Chapter 761:
“Focus on your competition. I’ll make time to come and cheer you on next time,” he said before turning to leave, like a fleeting shadow at dusk. Watching his retreating back, Elyse felt a bittersweet ache in her heart. When Jayden decided to stay, no power on earth could make him leave. But when he decided to leave, no amount of pleading could make him stay.
Elyse pursed her lips. Some things never change, she thought, even after divorce. Lost in thought, she barely noticed Edward’s entrance, bearing steaming hot bread. “Breakfast is served. Care to join me?”
Snapping back to reality, Elyse nodded and instinctively picked up the remote, turning on the TV. Coincidentally, the news was covering a shootout at the club from the previous night. The grim report detailed a chaotic scene with over a dozen fatalities and multiple injuries. The police had apprehended the ringleaders, putting them behind bars.
Elyse’s brow furrowed. “Was the club situation really that intense yesterday?”
Edward, munching on his bread, mumbled through a mouthful, “Pretty standard. The governor’s been itching to shut that club down for ages. This shootout was like handing him the perfect opportunity on a silver platter.”
Elyse cast a sidelong glance at Edward, who seemed engrossed in the news. “What are you hiding from me?”
“Why do you think I’m hiding something? I’m your good friend,” Edward countered.
“Just a gut feeling. I have no proof,” Elyse replied, sipping her milk and letting the matter drop.
After breakfast, Edward patted his full stomach and eyed Elyse’s bed with a playful smirk. “Since I looked after you all night, can I take a nap in your bed? Seems only fair, doesn’t it?”
“Not a chance. Head back to your hotel room,” Elyse shot back.
Unperturbed, Edward persisted, “Then how do you plan to compensate me for seeing my body?”
Elyse, her face a mask of indifference, retorted, “You can only blame your bad luck.”
Laughing in exasperation, Edward got up, put on his coat, and stormed out of the room. Once outside, his demeanor changed instantly. Humming a light-hearted tune, he sauntered out of the hotel and into a sleek luxury car waiting at the curb. Inside, Jayden, a cigarette dangling from his lips, looked up and inquired, “Did she have breakfast?”
“Yes, though she barely touched it, she did eat,” Edward said with a mischievous grin as he closed the car door and leaned back. “You really went all out last night, didn’t you?”
“Effort is the backbone of any successful plan,” Jayden said, taking a drag on his cigarette and typing on his phone without looking up.
“Has Charlie Hudson surfaced? You personally threw his daughter Aarya behind bars. He can’t stay under the radar forever,” Edward inquired nonchalantly, flicking Jayden’s cigarette lighter.
“That wily fox is still underground. I’m searching for him too, but he’s a master at evading capture,” Jayden replied with a hint of frustration.