Chapter 897: Chapter 897 The One He Loves is Back (Part 11)_1
Howard Coleman only felt his entire heart and lungs aching uncontrollably with every breath he took. His hand, gripping the chopsticks, suddenly shook, causing a glass beside him to topple onto the floor with a clear ringing sound.
At the quiet dinner table, everyone turned to look at Howard Coleman.
It was only then that Madeleine realized she might have steered the conversation into too sorrowful a territory. A hopeful thought sprouted at the bottom of her heart—could it be that Howard’s intense reaction was because of all the suffering she endured in Oceania?
But the flicker of hope that ignited in Madeleine’s heart hadn’t even taken shape when Howard collected himself, swallowed twice, and calmly offered a simple explanation, “I accidentally bumped it.”
Everyone remained silent, except for Rusell Henris, who pressed the call bell on the table, summoning a waiter to replace Howard’s glass with a new one.
So it was her own wishful thinking again… A hint of self-mockery rose within Madeleine; she was really deluding herself. Howard Coleman couldn’t wait to divorce her, to stay far away from her—how could he possibly feel any heartache for her suffering in Oceania?
Even though no one at the table knew of the change in her thoughts, Madeleine still strained to squeeze out a smile, as if to cover her own despondency and sorrow, saying, “Forget it, no matter what, I’ve survived, haven’t I? Now, aren’t I sitting right here in front of you?”
–
Throughout the rest of the dinner, Madeleine made great efforts to engage with others, sharing happy stories and laughing forcefully, until her face beca sowhat stiff. Yet, she desperately kept her lips uplifted.
Finally, it reached ten o’clock, and Madeleine, using her tiredness as an excuse, brought the farewell dinner prepared with so much care to a close.
Madeleine dragged her empty suitcase to her car and bid farewell to everyone standing outside.
She couldn’t bring herself to look directly at Howard Coleman, only when she started the car and drove a distance away did she allow herself a greedy glance through the rear-view mirror at Howard, who was standing by the road, talking to Rusell Henris with a cigarette between his fingers, occasionally taking a puff.
It was only when Howard’s figure disappeared from her rear-view mirror that Madeleine faced the road straight ahead, letting her body relax slightly.
No matter how much she loved Howard Coleman, no matter how much it hurt to see him, she had to pretend in front of them that she had let go of Howard, let go of the past.
Not for any other reason, but just in hopes that their relationships wouldn’t beco awkward due to her personal issues.
Even though she smiled bravely in their presence, her heart was filled with more sadness and distress.
In reality, she had many questions about Howard Coleman that she yearned to know, but she didn’t dare to ask, nor could she ask.
Was he doing well now? Had he and Anita Madris reconciled? Was he thinking of getting married?
–
Madeleine hadn’t returned ho for three and a half years. Instead of urging her to co back to work at Pristine’s Enterprises, Steve Burton gave her a few days off to adjust to the ti difference.
Madeleine slept soundly in her apartnt the next day, and on the third day, she returned to her family’s ho in the West Suburb Villa with gifts she brought back from Oceania.
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