On the Day I Was Kicked Out of the Wealthy Family, I Had a Flash Marriage with a Tycoon-Chapter 195: Mutual Disdain

Chloe Sterling turned to leave but was blocked by the two men. Her gaze swept over their faces before she said abruptly, "Or you two can do this together, but get out of my way."

Jasper Lockwood: "..."

Silas Coldwell: "..."

The two men exchanged a look of mutual disgust.

Jasper Lockwood grabbed Chloe Sterling’s hand again. In a flash, he pulled her into his arms, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and turned to walk toward the car parked by the road.

"Jasper Lockwood!" Chloe Sterling struggled, trying to break free.

But Jasper Lockwood refused to let go, holding her shoulders tightly. "Stop fighting me," he said in a low voice. "Come with me."

Chloe Sterling: "I’m not going to the restaurant you booked!"

Jasper Lockwood: "Then where do you want to go? I’ll go with you."

Chloe Sterling: "..."

Behind them, Silas Coldwell’s blade-like gaze fixed on their retreating backs. He called out again, "Lynn Chester, stop right there! You’re with me now!"

Chloe Sterling: "..."

At those words, fury ignited in Jasper Lockwood’s eyes, threatening to erupt at any moment.

Sensing his fury, Chloe Sterling felt a headache coming on. To prevent a confrontation between the two men, she pulled Jasper Lockwood into the car and then turned back to Silas Coldwell. "I’ll be back as soon as I can. It won’t interfere with this afternoon’s work."

Silas Coldwell gritted his teeth. "Get out of the car! You are not to go with him!"

Jasper Lockwood said coldly, "Drive."

Henry Chamberlain was already back in the car. At the command, he immediately started the engine and drove away.

When Zane Stratton came out and saw the scene, he suddenly felt like retreating back inside. ’Why is the Boss making such a fuss?’ he thought. ’They’re husband and wife, after all. His relationship with Lynn Chester is just a business deal.’

Watching the car recede into the distance, Silas Coldwell seethed, "That ungrateful woman! I just helped her, and this is how she repays me!"

Zane Stratton’s mind raced, and he quickly tried to soothe his boss. "Actually, Miss Chester looked pretty helpless. Jasper Lockwood’s jealousy is on another level. He seems especially worried about you being with Miss Chester, afraid you’ll steal her away. He’s probably figured out that you mean something different to her than anyone else."

Silas Coldwell glanced sideways at him, the anger on his face seeming to subside slightly.

Seeing his chance, Zane Stratton added, "Boss, I don’t think Miss Chester seems all that into Jasper Lockwood. I get the feeling they won’t last."

Silas Coldwell scoffed. "And when has your ’feeling’ ever been accurate?"

Zane Stratton: "...Well, sometimes they’re pretty accurate."

Silas Coldwell pressed his lips together, saying nothing. His profound gaze lingered on the spot where they had disappeared. He didn’t agree. Although Chloe Sterling didn’t seem very warm toward Jasper Lockwood—in fact, she was even a bit cold—he could tell she cared about him.

As for whether the two of them would last, that was truly hard to say. After all, feelings were fickle things, prone to change.

How many people ever truly managed to last forever?

After a moment’s hesitation, Zane Stratton asked, "Boss... are you still going to the restaurant? Or should I cancel the reservation?"

At his words, Silas Coldwell’s expression darkened once more. "What do you think?"

Zane Stratton lowered his head. "I’ll cancel it immediately."

Silas Coldwell snorted and turned back into the building.

’Now that Chloe Sterling had run off, what was the point of going to a Western restaurant by himself? There’d be absolutely no ambiance!’

A short while later, Chloe Sterling and Jasper Lockwood arrived at a nearby Western restaurant.

Just as they walked in, they overheard a waiter telling the manager, "Manager, Mr. Coldwell canceled his reservation. He said he isn’t coming anymore."

The manager asked, "He just canceled?"

The waiter nodded. "Yes."

Hearing their conversation, Jasper Lockwood’s expression flickered. He hadn’t expected Silas Coldwell to have booked a table at this same restaurant, and he suddenly wanted to go elsewhere.

Seeing him walk in, the manager immediately hurried over with a warm smile. "President Lockwood, you’re here! We have everything arranged for you."

Jasper Lockwood stopped and turned to Chloe Sterling. "How about we find another place?"

The manager: "..."

’What is going on?’

’Did I offend someone? What kind of unlucky day is this?’

Chloe Sterling knew what he was thinking. Not wanting any more hassle, she said, "Since everything is already arranged, let’s just stay here."

The manager quickly added, "President Lockwood, is there something you’re dissatisfied with? We can make adjustments immediately."

After a brief pause, Jasper Lockwood said, "No. Lead the way."

"Excellent. Right this way, you two." The manager breathed a sigh of relief and quickly led them to a private room.

Jasper Lockwood had already pre-ordered their meal when he made the reservation. Once the manager showed them into the room, he made himself scarce, not wanting to disturb them.

"Chloe, call off the deal with Silas Coldwell. I can handle this."

"Silas Coldwell has already handled it. If I back out now, I’d be breaking my word. That’s not right."

"I can compensate him in other ways."

"And you think he would agree to that?" After a pause, Chloe Sterling continued, "Jasper Lockwood, what are you so worried about? Do you think I’m going to cheat on you?"

"That’s not what I mean! I just don’t want to see you two together!"

After a moment of silence, Chloe Sterling’s tone softened. "Two months, at most. I promise I’ll finish this research within two months."

Jasper Lockwood replied, "Two months is a very long time."

The room descended into silence.

Chloe Sterling frowned, feeling as though she were trapped in an unbreakable stalemate.

Jasper Lockwood spoke again. "Silas Coldwell isn’t the only one who can set up this ploy. Anyone with enough power and influence could do it, and people would believe them."

Chloe Sterling retorted, "Then why didn’t you say so sooner? Why did you hide it from me in the first place?"

"I kept it from you because I didn’t want you to have to worry about it. I never expected that the moment you found out, you’d go straight to Silas Coldwell. If I’d known that would be the outcome, I would never have hidden it from you."

"I only went to him because I thought he was the most suitable option to resolve this mess quickly! You could have found another power player, sure, but could you have struck a deal with them in such a short amount of time? And at what cost?"

"I could have! And I would have paid any price!"

"..."

After a long silence, Chloe Sterling said slowly, "But I didn’t want you to have to pay a price like that. It was my fault for not thinking it through. Maybe... we shouldn’t be together."

Hearing that, Jasper Lockwood’s expression shifted, and his voice came out raspy. "What did you just say?"

Chloe Sterling pressed her lips together, unable to repeat the words she had just spoken. It wasn’t just Jasper who was in pain—she was, too.

"Chloe, what did you just say?" Jasper Lockwood asked again.

Chloe Sterling apologized instinctively. "I’m sorry."

She had promised Jasper Lockwood she would never, ever talk about leaving him.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

After a few seconds of silence, Jasper Lockwood finally said, "Come in."

A moment later, a server entered to bring their food.

Neither of them said a word. After the server left, the room remained just as silent.

The delicious food sat on the table, untouched. It seemed they had once again fallen into a cold war.