The Wife He Dumped, The Queen She Returned As novel Chapter 48

Since their argument that night, Preston hadn't returned home once.

Which was exactly what Chloe preferred.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the day of the summit arrived.

But then, a maid from Cloudrest Manor called.

"Mrs. Hayes, the Madam hasn't been feeling well these past few days, but she's insisting on coming to see you. Please, you have to talk her out of it!"

Eleonora's anxious, weak voice quickly came over the line, sounding as if she was fighting for the phone.

"I told you not to bother Chloe with this..."

A second later, her tone softened as she desperately tried to sound casual. "Chloe, don't listen to them. I'm fine, just haven't been sleeping well. Today is a huge day for you, don't let me distract you."

Chloe could easily hear the exhaustion in the older woman's voice. Her heart tightened, and she gently coaxed her.

"Grandma, please listen to me. Stay home and rest today. Your health is the most important thing. There will be plenty of other chances."

Though utterly disappointed, Eleonora knew that showing up in her condition would only cause trouble. She reluctantly agreed.

"Alright... I'm sorry. Next time, I'll definitely be there to cheer you on."

Warmth bloomed in Chloe's chest. "I know you will. I'll come visit you as soon as I'm done."

She hung up the phone and went to her closet to change into her professional attire.

Just as she was about to head out, Wendy quickly trailed after her. "Mrs. Hayes, where are you going?"

"I have some business to attend to," Chloe replied neutrally.

"What kind of business?"

"Work."

Wendy gasped and pressed further. "Huh? Didn't Mr. Hayes say you didn't have a job? Where exactly are you going? Does he know about this? When will you be back?"

Already stressed about Eleonora, Chloe's patience finally snapped. She shot the woman a freezing glare.

"Are you here to be a housekeeper, or did Preston hire you to spy on me?"

Wendy's face drained of color. She waved her hands frantically. "No! I'm not! Please don't be angry, Mrs. Hayes. I was just worried about your safety out there..."

"What?"

Only then did Chloe realize her voice had grown extremely hoarse.

It was likely a combination of the sudden cold and the relentless hours of practice pushing her vocal cords to their limit.

Seeing her uncomfortable frown, Quentin's tone remained steady. "It's fine. It won't affect anything."

Once they were in the car, he handed her a warm thermos.

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. You were brilliant last time we had to improvise, and you'll be even better today."

His words instantly soothed Chloe's frazzled nerves. She smiled, deciding to joke around.

"Yeah, you're the one who should be nervous. I might drag you down at any second and completely ruin your reputation as the top interpreter."

The corner of Quentin's lips ticked up in a faint smile. "I'm not scared."

Right on cue, his phone rang.

As soon as he answered, a frantic, excited voice blared from the other end. "Quentin! Weren't you looking for Caroline Monet? I heard Mr. Lawson from Nexus Global hired her as the interpreter for today's summit. You'll finally get to see her!"