Chapter 100 – Beneath His Ugly Wife’s Mask: Her Revenge Was Her Brilliance Novel Free Online

Elliana answered, “Alright. I’ll meet you at Ublento Hotel.”

After hitting send, she stuffed the rest of the sandwich into her mouth, cheeks puffed out like a little chipmunk, and downed the last of the milk in one swift gulp. She stood up, ready to head out. At that exact moment, Cole opened the door and walked in.

Elliana froze, not expecting to be alone with him. Memories of the previous night rushed back-how things had gone from intimate to explosive in no time. The awkward tension made her uncomfortable, so she turned around and flopped back down on the sofa.

Cole, standing with a relaxed posture, had both hands tucked into the pockets of his crisp slacks. He looked at her chipmunk-like cheeks and let out a light chuckle. “Wow, a chipmunk there?” He’d never met a girl who ate with such little grace.

Elliana gave him a sharp look, refusing to take the bait. But before she could say anything, a sudden hiccup escaped her lips-loud and unexpected. She was choking. And this time, it wasn’t mild.

The urge to spit it out nearly overwhelmed her, but the thought of doing that in front of Cole made her stomach twist even more. Instead, she squeezed her eyes shut and forced the bite down. Sadly, that only made things worse. Her throat tightened, and the choking grew more intense.

Seeing her in distress, Cole rushed forward and began patting her back. As soon as she showed signs of calming down, he turned and poured her a glass of water without a word.

Elliana no longer cared about appearances. She snatched the glass and drank the water in one long gulp.

Once she could breathe again, Cole tilted his head and asked, half-teasing, “Have I been starving you or something?”

Mortified beyond belief, Elliana refused to answer. She threw him a glare that could’ve frozen the air between them.

Cole didn’t need to ask. He could already tell that she hadn’t forgiven him for what happened the night before. He didn’t know what to say to make things better. So instead of trying and making it worse, he stayed quiet and just stood there watching her. After a long stretch of silence, when it became clear she still had no plans of speaking to him, he walked over to the rocking chair across from her and lowered himself into it.

The chair, made of fine woven rattan, felt cool against his skin. He leaned back slowly, letting it sway as he kept his eyes on Elliana. She gave him nothing-not a glance, not a word. He just sat there and watched her.

Truthfully, he had no clue how to pacify a woman. He had never dated anyone before. He had never been drawn to anyone before. He had zero experience in this kind of situation.

Reaching twenty-seven this year, his being seven years her senior made him a little self-conscious. He sometimes worried that she saw him as too old. And whenever she got upset, he completely froze, afraid that anything he said might make things worse.

Silence lingered between them. Elliana sat on the sofa with her head down, scrolling aimlessly through her phone. Across from her, Cole rocked gently in his chair, eyes never leaving her.

After a few more back-and-forth messages with Matthew, Elliana locked her phone and stood up to leave.

Watching her rise sent a wave of panic through Cole. He opened his mouth but couldn’t find the right words. His hand brushed something in his pocket-something small and smooth. It was a piece of candy. On impulse, he pulled it out and held it out to her. “Honey, have a candy.”

Elliana stiffened halfway through standing, irritation flickering across her face. How immature could Cole be? First, he picked a fight, and now he was offering candy as if she were a child to be bribed. She leveled him with a glare.

But then her eyes landed on the candy in his hand, and her breath hitched before she could stop it. Mango milk candy. Her all-time weakness, ever since she was little. She had no defense against that sweet, creamy taste.

Still, there was no way she was going to eat Cole’s candy. He was a complete jerk last night, dumping her curbside after kissing her like she was nothing. There was no way she would let him off the hook so easily.

But barely a heartbeat later, her resolve wavered. She snatched the candy from his hand, peeled off the wrapper, and let it melt on her tongue.

The sugary mango mingled with creamy milk, flooding her senses with pure bliss. She tilted her head back, eyes fluttering shut, letting the flavor wash over her.

Cole kept his gaze locked on her, a spark of triumph flickering in his eyes, as though he’d stumbled upon buried gold. It hit him-Elliana had a weakness for mango candy. Getting it right by chance sent a jolt of giddy satisfaction straight through him. The discovery cheered him up in an instant.

To Cole, Elliana was laughably easy to win over. One piece of candy, and she lit up like a kid at Christmas. He made a mental note to always keep a few on hand for the next time she threw a tantrum. Picturing more moments like this, Cole grinned, the curve of his lips and that effortlessly handsome face radiating charm.

Breaking the silence, Cole’s smile widened. “Well, honey, first you’re a design hotshot under the name Rosa, now you’re flexing medical know-how? What other surprises are you hiding?”

Elliana, savoring the last trace of sweetness on her tongue, froze. She cracked one eye open and shot him a frosty side glance. Did he truly believe a piece of candy could magically wipe away his rudeness? Did he take her for someone so easily won over? A single piece of candy to smooth over how he’d treated her the night before, and now he dared to use that tone, like they were suddenly cozy again? The audacity of it made her blood boil.

When her frosty, sarcastic glare locked onto him, Cole’s cocky grin faltered, stiffening awkwardly on his face. He questioned whether he’d badly misjudged how to handle Elliana.

Before Cole could open his mouth, Elliana flashed him a sly smirk. “You think you can treat me like dirt and then wave a piece of candy in my face like I’m some kid?”

Cole arched a brow, the swagger draining from his expression. “So you’re saying a candy’s not enough to make things right?”

Elliana shot back, her tone razor-sharp. “Do I strike you as someone that easy to placate? You really think my pride comes that cheap?”

Cole swallowed the retort on his tongue, quietly admitting to himself that, yeah, maybe a single candy had been a laughable offer. He gave a short nod, acknowledging his mistake.

After a tense moment, Cole pulled out his checkbook, scribbled a blank check, and extended it toward Elliana. “I was out of line last night. Put down any number you think makes us even.”

Elliana spared the check a frosty glance, her lips curling into a scornful smile, but she made no move to take it. He treated forgiveness like a transaction, dangling money as his apology.

Seeing her icy indifference, Cole continued, his tone softening. “And about the Venacure you gave out for the sake of the Evans family today, you deserve something for that, too. Write whatever figure you want. If it’s in my power, you’ll have it, even if it wipes me out.”

Elliana fixed her gaze on Cole, searching his face for any sign he was serious. He was Ublento’s wealthiest man, sitting on a fortune worth billions, but she knew better than to think he’d let her drain him dry without a brutal fight. She wasn’t naive. If she pushed too far, she had no doubt he would snap and show his ugliest side.

“You really think I’m the kind of woman who cashes in on her own sacrifice and mistreatment?” Elliana’s voice sliced through the air, brittle and laced with frost.

Cole blinked, caught completely off guard by her cutting words, leaving him dumbstruck.

Without hesitation, Elliana seized the check and hurled it at him. “I can make my own living the right way. Don’t trade my self-respect.” Thoroughly dismissed, Cole looked beaten down, his face ghostly, his eyes dull and sunken, and his hair unkempt. He had the sorry look of someone who’d just been handed a hard lesson.

Elliana fixed him with a hard, unflinching glare, her entire posture radiating defiant pride.

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