When She Ended It With Divorce (Chiara and Titus) novel Chapter 176

Chapter 176

While they were chatting, Chiara’s phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen; it was a local Halinston number. She had a feeling it was Wayne calling.

Eunice cleared her throat softly. “Just pick up. He’s had a crush on you since college, and after all these it’s clear he’s really into you.”

years,

“I’m not planning on starting anything new,” Chiara replied.

“Seriously? You’re still so young. Are you planning to stay single forever? Don’t you ever get lonely or bored?” Eunice teased.

Chiara gave a helpless smile. “Nope, I’ve got Ryan with me.”

“But Ryan’s going to grow up, get married, and have his own family someday. What are you going to do then?” Eunice pressed.

Chiara shot her a look, but still picked up the call. “Hello?” Chiara answered.

“Chiara?” Wayne’s voice came through.

Chiara instantly recognized Wayne’s voice. “It’s me. Is this Wayne?” she asked.

“Yeah, it’s me. Did you figure it out?” Wayne replied.

“Yeah, Eunice mentioned it,” Chiara said.

Wayne paused for a moment, then asked gently, “Chiara, are you free tonight? Would you like to have dinner together?”

Chiara paused for a few seconds before replying, “Okay, sure.”

“I’ll send you the address in a bit,” Wayne said.

“Yeah,” Chiara replied.

“See you tonight,” Wayne said.

“See you tonight, Wayne,” Chiara replied.

As soon as Chiara hung up, Eunice jumped in, “I bet Wayne’s going to tell you he likes you tonight.”

Chiara frowned. “Maybe you’re wrong.”

“Wanna bet? I’m sure he’s planning to confess. Now that you’re single and back in Halinston, he’d be crazy not to go for it,” Eunice insisted.

Chiara put her phone away and turned to look out the window, while Eunice kept talking. “You know what they say; your college crush is always the hardest to get over,” Eunice teased.

After dropping Chiara and Ryan off at the Lynch residence, Eunice didn’t leave. She was determined to give. Chiara a ride herself to meet Wayne for dinner that night.

When the time came, Eunice parked the car outside the restaurant. “Alright, go on up. I’ll wait here in the car,” Eunice said.

Chiara glanced at her. “Aren’t you coming with me?”

Eunice’s eyes went wide. “Oh, please! Wayne’s totally going to confess tonight. If I go up there with you, what am I supposed to be? The ultimate third wheel?”

Chiara couldn’t even with Eunice right now. She rolled her eyes, unbuckled her seatbelt, and stepped out of the car. Eunice rolled down the window and called out, “Relax, take it slow! Honestly, Wayne’s such a sweetheart, and you two are totally made for each other!”

Chiara glanced back, gave her a silent ‘shush’ gesture, then turned and walked up the steps. Not far away, Yvonne was sitting in a parked car, watching everything unfold.

She’d just gotten a call from Paul; Titus was breaking up with her, and told her she could ask for whatever she wanted. There was no way she was going to let herself get dumped without even knowing the reason.

She watched Chiara’s back, biting her lip, then pulled out her phone and called Paul. Titus had already blocked her; he cut her off without a second thought.

“Paul, I’ll agree to break up peacefully, but I need to lay out my terms in person. If he doesn’t show up, then forget it. I’m waiting at the restaurant. If he doesn’t come in half an hour, then who knows what I’ll do…” Yvonne said, her voice tight with frustration.

Paul listened in silence, then replied in a cool tone, “Ms. Watson, are you trying to threaten Mr. Goodman?”

Yvonne clenched her teeth. ‘Threaten Titus? No way. I’m not that reckless,’ she thought. So she just blurted out the truth. “I’m at this restaurant. Tell him I saw his ex-wife having dinner with another guy. If he wants to show up, fine. If not, that’s his problem!”

With that, she hung up. Everything was spiraling way out of her control. She had once believed Titus truly cared for her, but now the idea felt laughable, nothing more than a cruel punchline.

Yet she still couldn’t understand why he would take their relationship public, let the whole world see it, and even push her career forward if he felt nothing for her. Her instincts, sharpened by years in the industry, pointed to a single reason: his ex-wife, Chiara.

When Paul called, she was totally freaking out, her mind a mess. But strangely, she felt calm now.

There was no chance she’d ever step into the Goodman family. She had considered trapping Titus with a child, but he already had one, and he clearly didn’t care whether she did either. In the six months they’d been together, they had no intimacy, making the idea of pregnancy nothing short of absurd.

Trying to trap Titus with a baby was a gamble. If she managed it on the first attempt, she might secure her place. But if it failed, the fallout would land squarely on her and nowhere else. That was a desperate move; one she absolutely couldn’t risk.

Even if Titus was about to dump her, she’d been his official girlfriend for six months. If they were breaking

up, it had to be dignified, and on her terms, no way was she letting him call all the shots. She wasn’t about to become the laughingstock of the entertainment industry.

Yvonne put on her hat and mask, got out of the car, and headed into the restaurant. She glanced around, spotted Chiara, and asked the waiter for a scat close to her.

“I’m waiting for someone. I’ll order when my friend gets here,” she said.

“Sure, here’s some water for you,” the waiter said.

Yvonne leaned in, trying to eavesdrop on the conversation behind her, but with two tables in between, it was impossible to hear anything. Worried Titus might not show up, she pulled out her phone and secretly snapped a photo, sending it straight to Paul.

As soon as Paul got the photo, he showed it to Titus right away. The picture was blurry, but even with just half her face visible, they both recognized it was Chiara.

Sitting across from her was a guy. He couldn’t see his face clearly, but he could tell he was a guy. “Mr. Goodman, do you want to go check it out?” Paul asked.

Titus stared at the photo for a while, then finally said, “She just got back. Any idea who that guy

is?”

“I’m not sure, Mr. Goodman. Mrs. Goodman doesn’t really hang out with guys…” Paul replied.

But something about the back of that guy’s head looked familiar to Titus. He tossed the phone to Paul and got up. “Let’s go check it out,” Titus said. Paul slipped the phone into his pocket and followed him.

Inside the restaurant, Chiara was actually feeling pretty relaxed. Wayne had been chatting with her about all sorts of things, but he hadn’t tried to confess or anything. That was a huge relief; she wouldn’t have known how to let him down easily if he had.

“When Ms. Lynch told me you were back, I was really surprised. That’s why I asked Eunice for your number,” Wayne said.

Chiara smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I just got back a couple of days ago.”

“So, are you planning to leave again?” Wayne asked.

Chiara shook her head. “Not leaving again. This is home, where else would I go?”

Wayne smiled, not bringing up anything about her past. “This Friday is Halinston University’s anniversary party. Ms. Lynch and I are both invited. Why don’t you join us?” Wayne suggested.

Chiara frowned, about to turn him down, but Wayne added quickly, “Ms. Lynch said you’re planning to help out at the company soon. There’ll be tons of big shots at the party; it’s a good chance to get to know people. Even though Mr. Howard is running Lynch Group now, if he ever steps down, the company will be in your hands and your sister’s.”

Hearing his reasoning, Chiara bit back her refusal. “Alright, I’ll go with Heather,” she agreed.

Wayne gave her a gentle smile. “Dig in before it gets cold.”