51. Damn, you’re getting cheesy.

'Did you find her?" Briella asked Chelsey. She shook her head. 'She's good at hiding," she said. Briella sighed and leaned back on their soft sofa. It had been a week since Matilda showed up at the Star Agency and caused a scene, but she quickly left after saying all sorts of things against Briella and even Xander himself. It had also been two weeks since she hadn't been able to go to the Agency because Braun didn't want her to leave until they found that woman. Next week, she needed to take care of the things she needed to do for her trip to Paris, but how could she do that if she couldn't go to the Agency? Chelsey left soon after, still wary of Braun, so she didn't stay long at their house. She only came when she had something to report, and she had talked to Cecile on the phone, saying she wanted to discuss something with her personally, something that shouldn't just be talked about over the phone. She needed to talk to Braun and coax him into letting her leave the house. After Chelsey left, she went upstairs to their bedroom and changed into a swimsuit. The weather was too hot, and it was nice to soak in the water even though it was getting dark. When she came down, her phone rang. The number calling didn't have a name, so she hesitated to answer, but out of curiosity, she did. 'Hello?" she greeted coldly. 'B-Briella," her eyebrows furrowed immediately upon hearing Xander's familiar voice, but there was something different about it, and she couldn't immediately identify what it was. 'What do you want, Xander?" she asked sharply. 'I don't want any trouble, Briella. Can we talk? I mean, just the two of us," he said softly on the other line. 'I just want to talk to you and ask for forgiveness," he added. Her body tensed, and she gripped the phone tighter. She didn't speak, and after a while, she heard his voice crackle. 'Please?" he pleaded with her. She took a deep breath for the sake of old times. 'Okay, where are you?" she asked disinterestedly. He told her where he was, and she immediately returned to the room to change clothes. Then she called Braun to pick her up. 'Send me the exact location, and I'll send some security," Braun said on the other line. 'Okay," she didn't stop him anymore. She knew he was just worried about what Xander might do to her. 'I'll be on my way after five minutes. Please, take care, wife," he said. 'I will, bye." She hung up her phone and went straight to the garage. She used the sports car Braun bought her, and in a few moments, she was on her way to where it all started. It was dark when she arrived at the place. As she parked her car, she saw Xander sitting on a gutter near a lamppost. She didn't immediately get out of her car and carefully observed the man. He looked noticeably thinner, and his hair was unkempt, something she used to fix whenever she saw it messy. Even his polo shirt was crumpled, and it was evident that he hadn't shaved for days. She wanted to pity the man, but no matter what she did, she couldn't find any feelings left for him, and if it weren't really for her to finally get rid of him and stop bothering her, she wouldn't have gone there to talk to him. She took a deep breath before opening her car door and stepping out. She caught sight of a few men surrounding them, subtly glancing their way. Two of them slowly walked away when she began to approach Xander. She signalled them not to get too close, fearing that Xander might notice them and panic. She stood in front of him, and he slowly raised his head and looked up at her. His eyes were red, indicating that he hadn't had a good sleep, and his whole body smelled of alcohol. 'You came," he said. 'Yeah, I came to the end of everything that connects us, Xander," she replied emotionlessly. He didn't speak and sadly smiled, gesturing for her to sit beside him. She didn't follow and just shrugged, keeping her distance. 'Tell me what you want to say because when my husband arrives, I'm leaving immediately," she said. He chuckled bitterly. 'Husband? That should be me. You should've been mine if I hadn't fooled you," he said with a hint of bitterness in his voice. 'You're too late for that. If you think you can still sway me with those things, you're wrong," she said. 'I know, just hear me out, Brie. I want to tell you how I really feel about you," he said. She scrutinized him with a narrowed gaze and sat a meter away from him. 'I just want to say sorry, sorry for all the lies, deceit, and using you. I never once loved you because I was blindly in love with Matilda, and she's the one I truly loved. I'm sorry for taking everything from you, and no matter what I do, I know it's too late to regret everything I've done. I'm stupid, a jerk, a son of a bitch, and I accept that," he said in a long speech. There was regret in his voice, and at that moment, she knew he was telling the truth. Nevertheless, she couldn't feel the forgiveness he was asking for. Yes, he's sincere, but it's not enough. The damage has been done, and she almost ruined her life because of the betrayal he did. In the end, he also admitted that he never really loved her and only desired her money and prestige. 'I won't ask you to forgive me right away, but I hope you'll consider—" His words were cut off when she burst out laughing. He looked at her, puzzled and surprised by her laughter. 'You know, Xander, I don‘t know if you were born with a thick face or it just thickened to the highest level over the years. Or maybe it's just your thick ego that's so big that it's eating up what little brain you have," she retorted. 'Do you have any idea how I felt when your woman humiliated me to my face that night, Xander? During those times, did you ever think that there would come a day when you would regret everything you did wrong? No, right? Because all you thought was that there was just one idiot and fool who was blind in love with you?" she said with bitterness. He didn't speak and remained silent with his head bowed. She took a deep breath and looked at Club in front of them. A bitter smile crossed her lips as she remembered that night. But she knew her anger had only gone so far, and she was happy with Braun and thankful that he gave her the chance to get to know him and rebuild herself. 'This is the end for us, Xander. Please don't call me or even text me. My decision will still be the same. You need to pay for what you've done. I will take everything I've worked hard for, including the Agency. We both know that I've worked harder to grow your business because, without me, you wouldn't be able to get big stockholders. What do you know about running a business? You even threaten your talents and squeeze money out of them," she said. 'You don't deserve every penny of that company," she added. She saw his shoulders slump, and she knew he was crying. He remained silent and didn't look at her because even in such a moment, his pride still consumed him. Braun approached her, and she stood up, leaving the man. 'Are you okay?" Braun asked her with concern as he approached. She smiled and nodded. 'I'm okay, let's go home?" she said. He glanced at Xander behind her before turning to her and nodding. He helped her get into his car, and he drove them home. Luigi was driving Braun's car. As they drove home, Braun didn't let go of her hand, and now and then, he kissed it. She quietly watched her husband drive, his eyes fixed on the road. 'Why are you staring at me, wife?" Braun asked her. 'Am I not allowed to stare at you like this?" she replied teasingly. 'I'm curious, why did you think of meeting that man? Are you still in love with him?" he asked her. She smiled, realizing that was the reason for his tight grip on her hand and occasional kisses. He's jealous. 'Forgetting three years of our relationship isn't easy," she said, trying to suppress a smile because Braun's expression suddenly changed. He didn't speak and kept driving, but she could see that he was deep in thought. She knew he was jealous for the first time, so she wanted to make him even more jealous by not continuing what she said. Soon enough, he stopped the car on the side of the road and faced her. 'I'll ask you one more time. Just say yes or no," he said, staring into her eyes. She fought the urge to bite her lower lip and acted normal, wishing she could get her phone and take a picture of him like that. It was the first time she had seen him jealous, so she wanted to have memories of them together. She discreetly took out her phone and quickly took a picture before putting it back in her bag. 'What was that?" he asked with a furrowed brow. She shrugged. 'Nothing, okay, game. Ask away," she said and faced him. It took a while before he spoke, still staring into her eyes. She thought he wasn't going to say, and she was about to hit him when she heard his question. 'Do you love me?" Braun asked her directly. 'Ha?" she said in surprise. She didn't expect him to ask that, so she was stunned for a moment and couldn't say anything. 'Am I enough for you?" he asked again. 'Will you promise to stay with me until we grow old? Damn, are my questions getting corny? I'm sorry, I'm just jealous," he said, scratching his head. She smiled and nodded. 'You're more than enough for me, Braun. And yes, I promise to stay with you until we grow old. Damn, you're getting cheesy," she teased him.