Chapter 29 The third party?
She didn’t mind Caleb joining them for dinner; after all, in her mind, Caleb was the person who had once supported her financially. She was just curious as to why he suddenly wanted to come for dinner. Just today at the police station entrance, he had seemed like he wanted to avoid her.
Shirley handed the phone to Leila, allowing them to talk directly.
Taking the phone, Leila spoke softly, “Mr. Mitchell.”
Hearing Leila’s voice, Caleb paused for a moment, then switched to speakerphone. “Is everything sorted out at the police station?”
Leila replied, “Yes, just finished.”
Caleb didn’t directly ask Leila what had happened on the phone. It wasn’t that he was afraid Leila wouldn’t tell him; he was intentionally keeping Mason on hold. “Is it okay? Shirley said you guys are having a barbecue tonight, I can buy the ingredients and you can cook.”
Leila responded, “My cooking skills are just average. If you don’t mind, you can come over. I’ll buy the ingredients.”
Caleb chuckled. “I can’t show up empty-handed.”
Leila replied, “I already owe you a lot.”
With Leila saying that, Caleb couldn’t refuse anymore. He smiled and said, “Then I’ll bring some drinks.”
“Okay, I’ll send you the address later.”
After hanging up, Leila sent the address to Caleb.
Shirley leaned in, “Is Caleb really coming for dinner?”
Leila nodded. “Yeah.”
Shirley wondered, “Why all of a sudden?”
Leila couldn’t figure out the answer to Shirley’s question either. She lowered her voice and pretended to scare her, “Maybe he regrets not charging you for the car?”
Shirley jumped, stammering, “No, that’s… that’s impossible, right?”
“Who knows.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t come to your place for dinner today. Let’s do it another day…” Thinking about the four to five million in damages, Shirley couldn’t finish her sentence properly.
Seeing that Shirley was genuinely scared, Leila gently flicked her forehead. “You really believe that?”
Shirley realized Leila was teasing her and pretended to scratch her.
As they laughed and prepared to get into the car, a familiar male voice came from behind, “Leila.”
It was Hunter.
Hunter looked extremely disheveled. The neatly pressed suit he used to wear was now wrinkled, and even his chin was covered in stubble.
The once confident young man had become a mediocre man who had lost both in his career and in love.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.
“Leila, what happened today was my mom’s fault. I’ll make her apologize to you later.”
As Hunter spoke, he looked guilty and took out a pack of tissues from his pocket, trying to wipe Leila’s face.
Leila stepped back, her back against the car door. “No need.”
Seeing Leila avoiding him, Hunter tightened his grip on the tissues in his hand. After about seven or eight seconds, he took a step forward, avoiding Shirley, and whispered with a voice only the two of them could hear, “Is that Mason your lover? Acting innocent in front of me, saying that you must wait until marriage to have sex. But with Mason, you’re having car sex?”
Hunter thought those two sentences would intimidate Leila. He knew she cared about her reputation and would never allow such a thing to be spread. Although he knew Leila had sex with Mason against her will and heard about her being drugged, those were not his focus now. He wanted to use Leila’s vulnerability to make her submit.
But he never expected that after he finished speaking, she would just casually glance at him and say, “Are you done?”
Leila continued, “You’re right. Mason is my lover. I didn’t want to have sex with you before marriage, but with him, I didn’t even need a room, just the car. So what’s your point?”
Hunter gritted his teeth. “Say that again.” He never imagined Leila’s response would be like this.
Leila looked at Hunter, who was about to explode in anger, mockingly. “Even if I say it a thousand times, it won’t change. What? Are you going to hit me?”
She then lifted her chin at him. “Remember, the police station is right behind you. I’ve already sent two people there recently, and I wouldn’t mind adding one more.”
Hunter was furious. “Just wait and see.”
Leila replied calmly, “I’ll be waiting.”
As Hunter trembled with anger, his phone rang. He took a step back, pulled out his phone from his pocket, and answered the call. The person on the other end said something, and Hunter impatiently replied, “I’m already here. Stop rushing me…”
With that, Hunter gave Leila a fierce look and walked away.
Shirley approached. “What did he say just now?”
Leila replied coldly, “He is crazy.”
Shirley said, “I almost couldn’t hold back from hitting him just now.”
Leila turned to open the car door. “People like him aren’t worth your time.”
Shirley circled around the car and got into the passenger seat. “So, are you just going to let him off like this?”
Leila calmly replied, “The best way to get revenge on someone isn’t to get back at him by the means you find most underhanded, but by the means he finds most underhanded. After all, a good man can’t think of dirty tricks.””
“Good point.”
As the car drove off, Shirley asked again, “Have you figured out how you’re going to get back at him?”
Leila responded, “He cares most about power. When we were together, he hated it when people mentioned his background, talked about his hometown… I want to see him ruined and his reputation destroyed.”
Shirley nodded approvingly. “Impressive. You can’t be soft on people like him.”
An hour later, they arrived home carrying the groceries they bought.
Leila took a quick shower, not even bothering to blow dry her hair, and immediately started marinating the meat for barbecue.
The doorbell rang.
Shirley went to answer it, and as soon as she opened the door, her smile froze on her face.
“Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Ramirez…”
Caleb looked at her. “Can we come in??”
Shirley forced a smile and reluctantly stepped aside. “Please come in…”
Shirley hurried into the kitchen and discreetly pinched Leila’s waist, lowering her voice. “Mason.”
Leila didn’t catch what she said and turned around. “What?”
By now, Mason had already reached the kitchen doorway. Unable to speak directly, Shirley just kept signaling desperately to Leila.
Just as Leila was about to ask again, Mason, standing at the doorway, spoke in a low voice, “Need any help?”
After about half a minute, Leila took a deep breath and turned around. “Mr. Ramirez.”
Mason rolled up his shirt sleeves, revealing muscular forearms. “Need a hand?”
Leila smiled gently. “No, thank you for your offer. You and Mr. Mitchell can sit for a while. It’ll be ready soon.”
Mason’s gaze fell on her slightly damp hair. “Let me handle this, why don’t you go blow-dry your hair?”
Leila politely declined, “It’s really not necessary. Thank you for your kindness.”
Leila’s refusal was firm, fearing any deeper involvement with Mason.
Seeing this, Mason didn’t insist further and nodded before turning to leave for the living room.
Caleb chuckled and glanced at Mason. His voice lowered a bit. “I thought you didn’t like her? Why so eager to see her?”
“That was just being polite.”
“Polite? Or listening to your heart?”
Mason shot Caleb a look, his expression unreadable. “I still haven’t settled the score with you for impersonating me.”
Caleb was guilty of that. He rubbed his nose and changed the subject. “This apartment might be small, but it’s cozy.”…
In less than twenty minutes, they were all enjoying the barbecue.
Caleb praised the food incessantly after a few bites. “This is so yummy.”
Leila, upon hearing this, willingly served Caleb some beef she had just grilled. “Beef might taste even better.”
“Thank you, I’ll try it,” Caleb said as he forked a piece of beef toward his mouth. Suddenly, he sensed a cold, sharp gaze on him.
Turning his head, Caleb handed the meat to Mason instead. “Actually, I’m not a big fan of beef. Mason, why don’t you try it?”
Mason’s expression remained neutral as he took the beef and tasted it. “Tastes good.”
Leila and Shirley across the table observed their interaction clearly.
Shirley knew Leila wanted to distance herself from Mason. She said, “Leila, don’t forget to bring my brother home this Saturday.”
Leila’s hand paused mid-grill, meeting Shirley’s gaze.
“Okay.”
Under the table, Caleb nudged Mason’s leg with his knee, silently asking: [What’s going on? You turned into the third party, again?]