Chapter 27: I Don't Even Like him

In Regal Retreat.

Finally, the noise died down, and Charles started feeling a bit better.

He'd just tossed the phone on the nightstand, ready to hop into bed and snuggle up with his sweet, soft wife for a nap. Then, the phone buzzed again.

Luckily, Anna had put it on vibration last night.

Charles glanced at the screen. It was Aurora again. He looked from the screen to Anna, whose eyelashes were fluttering like she was about to wake up.

After a quick pause, he swiped his finger.

He declined Aurora's call.

Then, he turned off the phone's vibration mode and set it to full silence.

Only then did he gently slide into bed and wrap his arms around Anna.

As he lulled Anna back to sleep, Charles closed his eyes and dozed off too.

All the curtains in the main bedroom were drawn, blocking out any light. The dim room made it easy to lose track of time. When Anna woke up again, it was already four in the afternoon.

She groggily reached for her phone and lit up the screen. When she saw the time, her half-closed eyes popped wide open, and her mind cleared.

Anna sat up abruptly, staring at the eight missed calls from Aurora on the screen. She scratched her head and called Aurora back.

The call was answered after just one ring. Before Anna could speak, a roar came through the receiver.

"Anna! Why'd you unfriend me on Facebook?" Aurora yelled.

Anna was confused, "Who unfriended you on Facebook?"

Aurora was fuming, "You think I'm making this up? Go check for yourself and see if you unfriended me!"

Putting the call on speaker, Anna opened her Facebook contacts and found out Aurora was no longer her friend.

Thinking back on the day, Anna had a hunch. Rubbing her temples, she asked Aurora, "What did you send me?"

Aurora paused for a moment.

Then, her tone softened a lot. "Nothing much, just some pics of hot male escorts."

After saying this, Aurora realized what had happened without Anna needing to explain.

"So..." Her tone was a bit complicated, "Mr. Percy unfriended me on Facebook?"

Anna got out of bed and washed her face, praising, "Pretty smart."

Aurora didn't bother to argue with Anna anymore. She threw down her keyboard, leaned back in her swivel chair, and asked Anna, "Anya, aren't you and Mr. Percy just a couple in name only? Why's he even controlling your social life now?"

Anna dried her face and picked up her phone from the shelf. "He probably thinks the stuff you sent would make me cheat."

After glancing at the newspaper office where she had worked for years, Aurora told Anna, "Don't contact me for a while."

Then Aurora added, "I'm afraid I'll lose my job!"

With that, Aurora quickly hung up the phone.

If Charles had seen the messages Aurora sent to Anna at noon, Aurora felt that unfriending her on Facebook was already lenient.

As soon as Anna hung up the phone, Charles walked in.

Charles tossed his jacket on the sofa, "Hey, you're up?"

Anna nodded and then asked him, "Did you mess with my phone?"

Charles's face stayed cool as a cucumber.

"Your phone kept buzzing at noon, and the screen was lit up. I saw the websites and pics Aurora sent."

Anna couldn't help but laugh, finding his actions kinda childish. "So you unfriended her on my Facebook?"

Charles walked up and pinched her cheek. In a chill tone, he said, "She was trying to get my wife to cheat. Just unfriending her was me being nice."

Anna slapped his hand away and headed downstairs to get some water.

Seeing her leave without a word, Charles thought she was mad and quickly explained, "Don't be mad, babe. I only unfriended her on Facebook and didn't snoop around. Besides, Mrs. Percy looking at male escorts wouldn't look good if it got out."

The last sentence had a bit of a bite to it.

Anna turned to look at him and said calmly, "I'm just going downstairs for some water."

After that day, things between them eased up a lot, almost going back to the distant yet harmonious vibe they had when they first got hitched.

As batch after batch of clothes were delivered to Regal Retreat, the online gossip about when Charles and Anna would split up started to die down. In the next couple of days, all the rumors about Charles and Tina on social media also started to fade away.

Many people had seen Charles and Anna hitting up various luxury brands in the mall that day. With the recent shift in public opinion, a lot of netizens were saying they couldn't figure out what was going on with this couple.

That day, after staying home for two days, Tina hit up Neon Nights Bar.

Not to mention the curious onlookers outside; even Sawyer and the crew were pretty curious.

So, as soon as Tina walked in, Mark asked her, all gossipy, "Tina, you've been with Charles for so many years. While you were away filming, he married another woman. Aren't you jealous or pissed?"

Tina was taken aback. She gently swirled her wine glass, the red wine making a soft clinking sound against the glass.

She asked them back, "Why should I be jealous?"

Tina then added, "I don't even like him. What does it matter to me who Charles marries?"

Mark and Sawyer exchanged glances.

Ethan was the first to speak, "But you had so many rumors with Charles over the years. We all thought you two would end up getting married. You don't like him?"

Tina put down her wine glass and made a 'tiny bit' gesture with her thumb and pinky.

"There was a bit of a misunderstanding," she said. "You all know my mom didn't want me in the entertainment industry. Even though I've had some success, she still doesn't see my career as legit and keeps pushing me to go on blind dates."

Tina spread her hands helplessly.

"To get my mom off my back for a while, I had no choice but to put on a show with Charles."
Love Unforced
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