Marriage Resumption (Valeria and Hackett)
Resumption 23

Chapter

23

Hackett sat in a corner in the private room at Nightfest Club, drinking one glass after another, his expression solemn. His friends could no longer stand it and asked. "Mr. James, why are you drinking alone here with such a heavy heart?" "Yeah, we rarely see you come out, and when you finally do, you're just sitting here alone, drowning your sorrows. What's going on!"

Finn had been observing him for a while and could not help but ask, "What's wrong? Are you still thinking about that beautiful woman? I've told you, you can't touch her. She's not clean! What if you catch a disease?" Hackett's eyes filled with intense killing intent, and he glared at Finn angrily. "Shut the hell up!"

"Okay, okay, I'll shut up. You drink."

Those acquainted with Hackett knew all too well that he was merciless and irritable, showing no mercy when he turned cold-blooded.

At that moment, the phone resting nearby began to vibrate, displaying the name "Cheryl' on the screen.

Hackett glanced at it indifferently and had no intention of answering. He poured another glass of alcohol and continued. drinking.

"You're not even picking up Cheryl's call? Are you really infatuated with that beauty? Finn could not help but comment.

Cheryl's importance to Hackett was well-known to everyone. Usually, if Cheryl called, Hackett would leave no matter what, no matter how others tried to keep him.

Hackett not picking up Cheryl's call was a highly unusual occurrence, and Finn could not wrap his head around what might be happening with Hackett today.

The phone continued to vibrate incessantly, but Hackett still refused to answer. He just kept drinking glass after glass. Finn glanced at Hackett, lost in his alcoholic indulgence, shaking his head in resignation before stepping away.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Cheryl was nearly going out of her mind. She had been unable to reach Hackett all evening as if he had vanished off the face of the earth. Her only recourse was to repeatedly dial his number in a desperate attempt to make contact. Time passed, and Hackett continued to drown his troubles in alcohol, seemingly thoroughly intoxicated. Finn approached and noticed the phone still vibrating on the coffee table, the caller ID persistently displaying Cheryl's name.

"These two are quite the stubborn ones, Finn mumbled under his breath.

Hackett adamantly refused to answer the phone, while Cheryl was equally determined to keep dialing without end.

Finn couldn't take it anymore, so he answered the call. Before he could even speak, he heard Cheryl's tearful voice on the other end. "Hackett, why aren't you answering your phone? Where are you? Why won't you take my calls? Did I do something wrong?" A string of questions left Finn flabbergasted. He cleared his throat. "Um, Ms. Yeats, I'm Finn. Hackett's drunk. Could you come pick him up? Otherwise, he might drink until morning"

"Huh? Okay! I'll be right there. Could you please send me the address?"

Half an hour later, Cheryl, her eyes red from crying, arrived at the club. It was apparent she had been crying for quite some

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Chapter 23

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Pushing open the door to the private room, she found only Hackett inside, lying on the single couch, still holding a square glass in his hand. Several empty bottles were on the coffee table. It seemed as if he had drunk a lot. Cheryl approached him, snatched the glass from his hand, and scolded, "Hackett! Why are you drinking so much? You wouldn't answer my calls. What's wrong with you?"

Hackett's eyes were unfocused, and he was thoroughly intoxicated.

"Give it to me. His voice was low and ominous..

"No, I won't! How much more do you want to drink? You're already drunk. You can't keep drinking. Let's go back."

Cheryl tried to help him up, but he pushed her away and grabbed another bottle, pouring it into his mouth.

Seeing this, Cheryl was shocked. She had never seen Hackett like this before. While he did drink occasionally, he was always elegant and measured. This level of drunkenness was almost unheard of.

"Hackett, what's wrong with you? Why are you drinking so much

Hackett looked at Cheryl before him, seeing multiple layers of reflections as if Valeria was standing right before him.

"Please, stop drinking. I'm begging you. If you keep drinking like this, you'll have a stomach bleed. Cheryl cried as she tried to take the bottle from his hand.

"Give it to me!" Hackett suddenly roared, throwing the bottle to the ground, shattering it.

Cheryl screamed in fright and could not help but cry. She was already feeling so wronged.

Seeing her crying, Hackett's pitch-black eyes hesitated for a moment. He felt like he was seeing Valeria,

His large palm gently touched Cheryl's cheek. Cheryl froze for a second, and then, unexpectedly, Hackett said, "Valeria." Cheryl stood still.

She had not anticipated that he would shout out that name after getting drunk. It was indeed a shocking revelation for her.

Cheryl had not even reacted when Hackett forcibly pulled her into his embrace. His hand caressed her head, and his voice, low and sexy, sounded, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Four years ago, we had a child together. If I had known earlier, I might not have chosen divorce

Hearing this, Cheryl's eyes widened in shock, and her mind was thrown into chaos. The information was overwhelming, and she struggled to accept it all at once.

She racked her brain, trying to decipher his words and make sense of what he meant by his claim of having a child with Valeria four years ago.

It felt like a bolt from the blue. She could not believe that Valeria was pregnant with Hacken's child!

Her anger surged within her. She tried to push him away, but he held her tightly in his arms and murmured, "Why didn't you confront me more insistently? Why didn't you explain to me more? Our child was aborted because of this. How much pain he must have suffered. Cheryl was being mistaken for Valeria, held in his embrace, listening to his deeply emotional confession. Her heart felt like it was being torn apart

She wondered how Hacken found out about this child.

She suspected that Valeria had intentionally informed Hackett about this, aiming to instill a sense of guilt in him. Valeria might use this leverage to reconcile with Hackett. With this thought, Cheryl clenched her teeth, determined not to let such a Chapter 23

scenario unfold

Cheryl felt she could not just sit and wait any longer. If this continued, Hackett's heart would be completely swayed by Valeria. After all, they had once had a child together. Hackett was a man of strong responsibility. Oth