The Wife He Dumped, The Queen She Returned As novel Chapter 191

Chloe had gathered enough material at the exhibition on the first floor of The Lumina Grand Hotel.

After parting ways with Belle, she headed straight home to organize her notes.

Perhaps the trauma from the car accident was still too fresh, as she subconsciously chose to take the subway for her commute.

Along the way, Chloe couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her.

She glanced over her shoulder several times, but the pedestrians behind her were just rushing by normally.

Not dropping her guard, she quickened her pace and followed the crowd out of the station.

Oceanview Heights was located a fair distance from the subway exit to ensure absolute privacy and tranquility.

In the quiet of the afternoon, Chloe walked alone down Sycamore Avenue, a biting chill in the wind.

Suddenly, a man's voice rang out behind her.

"So this is where you've been staying all this time."

Chloe's heart skipped a beat, and she spun around.

Under the broad, towering sycamore trees stood Preston, wearing a simple sweater and leaning casually against a trunk with a smile on his face.

"If you had told me you liked the ocean, we could have moved here. Then you wouldn't have had to avoid coming home."

"Are you stalking me?"

A sudden chill shot down Chloe's spine the moment she saw him.

An absurd wave of anger quickly bubbled up.

"Preston, do you have any shame left?"

The smile faded from his lips. "How did I manage to make you mad again?"

"I know you want to prove your worth, but..."

He hesitated, pausing for a moment before standing up straight.

Chloe let out a cynical laugh. "I know you all think that because I'm missing an ear, I'm practically disabled..."

"But I never begged you to look up to me, let alone help me! If you want to use your underhanded tactics to help Jenna, that's your business. But why bother coming here to spout this hypocritical nonsense to my face?"

Preston's frown deepened, and he looked at her with a mix of unfamiliarity and confusion.

"Why would you think that? You're being too sensitive. None of us mean you any harm."

The word "sensitive" felt like a bucket of ice water dumped over her head in the dead of winter.

The composure she had fought so hard to maintain shattered instantly.

"Preston, are you blind?!"

"Your grandfather treated me like garbage, acting like I was a total disgrace. He hasn't looked me in the eye once in three years of marriage, and you call that 'no harm'?"

"Your precious friend nearly burned me alive, and your buddies humiliate me without a second thought! You're telling me none of that is malicious?!"

Chloe had always told herself she didn't care.