Thea was taken aback when she heard the name. Her face turned serious.
"He... He’s back? That’s even more reason for you to stay. If you’re here, Mr. Wilson can protect you and the kids."
"Or maybe I should just leave the kids here," Chantelle said, not really paying attention to Thea’s words.
She was thinking about how Daniel’s warm, gentle eyes had suddenly turned cold as ice.
Thea looked at Chantelle for a moment, then held her hand and spoke seriously. "Chantie, I think you already made your decision from the start, didn’t you? When you found out Trenton was coming back, you’d already decided to stay here with the kids. But hearing about Mr. Wilson’s engagement shook you."
She noticed the sadness in Chantelle’s eyes, and that told her she was right.
"This isn’t like you. I thought you’d send the kids somewhere safe and go face Trenton yourself, even if it meant risking everything. But this time, you don’t want to pull the kids away from this peaceful life... because deep down, you don’t want to leave Daniel."
Each word hit something deep in Chantelle’s heart. She wanted to argue, but nothing came to her mind.
"I know you’ve been avoiding love, pretending it’s not important. But Daniel has already found a way back into your heart. Even if you run far away, your heart’s still going to be here with him. Chantie, it’s time to face it."
I shouldn’t let emotions and relationships hold me back. I have more important things to take care of, Chantelle thought to herself.
"Thank you, Thea!" Chantelle stood up suddenly and the sadness in her eyes was completely gone.
Thea felt relieved to see her back to her usual self. "I’ll come with you to the restaurant later and—"
"I get it now, Thea. I can’t keep running. I have to face Trenton alone. No matter what he tries to do, I’ll fight with everything I have to protect my children!"
She kept thinking about whether to send her children away with that mysterious figure to keep them safe, or let them stay so Daniel could be the one to protect them.
She finally admitted to herself that she didn’t want to be apart from her children. She needed to become stronger for them. She would face Trenton and tell him he could never use her kids against her again.
Thea stared at her, stunned. Wait... What? That’s not what I meant when I gave that suggestion!
"Where are you going now?"
"Boxing practice!" Chantelle shouted as she bolted out of the boutique and headed straight to the underground boxing gym.
She couldn’t even take down Daniel yet and that needed to change.
Daniel sat in his office at the Wilson Group of Companies. His face grew darker as he read the news headlines.
"Socialite Drinks the Night Away! Is This the Fate of a Disgraced Woman?"
"Wilson’s Lovers Meet at Nightclub. One Happy, the Other Sad."
"Wilson’s Ex Late Night Bar Excursion. Beaten and Bruised?"
"Rendezvous With Handsome Guy. Wilson’s Ex Ready to Start A New Relationship?"
"What the hell is going on?" Daniel slammed the table. He had been out of the country for two weeks handling one of his businesses. Now that he was back, those were the headlines waiting for him.
The assistant and bodyguard both looked at Ashton. Ashton had no choice but to speak up.
"After you told me to announce your engagement to Camille, rumors about your divorce from Ms. Chantelle started spreading online. Camille kept showing up at the office, and the paparazzi jumped on it. Now they’re saying you’re ignoring Ms. Chantelle."
Ashton’s voice became smaller as Daniel’s face became despondent.
"I wanted you to tell me why Chantelle was going to bars and getting hurt! Why didn’t you ever mention it?"
If he had known she was upset about him being gone, he would’ve told her everything.
Daniel didn’t wait for Ashton to finish. He grabbed his car keys and walked out of the office.
Ashton quickly followed behind him.
"Ms. Chantelle told me not to tell you," Ashton said. "She said there’s nothing between you two anymore since you’re going to marry someone else. She even warned me that if she caught me spying on her, she’d sue both of us."
"If that’s all you can do, I’ll send you to work in the mines," Daniel said coldly as they got into the car.
Ashton quickly added, "I kept watching her anyway. I found out she wasn’t drinking at bars. She often went to the underground boxing gym beneath the car park."
"So you think you don’t need to tell me when my wife starts going to the underground boxing gym?"
"Sir, you’ve been so busy these past two weeks, you barely had time to eat. I didn’t want to add more stress."
"You’re telling me how to handle things now?" Daniel shot Ashton a cold look.
He hadn’t messaged Chantelle because he wanted her to reach out first, even if she was angry or jealous.
However, she never sent him any message.
At first, he was mad at Chantelle. But when he saw the bruise on her arm in the photo from the news, his anger turned into worry.
He wouldn’t feel comfortable until he knew she was okay.
The car pulled up outside Western Hill Villa.
Daniel rushed inside like a storm and headed straight to the second-floor study.
Chantelle was in the middle of a video call. She looked up when the door opened and was stunned to see Daniel standing there. It had been two weeks since she last saw him.
She ended the call right away and looked at Daniel, who was standing at the door. "Yes?"
Daniel walked over without saying a word and rolled up her sleeve. His chest tightened when he saw the bruises on her arm.
Then he started to roll up her pant leg.
Chantelle grabbed his hands. "What are you doing?"
"What do you think I’m doing?" Daniel clenched his fist as he stared at her bruises. "I was only gone for two weeks, and this is what you’ve done to yourself? What are you trying to prove?"
Suddenly, Daniel looked up. His eyes were red, and the way he stared at her made her feel nervous.
"I have work to do. Please don’t bother me." Chantelle didn’t want to argue. She sat back down and picked up a few folders.
Daniel didn’t say a word. He grabbed her by the feet, carried her downstairs, shoved her into the car, and told Ashton to drive.
Ashton didn’t ask any questions. He stepped on the gas, and the car sped off.