Departure with a Belly (Alaric and Victoria) novel Chapter 279

Chapter 279 

The air in the car felt oddly tense after Victoria’s mention of Claudia’s name. It also 

seemed to have forged an unbridgeable gap between Victoria and Alaric. Upon hearing 

the woman’s name, Alaric narrowed his eyes a little. “Her and I…” 

Victoria turned away before speaking in an emotionless tone. “I don’t care about you 

and her. I just want you to stop pestering me.” Alaric’s expression hardened after 

hearing her words. “Weren’t you the one who said that you wanted to keep things 

pleasant between us? Is this your definition of an amicable relationship? Or… Are you 

hiding something from me? Is that why you don’t want to remain on good terms with 

me?” 

Alaric fixed his stern gaze on Victoria’s face after he finished speaking. It was just as he 

had expected–although Victoria managed to keep a calm expression on her face, there 

was a hint of panic in her gaze. It was so brief that Alaric might not even have noticed it 

if he hadn’t stared at her so intently. Victoria took a while to calm down before she met 

his gaze. “Have I ever said that? Why don’t I remember saying that?” She seemed calm 

and collected as she looked at him. “Do you have any evidence of me saying that?” 

Alaric didn’t know what to say for a while, but he eventually let out a scoff when he saw 

the cold look in her eyes. “Are you playing dumb?” 

“I can’t play dumb if I genuinely don’t remember saying those words,” Victoria argued. 

“Fine.” Alaric tugged his lips into a smile. “We can assume that you’ve never said those 

things. It doesn’t matter, anyway–your words have no influence on my decision.” It was 

Victoria’s turn to feel speechless after that. He’s right. If he wants to pester me, then I’ll 

have no way of escaping him no matter what I say. He’s not going to stop just because | 

tell him to. 

At that moment, Victoria wondered if it had been a wrong choice for her to return to her 

homeland to expand her business. Maybe I should’ve left the kids abroad and returned 

to start my business instead. However, I can’t bear the thought of having my kids so far 

away from me. They lacked love and care at a young age, and if their mother leaves 

them now… Victoria no longer bothered talking after that. She simply turned away from 

the man before she pulled her phone out to drop Silent Night a text. She told him that 

she wouldn’t be able to make it for their meeting, and that she might only be able to 

meet later in the day. 

She was immersed in drafting her text for a while. When Alaric saw how quiet she was, 

he pulled out his own phone and turned his body away from her as well. From the 

corner of his eye, he could see her exiting the WhatsApp application. Alaric was calm at 

the start, but the look on his face changed when he realized what Victoria was about to 

1. do. 

Alaric didn’t have the habit of keeping his phone on silent mode. If Victoria were to send 

Silent Night a text… Right before she could hit the ‘send‘ button, Alaric shouted her 

name at the top of his lungs. “Victoria!” Victoria was shocked by his loud ory, and she 

jumped so hard that her phone nearly fall out of her hand. She then knitted her brows 

as she shot him a fierce glare. 

Alaric seemed rather glum after that. “Whom are you texting?” he asked, Victoria’s 

expression flickered for a moment before she looked her phone and put it away. “Why is 

that any of your business?” she hissed. Initially, Victoria had expected Alaric to snatch 

her phone away he seemed to her like the sort of man who would do such 

unreasonable acts. To her surprise, he simply glared at her for a while without trying to 

take her phone away. 

The driver took their silence as an opportunity to speak. “Where are we heading, Mr. 

Cadogan?” he asked. 

Alaric looked away from Victoria. “Take us to the nearest automobile sales gallery,” he 

ordered. After sitting in the car in silence for a while, Alaric subtly pulled his phone out 

and put it on silent. That way, he wouldn’t have to worry even if she started texting him. 

Victoria, on the other hand, had no idea what was going on in Alaric’s mind. She didn’t 

have the time to pay attention to him as she was occupied with her own little scheme. 

We agreed to meet for the trade. I might have gotten there earlier, but if he doesn’t see 

me when he arrives, he’ll probably call me. If I’m still in the car when he calls… Well, if 

Alaric insists on staying with me, then I won’t be able to pass any of my cash to that 

person. However, I don’t have a choice–my children matter more than anything. In the 

end, Victoria put her phone on silent as well. 

Victoria already knew what she wanted before they even arrived at the automobile 

store. She had decided on a car that was priced in the mid–range. It was relatively 

cheap, and it was one of the best options for the price range that Victoria was able to 

afford. However, when they got to the store, and when Alaric saw her choice, he 

immediately shot her down. “That’s not going to work. It has really poor performance 

abilities,” he uttered. Then, he told the salesperson the name of another car brand. 

Victoria frowned when she heard the brand that was mentioned. “I can’t afford that,” 

she announced. “I’ll give it to you,” he replied without hesitation. She frowned when she 

heard his offer being stated in such an effortless manner. “I don’t need your gift.” 

“Why not? If my company’s partner owns a good vehicle, doesn’t it also give me the 

reassurance that your work will be of better quality?” he asked in return. Victoria shot 

him a blank look after that. “Is that so, Mr. Cadogan? In that case, do you buy a car for 

every single one of your business partners?” 

Alaric gazed at her for a while. “If they’re similar to you, then I wouldn’t mind doing that 

for them.” 

The corner of Victoria’s lips twitched with frustration. Eventually, she decided to stop 

arguing with the man. “I’m sorry, but I’d like to test drive the vehicle I chose earlier,” she 

uttered to the salesperson. The salesperson was a witty woman, and she knew that the