When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

Chapter 33: Missing from Your Bar

Julian Sterling didn’t know Hazel Hawthorne had been there. All he saw was Raina Lowell sniffling, so he announced, "Hey, this is the best a friend can do for you. I heard you and Aiden had a fight, so I took the liberty of calling Raina here to give you two a chance to reconcile."

Julian noticed Aiden Xavier’s expression was off. Raina Lowell was still sobbing, and the private room was dim. He thought he’d seen a woman walk out moments ago, but he hadn’t given it much thought, assuming it was just some barfly trying to hit on Aiden who’d been caught in the act by Raina.

To avoid any collateral damage, Julian thoughtfully sent all the other women out of the private room. When only the three of them remained, Julian still hadn’t grasped the gravity of the situation and even pulled Aiden down to sit.

He said softly, "If you and Raina have something to talk about, just talk it out. Don’t make the girl cry." After that, Julian turned to the sniffling Raina and said gently, "You should stop crying, too. Aiden only came to the bar to blow off some steam because he was in a bad mood after fighting with you."

Aiden, who had been standing to the side, glared furiously at Julian, who was still confidently playing the peacemaker. "Who told you to take it upon yourself to bring Raina to the bar?"

That wasn’t what Julian had expected to hear. His face went blank as he stared at Aiden. ’Could I have been wrong? Aiden didn’t come to the bar to blow off steam because of Raina? Is that why he’s so angry to see her here?’

A thought suddenly struck Julian. ’Don’t tell me Aiden was planning to leave with that woman from earlier, and I ruined his fun by calling Raina here?’

While Julian was still lost in his own wild theories, Raina started sobbing softly. "Julian, it’s not your fault Aiden’s so angry. Maybe I’m the one who shouldn’t be here. I should have stayed abroad... I never should have come back."

"Huh?" Julian was completely confused.

Aiden picked up his jacket from the sofa, about to go after Hazel. Raina must have sensed his intention, because she immediately rushed forward and grabbed his hand. "Aiden," she said, her voice full of hurt, "are you really going to leave me here all by myself?"

Aiden gave Raina a long, hard look, and for a split second, his resolve to leave wavered. But the memory of Hazel’s expression and words made him anxious. He could never seem to grasp what she was thinking, and it was incredibly frustrating.

Can we go home, please?" Raina, knowing she had made him hesitate, tried to seize the opportunity to lead him away and prevent him from going

Without a shred of

even grab his hand in time, could only watch as he bolted from the room. Julian was completely clueless

but not women who were always crying. Their tears just got on his nerves. Right now was a perfect example; he silently watched Raina weep, unsure what to do. He could only sit on the sofa and wait for her

*****

who had stopped her earlier happened to be standing nearby. Noticing her foul mood, he approached with a

She took the water and started drinking.

to pick him up, why call Raina over too? Did he do it on purpose? Did he want her to see how he and Raina acted together? To show her just how

fit of pique, she chugged the entire bottle of water, tossed the empty into a nearby trash can, and gave the can a

up, only for it to end like this. She should have just let Aiden rot here. What was the point of worrying

What fucking rotten luck!

this ever happened again, she

her, he still had

to get involved in

the parking garage. Once inside her car, she spent several minutes cursing Aiden out, but even that didn’t cool her anger. Her only regret was that the

a do-over, she wouldn’t use her hand.

security guard over and described her. "Did you see

guard’s eyes flickered evasively. He stammered, pointing in the opposite direction from where Hazel had actually gone. "I... I

The cars in their garage at home were all