A Vengeful Ex-Wife novel Chapter 18

After being addressed as "Mrs. Xi" a few times, Alina felt much better. She drank the liquor from her glass and said gracefully, "Thank you!"

James didn't say anything. He just watched them chatting and toasting.

Twenty minutes later, the business dinner was over. Alina and James walked along the corridor arm in arm as the other businessmen followed the golden couple out.

Turning in the corridor, there were only the two of them and Lorenzo when Alina pretended to ask casually, "James, I heard that Maria was also here tonight. Did you see her?"

Before James could answer, an enchanting voice cut in and said, "Of course he did! It was Mr. Xi himself who gave me a ride here."

Following the familiar voice and the click-clack sound of her high-heels, a white figure came into sight.

Maria looked at the couple in front of her with a faint smile. It didn't take her much to figure out that Alina rushed to the hotel after learning she was there with James. Of course, she could only have heard the news from one of James' men. At that moment, Maria glanced at the special assistant behind them, who remained silent the entire time.

James, in turn, kept walking. He planned to go around Maria as if she was any other stranger.

"James, did you come here with Maria?" Alina asked him, seemingly in shock. As he heard the question, James stopped and looked at Alina without a word.

Maria sneered inwardly, 'This bitch dares to pretend she didn't know it!' Learning from Alina, Maria decided to make use of her acting skills in front of the couple as well. So she took two steps forward and looked at James

affectionately. "Oh, Mr. Xi, it seems your girlfriend is upset. I'm sorry, it's all my fault! I shouldn't have gotten in your car to negotiate about the shop with you."

Alina put on an awkward smile the second she took in Maria's words. Quickly, she denied, "Maria, you've misunderstood me. I'm not upset. If James met with you to talk about the shop, I can understand it. After all, he did it for me." As Alina spoke, she moved closer to James. The two looked more intimate than before.

At this moment, a whistling sound came from afar.

Although everyone could hear it, no one knew who was responsible for it except for James. 'This brat! He's been hiding from me for a whole week. What is he doing here?' he wondered. Maria took advantage of the diversion and approached Alina, holding her arm and pretending to be close cousins. "Mr. Xi is just my ex-husband. Alina, please don't get us wrong!

The whistling sound stopped abruptly.

Alina wanted to say something, but Maria didn't give her a chance. Pulling down her cardigan discreetly, the bruises on her neck got completely exposed. Then she continued, "I'm so sorry, Alina. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have done business on my ex-husband's lap. I shouldn't have hugged and kissed him. It was so wrong..."

Assimilating the words "lap," "hug" and "kiss," Alina was almost torn apart by jealousy. She was about to lose her temper when another familiar voice sounded behind them. "James! Don't let Maria Song fool you!"

A young man in a pink shirt appeared in front of them. As everyone looked at him, they recognized Ethan.

Afraid that Maria would trick James, he hurried to expose her. "James, you can't let this woman fool you. She didn't look this innocent in the hospital the other day. She was quite domineering and skillful. I'm serious!"

"Ethan!" Ethan shivered after hearing his name in Maria's soft voice. Meeting her gentle eyes, he went mute all of a sudden. 'Damn it! She is really a temptress!

She's so attractive. She could easily impress anyone!' Ethan thought to himself.

It took the young man a long time to find his voice again. Avoiding making eye contact with Maria, he added, "James, don't fall for her. She hit me three times in the hospital that day! She's not as gentle as she seems! Don't let the way she looks fool you!"

James knew better than anyone else that this woman wasn't gentle. After all, she had just thrown a full glass of beer on him.

Alina was smart enough to stand aside and watch the show, believing that Ethan supported her as James' future wife. In order to show how understanding and kind she was, Alina waited the right moment to cut in. "Mr. Nan, you may have misunderstood Maria. She's a nice girl."