Chapter 17 A Big Surprise To Leena (2/2)

'Why is his car parked here? Did he come back from his business trip already? Maybe he is in this cafe, too! Why didn't he tell me that he was back?'

Her thoughts raced, overwhelming her. Struggling to get her thoughts in order, she tried to reason with herself. 'Maybe Miguel lent his car to his friend, they often borrow cars from each other after all. He is also out of town so it is normal for any of his friends to use his car.' She brushed her suspicions to the side and proceeded to head to the bathroom. Then, she froze.

There were two people standing by the door of the bathroom, a man and a woman. Both of them were tall, so they stood out. She easily identified the woman as Alina. The man, however... the man was actually Miguel.

Leena was shocked to see him here, given he said he was on a business trip. Moreover, of all the people he could be with, it had to be Alina! What a strange encounter.

The two of them were engrossed in a conversation, so they didn't notice her. Miguel was holding Alina's hand tightly and begged sincerely, ”Alina, please give me one more chance!”

However, Alina yanked her hand from his grip. ”I don't find your apology sincere.”

”What more do you want? I already told you, I've been waiting for you all these years!” Miguel whined anxiously.

”Then why did you date another woman? Since you are with Leena now, our relationship has ended.” Alina retorted.

Miguel snarled, ”You betrayed me first! I promised you happiness and that it wouldn't be long until I convinced my parents to give us their blessing. But what did you do? You left me for Dylan Chen! Did you think I wouldn't be hurt?”

”So you're bringing that up now because you are looking to settle scores with me? If you hate me so much, stop bothering me.” Alina scoffed and turned around abruptly.

But Miguel grabbed her by the shoulder to prevent her from leaving. ”I'm sorry,” he pleaded. ”I was wrong to blame you, I shouldn't have. I just hope that you can still give me a chance! Alina, forgive me. Don't leave me, please!”

”Why do all of you treat me like this?” she spat. ”I'd been in love with you for three long years, you even swore to me that we'd get married. But we never did! Because you couldn't go against your parents' wishes.” She started to tear up. ”Dylan is no different from you. He promised to love me and give me the best in this life, but until now, I am still hidden, like a dirty secret. He refused to divorce his wife. I can only be his other woman. I could have settled with a better man, but I can't because of all of you!”

”If he can't make you happy, then leave him! Don't ever run back to him. Dylan is not a good man. You can't be with him, anyway,” Miguel said harshly. Then, his tone softened. ”I've been waiting for you, Alina. Don't you remember our engagement ring?” Miguel raised his hand and showed her the ring he was wearing. The platinum ring in the shape of a delicate magnolia flower.

Leena felt as though she'd been struck by lightning. Alina had been wearing the exact same ring back at the hotel. It suddenly dawned on her that these two had a long history.

”I couldn't buy you a good ring back then, we were still in college so I couldn't disobey my parents,” Miguel continued. ”But now, I finally have a job after studying abroad. I run a company with my brother. I don't have to follow my parents anymore. I can buy better rings for you, and I can also give you happiness. As long as you come back to me, we can continue where we left off...” He was so scared of losing her, that he blurted out all these promises.

”What about Leena?” Alina asked venomously.

Miguel was obviously caught off guard. Panic filled his eyes. Guiltily, he said, ”Stop talking about other people. As long as you're willing to come back, I'll marry you. Why are you so worried about Leena?”

Leena shook her head in dismay. She was sad, frustrated, and done putting up with it. With a murderous look, she said in a loud voice. ”So, it seems you called me out here not to talk about Jimmy, but to let me witness this appalling scene.”