To the Love of My Life

Ruby felt puzzled by Steve’s piercing gaze and couldn’t help but frown slightly.

Only then did Steve blink, his tone calm and revealing no trace of vulnerability, “Why did it take you so long to come back?”

Ruby, hearing Steve’s familiar tone, relaxed and gave him a shallow smile, “Madeleine was feeling a bit down, so I talked with her for a while.”

“Hmm.” Steve nodded slowly as if he believed Ruby’s words, picked up his glass of alcohol, and took a slow sip. However, his fingers gripping the glass appeared to be applying a bit more force than necessary.

–

Not long after Ruby sat down, Madeleine also entered the private room. She didn’t return to Ruby’s side but went straight to Howard Coleman and his girlfriend. She picked up a bottle of alcohol from a nearby table and poured herself a glass. After some unknown exchange between the three of them, they took turns drinking several large glasses of alcohol.

Already having drunk quite a bit, Howard’s girlfriend finally couldn’t contain herself after downing a few more glasses. She leaned unsteadily against Howard with her eyes closed.

Madeleine sat next to Howard, and the two were like close buddies from the past, intertwining their arms and playing a drinking game.

At the end, Howard waved his hand, leaned back on the sofa, closed his eyes, and rested.

Shakily, Madeleine stood up, took out her phone from her pocket, and made a call.

Shortly after, Madeleine’s regular driver came in with two male waiters, helping Madeleine, Howard, and Howard’s girlfriend out of the private room.

Steve also put down his glass of alcohol and said to Ruby, “It’s getting late; let’s go home.”

As he spoke, Steve gentlemanly took Ruby’s purse and stood up.

Rusell Henris and Edward Woods, noticing Steve and Ruby were leaving, also stumbled to their feet.

–

As they left The Sapphire Bistro, Ruby happened to notice Madeleine’s driver shoving Howard and his girlfriend into Madeleine’s car from afar.

The drivers for Rusell and Edward saw the two men coming out, each helping their respective bosses into their own cars. After bidding goodbye to Steve and Ruby, they drove away.

At the door of The Sapphire Bistro, Steve’s driver was already waiting. Seeing Steve and Ruby approaching, he opened the rear car door hesitantly.

After helping Steve and Ruby get seated into the car and closing the door, the driver started the engine. Only then did he ask, “Mr. Burton, Ms. Gregory, are we going back to the apartment?”

Since Ruby had been staying at Steve’s apartment lately, she responded with a firm “yes.”

After hearing Ruby’s reply, the driver stepped on the gas, heading toward an intersection where he was about to make a U-turn. That’s when Steve, who had been silent up to that point, suddenly spoke up, “Let’s go to the West Suburb Villa instead.”

The driver hesitated for a moment, looked at Ruby through the rearview mirror, and said “Yes,” maintaining their current course.

Ruby’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as she turned to look at Steve’s profile.

Steve’s expression was indifferent, his face reflecting the flickering neon lights outside the car window.

PS: Today’s chapter is complete, continuing tomorrow~~ I noticed many people are confused. Steve Burton, Rusell Henris, Edward Woods, Madeleine, and Howard Coleman are not blood-related. They are all part of Pristine’s Enterprises and share a close relationship. Additionally, Howard is one month older than Madeleine, so their relationship is not a sibling romance. The ranking among these five is not based on age, but on who can beat whom, and since Howard conceded to Madeleine, she didn’t end up in the last place~