He Cheated I Rose Making Him Regret Everything (Chloe and Arthur) novel Chapter 608

Vincent had more than enough jewelry already—after all, he already possessed the genuine gem from a crown back in Eldermar. Asking her to get that pink diamond was nothing but a power move, another way to make her life difficult.

Nance kept the diamond on him at all times. If it really went missing, it would cause a major scandal. And if it were stolen during this visit, that would spell serious trouble too. One way or another, the Bingham family would end up taking the heat for it.

So what was she supposed to do?

How could she possibly get her hands on it?

"How do I like today?"

The man's voice pulled her out of her thoughts. Chloe snapped back to reality and realized Eugene had made his way over. He was leaning casually against a pillar, looking relaxed and every bit as arrogant as ever.

"How you look is your own business," Chloe replied flatly, keeping her tone detached. "What's that got to do with me?"

"If you want to look, I don't mind. Look all you want. However you like. I could even take everything off—especially out here in public." Eugene's expression was dead serious, his voice lowered so only she could hear.

Everyone else was focused on Nance. No one noticed the two of them talking in the corner.

Chloe almost laughed, but caught herself. She decided to ignore him—selective ignoring was always the safest move.

"The way you're avoiding looking at me is pretty obvious," Eugene murmured, his words lingering in her ear. She'd been trying to think through her next move, but his voice kept breaking her concentration.

"Who says I was looking at you?" Chloe lifted her gaze and gave a slight, challenging smirk. She was already playing the bad girl—what was a little more attitude?

Eugene's eyes darkened at that. Clearly, her remark had hit a nerve.

"Don't you know who I was looking at?" Chloe pressed, reclaiming the upper hand. Just as his expression shifted, she lowered her voice to an icy tone. "Nance is the one everyone's here for today. I came because of him. If anything, you're the one who showed up uninvited."

It wasn't a lie. She really had come because of Nance. Eugene's appearance was unexpected, to say the least.

Now that she'd said her piece, he ought to back off and leave her alone.

She could handle her own problems. She didn't need him getting involved.

The tour and the discussions that followed lasted well into the afternoon. The organizers had prepared a formal dinner, and everyone in attendance settled in to eat.

Chloe had considered leaving earlier, but with Eugene keeping such a close watch on her every move, she dropped the idea for now.

"Claire, dinner's starting," Amber said as she walked over. Then she added, lowering her voice, "They've assigned the seats. Eugene's right next to you."

Chloe's expression fell. She looked at Amber helplessly. "What if I told you I wanted to leave right now? Would you say I'm being childish?"

Amber simply shrugged. "He's persistent, I'll give him that. You two are really..."

"Let's just go in," Chloe cut her off, spotting someone approaching. She didn't want Amber to ask about Eugene—not here, not now.

Amber and Noah weren't fools. Everything Eugene had done since he arrived made it clear he wasn't planning to walk away from whatever this was.

All Chloe could do was keep them out of it. Step one was shutting Eugene out. She refused to drag them into her mess. And she definitely didn't want them getting hurt because of whatever ruthless game was being played. She wasn't a good person—she didn't deserve that kind of loyalty, and they didn't deserve the fallout.