03

    

    

    Five years later, at Sky city’s airport…

    

    Williams Monet, the special assistant for Zenith Group, was nervously waiting outside the airport. He kept looking at the door. He was relieved when a woman finally showed up. He promptly walked up to her and said hello in a pleasant way. "Hello, Miss Hunt." 

    

    The woman wore a tight red dress that showed off her beautiful shape. She carefully pulled off her sunglasses, which made her eyes look dazzling. 

    

    "Hello, Williams. How are you?“ Mona smiled warmly at him. In the last five years, she had changed a lot. No one could have guessed that this was the Hunt family's former obedient, well-behaved daughter. 

    

    Williams had seen her on a computer screen many times before, but now that  he met her in person, he was still struck by how beautiful she was. He quickly grabbed her bags. "Very well ma’am. Welcome.” 

    

    Williams led her to car and drove to the Zenith Group office. Zenith Group has grown into a strong firm in just five years since it started. 

    

    Williams took Mona into the company. The receptionist at the front desk saw how humble he behaved towards Mona, who she had never met before. She couldn't help but wonder who Mona was because Willams  was normally so aloof. 

    

    As they got to the top floor of the building a few minutes later, Mona looked down at the familiar surroundings of Sky city, and felt a stab of emotion. 

    

    “Ma’am, don’t forget today is the day you’re supposed to finalize the deal with the Cox family.” 

    

    When the Cox family was brought up, Mona’s mood changed and she recalled her past as Leo’s wife, but she quickly went back to being herself and smiled sweetly. “Really!” She asked.

    

    "Yes ma’am. But today is old master Cox’s birthday party, we need to attend and use this opportunity to finalize the deal.” Williams said.

    

    Mona thought for a while, then nodded. “Okay then.”

    

    “I’ll get the documents ready.” Williams responded and left the office.

    

    Her phone rang that moment. She picked up the video call and saw two cute kids on the screen. 

    

    "Mommy!" They yelled. 

    

    "Have you two been good?" She asked in a gentle voice.

    

     "Yes!" Her son, Luke, said.

    

    “Butler took us horse riding today," her daughter, Rue, next to Luke, said happily.

    

     "horse riding? Then you need to be good to butler. Mommy will be back soon. Okay?” Mona said smiling.

    

    The kids nodded and they talked for a while before hanging up and Mona got ready to go to grandpa’s birthday party.

    

    She wondered how Leo was going to react when he see her today.

    

    ••••

    The Cox mansion was very bright with decoration everywhere. People were talking and having a good time.

    

    Leo sat and looked at the people with an expressionless face. His good-looking face had changed during the last five years, giving it a wise and deep look which made the ladies in the room look at him with admiration. 

    

    He didn't pay attention to their glances and looked back at Nate, his assistant, who came to him. 

    

    Nate fixed his glasses and said quickly, “Boss, the head of Zenith Group came back to Sky city today. They should be here to finalize the deal with the Cox group.”

    

    Two months ago, the Cox and Zenith  Group agreed to work together on a big project. And now, workers from the Zenith group were coming to finalize the deal. 

    

    Leo said, "Once they get there, please take them to the second floor." 

    

    Nate nodded his head. He went on, "Miss Harlow is almost here too, and..." He stopped talking right away when he saw the shift in Leo’s face.

    

    Leon’s  jawline got tighter, and his gaze turned to the door expecting to see Sydney, but…

    

    Nate was astonished to see the woman who had just walked in when he looked in at the door. A woman they believed they would never see again. 

    

    "It's...it’s " Nate stammered. "It's her..."

    

     Mona walked inside with a modest black strapless dress with a open back that showed off her soft skin. She was like a fairy in the real world, completely ignorant of how attractive she was to other people. Everyone looked at her right away. Her eyes flashed a trace of disdain at the opulence around her. She hadn't been here in five years... 

    

    Everyone in the room, including those who were seeking for Sydney, noticed how she looked. They instantly turned their attention to her. 

    

    "Wow! That woman who left  is Miss Hunt, right? Isn’t she the ex wife of Leo?” Someone murmured in the crowd. 

    

    "Yes. She couldn’t bear to be apart from Leo and came back. What a shameless slut.” Another person responded.

    

    Kate, a famous person on the internet who dresses in a flashy way, got in Mona’s way and hit her shoulder deliberately.

    

    Mona lifted an eyebrow and looked the woman up and down. "Who are you?" She asked. 

    

    Kate looked at her with anger. "Don't act like you're someone else! Everyone knows that you were crazy with Mr. Cox, but you ended up getting a divorce and fleeing the country in shame! Now you're back here to try to get him again, aren't you?" 

    

    Mona expected this as she was coming here. As Leo saw her from where he sat, there was shock on his face. 

    

    Mona? 

    

     "It's been five years, Mona...How dare you show up here?… he thought angrily.

    

     "Mr. Cox..." Nate looked at Leo with concern. 

    

    Leo spent a lot of money trying to find Mona after she went missing five years ago, but he couldn't. After that, Leo, who was very  calm, became very  angry and stayed that way for this five years. 

    

    Everyone at Cox Group was on edge, afraid they would be fired right away for the smallest error. But it had been years, after all. Nate was curious if his boss still cared for Mona after this five years. 

    

    He nervously studied Leo’s face. 

    

    Leo looked at him, but his face was blank. Nate understood right away and said, "Since our guests are here, should we go greet them?" 

    

    "Um." Leo scowled and walked towards the place where Mona stood. 

    

    Williams came into the mansion with the documents in his hands, but he saw a lady bullying Mona. As he tried to intervene, Mona stopped him by holding up her hand. 

    

    Mona gave a mocking smile. "You might want to save your flattery for Sydney. Miss, maybe she'd be more open to your tantrum... Sorry, what was your name again?”

    

     "You b*tch!" Kate’s face contorted in rage when she heard the crowd laugh. She was just about to scream when a deep male voice broke through the commotion. 

    

    "Mona Hunt." 

    

    When Mona heard the voice, she stiffened a little, but she instantly put on a charming grin. She calmly said hello to the man who was walking toward her with a frigid face. "Hi, Mr. Cox. It's been a long time.”

    

    Leo ran almost all the way to her . He didn't stop until he was almost face-to-face with her. He stared down at the face that had been in his nightmares over and over again for the past five years. She was back. She was different now. She used to be kind and respectful, and when she looked at him, her eyes shone with affection. But now she was more like a dark and mysterious rose—beautiful, seductive, and full of thorns. And there was no more love and brightness in her eyes. 

    

    Leo couldn't really understand how he felt: angry, shocked, and maybe even a little happy, but he couldn't tell. His eyes were filled with rage as he stepped forward and said, "How dare you show up again?"