Chapter 87
Scott froze in his footsteps, and he instinctively clung to his jacket.
Naomi was equally shocked.
Charles,
What was Charles doing here?
Naomi turned around, Charles was standing in the warm glow of the hallway’s ambient lighting, clutching his phone in his hand. He was staring straight at her, as though she was the only person he had eyes for among the crowd.
Everyone paused to stare at Charles.
Since Charles visited Naomi at the museum a few days ago, most of the wood carvers recognized him immediately. Now that he appeared right in front of them, they all unanimously turned to glance at
Scott.
All of them assumed that Naomi moved on after her divorce, but now that it appeared as though she and Scott were still married…things were far more complicated than they initially thought.
Scott was, at this moment, standing with his back against the light, so his face was enveloped in darkness, making his expression unreadable.
Quentin never met Charles before, but he heard from the other wood carvers about Naomi’s new love interest, and now that Charles appeared, he deduced that this was the man Naomi was
interested in.
Quentin glanced at Scott surreptitiously. He was standing right next to Chandler and Scott, so he could make out Scott’s face as clear as day. Despite that, his expression was calm and cool with no ounce of anger at all.
Naomi never expected to run into Charles here, but now that they encountered him, it would be rude not to say hi. She turned to Chandler and said, “Master Chandler, excuse me for a moment. I’ll hi to my friend. Please don’t wait for me.”
go say
All of the men here were older than Naomi, and they could tell from the look on Charles‘ face that he was interested in her.
Chandler glanced at Scott and nodded with a smile. “Okay, Naomi.”
With that, they continued on their way. Naomi scampered toward Charles without even a backward glance at Scott.
Charles clenched his fist when his gaze landed on Scott. He came out to take a call, whereas Sean was still inside the room. Sean already drunk a lot but was determined to get wasted. Charles knew there was no way he could talk Sean out of this, so he automatically assumed the role of the designated driver.
He was by Sean’s side the entire night and only left to take a call, but who would have thought he would run into Naomi and Scott? They were walking side by side, basking in a warm glow from the lights that made them look like a match made in heaven.
Charles‘ chest tightened at this. He could feel a sense of threat; everything that happened over the past few days felt like a dream.
Charles knew that he had to call out for Naomi. As irrational as this thought was, he felt that if allowed her to leave right then and there, he would lose her forever.
He had to make her stay, even just for a moment.
He released his fist as he watched Naomi making her way toward him. She turned and walked toward him without even a second glance at Scott, and Charles breathed a sigh of relief at this.
Naomi was oblivious to this, of course. When she saw Charles, she instinctively thought of Amelia, and since Charles was here, it was a no–brainer that Sean would be here as well. She had to check on Sean so that she could tell Amelia what was going on. She knew Amelia loved Sean just as much as he loved her; unfortunately, fate was playing a cruel game on them.
Naomi wanted to see the two of them happy together, so she was willing to help them no matter what.
Scott listened to the sound of Naomi’s footsteps getting further and further away. His finger twitched, and he finally let go of the jacket he gripped tightly with his hand. He turned and continued walking out the door.
Charles watched him leave with a knot in his throat. Although Naomi and Scott divorced, he could not help but feel that their marriage did not truly end after all, and the more time he spent around them, the stronger this feeling became.