On the Day I Was Kicked Out of the Wealthy Family, I Had a Flash Marriage with a Tycoon-Chapter 18: Constant Coincidences

This dinner had been Tristan Sinclair’s idea. They didn’t know that Chloe Sterling and her colleagues were also here, and had, by pure coincidence, booked the private room "Flourishing Brocade"—right next to Chloe’s.

After taking his seat, Jasper ignored the menu and looked at his phone. He then sent a message to Chloe Sterling.

[Chloe, where are you having dinner with your colleagues?]

Chloe Sterling’s reply came quickly.

[The Orchid Hotel.]

Reading the message, Jasper suddenly laughed.

Tristan glanced over with a sly grin. "Happy that the missus is checking up on you, Jasper?"

Jasper ignored him. He actually wished his wife would check up on him, but he knew Chloe wouldn’t.

He continued typing his reply. [I’m here too.]

[You are?! What a coincidence!]

[A coincidence indeed.]

But the coincidences for the evening didn’t stop there.

Just then, Silas and a large entourage swept into the hotel and entered the room next to "Flourishing Brocade."

Chloe and Jasper exchanged only a few more messages before putting their phones away. She went back to talking with her colleagues, and their topics were about upcoming projects.

Chloe would be staying on at the lab to participate in other projects, which made her three colleagues overjoyed. Ever since she had joined, their projects had progressed much more smoothly.

The male colleague who had stepped out to use the restroom returned with an excited look on the face. "You’ll never guess who I just saw."

"Who?" Maya asked.

The man said, "People from the Nocturne Group."

Chloe asked, "How did you know they were from the Nocturne Group?"

The man explained, "Almost everyone in the medical world knows about the Nocturne Group. They’re heavy hitters in pharmaceutical research, and besides, their president, Silas Coldwell, is incredibly high-profile."

Maya said in astonishment, "You mean you saw Silas Coldwell, the president of the Nocturne Group?"

The man nodded. "Yeah! Why else would I be so worked up?"

"What’s that monster doing in Crestfall? He’s not here to poach our talent, is he?"

The man took a bite of food. "Wouldn’t know about that."

Chloe pursed her lips. ’What a coincidence. Jasper Lockwood and Silas Coldwell are actually at the same hotel.’

’I wonder if those two will run into each other.’

As she was lost in thought, when her phone suddenly rang. Chloe glanced at the number. It was Silas Coldwell.

"Chloe, your phone’s ringing. Aren’t you going to get it?" Maya asked with a questionable look on her.

Chloe immediately rejected the call. "It’s an unknown number. Probably a scammer or telemarketer. No need to answer that."

The words had barely left her mouth when the phone rang again from the same number.

Chloe silently gritted her teeth, then picked up her phone. "I’m going to take this." With that, she stood up and walked to the side to answer.

"Hey, babe, guess where I am?" Silas’ teasing voice came through the phone.

Chloe answered flatly, "the Orchid Hotel."

"Oh? How did you know?"

"My colleague saw you. Silas, I don’t want anyone here to know who I am, so don’t come looking for me."

Silas chuckled. "You just don’t want them to know you’re acquainted with me, do you?"

"Yes, that’s right."

"You really don’t mince words, do you?"

"It’s not like this is the first day you’ve known me."

"True. Alright, I won’t come looking for you. We’ll have a proper chat after I’ve taken care of business."

After hanging up, Chloe returned to the table.

The conversation among Maya Jacobs and the other two had already shifted to the rumored Mysterious Pharmacist, Lynn Chester.

After dinner, Maya called the waiter over to pay the bill.

"We can’t let a lady pay. Let me get it."

"No, I should get it. You paid last time, so this one’s on me."

The two men argued over who would pay.

Maya Jacobs cut in, "Nope. We agreed it was my treat."

The waiter finally saw an opening to speak. "Sir, Misses, there’s no need to argue. Your bill has already been taken care of."

The three of them said in unison, "...Taken care of?!"

Since none of them had paid, all three turned to look at Chloe.

Maya asked, "Chloe, you didn’t pay for it, did you?"

Chloe said, "A friend of mine paid. He’s also eating here, and when he found out we were here, he went ahead and settled the bill for us."

"Oh! What friend? We can’t just let them do that, can we?"

"It’s fine. He already paid. I’ll just treat him next time to make it even."

"Then we’ll have to treat you next time."

Chloe laughed softly. "You don’t have to be so formal with me."

The group walked out of the private room.

In the hallway, Phoebe came rushing past. She didn’t seem to notice Chloe’s group as they brushed shoulders. She headed straight for the private room next to theirs.

Just as she reached the door, Jasper, Tristan, and the others from their party were all coming out.

"Brother."

Phoebe was Tristan Sinclair’s paternal half-sister. He had no love for her and didn’t bother to hide it. He sneered, "Hah. Who are you calling brother for?"

Phoebe bit her lip, struggling to maintain her composure. She turned to look at Jasper, but before she could speak, Jasper said to Tristan, "I’m heading out."

With that, he strode away without giving her so much as a glance.

Phoebe’s expression faltered. She called out resentfully, "Jasper Lockwood!"

Jasper paid her no mind, as his gaze was fixed on Chloe up ahead.

Seeing his gaze land on them, Maya immediately grabbed Chloe and hurried away, muttering, "Let’s move quickly! We can’t afford to get caught up in drama between big shots like them! Don’t want to get caught in the crossfire."

Chloe Sterling was speechless.

Behind them, Phoebe tried to run after Jasper, but Henry blocked her path. "Miss Sinclair, please behave yourself."

Phoebe’s face flushed with anger and humiliation. She shouted at Jasper’s retreating back, "You came looking for me, didn’t you?! You do care about me, don’t you?!"

Jasper stopped in his tracks and turned back, his expression cold and grim. "Tristan Sinclair, get your family member under control. If she’s lost her mind, get her to a hospital."

Tristan shot Phoebe an icy, warning-filled glare.

Phoebe’s face turned ashen. But she was furious and too intimidated to speak.

"Well, what a show," a mocking voice drawled from behind them. It was Silas.

Jasper turned to face Silas, wondering, ’He’s here too?’

Silas sauntered forward with a smile. "President Lockwood. Long time no see."

The corner of Jasper’s mouth twitched into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. "President Coldwell. It has indeed been a long time." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Their eyes met, and a murderous undercurrent passing between them.

Silas glanced at Phoebe, then said with deliberate provocation, "I heard you got married, President Lockwood. Congratulations."

Jasper knew exactly what he was trying to do. Normally, he would have engaged in their usual verbal sparring, but he wasn’t in the mood right now. He didn’t want Chloe to get the wrong idea.

"Thank you. My wife is waiting for me at home, so I’ll be taking my leave."

With that, he turned and left.

Silas flashed a wicked smile and turned to Phoebe. "The Nocturne Group offers assassination services. We’re very professional."

Phoebe stared at him, not daring to respond. She had no desire to provoke a monster like Silas, a man who walked a wicked path.

’Even if I really wanted to deal with that woman at Jasper’s side,’ she thought, ’I wouldn’t need a professional killer. She’s just some country bumpkin. Not worth the effort.’

Maya dragged Chloe all the way to the parking lot. "Chloe, where do you live? I can give you a ride home."

After a moment’s thought, Chloe said, "It’s okay, you guys go on ahead. I’m going to wait for my friend here."