Chapter 138 I Hope You Won't Disturb Our Lives
Her arrival instantly captured the attention of the three.
Seeing her walk through the door, Mr. Murphy felt a huge sense of relief come over him, but it was tinged with a gnawing concern. He wondered if Daphne still cared for the man. If she did, Charles's presence was like twisting a knife in her heart, exacerbating her pain.
"Sis!" Lydia's eyes were brimming with concern for Daphne.
Daphne strode over, ruffled Lydia's hair, and then faced Charles, articulating each word with precision, "There's the door. Don't expect a farewell."
"We're not done here. How can I leave?" Charles's tone remained steady, but his gaze lingered momentarily on her business attire.
In that instant, a single thought dominated his mind. Daphne was truly meant for the cutthroat world of business.
"There's nothing to discuss," Daphne declared with finality from the get-go, "I told you at our divorce that a decent ex should be as good as dead to me."
"I'm an exceptional ex-husband," Charles retorted calmly, still watching her, "dead and resurrected."
Daphne was at a loss for words. 'How had he become so shamelessly brazen?'
Ignoring her visibly repelled expression, Charles turned to Mr. Murphy and Lydia. "Father-in-law and sister-in-law, I'd like a word with Daphne in private. Would you mind giving us some space?"
Mr. Murphy's gaze instinctively sought out his darling Daffy. If his precious daughter wanted him to leave, he would; if not, he wouldn't budge.
"You guys go rest. I'll come down after we've talked," Daphne decided, intending a private conversation.
"Sis..." Lydia murmured, her voice tinged with worry.
Daphne gave her a reassuring glance: "It's okay, go ahead, go downstairs."
Lydia had always followed Daphne's lead. Reluctantly, she turned and left, constantly looking back; Mr. Murphy did the same. He wanted to stay.
After all, as the elder, his presence might have curbed Charles's audacity. But if Daffy asked him to leave, he would.
Afterward, the room was left with only Daphne and Charles.
She stood there, her aura prickly with defiance, "What do you really want?"
"Reconciliation," he replied.
"That's impossible," she rebutted.
"You're free to make any demands," Charles spoke, his thin lips parting slightly—just like on the day they divorced, "but you don't have a choice in this matter."
Listening to his confident tone, Daphne questioned, "Really?"
"Yes."
Charles's assertion was decisive. His presence, expression, and gaze all conveyed an unshakable conviction that he could win Daphne back.
"Charles, you really should take a good look at yourself in the mirror," Daphne's tone was unexpectedly aloof. "Do you know what you look like right now? Stubborn and conceited. Do you think everyone should act according to your own ideas?"
She couldn't understand. Why was this man so confident that she would reconsider the marriage?
"Not at all," Charles responded indifferently, as if her words didn't faze him in the slightest.
Daphne no longer wanted to engage in conversation with him.
Noticing her silence, Charles stood up, his long legs accentuated by the tailored suit pants. He began to walk towards Daphne, his presence enveloping her.
She frowned subconsciously.
"I was wrong about what happened before, and I'm here to sincerely apologize," Charles spoke deliberately, his voice smooth and steady, "I'm sorry."
"And then?" Daphne remained unmoved. She didn't think that a simple apology could rectify everything that had happened.
Charles spoke up, "Unblock me."
"Charles," she called out his name.
"Yes?"
"Are you genuinely remorseful, or are you just curious about me?" Daphne pierced through his façade, her eyes calm and clear, "Because of my status, my hacking skills, and... that poker hand that ended up at the Austin estate."
She had seen Charles show signs of affection for her, and although it was not deep enough to be called love, it was certainly more than what had been on display earlier.
Earlier, there was no affection in his gaze, only purpose. Having heard her say this, Charles dropped the act.
Over the past few days, Mark had discovered Daphne's incident at the hotel and the fact she'd been ganged up on. But as they were about to identify the mastermind, the issue ended abruptly.
The person implicated had no connection to Daphne whatsoever, and even with evidence pointing his way, it didn't seem credible to them.
He went back to the seat and got down to business, "Is there some other identity of yours I'm not aware of?"
"What's it to you?" she answered sarcastically.
"It seems that there might be," he replied.
Daphne didn't take the bait.
She had no idea what was going through Charles' head or what his real intentions were, and frankly, she didn't care.
"Let's pretend to be a couple, and we can work together," Charles suggested, his handsome features that seemed to be favored by divine providence and were undeniably attractive, "to find out who was behind the assault and set you up at the hotel."
Daphne declined, "No need."
"Daphne!" upset with her defiance, he called out to her.
"If I'm not with you, these things wouldn't happen."
Charles caught the crucial information in her concise response, "What do you mean?"
"The beating, the hotel set-up, Kayla's car accident, the loss of innocence," Daphne laid it out for him clearly for the first time, "There's only one explanation for all these events."
"What?" he questioned.
"These incidents, they've all been orchestrated by the same person. Someone who's trying to take out anything deemed as a threat to you—because they have feelings for you."
Daphne truly despised these manipulations and had no interest in engaging with them at all. Rather than deal with the drama, she'd prefer to make more money and catch up on some sleep.
Charles looked puzzled. Finally, it dawned on him. "What? Impossible," he blurted out almost instantaneously.
His whole life, he had barely interacted with any women other than Daphne and Kayla. His circle of friends consisted almost exclusively of guys.
Seeing how certain he was, she realized he was still the same old Charles, the one who never took her advice to heart.
"I've said what I needed to say, and after this, I don't want to see you again," Daphne declared, truly not wanting any further entanglement with him, "and I hope you won't disrupt our lives."
"Just unblock me first," Charles insisted.
Daphne couldn't be bothered to argue. She took out her phone and unblocked his WhatsApp contact and phone number, her tone flat. "There, done."
Upon hearing this, Charles gave it a try. The messages went through and calls connected. Although he had achieved his goal, he couldn't understand why it hurt to see Daphne's distant and indifferent demeanor. It was an indescribable feeling as if he had lost something vital for good.
"Can I go now?" Daphne asked.
"This whole act was just to get rid of me?" Charles's emotions surged, and his previous restraint vanished in that moment.
Daphne was always forthright. "What else? Did you think I had forgiven you, hoping we'd go back to the way things were?"
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