Chapter 418 There Won't be a Wedding
Chloe bit her lip, looking all kinds of conflicted. "Yeah, I picked up the phone," she said.
Andrew's face was like a storm cloud. "Why the hell didn't you tell me?" he snapped.
Chloe just stared at him, kinda lost. Why didn't she tell him?
Because he was her husband, it was their wedding day, and she had to ditch him for some other chick?
It was so obvious, but Andrew just couldn't see it. He was way too hung up on that kid.
And now, should she always have to confront the issues arising from Andrew's past relationship? Not just her, but her whole family was on edge.
Chloe felt the tears coming.
Andrew, standing right there, couldn't miss it. But he was too worried Celeste might go off the deep end and do something crazy.
Andrew's lips twitched.
Adeline knew him too well. She felt bad for Chloe!
She looked at Luke's parents and said, "We get it, but this is a legal thing now. How about we call the cops? Andrew's getting married today, for crying out loud."
Adeline felt like she was cursed.
Luke's parents were all teary-eyed. "We did! But Celeste won't back down unless she sees Andrew."
They dropped to their knees in front of Andrew again. "Andrew, for Luke's sake, go see Celeste! Even if it's just for Luke's life! We're begging you."
The room went dead silent. Everyone was waiting for Andrew to make a move.
They knew today couldn't go south; they couldn't afford the embarrassment.
Patrick and Frederick looked serious. But they kept quiet for Chloe's sake. They knew her well.
Andrew helped the Devereux elders up, gave Chloe a quiet look, and said softly, "I'll go and come back to finish the wedding."
He couldn't bring himself to blame her.
Chloe, in her wedding dress, stood in the middle of the hall.
Gavin was right next to her, holding onto her leg.
Chloe's face was pale. She reached up and let her hair down, saying calmly, "There won't be a wedding!"
Andrew frowned. "Chloe, don't be ridiculous!"
Chloe gave a faint smile. She looked down and gently stroked her son's hair.
"I'm serious, Andrew. You're not someone I can hold onto. Whether you save Molly or get back with Celeste, or even marry her since the Devereux Mansion is all decked out today, I don't care! Andrew, a marriage of three is too crowded. If you can't be all in, then I don't want this marriage anymore!"
Chloe's tears fell. She didn't sob, just looked at Andrew like that.
She had loved him for so long. Through the worst times, she never thought of giving up on him.
But on their wedding day, she wanted to give up completely because of a phone call!
Andrew's fists clenched, his face tight with control. "I will come back!"
She just gave a faint smile.
Adeline was shaking with rage.
She stepped up and slapped Andrew, saying sharply, "Andrew, if you walk out of here, I will take Chloe and Gavin and never come back! You've really outdone yourself, trying to be fair to everyone but betraying Chloe and your son! Haven't you done enough to her over the years?"
She was crying her eyes out.
But even that didn't stop Andrew. He was all about saving that kid.
As Andrew left, he took one last look at Chloe, asking her to wait for him.
Charlotte called out, "Andrew!"
He paused, eyes red, but kept going.
Charlotte closed her eyes, feeling the weight of it all.
Frederick held her up, supporting her shaky frame.
The Devereux Mansion was a total mess.
At that moment, Chloe felt a weird sense of relief, maybe 'cause she saw it coming.
She had dreamed for years of being Mrs. Devereux, but she only got to be Mrs. Devereux for one day.
There were tons of guests, and the Hawkins family had a big rep.
Chloe didn't want to shame her family.
She turned to Adeline, "Adeline, I wanna go home."
Adeline's tears flowed instantly. She kept cursing Andrew, softly begging Chloe to wait a bit longer.
"No more waiting!" Chloe smiled faintly through her tears.
She picked up Gavin and walked over to Patrick and Frederick, looking as cautious as a kid who just got caught doing something bad. "Dad, Frederick, I'm sorry for embarrassing you!"
Patrick felt awful. But he cared most about Chloe's feelings.
He patted her hair and said, "Our family can support you! Not just our daughter, we take good care of Charlotte too! Every kid in our family is well taken care of."
Chloe felt like bawling. She threw herself into Laura's arms.
Frederick was the man for the job. Andrew left, but he couldn't just bail.
Charlotte was stuck in the middle, feeling the worst.
So he said to Patrick, "Dad, Mom, you take Chloe and the kids back to Syeattel, and Charlotte and I will stay."
Patrick agreed.
He looked at Charlotte and said, "Don't take it to heart! Chloe still sees you as her sister-in-law!"
Charlotte gave a bitter smile.
Even though it was chaos, with Frederick there, it was still under control.
Guests were sent off one by one. By the time he was done, it was already afternoon.
Frederick wasn't even hungry. He stood in the courtyard and lit a cigarette.
After quietly smoking, he walked into the small courtyard where Adeline was staying.
Charlotte was with Adeline.
Adeline was really torn up. Her only son, over forty, had finally settled down, and his wife was from such a good family and was so sweet. Yet now things gone badly wrong.
Adeline lay in bed, unable to get up.
The doctor had come twice.
Frederick pushed the door open. Adeline was saying she wanted to kick Andrew out of the house.
Charlotte was gently comforting her.
Frederick walked over quietly.
He bent down and asked softly, "Have you and Adeline had lunch?"
Charlotte shook her head.
Frederick gently patted her shoulder. "You're carrying an extra passenger, so make sure you eat enough for both of you. You go have someone prepare food, and I'll comfort Adeline."
Charlotte whispered, "I'm afraid she can't be comforted!"
Frederick lightly tapped her nose.
Charlotte then got up and left.
The butler instructed the servants to get to work.
Everyone was silent, heads down.
Seeing Charlotte come out, the butler forced a smile. "Charlotte, how's Adeline?"
Charlotte said, "Frederick's with her. Let's get the meal going."
The butler nodded.
No matter what, they still had to eat.
This whole mess ended in tragedy.
Meanwhile, Celeste stood on the rooftop with Molly, and the Devereux elders, ignoring everyone else, went up there.
They wanted to save their son's only kid.
In the end, they all went down with Celeste.
When Molly fell, she got caught on a sunshade on the 20th floor and was rescued.
But after all that, she never spoke again. Over time, she lost her ability to talk.
Celeste died, and Luke's parents were gone too.
Amid the blood and the crowd, Andrew gently picked up Molly. She clung to him, her small face pressed against his, trembling all over.
She was now an orphan.
The reporters blew up the story, making it all dramatic.
Andrew brought Molly home.
If he didn't take her in, she'd end up in an orphanage, and with her background, who knows what kind of future she'd have.
When Andrew got back to the Devereux Mansion, he still had bloodstains on him.
He carried Molly into the backyard, where it was quiet, with just a few servants cleaning up.
Andrew asked hoarsely, "Where's Chloe?"
The servant, head down, said, "Chloe went back to Syeattel with Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins. Charlotte and Frederick stayed, and Adeline's been unwell; the doctor's been here a few times."
Andrew felt a tightness in his chest.
He then carried Molly to the small courtyard.
Pushing the door open, Adeline was lying down, with Frederick and Charlotte comforting her.
Andrew walked in.
Adeline sat up, staring at Andrew and the kid in his arms. She felt that Adeline was beyond saving.
This kid was pitiful, sure. But wasn't her own grandson Gavin pitiful too?
Gavin was already in school; how many days had Andrew actually been a responsible father to him?
Adeline pointed at him and said sternly, "Why did you come back? You ignore your wife and son; why come back here?"
Andrew placed Molly on the sofa.
He walked to Adeline's bedside and knelt down.
He didn't say anything in his defense because he knew he had wronged Chloe, that he had abandoned her.
Adeline didn't look at him.
Andrew only asked Adeline to go to Syeattel.
Adeline sneered. "After today's mess, I can't face anyone!"
Andrew stayed kneeling.
Charlotte, feeling soft-hearted, wanted to ask him to get up.
Frederick patted her hand.
He smiled faintly and said, "Andrew, you don't have to do this. Chloe made it clear before she left; from now on, you and she are done."
Andrew's face turned pale.
Frederick's tone softened a bit. "No one in the Hawkins family blames you. It's just that you and Chloe really aren't meant to be."
Molly sensed it. She stared at Andrew, her beautiful eyes losing their brightness.
Andrew carried Molly and slowly walked out.
He knew Adeline wouldn't accept this child. And if he wanted to make things right with Chloe, he couldn't keep Molly at the Devereux Mansion.
Andrew took Molly to Syeattel.
He bought a small villa, settled her in, and hired two servants to take care of her.
He felt a ton of guilt towards Chloe.
When he saw her again, it was three days later.
She wasn't staying at their place but had temporarily moved back to the Hawkins Mansion, where Patrick and Laura were taking good care of Gavin.
Andrew caught up with her at the film set.
In April, she wore a light green dress, looking young and stunning.
She was chatting and laughing with a young actor on set.
The guy in his twenties looked at her with admiration. Maybe Chloe would have avoided it before, but now that she was single, she had no reason to dodge anyone's attention.
Andrew sat in the black car, quietly watching.
Nathan was getting antsy for him. "It's lunchtime now; you should go and ask her out for a meal!"
Andrew opened the car door and got out.
When he stood in front of Chloe, she seemed surprised but quickly regained her cool.
Everyone around was also looking at Andrew.
Andrew's gaze was intense. "Let's go eat."
He thought she would make a scene, but Chloe agreed easily. She gently brushed her beautiful long hair, said goodbye to her colleagues, and got into the car with Andrew, no assistant needed.
As soon as she sat down, Nathan tried to lighten the mood. "Chloe, you look so beautiful today! I bet Andrew has never seen a girl prettier than you."
Chloe fastened her seatbelt.
She looked at Andrew and smiled lightly. "What hasn't Andrew seen?"
Nathan was stumped.
Andrew's face didn't look great, but he still asked gently, "What do you want to eat?"
Chloe said, "Whatever.".
When she said that, she seemed way more carefree than on the wedding day, like the short three days had already healed her pain, and this relationship no longer mattered to her.
This realization made Andrew feel awful.
But he held back because he wanted to have a good talk with her.
Whether by chance or not, they went to the same restaurant they used to go to, even the same private room.
There, Andrew had once given her a talisman.
Chloe's eyes were moist, but she held back and quickly returned to normal.
Andrew was very gentle and considerate.
Chloe ate comfortably, neither of them bringing up the unpleasant wedding, maybe both thinking about how to start the conversation.
Andrew didn't eat much.
Midway, he took out a cigarette and lit it.
Chloe said softly, "My throat hasn't been well lately; please put it out."
Andrew extinguished the cigarette.
But his hand gently wrapped around her slender neck, asking softly, "Chloe, have you cried a lot?"
He clearly wanted to talk.
Chloe gently put down her fork.
She looked at the delicate cups and plates in front of her, dazed for a moment, and said, "Yeah, I've cried a lot, but no matter how much I cry, it won't change our outcome."
Andrew whispered, "Celeste is dead."
Chloe knew what he meant.
She shook her head gently. "Andrew, whether she's dead or not, it doesn't change my decision. It's not that I don't love you anymore, but I don't intend to have you anymore."
Andrew's fingers trembled slightly, and he took out another cigarette.
But he didn't light it.
Chloe looked up, her eyes both sour and bitter, but she still smiled and said, "We have a marriage certificate. Andrew, when do you want to change it?"
She meant divorce.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
