Save Myself From Desperation by Cara Agnes novel Chapter 170

But Joseph's anxiety was pointless. The rules of the game were clear and had to be followed.

Ashley took out her phone while trying to recall whom she had recently called and who was the first contact on her list.

Seeing her take out her phone, Joseph couldn't sit still. He ran over, anxiously praying that Ashley's first contact wasn't one of her many admirers.

Noticing Joseph come over, Ashley didn't avoid him and checked her call history.

To her surprise, the first contact was Valentin.

Ashley was stunned.

Oh, right, she remembered. On the way back to the hotel, Valentin had called her, reminding her to eat well.

Joseph instantly relaxed upon seeing it was Valentin. 'What a coincidence! Ashley and Valentin sure are in close contact,' he thought.

They had just talked on the phone an hour ago.

Standing a bit away from Ashley, Bryce couldn't see who was in the contact and asked curiously, "Who is it? Someone from our circle?"

Joseph chuckled, "I won't tell you! Go on, Ashley, call it!"

Seeing Joseph's eager and cheerful expression, Lester and Jaden instantly guessed it must be Ashley's husband.

Under Joseph's urging, Ashley bit the bullet and dialed Valentin.

Valentin always picked up her calls quickly.

Ashley wasn't quite prepared when the call connected immediately.

Caught off-guard, she blurted out, "I miss you."

Upon hearing this, Valentin was in a moment of bewilderment.

He felt a surge of emotion attacked him. His heart skipped a beat. 'Ashley said she missed me?'

He was just about to respond when Ashley hung up the phone at the next second.

Valentin was completely puzzled.

He dialed again, but Ashley didn't answer, cutting off his call and then sending a message: [Well, I'm playing a game right now. I'll call you at 10 PM!]

Valentin fell silent. 'Play...a game?'

His eyes narrowed dangerously.

Ashley felt guilty after sending the message and glared at Jaden.

Jaden laughed fearlessly. "Isn't this great?"

Ashley made a false smile, "Great? Okay then."

In this round of the game, Ashley had completed a daring challenge. So, in the new round, the balloon passed from her hands, and it was her turn to ask for a truth or dare.

After several rounds, Ashley had figured out the timing needed for the balloon to burst.

So, when passing it on, she deliberately slowed down, and just as the balloon reached Jaden's hands, it popped right on cue.

Ashley glanced over and sneered, "Come on, call the first person in your contacts and tell them you're missing them."

Jaden was speechless.

A few rounds later, the balloon burst again in Jaden's hands.

Ashley held her chin with one hand and smirked. "Keep going, call the second person in your contacts, say you miss them."

Jaden was completely stunned. 'Man, I messed up!'

Joseph loved seeing Jaden defeated, laughing so hard he almost slumped on the floor. "Jaden, you've finally met your match! Hey, where do you think you're running off to?"

Finally, the game ended with Jaden frantically fleeing.

Afterward, everyone gathered for dinner at the hotel's restaurant.

Having finished their meal, Ashley led Miranda to the room she had reserved.

The two chatted for a while, and Ashley advised Miranda to get a good rest for the car race they planned to see the next morning.

Back in her own room, Ashley took a shower.

Feeling refreshed and comfortable in bed, she called Valentin.

Valentin found her appearance cute and replied casually, "No, I didn't."

"Don't fool me." Ashley picked up a small mirror from her nightstand. "Look, the dark circles are showing. I haven't been resting well these past few days."

"You haven't rested well?" he frowned.

"Yeah, that's why I'm feeling sleepy today," Ashley said, putting her mirror back on the bedside table and yawning. "Tomorrow morning, I'm going to a car race. Maybe take a look at a handsome race car driver."

Valentin's face darkened immediately, his voice stern. "See what?"

Ashley thought he hadn't heard her and repeated, "The car race, and maybe a good-looking driver. I heard he's really handsome, a friend of Miranda's. You know Miranda, right?"

Valentin almost laughed in annoyance, his expression far from pleased.

At this moment, he couldn't bother whether it was Miranda or anyone else.

Ashley was genuinely tired, yawning again. "But according to Miranda, this race car driver isn't as handsome as you."

Without thinking, Ashley teased, her sleepy mind speaking freely, "Can't help it, Mr. Kingsley has always had good looks, not just nice to look at, but also nice to touch."

Valentin froze, the coldness in his eyes melting away like spring snow, vanishing instantly. "Wait till you get back. You can touch it every day."

Ashley suddenly realized what she had just said. "I'll...deal with it when I get back. Time to sleep!"

With that, she ended the video call, her sleepiness completely gone.

Really, what was she thinking?

The next morning, Ashley, along with Joseph, Miranda, and others, went to watch the car race.

Their seat was at the main grandstand, offering an excellent view. Plus, there were six large screens around them, broadcasting the race live.

It was the pre-race preparation period.

Miranda scanned around and soon spotted Bradley in the driver's rest area. She immediately pointed him out to Ashley. "Ashley, look over there, the guy in black, that's Bradley!"

Ashley followed her gaze.

However, her expression suddenly turned cold when she saw Bradley's face.