DRAMA NOVEL ONLINE Departure with a Belly Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Alaric and Victoria sat in silence on the way home. Alaric’s expression was
dark. He clutched the steering wheel so tightly that one feared he would
accidentally pull it out.
He was troubled by what Victoria said to him earlier. The idea that she
would leave one day never crossed his mind, but he sensed that
something was brewing when she purposely brought it up.
He stole a glance at Victoria. After getting in the car, she closed her eyes
and curled up into a ball on the passenger seat, as though she wanted to
shut out the whole world.
After all these years of living together, he witnessed her hard work and her
ambition to prove herself, but today, she ran into a wall,
On the way to Victoria, he heard about the incident today from Yasmin. In
the end, Yasmin was stammering and hesitating. Seeing that, he quickly
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forced her to tell him more. As Victoria’s right–hand woman, Yasmin
grabbed the chance to help Victoria air her grievances. “Well, Mr.
Cadogan, I hope you won’t blame me for telling the truth. And don’t tell
Miss Victoria that it was me who told you.”
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“Cut the nonsense.” He frowned.
“Okay. Here we go!” She took a deep breath and said loudly over the
phone, “Mr. Burke said that Miss Victoria doesn’t need to work too hard
because Mr. Cadogan has brought his mistress into the company. Mr.
Burke also told Miss Victoria that she was going to be abandoned soon,
and since the Selwyns are bankrupt, she’ll be bullied by others. Mr.
Cadogan will never help her anyway.”
Alaric’s veins were throbbing. “What did you say?”
Yasmin emphasized, “Mr. Cadogan, I didn’t say that! I was just
paraphrasing!”
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He rubbed his temples and grunted. When he gathered himself, he felt a
headache creeping up.
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Half an hour later, he parked the car in the underground garage of
Cadogan Residence. Victoria was still curled up in a ball as she finally
opened her eyes and happened to meet Alaric’s gaze.
He gestured at her to leave with his chin. “You should go up first.
Grandma’s probably staying up for you.” She understood what he meant
and nodded at him. “Sure, I’ll greet her.” Then, she unbuckled her seatbelt
to get out of the car.
“Wait.”
Victoria turned around with a confused look to see Alaric leaning over,
surrounding her with his crisp alpine scent. His good–looking face was only
inches away, and she could see the cracks in his lips. Shocked, she
widened her eyes and leaned backward.
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He paused for a moment, and his eyes turned cold when he realized what
she had done. “Why? Do you dislike me this much? Did you think I was
going to kiss you?”
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Staring at his mildly enraged face, she realized that she must have
misunderstood his intention. She pursed her lips and turned her face away
from him. She had wanted to explain herself, but any explanation seemed
unnecessary at this point. She gave up and asked, “Why did you suddenly
come closer to me?”
He scoffed but didn’t answer. Instead, he went back to his seat with a long
face. “You should go. Don’t forget to get rid of the smell of alcohol before
you meet Grandma.”
She finally understood his action just now. He was checking if she smelled
like alcohol. She wanted to say something to diffuse the awkwardness, but
in the end, she left without a word.
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Silence returned to the car after Victoria got out. He pulled out the car key,
got out of the car as well, and leaned against it while using his phone. He
said coldly to someone, “Look into the recent acquisitions for me.’
Since Victoria did not drink, she only needed to change out from the outfit
that stank of alcohol from the bar. After that, she washed her face and
greeted Griselda. The old lady had not gone to bed–she sighed in relief
when she saw Victoria safe and sound.
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“You’re safe. Everything’s good.” Griselda patted Victoria’s hand and
advised her earnestly, “I don’t even know if I will survive the surgery. I might
not have a chance to see you again if the surgery fails. I don’t wish for
much, except for the health and safety of my children and grandchildren
at this age.”
Victoria’s expression changed. “Grandma, what are you talking about? The
surgery will be á success, and you’ll be with us for a long time! Don’t say
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that again or you’ll make me angry!”
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Sensing Victoria’s change in expression and tone, Griselda chuckled. “I
know you care about me. Alright, alright. I’ll try my best to survive.” Next,
she poked Victoria’s puffed cheeks and muttered, “I’ll let you in on a secret,
girl.”
“Secret? What’s it about?” Victoria looked curious.
“When Alaric heard that something had happened to you, he rushed out
without changing. He didn’t even put on a jacket on this chilly day.”
Victoria was taken aback by Griselda putting in a good word for her
grandson. She had probably noticed that something was amiss between
them.
Victoria was right because before she could reply, Griselda asked her, “Are
you both still not over the argument last time?”
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Victoria didn’t want to talk badly about Alaric, so she pursed her lips and
said in a hushed voice, “No. This is a new argument.”
“Huh?”
She bit her lower lip and said helplessly, “It was an argument about work
We have different opinions, so…” This was the best excuse she could offer
to convince Griselda.
However, Griselda didn’t believe Victoria. “Is it only an argument about
work?”
Victoria stared at her with doubt. Griselda chuckled. “Does it have nothing
to do with that woman, Claudia Johnson?”
Victoria tried not to expose her emotions, but her eyes gave her away.
“Grandma, you…”