A Vengeful Ex-Wife novel Chapter 157

Maria took the fresh brewed coffee and sat down opposite the woman. As the owner of the coffee shop, she decided to greet her. "Hello there. Welcome to my shop."

The woman removed her sunglasses. Maria's hunch was right. She knew exactly who it was. The woman wasn't frowning, but definitely not smiling, either.

She rudely stared at Maria.

Today, Maria wore a long black dress, hugging her in all the right places, which made her even more charming and enchanting. She sat there, a cup of coffee in hand. She was confident and mature.

Compared with how she used to be, Maria had changed a lot. Gone was the simple, naive girl who married into the Xi family.

Maria smiled. "Mrs. Xi, long time no see."

Looking at the smile on Maria's face, Judy's bravado fled her. Without changing her expression, she asked, "I thought you left. When did you get back in H City?"

"About three months ago." It seemed like just yesterday. Yet she'd been here for a while now.

"Three months..." Judy echoed her words. "Only three months and you're already back in James' bed. You're more capable than I thought."

Maria smiled, took a sip of coffee, and answered casually, "Men are animals that think with what's inside their pants. A pretty face is their downfall. Stroke their ego a little bit and they're trapped. James is no

exception."

The look in Judy's eyes changed. She wondered if that was how James fell for her.

The coffee was served. The shop assistant put it in front of Judy and said, "Excuse me, ma'am. Here's some coffee for you."

Judy didn't move, ignoring the assistant. Her eyes were fixed on Maria. After the shop assistant left, she asked tentatively, "Don't you hate James for what he did to you six years ago?"

"Hate him?" asked Maria. Then she gave her an unfathomable smile. "Of course I hate him, but it doesn't prevent me from hooking up with him. After all, he's rich and handsome. I'm a shallow woman, and I eat men like him for lunch. As long as he gives me enough money, hatred is nothing."

"Is that why you're always trying to get between James and Alina?"

"Of course, everyone wants to be with a great guy like James. I couldn't do that six years ago, but now things are different. I'm different."

Judy was relieved to know she did it for the money. She said, "I want you to leave James alone. Name your price."

'Price?' Maria's smile widened. There was a hint of the wild child there. "Three hundred million?"

A hint of panic flashed across Judy's eyes when she heard the number, but it quickly disappeared. She picked up the coffee and took a sip to hide it. "Let's make it four hundred mil. But you have to leave the city.

"Now I know what you're up to. That's a different price. Someone once promised me a billion, asking me to leave the city, but I said no. You're low-balling me here."

Judy suddenly couldn't find her tongue to reply. She didn't expect Maria to be so greedy. "Aren't you afraid James might find out?" ''What about you? Aren't you afraid of him?" Maria asked her instead of answering, her reply full of hidden meaning.

Judy knew what she meant, but pretended to be confused. She asked again, "Leave the city. How much do you want? Maria, you know, you don't belong here. The Song family abandoned you and the Xi family kicked you out. Why did you come back?"

"I came back to look for my true love. I love James. Where else would I go if he's here?"

"Even if you make things difficult, he's engaged to Alina. Apparently he doesn't feel the same way about you."

Maria put down the coffee mug, rested her chin on one hand, and leaned forward, looking pitiful. "So, Aunt Judy, can you help me? Help me get back to the Xi family."

Staring at the woman in front of her, Judy didn't know what tricks Maria was playing now. She looked her in the eye, but saw nothing. It took a lot to kick Maria out of the Xi family. Maria knew that she wouldn't help her. Why did she even ask?