Chapter 134
Then Explain
The message opened. It was sent just twenty minutes ago.
[Chloe, if you’re willing, can we meet for dinner tonight? I know I’m the last person who should be asking after what happened the last time. But if you come, you’ll understand everything. Everything I couldn’t say. Everything I couldn’t tell you then. And why I had to do everything I did.]
Chloe stared at Damian’s message for a long moment, her fingers hovering above the screen, her breath tight in her chest.
He had sent it twenty minutes ago, while she was with Mrs Laurent.
He wasn’t far, he wasn’t gone, he wasn’t cutting her off completely like he’d made it seem that day. This message showed that he wanted to see her. He wanted to talk. After three days of silence and the shock of hearing he had resigned, the message felt like a tiny crack of light slipping through a very heavy door.
What was she supposed to do with this text? Should she reply him or just ignore him? Should she go or just let him be like he’d said?
She swallowed, her throat dry, but before her mind could spiral again, she typed a simple reply:
[Fine. I hope it’s worth my time.]
No emojis. No extra words. Nothing that would show her heart was racing or that relief was quietly softening the ache inside her. She hit send, exhaled shakily, and then leaned back in her chair.
For the next few seconds, she didn’t move. He wanted to see her. He wanted to explain. But why now? Why after resigning? Why after hurting her? Perhaps, to apologize properly?
The questions lingered, but she shoved them aside. She couldn’t afford to fall apart at work. Not when the fashion event was so close. Not when she had just been handed the entire responsibility by Mrs. Laurent herself.
With a long breath, she turned to her laptop, opened her pending sketches, and forced her hands to move. Line by line, shade by shade, she worked. She reviewed the fabric notes, checked the finishing touches for two gowns, and even called a model to adjust fitting time. She did everything she normally did but her mind kept drifting back to the dinner again and again.
Every few minutes, she found her gaze flickering to the corner of her desk where her phone lay.
Maybe he would text again. Maybe he would cancel. Maybe he would change his mind. But the screen remained dark. He wasn’t canceling and neither was she.
No matter how hurt she was, she missed him and needed to see him even though it’s for the last time.
By early evening, she finally stopped working. The office lights had dimmed to their evening glow, and most teams had left for the day. Chloe rubbed her hands together, feeling the nerves slowly rising as reality settled into her skin.
She was going to finally see Damian. She picked up her phone and quickly typed to Bella:
[I’ll be home late tonight. Don’t wait up for me.]
Bella reply came almost instantly like she’d been holding her phone.
[Okay. Are you sure you’re fine?]
Chloe’s lips curved slightly.
[Yes. Promise.]
She wanted to send that but when she remembered what Bella had said the other day, she decided to tell Bella where she was headed so she quickly added, “Damian wants to talk so I’m meeting up with him.”
Immediately Bella called her. Chloe smiled as she picked up.
“You didn’t have to call,” Chloe said, shaking her head.
Bella sighed. “I had to make sure you’d be fine going to talk to him.”
“I’ll be fine. I wouldn’t want to go if I wouldn’t be able to handle myself. What about Jake? When did he leave?” Chloe remembered to ask.
But that wasn’t Bella’s problem. “He left when he realized I wasn’t going to see him no matter how long he stayed.”
Chloe couldn’t help feeling sorry for not just Bella but for Jake too. But she knew Bella would need time. “Take all the time you need, Bell. I’ll see you at home. Bye!”
She sighed and hung up, slipping the phone into her bag.
After tidying her desk and closing her sketchbook, she stood, grabbed her bag, and shrugged on her coat. Each step out of the office felt strangely heavy. There was nervousness. There was curiosity. There was that secret, unwanted flicker of excitement she tried desperately to shut down but somehow failed to.
She walked through the parking lot, got into her car, and input the restaurant address Damian had sent. Her GPS lit up, guiding her forward.
The drive felt longer than usual. The sky outside was deep blue with streaks of silver clouds drifting lazily across it. Streetlights flickered on one by one. The city buzzed softly beneath her car windows. Yet all she could think about was him. What he wanted to say, why he had insisted they meet, and why he had left StoneTech so suddenly even though Mrs Laurent had given an explanation.
By the time she pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot, her heart was in her throat.
The place was warm, quiet, and softly elegant; the kind of spot Damian would choose. The lights glowed golden through the large windows. She stepped out of her car, adjusted her bag, and inhaled deeply.
Then she saw him.
Damian was already seated at a corner table by the window, a glass of water in front of him. He wore a dark shirt, sleeves rolled up, and he looked… tired. Not physically worn-out, but emotionally drained, like someone carrying a weight he had not been able to set down for days.
As her eyes landed on him, a mix of relief and irritation shot through her. For a split second, she was glad he was here, alive, and well, and not deciding to avoid her forever.
Then she remembered everything. How he’d started avoiding her that morning. His harsh words when she’d gone to demand an explanation and then his sudden disappearance afterwards.
Her footsteps slowed. Her face cooled. The small hint of softness in her eyes faded as she slipped back into her protective anger.
Damian stood the moment he saw her. “Chloe, you’re here.”
She stopped at the edge of the table, her expression unreadable. “What do you want to talk about?”
He blinked at her bluntness but didn’t shy away. “Thank you… for coming.”
She didn’t sit. “I heard you resigned.”
His jaw tensed slightly. “I did. That’s part of what I wanted to explain.”
“Then explain.” She crossed her arms. “I didn’t drive all the way here to watch you sip water.”