CHAPTER 246
At the villa, Arianna took a leisurely walk with Grandma King after dinner, then spent an hour watching the old lady’s favourite TV show. Once the episode ended, she helped the Grandma King back to her room for some rest.
Arianna returned to her room shortly after. She took a shower, dried her hair, and went through her nightly skincare routine. After wrapping up a call with the nurse, she glanced at the clock—it was already past ten, and Xander still hadn’t come home.
How much work could he possibly have?
Arianna considered checking in on him. Opening WhatsApp, she quickly typed out a message and hit send.
[Still at work, Xander?]
Minutes passed with no response. Arianna frowned slightly.
Though it was getting late, she found it difficult to sleep. Perhaps it was the unanswered message weighing on her mind.
Settling back against the headboard, Arianna decided to distract herself by diving into a book she’d recently bought on news broadcasting. With the first round of the competition approaching, she needed to focus on her preparation.
Engrossed in the material, she lost track of time. When her eyes started to ache, she blinked and glanced at the clock. It was nearing midnight—over an hour had passed since she’d sent Xander that message, and there was still no reply.
Did Xander’s work keep him so busy that he couldn’t even spare a moment to check his phone?
Arianna set her book aside and reached for her phone, debating whether she should call him. Just as she was about to make the call, her phone suddenly rang.
Her initial thought was that Xander had finally noticed her message and was calling back, but when she glanced at the caller ID, she saw Rochelle’s name instead.
Arianna blinked in surprise. Rochelle typically wouldn’t call this late unless something important had happened.
Her heart quickened with concern as she quickly answered, "Chelle? Is something wrong?"
On the other end of the line, Rochelle's familiar, husky voice came through, but instead of answering the question, she asked,
"Still awake?"
"Yeah… but why are you asking me that?" Arianna replied, puzzled by the odd inquiry.
Rochelle wasn’t one to make casual calls, especially not just to check in about something as trivial as her bedtime.
Without addressing Arianna’s confusion, Rochelle continued, "Why are you still up? You usually go to bed early. Or is it because that jerk Xander hasn’t come home to keep you warm?"
Arianna was caught off guard. Rochelle hadn’t referred to Xander in such a negative way in a long time—she had even started to ease up on her criticisms of him. Why revert to calling him a jerk now?
Was it just out of old habits, or was there something more behind it?
After a brief pause, Arianna couldn’t help but ask, "Chelle… did you call because of something related to Xander?"
For a moment, Rochelle seemed unusually quiet, almost reflective.
Arianna had matured over the years, and it wasn’t so easy to pull the wool over her eyes. Her sharp intuition, refined by the challenges she had faced abroad, told her that something was going on.
In Rochelle’s heart, Arianna wasn’t just her closest and dearest friend. More than anything, she treated her like a sister. That’s why her only wish was to see Arianna truly happy, not weighed down by sadness.
But now, one of the toughest dilemmas in life stood before her. How do you tell your best friend that her partner might be involved in something suspicious?
Rochelle had been ready to lay everything out, to tell Arianna exactly what she had seen, but as soon as she heard Arianna’s calm and soft voice, the words got stuck in her throat.
It had been so long since Rochelle heard Arianna sound this relaxed.
For what felt like ages, Arianna’s voice had always held some strain when they talked. Ever since her engagement was broken off two years ago, through her time abroad, and even after she came back to face a difficult marriage with Xander, Arianna had always carried some hidden weight in her tone.
It had broken Rochelle’s heart to see her friend trapped in that unhappy place.
After a brief silence, Rochelle finally spoke,
“Nah, just John being a pain again. Figured I’d vent a little and drag Xander into it.”
“What did he do this time?” Arianna asked.
“Ugh, don’t even get me started. He’s not worth wasting breath over,” Rochelle replied, her disgust clear. Then, her tone shifted to a more serious one.
“Ari, I know things have been getting better between you and Xander lately, but just don’t lose yourself in it, okay? You need to remember to love yourself first, before anyone else.”
John had done something to upset Rochelle deeply. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have called Arianna in the middle of the night just to share such heartfelt advice.
Arianna responded softly, “I understand, Rochelle.”
Rochelle seemed to hesitate for a moment, as though she had more to say, but after a brief pause, she simply said, “Alright, it’s late. You should get some rest. We’ll talk later.”
“Okay. You too. Goodnight,” Arianna replied.
After ending the call, Rochelle gripped her phone tightly.
Even though John hadn’t given her all the answers she wanted, he likely hadn’t lied either. He was not the kind of man who stooped to dishonesty. If he said Harmony was just a friend, there was probably some truth in it.
But still, friendships between men and women could often tread murky waters, and Rochelle knew she needed to stay vigilant for Arianna’s sake.
Before she said anything to Arianna, it might be wiser to investigate Xander’s connection with Harmony more thoroughly. She had to be sure before risking her friend’s peace of mind.
