have to resign herself to welcoming this visitor at home every now and then.

After chatting some more, Marci glanced at her watch and remarked on the lateness of the hour. She decided to head back to the hotel first, so Zac stood up and saw her off.

Before she got into the car, she patted her nephew on the shoulder and said, "I'm going back to Dragon City tomorrow. As for your matter in Yang City, I can keep your secret for now, but you can't run away from it forever. Valery practically turned the world upside down in order to find you. You have to give her an answer—after all, she is pregnant..."