Page 100 of King of Ruin

The secretary immediately excused himself from the group he had been speaking with and walked over, stopping a respectful distance away before folding his hands neatly behind his back.

"Miss Foster," he said with his usual professionalism, inclining his head slightly. "Would you like to head home?"

Elise looked at him in surprise.

Benjamin offered a courteous smile before continuing, "Mr. Chen has already left the party. Before he departed, he instructed me to drive you back to the Chen Manor."

Elise stood motionless, her fingers tightening around the small clutch in her hands as Benjamin's words slowly registered in her mind.

For a moment, she simply looked at him, unable to hide the surprise that flickered across her face. She hadn't expected Xavier to leave without her. Even after everything that had happened between them, some stubborn part of her had believed he would still be somewhere on the yacht, waiting for her to come back once they had both calmed down.

He always had before.

No matter how badly they argued or how furious he became, Xavier had never once walked away and left her behind. He would lose his temper. He would refuse to speak to her. Sometimes he would bury himself in work for hours, forcing her to be the one who sought him out first. But he had always made sure she was with him when they left. Always.

Tonight...

He hadn't waited.

The realization settled over her with a weight that made her chest feel unbearably tight. She could still picture the look in his eyes before he turned away from her—the disappointment, the anger, the hurt he had tried so hard to bury beneath that cold expression. At the time, she had thought he simply needed space.

Now she understood.

He hadn't just been angry.

He'd reached the point where he couldn't bear to stay another second.

The thought hollowed something inside her.

She lowered her gaze, blinking away the sting gathering behind her eyes before drawing in a quiet breath that did little to steady the ache spreading through her chest.

"All right," she said at last, forcing a small nod. Her voice came out softer than she intended. "I'd like to go home."

Benjamin inclined his head without another question and quietly led the way. Together they left the dazzling lights of the yacht behind, the laughter of the guests gradually fading into the distance until it became nothing more than a faint echo swallowed by the night.

Neither of them spoke after climbing into the car.

The silence inside the cabin was gentle rather than uncomfortable, leaving only the muted hum of the engine and the occasional rush of another vehicle passing by. Elise turned her head toward the window, watching the city glide past in blurred streaks of gold and white. Towering buildings sparkled beneath the night sky, restaurants overflowed with people stillenjoying their evening, and traffic continued to flow as though the world had remained perfectly unchanged.

It was beautiful.

Peaceful.

Yet none of it reached her.

By the time Elise stepped through the front doors of the Chen Manor, the exhaustion from the evening had settled deep into her bones.

The mansion was as grand and immaculate as ever, its crystal chandeliers casting a warm glow over the marble floors, yet tonight it felt strangely empty. She slipped off her heels near the entrance and wandered farther inside, her eyes instinctively searching the familiar rooms without consciously realizing she was doing it. The living room was deserted. The study stood open, its lights turned off. Even the terrace beyond the glass doors sat quiet beneath the moonlight.

Xavier wasn't there.

Elise lingered in the foyer for another moment, listening for any sign that he had already come home. Usually, she would hear something—the quiet murmur of his voice as he finished a business call, the soft tapping of his laptop keys from the study, or even the distant footsteps of the staff informing him that his coffee was ready.

Tonight, the house was completely silent.

A strange uneasiness stirred in her chest, but she quickly pushed it aside. He was probably still at the office. After everything that had happened on the yacht, it wouldn't have been unlike Xavier to bury himself in work. Whenever something weighed on his mind, work had always been his refuge.

Trying not to overthink it, she headed upstairs, changed into her pajamas, washed away the last traces of her makeup, and slipped beneath the covers. She picked up the novel she'd been reading, hoping to distract herself, but after reading the same page twice without absorbing a single word, she quietly closed it again. Her eyes wandered to the clock on the bedside table, then to the phone lying beside it.