Chapter 4

Seeing no suspicion on my face, she let out a quiet sigh of relief, flicked off the light, and whispered goodnight.

The next morning, when I woke up, Chloe was already up and had cooked a pot of oatmeal for breakfast.

"Logan, you seemed down yesterday, so I made breakfast."

"Why don't you take today off? You haven't rested a single day in four years. The weather is so nice today. Let's go out for a walk in the park together, okay?"

For years, because of my brutal schedule, we never had the chance to be a normal couple—strolling through parks, grabbing coffee, browsing shops.

I couldn't understand her. If she didn't love me, why bother putting on this loving act?

Looking into her expectant eyes, I eventually gave in and nodded.

"Sure. Let me finish my morning delivery route first."

Her eyes crinkled with warmth, and she pulled me down to eat breakfast.

Halfway through the meal, her phone rang.

After hanging up, she gave me a guilty, hesitant look.

"Logan... an urgent order just came in at work. They need me back at the office immediately to handle it..."

I stared deeply into her eyes. Sensing her growing nervousness, I quietly nodded.

After breakfast, she hurried downstairs.

Even though I already knew the truth, something compelled me to follow her down.

Sure enough, parked right outside our run-down apartment complex was that gleaming Maybach.

Hunter Ross, wearing a bright smile, jumped straight into her arms the second she walked out.

Chloe wore that same indulgent smile, though she quickly lowered her voice to scold him,

"Who told you to come here? Didn't I forbid you from showing up near this place?"

"What if Logan saw you?"

Hunter pouted, his voice dripping with playful whining,

"Don't be mad at me, Chloe! I just missed you so much! You didn't even reply to my text last night."

"And didn't we promise to go on a picnic today? We haven't spent real time together in forever."

They had literally spent the previous night tangled in each other's arms.

Chloe hesitated, her brows knitting together.

Seeing her waver, Hunter's eyes welled with fake tears, his voice cracking.

"I get it. Does your Logan want you to spend the day with him instead?"

"It's fine. I'll just sit alone in that giant, empty villa. If waiting another day means keeping you happy, I can take it..."

Hearing that, Chloe instantly pulled him into a tight embrace, soothing him frantically,

"Don't cry, Hunter. How could I ever leave you all alone? We're leaving right now, okay?"

She truly was hopelessly in love with him.

As their car sped away, a message popped up on my phone from Chloe:

"Logan, I'm so sorry. The client is rushing this batch of work. I won't be able to hang out today after all. Let's do it another time, okay?"

I gave a broken, silent laugh and replied with a single word:

"Okay."

Then, I pulled up the contact number for the classified federal defense research facility and hit dial.

"Hello. Is the position still open?"

The recruiter on the other end gasped with immediate excitement. "Mr. Vance? Absolutely! When are you available? We can send an escort to pick you up immediately."

Listening to the agent's eager tone, I wiped away a stray tear from the corner of my eye.

"Tomorrow. Let me pack my things."

I hung up the phone and looked out at the empty street where the Maybach had vanished.

Chloe Sterling, I hope you truly find your happiness.