Chapter 4

With that, Nadine strutted out of the restroom. Josephine felt a sharp pang in her chest, causing her to stumble backward. She leaned against the sink, barely managing to stay on her feet. She had trusted Zayn! Yet, the dress he got her turned out to be nothing more than a complimentary gift. She had even treated it so well. Just then, a few women approached her. "Isn't this Mrs. Forbes? Have you recovered from your cold?" "That's right, Mrs. Forbes. You're so lucky. You merely caught a cold, yet Mr. Forbes called in ten specialists to treat you. If it were me, I could be on my deathbed, and my husband still wouldn't bother calling a single doctor." "Comparing our life to yours, we're truly missing out." The women sighed before walking away. Josephine turned to look at herself in the mirror and smiled bitterly. She had already decided to leave him, yet upon hearing Nadine's words, she still couldn't help but feel hurt. She walked out of the restroom, but couldn't find Zayn anywhere. Just as she was about to head back to the banquet hall alone, she passed by a corner and accidentally caught sight of two figures through the crack of a door. "Babe, stop it. Everyone's still waiting for us in the banquet hall!" Zayn tried to peel Nadine's hands away, but she simply leaned in and kissed him. Zayn paused before eventually giving in to the kiss. Seeing them locking lips, Josephine turned around and left. She didn't return to the banquet hall, but instead called a cab and returned to Forbes residence. Josephine had just made it to the entrance when she received a call from Zayn. "Honey, where did you go? I've been looking everywhere for you." Josephine said coldly, "I wasn't feeling too well and decided to come home." Zayn immediately asked in concern, "Are you okay? I'm coming back right now." Before Josephine could reply, he hurriedly ended the call. It was as if he was going to appear right in front of her at the very next second. Just as she was about to enter the villa, Josephine's phone rang once more. This time, it was from an unknown number. "Hello, is this Ms. Dunn? I saw the gifts you listed online. Are they still available?" It was someone who was interested in purchasing her gifts. "They are." "Great. I'll be there in 20 minutes. Could you please bring them downstairs for me?" Josephine ended the call, just as the butler, Luke Mendez, opened the door. The minute he saw her, he paused before asking "Mrs. Forbes, aren't you supposed to be attending a banquet? Why have you come back alone?" "Something came up. Could you please help me carry some things down, Luke?" She led him up to the second floor. Upon seeing the large pile of bags, Luke asked in surprise, "What's all this, Mrs. Forbes?" "Nothing important. It's just some old clothes I don't wear anymore. It would be a shame to just throw them away so I listed them online." Luke didn't question her. He helped her carry the bags downstairs and placed them outside the villa. It took him three trips to finally move everything. Shortly after, the buyer arrived, loaded all the bags into their car, and left. Josephine skipped dinner and went straight to bed after washing up. As she lay there, she thought back to Zayn's words. He said he would be home in 20 minutes. But two hours had passed, yet there were still no signs of him. Unlike before, Josephine no longer waited for him. Instead, she casually scrolled through her phone and was just about to go to sleep when her phone screen suddenly lit up. Josephine assumed that it was another message from Nadine. She clicked it open only to see that it was a clip of Zayn and Nadine drinking from the same wine glass. However, Josephine realized that she had already grown immune to their affectionate displays. After all, she had already witnessed them kissing. What could possibly be worse than that? She turned off her phone screen but it rang once again. Thinking that it was Nadine again, she answered with a sharp tone, "Do you ever know when to stop?" The person on the other end of the phone asked in confusion, "Honey, who are you talking to?" It was Zayn. "No one. It thought it was a spam call ." "I see. For a moment, I thought you had a secret admirer. You gave me quite a scare," Zayn said with a sigh of relief. Josephine forced a smile, "I'm not that charming. You're the only one who loves me in this world." She wondered if her words made him feel even a flicker of guilt. "I knew you'd understand me. I was held back by some guests earlier and couldn't walk away. Be good and wait for me at home, okay? I love you." With that, Zayn hung up the phone. Josephine scoffed. Did he really get held back by the guests? Or was it Nadine who held him back? Either way, she didn't care anymore. That night, Josephine slept soundly. Only when she woke up did she realize that Zayn hadn't returned all night. Oddly enough, she suddenly found herself in an extremely good mood. She turned on the radio which she hadn't used in ages and listened to the most popular songs while humming along to it. After freshening up, she headed down to the dining room for breakfast. As she ate, she noticed the housekeeper staring at her. She asked with a smile, "What's wrong?" "You seem to be in a particularly good mood today, Mrs. Forbes. Did Mr. Forbes surprise you with another gift?" Josephine frowned. So, in everyone's eyes, her emotions were always linked to Zayn. Just then, Zayn walked in with a huge bouquet of roses in his hands. His face was brimming with excitement. He placed the flowers in her arms and then gave her a deep kiss in front of all the housekeepers. He then pulled out a contract for Josephine to see. "Honey, look what this is." Josephine glanced at it. The title on the front of the contract read, "Josephine's charity foundation." Zayn had named the foundation after her? Seeing Josephine's stunned expression, Zayn thought she was simply too moved by him and smiled, "This is the gift I mentioned to you a few days ago." It was only then that Josephine realized that it was Valentine's Day. At that moment, one of the housekeepers chimed in with a smile, "No wonder Mrs. Forbes had been in such a good mood all morning. She must've been waiting for your gift!" Zayn suddenly asked with a smile, "Didn't you say you had a gift for me too?" "Yes. It's in the bedside drawer." As soon as Josephine finished speaking, Zayn immediately sprinted upstairs. It seemed like he had been looking forward to her gift for some time. Josephine sat calmly in the dining room, continuing to sip on her soup. Sure enough, a few minutes later, Zayn came down with the gift in his hands. "Honey, you prepared me a mystery box? I love it." He exclaimed and proceeded to open it. "Wait." Josephine stopped him. Seeing her acting so mysterious, Zachry smiled, "What's wrong?" "I got this mystery box from a psychic. She said it should only be open three days later for good luck." Upon hearing this, Zayn tucked away the mystery box and gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Thank you for the precious gift, Honey." Seeing him smile so brightly, Josephine hoped he would be just as happy three days from now. After breakfast, Zayn suggested taking Josephine on a rafting trip. However, before she could reply, his phone rang. He reluctantly picked it up. "Could you guys just give me a break? It's Valentine's Day. Can I please just spend it quietly with my wife?" Zayn's voice was filled with irritation. "Alright. I got it."