Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance
Chapter 820

At dusk, Molly had been waiting at home until eight before Chad finally rushed back.

Colleen was waiting by the door, "Hey, come over here for a sec, I need to ask you something."

"Mom, let me go check on Molly first."

"It's about her. Come on, let's talk."

Colleen pulled her son aside and asked, "Have you been getting a little too friendly with some lady at work? Molly was asking me strange questions last night, and today she took off work to sleep. I'm telling you, something's up." Chad glanced towards the second floor, "Got it, I'm heading up."

Before Colleen could continue, Chad was already making his way upstairs.

As he entered the bedroom, Molly was just stepping out of the bathroom, fresh from a shower. She gave Chad a quick glance, "You're back?"

"Yeah, I'm back."

He shut the door and followed Molly into the walk-in closet.

He picked up the black, sexy nightgown Molly had bought the day before and handed it to her. "Put this on."

Molly gave it a look, then angrily tossed it into the depths of the closet, opting for another set of pajamas instead.

Chad took a deep breath, leaning against her jewelry cabinet, watching Molly's frustration. "When did you replace out?" "Find out what?"

Chad loosened a couple of buttons on his collar, and Molly glanced at his chest before turning her head away.

"About Annie and me."

Molly stayed silent.

It was time to have that talk.

Chad asked again, "Did you know the first time we met her?"

Molly, wrapped in her towel, distractedly browsed through her pajamas.

"How did you know? Even Donnie was in the dark."

"I just figured it out," Molly replied.

"When?"

"When you were in college and I came to visit, I pieced it together."

This left Chad momentarily speechless.

Annie had been right; women have a way of figuring things out.

"We did date for a month or two back in college. It was really innocent, and it's still like that now. After I saw her at the last meeting, I debated whether to tell you. I even came to see you that day but chickened out and left without saying anything." Molly recalled Chad visiting her that day, looking like he had something important to share, but he never did.

Chad explained, "I didn't tell you because I thought she'd leave after the meeting. It didn't seem worth upsetting you over. Plus, you were knee-deep in work with the new product launch, so I decided to keep it to myself. I didn't expect her to transfer here." He watched Molly's back; the water droplets on her shoulders had dried. "I didn't help her come here, and she didn't come because of me. After we broke up, we never contacted each other again. You've been the only one in my life since then. Meeting her again was just a work thing, nothing more. Before last night, I thought you were clueless, and our marriage seemed solid. Suddenly dropping that I had an ex back in town felt like it would do more harm than good, almost like I was planning to rekindle something..." Chad had spun countless scenarios in his mind on how to tell Molly without making her angry.

He thought about confessing over a candlelit dinner, spilling the beans after making love when her guard was down, or having a serious sit-down discussion.

If he confessed with guilt, Molly might think he betrayed their marriage. If he showed no guilt, it would seem like he didn't care enough about her.

It felt like no matter how he approached it, it would hurt Molly, like forcing her to accept that he and Annie had history and might have future interactions. Even if there was no real future interaction, it seemed like she had to accept it.

He just couldn't replace the right words or the right moment.

Molly looked down, her fingers playing with her pajama strap, "So why are you telling me now?"

"Because you already know everything and kept it to yourself. Last night, Annie mentioned you've been digging around about her at work. And the other night, you sent takeout to her, making a point about who you are."

"But Annie was worried you might get the wrong idea, so she switched her night shift with Easton, making it him on duty that night."

Molly recalled ordering late-night snacks that day, and when Chad inquired at work, the response came from Yuan Sheng and Brother Xu. The forensic team had told her Annie and Yuan Sheng were on duty, so it was odd not hearing her voice. Turns out they weren't even there.

"Easton was supposed to be on night shift last night, but Annie took over. She caught a case that needed my attention, something Zi Sheng and the others hadn't handled before. So, that's why I had to take her call and head over." Molly nodded, "I knew you were busy with a case."

She didn't get in the way because of that.

Chad picked out a pajama top for Molly and handed it to her. "I always thought if you found out I had an ex, you'd go ballistic, turn everything upside down, demand separate rooms, or maybe even a divorce. I got it wrong this time." Molly had kept it all inside, making guesses, nervously checking on the "competition" at work, even subtly trying to mark her territory, though her efforts seemed to fall flat.

She even tried to cozy up last night... Wait, Molly wasn't one to cozy up to anyone!

"Molly, you weren't trying to please me last night. You said to leave you a way out-is that your way out, or..."

Chad didn't finish, as Molly shot him a look with all the authority of a wife, "Chad, why did you date her in the first place? You promised her something, meaning there was more than friendship. Spill it, or we're not done here."

Chad explained, "I realized I had feelings for someone I shouldn't have. Annie was chasing me, and I thought a change of scenery might help me clear my head, so I agreed to date her."

"Then I broke up with her because I realized I had no real feelings for Annie. The girl I truly cared about was someone else, even if there was no future with her. I didn't want to lead Annie on, so I ended it."

Molly was even more upset than before, not knowing about Chad's ex hadn't made her this mad. "Chad! You've got quite the nerve. One Annie wasn't enough; you had someone else in mind too? You pine after someone, it goes nowhere, and then you still agree to someone else's advances? That's low."

Chad looked at Molly, his gaze intensifying, "Because back then, the girl I secretly loved, the one with no future for us, was my so-called sister Jade, who is now-Molly."