Hold My Tear, I’m Getting My Wife Back! ( Leanne Castillo ) novel Chapter 509

The lines of his face looked sharper in his black coat, his demeanor exuding a sense of discipline and stability so profound that it overshadowed his handsome features.

"Then congratulations," Phillip said, retreating to where he belonged, expressing what he was supposed to. "I'm glad you found someone who meets your standards."

Tina realized she preferred his earlier sentiment over the mere 'gladness' she heard.

"Thank you," she replied politely.

Phillip stood a few steps away, his deep gaze lingering on her for a moment longer before he said, "See you around."

He brushed past Tina, descending the stairs, and her eyes followed his figure until it vanished at the gallery entrance, only for Alfred's face to fill her view all at once.

Alfred had some critique about her display of arrogance. "It's okay in private, but in front of my friends, you couldn’t spare me some dignity, huh? Where did you run off to on the second floor?"

"Meeting a lover," Tina quipped, slinging her bag over her shoulder as she stared intently at Alfred's face.

Knowing her penchant for jokes, Alfred didn't take it to heart, though her gaze made him self-conscious, touching his face. "What? My looks might not stun you at a glance, but I grow on you. My friends say I've got a bit of charm."

Tina hadn't seen Alfred look funny until he spoke, and she found humor in his words then.

"Good for you. What makes you so confident?"

...

For Phillip, returning to his life before last summer wasn’t hard.

All it took was burying himself in work. Suppressing emotions was a skill Phillip had honed since childhood.

That brief flutter of the heart was like a journey to an uncharted place, and with her departure, he carried his regrets back to reality.