Chapter 6 Unrequited Love
It was Lavonne Avila, my bestie.
The second I answered, her excited voice came through. “Ralda! I’m back!”
“Really?”
These days, I had been down. But the news that she was back in the country brightened my mood instantly.
Ever since Lavonne went abroad three years ago, I had no one to talk to or to go shopping with. I missed her so much.
She said, “I’ve just landed. I’ll go back to freshen up for now. See you tonight!”
“OK!” I beamed.
After I hung up, I suddenly realized something.
My freedom had been limited; if I wanted to go out at night, I’d have to have Reynaldo’s permission.
Given how difficult he was now, I didn’t think he’d agree.
I was so irritated.
Forget it. I might as well wait till tonight.
I went to sleep, and it was already past 6:00 p.m. when I woke up.
Madisyn told me Reynaldo didn’t come back.
Meanwhile, Lavonne had already texted me the address of the pub, saying she was waiting for me there.
I wanted to go out, but then Reynaldo’s warning before he left echoed in my ears.
I literally couldn’t afford to upset my sugar daddy.
After pondering for a while, I decided to ask him when he’d be back.
Taking out my phone, I searched for a long time before finally finding our chat interface on WhatsApp.
Come to think of it, I didn’t recall taking the initiative to text him—not even once.
We had never chatted on WhatsApp, and there was only a system notification saying his friend request had been accepted on our chat interface.
I wondered if he was still using this account.
Thinking about it, I sent him a cute emoji.
To my surprise, he replied to me almost instantly. But all he texted was a question mark.
What did the question mark mean? Besides, was it really Reynaldo who texted me back? I meant … how did he manage to reply so soon?
I texted him back, “Reynaldo?”
Reynaldo replied, “Yeah.”
Gee!
It was him indeed. Maybe being a CEO wasn’t as busy as I had imagined.
I typed, “Can I go clubbing with my bestie tonight?”
As I was about to send it, I stopped.
Reynaldo had always hated it when I came to places such as pubs and clubs. In the past, he had no say, so he’d follow me to those places and then wait outside stubbornly.
Things had changed.
If I told him about my plan now, he’d probably kick me out.
Pondering, I texted, “When are you coming back?”
I even sent him another cute emoji.
He replied, “What is it? You weren’t satisfied last night and want some more?”
His answer made me cough violently.
I used to think he was meek and obedient, but now I realized he was actually cold and restrained. And when it came to texting, he actually sent me those flirtatious words so easily?
My face flushed uncontrollably as his fierce, greedy demeanor came flooding back to me.
I cursed under my breath, “A wolf in sheep’s clothing indeed!”
He called me suddenly when I was at a loss about how to reply to him.
My heart skipped a beat as I answered hurriedly.
Meanwhile, I realized something.
During our three years of marriage, we had never called each other.
It was hard to believe we were a married couple.
“Why did you ask me when I would be back tonight? What’s up?”
Reynaldo’s voice was flat and serious.
It almost made me wonder if he was indeed the person who had texted me.
Clearing my throat, I smiled fawningly, “Nothing big. I wanted to know because I was thinking about fixing something for you tonight.”
Though I said so, every cell in my body was praying he didn’t come back tonight.
“Reynaldo…”
As I was waiting for his response, I suddenly heard a woman’s voice.
I was stunned.
Was that his unrequited love?
He was with his unrequited love?
He said, “No need. I’ve eaten already. And don’t wait up tonight.”
“Oh… OK…”
I subconsciously nodded while hearing the busy tone.
He had already hung up.
Since he was with his beloved, presumably, he wouldn’t come back tonight.
I was supposed to be happy, but I wasn’t. Instead, I felt so upset.
Shaking my head, I got rid of those ridiculous thoughts, changed into a sexy long dress, and went out.
Reynaldo had his beloved, whereas I was merely his lover.
One day, he’d get sick of me or find retaliating against me no more fun, and he’d dump me.
So, I shouldn’t get any ideas.
After reminding myself of my place, I felt much better.
It wasn’t even 8:00 p.m., and the bar wasn’t at its liveliest yet.
Upon entering, I saw Lavonne waving at me happily.
She hadn’t changed, though it had been three years; she still had shoulder-length short hair, striking features, and always laughed heartily.
She always said she wasn’t the type who caught men’s attention.
On the contrary, I looked so delicate and charming; combined with my curves, I was men’s muse.
She had always firmly believed I was good enough to marry the best man in the world.
And of course, she was furious when I married Reynaldo, saying I could have married someone much better than him.
But now, Reynaldo had become the untouchable rising star in the business world, whereas I was his lover.
How things changed.
I couldn’t help but sigh with emotions.
“Ralda, I heard about what had happened to your family as soon as I came back.”
I came over, and Lavonne pulled me closer, saying worriedly, “Are you OK? If you need my help, just let me know.”
I smiled at her, “Don’t worry. Everything has been taken care of.”
But she insisted on stuffing me a card, saying there were 300 thousand dollars in it at my allocation.
I didn’t accept it.
I knew her family was rich, but she had a vicious stepmother, and life at home hadn’t been easy for her, so I couldn’t take her money.
She didn’t insist further, fuming, “I heard Reynaldo divorced you. Is it true?”
I was stunned.
It seemed Reynaldo had already spread the news about our divorce.
Nodding, I smiled nonchalantly, “Yeah.”
She was seething with rage. “What a bastard! How could he divorce you right after he got rich?”
“Or what?” Amused, I patted her back gently to calm her down. “I was so mean to him. I should be glad all he did was divorce me instead of getting back at me.”
I didn’t tell her Reynaldo wanted me to be his lover, or she’d be burning with rage.
She sighed, “Forget it. I never liked him anyway. Maybe the divorce is a good thing.”
Speaking, she blinked and grinned, “Hey, do you still have feelings for Winston?”
Before I could say anything, she continued excitedly, “I bumped into him when I got off the plane today. I invited him, and he should be here in any second now.”
I was stunned.
She invited Winston here?
“Ralda!”
