Departure with a Belly (Alaric and Victoria)

Chapter 235

At the top–floor office, Jordan ascended the stairs and made his way to find Alaric.

“Hey, I thought she wanted to join my company, but it turns out that she came for

investment. Did you already know about this and keep it from me? And did you

notice how terrible she looked when she left the building? Did you make her cry?”

Alaric, who had been leaning against the wall, paused for a moment upon hearing

this, and then a mocking smile slowly spread across his lips. “Is that so?”

So, she can cry, and I thought she was heartless. How rare.

“What? I can tell you don’t believe it from how you look. Damn. You truly have no

idea how much of a jerk you are, don’t you? Making someone cry, yet you remain so

indifferent.”

Hearing this, Alaric did not respond. He just stood there with pursed lips and a

slightly pale complexion.

However, the careless Jordan continued to ramble on without noticing anything

amiss. “I don’t even understand what you’re trying to achieve with this attitude. At

first, I thought you wanted to win her back, but now, I’m starting to suspect that you

don’t want to see her, so you deliberately upset her. Is that right?”

Alaric remained silent.

Receiving no response, Jordan turned his gaze toward Alaric and noticed the latter

leaning pale against the wall with beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

He blinked as he thought he might have been mistaken. He then approached Alaric

to carefully confirm his observation. Indeed, it was sweat glistening on Alaric’s

forehead. A few seconds later, he exclaimed, “Wow. I can’t believe you’re sweating in

this cold weather.”

Silent, Alaric endured the discomfort and looked at Jordan with a gaze that seemed

to say, “Idiot.”

After receiving his gaze, Jordan even dared to ask, “Is it because you’re wearing too

many layers?”

The assistant at the back, Robin Gray, could not stand it anymore and reminded, “Mr.

Floyd, Mr. Cadogan has gastritis, remember?”

Jordan’s face drastically changed upon hearing this. “Oh, right, you do. Oh no, Alaric,

is your stomach acting up?”

Alaric did not bother to respond and walked toward the elevator with a cold

expression.

“Ignoring me? So, you don’t need my help?”

“No. It’s not that serious,” Alaric replied coldly.

“Fine.”

1

Although Jordan was aware of Alaric’s gastritis, he did not show excessive concern.

After all, Alaric had experienced occasional flare–ups in the past, and he had witnessed them firsthand.

He knew Alaric had always been resilient and could

endure such pain.

Still…

He ultimately advised, “Considering your troubled stomach, I suggest you take some time to take care

of it. Don’t let it progress into stomach cancer. I wouldn’t want to

see you die young.”

Hearing his advice, Alaric gave him a cold glance. “Would it hurt for you to hold your

tongue?”

Jordan immediately gestured a motion of zipping his lips shut. After Alaric left, lordan stood still with

his hand on his chin as he contemplated. Robin could not

help but ask, “Mr. Floyd, should we just let him go like that? What if something

happens?”

“What are you worrying about? He’s an iron man. Have you ever seen him collapse?

If something were seriously wrong, he wouldn’t have left just now. And why should it

be our concern anyway?”

–

Hearing his words, Robin surprisingly found them reasonable. “Well, that’s true.”

“Tsk. How annoying. How did Victoria end up having a relationship with Alaric?”

Jordan had a genuine interest in her, not the fleeting kind he had in his previous

flings. She was the only one who truly captivated him with her presence among all

the relationships he had indulged in over the years.

As he reminisced about her from yesterday at the equestrian field, dressed in her

riding attire with her flowing locks of hair, he could not suppress the restlessness

stirring in his heart. Why did she have to be Alaric’s woman? If she were to be with

someone beside him…

Having been with Jordan for a long time, Robin seemed to grasp his thoughts and

said, “Mr. Floyd, if you’re interested in her, why not pursue her? After all, their

relationship is in the past, and Miss Selwyn is currently single. There’s nothing

wrong with you expressing your feelings toward her.”

“You don’t understand. It may seem that way, but have you seen Alaric’s state? He

can’t get over her at all. If I were to pursue her, wouldn’t that be going against him?”

Confused, Robin asked, “Doesn’t Mr. Cadogan have a fiance?”

“You mean Claudia? Her, a fiance?”

ww NôvelDrama.Org is the owner.

“But that’s what people say. And for so many years, Mr. Cadogan-”

“Are you suggesting that Claudia has been the only one around Alaric all these

years, which is why people assume she’s his fiance?”

Robin nodded.

“Use your brain and think. Why hasn’t he officially gotten engaged to Claudia if he’s

been single all these years? It’s been five years, and if they truly wanted to be

together, they would’ve done so by now.”

Speechless, Robin was unable to refute.

Just as Victoria returned to the company, Henry handed her a proposal. “This is

what I came up with yesterday. If we manage to secure investments from both the

Cadogan and Floyd Corporations, it’ll benefit our company. Although the effects

may not be as substantial as we hope, it’s still a positive stride for us at this stage.”

After a brief moment of pondering the proposal, she took it and placed it on the

desk before taking her seat in silence.

Noticing her lack of enthusiasm, he guessed what was happening and sat on the

chair before her. “What’s wrong? Not interested in reading it? Should I read it to

you?”

Victoria sighed. “No need. It’s all pointless now.”

Like Alaric had said, as long as he disagreed, who would dare to risk investing in her

small and newly established company?

She gazed at the proposal on the desk with a somewhat defeated expression. “I’m

starting to question if returning to the country to start a company was a good idea after all.”

As Henry had reached a management level before, he could also deduce the reasons behind Victoria’s

current demeanor to some extent. “Miss Selwyn, although

you are my boss, I’m older than you and have accumulated more experience in

certain matters. As someone older, I would like to offer you some words of advice.”

With her silence, he continued, “Honestly, if you’re no longer in a relationship with

him, why would it matter if your business partner is him?”

Upon hearing this, she paused and glanced up at him.

He smiled faintly in response. “What’s wrong? Did I say something inappropriate? I

genuinely want what’s best for the company, so I dare to speak frankly to you. Are

you sure that not returning to the country to start a company means you won’t

encounter setbacks? Entrepreneurship is never smooth sailing. Difficulties are

inevitable along the way. If starting a company was that easy, anyone could do it,

and I wouldn’t be here in management. Don’t you think so?”

“Right.”

“So, what’s the problem with directly cooperating with Cadogan Group? As long as it

benefits the company, why resist it? Unless you still can’t get over him.”

As Victoria heard this, she suddenly furrowed her brows and was seemingly

surprised. “What did you say? I can’t get over him?”

He smiled. “You’re agitated. Looks like I hit the mark.”