Chapter Sixty-Six

Chapter Sixty-Six

Pearl pursed her lips and held onto Max’s hand tightly, unable to let go. She had never experienced such pain and helplessness to the point of being unable to do anything. For the future that Max spoke of, despite her discomfort, Pearl had to accept silently standing in the shadows behind Max.

After hearing what Bella said, Pearl couldn't sleep. She didn't doubt that Bella might have noticed something between her and Max. Because in Pearl's eyes, Bella was just an inherently foolish and extremely weak person. But Max was different; Pearl felt that Max, the man who had been by her side for so many years, was gradually changing in both thoughts and emotions.

“Don't you trust me? Pearl, we've been together for so long, if I were going to abandon you, I wouldn't have waited until now. You should understand that. Now, quickly book a flight and return first; if you stay here, Bella will find out,” Max said. He wanted Pearl to leave quickly because he knew that her presence here would undoubtedly hinder the romantic atmosphere between him and Bella.

Pearl immediately shook her head; she didn't want to leave now. If she were alone, she would definitely overthink many things.

“I won't disturb or appear in front of Bella, so you don't have to worry about that.”

Max couldn't persuade Pearl to leave first, so he just let her do whatever she wanted, as long as she didn't interfere with him and Bella. He had taken the time, to interrupt his work, just to have a vacation with his wife; he wanted to foster his relationship with Bella, not argue with Pearl.

Max checked his watch; a few more hours until dinner. Although the hotel provided dinner for guests, Max didn't want to eat at the hotel and had booked a luxurious restaurant near the hotel. He would wait for Bella to return from swimming to have dinner together. Then... Max smirked as he thought about what they would do after dinner.

While Max was deliberately creating a romantic atmosphere for the upcoming dinner...

Bella was happily hugging a large duck-shaped float, her feet continuously kicking in the water. She couldn't swim but still wanted to enjoy the feeling of being surrounded by the sea; many others around her were also enjoying this fun.

“Ha… It's been a long time since I've been to the beach. I don't even remember the last time I came to the beach,” Bella mumbled. Since marrying Max, she spent nearly all her time on Max and her small family, never taking time for herself and forgetting the joyful experiences she had before.

Max wasn't forcing her to stay at home; Bella just felt that since she was married, she should fully focus on taking care of her family. While this wasn't a bad thing, it did make Bella similar to a fool, allowing others to exploit and manipulate her.

As she was lost in thought, Bella accidentally bumped into someone behind her. She didn't notice and turned around with an awkward smile, saying, “Sorry, I didn't mean to—”

Before Bella could finish her sentence, a familiar deep voice interrupted, “But I did notice. I won't accept a simple apology, miss.”

Bella immediately startled and looked up. At that moment, she forgot to breathe. She looked dazed at the man in front of her. “You... Why are you here? No, how did you know I was here? Were you following me?”

Levi laughed at Bella's dazed and foolish expression, apparently, she was surprised to see him here.

Reflexively, Bella looked left and right, worried that someone might recognize the two of them. Seeing that no one was paying attention, Bella breathed a sigh of relief and calmed down. She furrowed her brow, casting a suspicious glance at Levi.

There were times when Levi would visit her house late at night when her husband wasn't home. Bella might have brushed it off as a coincidence, but encountering him here in Hawaii during her trip with her husband was definitely not a coincidence. Moreover, Bella hadn't informed Levi about the trip in advance.

Levi shrugged and smirked roguishly. “Don't think so poorly of me. It's not like you're the only one who can take a trip to Hawaii. You know, I'm a very free person.”

Bella pouted; of course, she didn't believe what Levi was saying. There was definitely no coincidence here; it was intentional. Bella didn't know how he knew she was here, but this orchestrated coincidence made her uncomfortable.

"That's right, you're the kind of person who has a lot of free time. So enjoy your vacation."

Bella was about to leave, but then she heard Levi say, "I thought you would be disgusted and hate your husband after knowing about his betrayal... yet you are happily going on a trip with him. I must say, you are either too kind-hearted or have lost your mind."

Even a fool could detect the sarcasm and contempt in Levi's words.

"Are you blindly in love with your husband? I'm talking to you, why are you walking away?"

Bella raised an eyebrow at him, trying to guess what this man was thinking. For some reason, she felt like... Levi was jealous, but she quickly dismissed that thought. How could Bella forget what kind of relationship she had with this man?

"Is there something on my face that you keep staring at me?" Being stared at like this made the discomfort in him quickly diminish.

Bella shook her head, her gaze moving from his handsome face down to his hot, muscular body and six-pack abs. Levi was undoubtedly a very attractive man, beautiful, and the word "beautiful" didn't seem sufficient to describe his charm. Many times Bella had to marvel at how God had favored this man so much. He seemed to have everything a regular person could ever wish for, from his appearance to his wealth.

Not to mention how wealthy Levi was, just his striking appearance alone attracted many gazes. There were many girls secretly eyeing the two of them.

Bella sighed, as Levi's presence had disrupted her comfort in this place. But Levi, seeing Bella staring at his body like that, thought it was because she liked his body. He couldn't help but smirk mischievously.

"What's the matter? Do you like my body so much that you can't take your eyes off it? You've touched it many times during sex, after all—"

Bella was instantly startled and covered the man's mouth with her hands. "Are you crazy? Why are you bringing that up here? What if someone knows us is here and hears you?"

Levi removed her hands and shrugged. "Are you scared?"

"Of course, I'm scared. Have you forgotten what kind of relationship we're in?" Bella sighed again, reminding him, or rather emphasizing the point.

Seeing Bella's panic, Levi's mood quickly soured, but he continued with a mocking and disdainful tone, "Alright, I won't mention it anymore... but on one condition, you have to tell me why you agreed to go on vacation with Max. Have you already forgotten about your husband's betrayal so quickly?"

"Don't mention him anymore; it upsets me. Max suddenly suggested going on vacation and even booked the flight tickets. I only found out about it yesterday. Max decided everything on his own without notifying me, as if he was afraid I would come up with an excuse to refuse the trip. But why do you ask about this? I don't think this has anything to do with you," Bella glanced at Levi.

Hearing Bella's answer, Levi immediately smiled and asked again, "Really?"

Bella didn't notice Levi's quick change of expression; she nodded indifferently, as she had no reason to lie to Levi. "Alright, you can go. Enjoy your vacation on your own and leave me alone."

Bella paid Levi no more attention and walked away with her large duck float. She splashed around nearby because she didn't know how to swim but loved the sea, so she stayed close to the shore, not daring to venture into deeper water.

She thought that would be the end of their 'coincidental' encounter, but she hadn't moved more than a few meters when she was forcefully pulled back, causing her to cling tightly to her duck float.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?" Bella frowned and shouted, but not too loudly, just enough for the two of them to hear.

Levi didn't answer, he just continued to pull Bella into deeper water, causing her face to turn pale. "Levi, I can't swim! Let go of me."

He pulled her large buoy to a place quite deep. Levi's body and height were tall, but the water level had already reached his chest. But Bella is different. If she didn't have a float, she would definitely sink.

Bella panicked and lost her balance, her legs kicking uncontrollably in the water. She held onto the duck float tightly, her eyes shut, but she continued to shout loudly, "If you don't let me go, I will scream. I'm not joking."

In her state of panic and confusion, Bella assumed that Levi wanted to retaliate because she had upset him earlier. But before she could think further, she felt his hand squeezing one side of her bottom, startling her and causing her body to stiffen up immediately.