The Wife He Dumped, The Queen She Returned As novel Chapter 266

"I'm doing this so she can finally see how hypocritical you are, and exactly what kind of dirty intentions you're hiding!"

"My wife is incredible, yes. But that doesn't mean just any random guy gets to circle around her!"

Quentin's expression darkened. "If you had actually given a damn about her, you'd know how horrific her mental state has been lately. If Yuri hadn't been there to anchor her and keep her distracted, she..."

Preston cut him off with a chilling glare. "Save the dramatic speeches. You can use them when you're busy explaining yourself to my wife."

Quentin suddenly smiled. A faint, razor-sharp smirk curved his lips, making his striking features look even more lethal.

"There's no need to keep parading the word 'wife' around. Chloe and you have been over for a long time."

"Preston, you were never this irrational before. Or... are you panicking?"

Preston's eyebrow twitched violently, his gaze turning as dark as a storm.

But a second later, he let out a cold laugh.

"Quentin, are you trying to bait me into throwing a punch?"

His eyes were sharp, scanning the man as if he had it all figured out.

"You really are a scheming one. No wonder Chloe's been acting so out of character lately, dragging out this tantrum for so long. It was you pulling the strings from the shadows this whole time."

"But you've miscalculated. You don't know the first thing about how she feels about me."

"When she and I met, fell in love, and got married, you didn't even exist in her world."

"If she ever has to choose one person, it will only ever be me!"

...

Chloe's head felt like it was splitting open, but she couldn't bring herself to sit down. Her eyes remained glued to the door.

It had been a long time since she felt this unhinged.

Maybe, over the past few weeks, her subconscious had fully accepted Yuri as family. That feeling of being unconditionally relied upon, of having total, unquestioning trust placed in her, was the one solid anchor keeping her sane through her darkest days.

Finally, a knock echoed through the room.

Chloe practically bolted to the door and ripped it open.

But the doorway was empty of any furry little shadow.

"Chloe! Are you home?!"

Chloe's heart skipped a beat. "What's wrong? Take a breath, tell me slowly."

Belle gasped. "I'm downstairs at Oceanview Heights!"

Shocked, Chloe sprinted out the door and down to the lobby.

She spotted Belle from a distance. Belle dashed over and immediately began spinning Chloe in circles, inspecting her from head to toe, left and right.

Once she was absolutely certain Chloe was unharmed, Belle practically collapsed in relief.

"Oh my god, I am so dead..."

Belle slumped onto the edge of a concrete planter, gasping for air.

Chloe quickly pulled her up and shoved a bottle of water into her hands. "What on earth happened?"

Belle cracked the water open, chugged half of it, and finally caught her breath. When she looked up at Chloe, her expression was incredibly complicated.

"Preston called me. He said..."