Walking Away While Pregnant: Dear Ex-Husband, I Don't Love You Anymore

Chapter 133: Chapter 133

Zoey’s voice boomed loudly through the receiver.

Elise held her phone, instinctively glancing down at Lily beside her.

Frowning in deep concentration, Lily was completely focused on threading a beaded bracelet.

Elise stood up and instructed a nearby shop assistant, "Could you keep an eye on the little one for a moment? I need to step out to take a call."

"Of course," the saleswoman replied with a polite nod and a smile.

Elise turned and walked out.

She stopped a few meters away from the entrance, keeping her eyes on Lily from afar. Her voice was calm as she asked, "What’s going on?"

"It’s all because of that bitch Fleur!" Zoey cursed in sheer frustration. "It’s too much to explain over the phone. Just open any social media right now and see for yourself!"

"Alright, calm down."

"I’m just so furious. She’s completely out of her mind. Why can’t she just leave you alone?"

"Let me take a look first." Elise hung up and opened the app.

She didn’t even have to look for it; the trending search topics were entirely flooded with Fleur’s name.

It all started with a short-video creator going by the handle ’Red Bloom,’ who had recently skyrocketed to fame domestically.

First, her team had heavily invested in marketing and driving traffic, teasing that Red Bloom would finally do a face-reveal during a livestream, which naturally generated massive hype among her fanbase.

The livestream had started at eight o’clock the previous evening. Initially, Red Bloom wore the mask from her videos and interacted with fans for about ten minutes. Then, amid a roaring chorus of cheers, she took off her mask to reveal her true identity.

Elise watched a few screen-recorded clips of the stream.

She was genuinely taken aback.

Fleur was ’Red Bloom’?!

But wasn’t Fleur supposed to be abroad receiving treatment for depression?

And Red Bloom’s account creation date showed it was registered five years ago...

With growing suspicion, Elise tapped on the top trending post.

A few minutes later, she finally pieced together the full story.

Pursing her lips, she dialed Zoey back.

On the other end, Zoey answered instantly. "Did you see it?"

"Yes." Elise remained relatively composed. "I’m surprised that Fleur is Red Bloom. As for the cyberbullying, it’s clearly being maliciously orchestrated by Fleur. Those people can’t tell right from wrong anyway, so I’m not going to let their opinions get to me."

"But she’s completely twisting the truth to sic her fans on you! It was supposed to be a standard fan livestream, yet she just had to bring up personal, domestic drama out of nowhere. You’re not an influencer or a celebrity, so her doing this is pure malice, just to make your life miserable! She’s psycho. I think she’s had it too easy for too long!"

The more Zoey spoke, the angrier she got. "Just wait. I’ll have people dig into her right now. If I find any dirt on her, I am going to ruin her!"

Compared to Zoey’s fury, Elise was a picture of calm.

She knew exactly why Fleur was targeting her.

But as far as she was concerned, Fleur’s tactics were incredibly petty and low-level.

She had no desire to get dragged into her drama.

"Zoey, ignore it," Elise said. "I’m not even in North City right now, and I don’t rely on my reputation to make a living."

Zoey was stunned by her indifference. "Wait, you’re just going to let her slander and spread rumors about you like this?"

"Her mind is plagued by insecurity." Elise paused, then added, "She always seems desperate to prove her worth through these clumsy ploys. The more I engage with her, the more obsessed she’ll get."

"What a freak!" Zoey said with deep disdain. "Can’t Dylan see through her petty, malicious schemes?"

"Even if he does, so what?" A cold smile touched Elise’s lips. "In Dylan’s eyes, Fleur is a tragic widow who deserves pity. And because she’s Robin’s biological mother, she’s automatically entitled to forgiveness."

"If he wants to protect her that badly, why doesn’t he just take over for George and adopt the mother and son himself?!"

"Zoey, don’t worry. Public opinion is a double-edged sword."

Hearing this, Zoey calmed down a bit.

"Do you have a plan?"

Knowing Elise, while she disdained rolling in the mud with a woman like Fleur, she would never sit back and let anyone slander her unchecked.

"Zoey, look into the ’Red Bloom’ account first, as well as the agency behind it. Also, get me Fleur’s medical and treatment records from abroad."

Zoey understood instantly. "Got it, I’m on it!"

Hanging up, Elise pocketed her phone and headed back into the shop.

...

North City. Orchard Residence.

Inside the second-floor master bedroom, Fleur stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, holding her phone.

On the other end of the line was Anna Olsen, the talent manager from the agency Red Bloom was signed with.

"Didn’t I tell you to watch your mouth during the stream? What the hell happened?"

Looking out at the view outside, a cold, ruthless glint flashed through Fleur’s eyes.

Yet when she spoke, her voice was weak and innocent. "I’m sorry, Sis. I was just so nervous at the time, and I had no idea the fans would misinterpret what I said..."

"The trending topics are completely filled with people bashing Elise Bennett right now!" Anna said in exasperation. "The two of you are sisters-in-law, for god’s sake! What you did is practically a public declaration of war against her!"

"I didn’t mean it that way. I’ll explain everything to Elise myself."

"Let me tell you, I looked into her, and she is not someone to be messed with. Her maiden family is the prominent Harper family of North City, she’s the founder of DEL Jewelry, and she’s married to Dylan Bennett, the richest man in the city.

With a pedigree like that, you should be doing everything you can to stay on her good side! Instead, you go and do this... I seriously don’t even know what to say to you!"

Fleur’s tone remained earnest and helpless. "Don’t worry. I’ll go clear things up. I definitely won’t let this affect the company."

"Either way, you need to fix this mess immediately. It’s best if you release a statement right away telling your fans to shut their mouths! You kept saying before that you didn’t want to show your face, and I couldn’t understand why. After this stunt, I finally get it. Your emotional intelligence... is honestly a disaster!"

A flash of disdain crossed Fleur’s eyes, but she put on a show and sighed, "I’m sorry. I’ll do my best to fix it."

"Just get it handled quickly! Don’t let it affect next week’s recording," Anna ordered coldly.

"Understood."

Hanging up, the fake fragility vanished from Fleur’s face. She reached up and wiped away the non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes.

Then, she opened her contacts and called Dylan.

He didn’t pick up.

Refusing to give up, she called again. After three consecutive attempts, the call finally went through on the third try.

"Fleur?"

"Dylan, I’m so sorry to bother you, but... I think I’ve messed up big time..."

...

Rainport.

For lunch, Elise had taken Lily to a private boutique restaurant.

After eating, Lily grew a little drowsy. Feeling a bit tired herself, Elise took a sightseeing shuttle back to their guesthouse.

Alexander wasn’t back yet, so Elise took Lily up to their room, and they took a nap together.

By the time they woke up, it was already late afternoon.

Elise took Lily downstairs to play on the small strip of beach right behind the guesthouse.

An old tree stood in the backyard, with a swing hanging from its branches. Lily climbed onto it, and Elise gave her gentle pushes.

Lily was absolutely delighted, her laughter ringing out through the open air. The waves rolled in with a soft rustle, and seagulls soared across the sky.

Watching Lily’s joyful little face, Elise’s features softened, and a gentle smile naturally played on her lips.

The drama online hadn’t affected her mood in the slightest.

Up on the small second-floor balcony, Josh leaned against the railing. Watching the woman and child below, he found the scene incredibly beautiful.

He went back inside to grab his camera. Stepping back out, he raised it and aimed at Elise and Lily.

Click.

The sound of the shutter caught Elise’s attention.

Hearing the noise, she suddenly looked up toward the second floor.

The exact moment she raised her eyes, Josh captured another shot. Click.

Elise’s brow furrowed. A cold, annoyed glint flickered in her beautiful eyes as she stared straight up at him.

Lowering the camera, Josh offered a warm smile. "Apologies for the intrusion. It was just such a beautiful picture that I couldn’t resist capturing it. Don’t worry, once I develop the photos, I’ll give them to you and won’t keep the negatives."

Elise pursed her lips at his words.

Fearing she might be angry, Josh quickly added, "If you’re uncomfortable with it, I can delete them right now."

"Alright. Delete them now."

Josh was taken aback, clearly not expecting her to be so blunt.

"Sure, I’ll do it. But let me come down and delete them right in front of you."

With that, he turned and headed back inside.

Moments later, footsteps approached, and Josh walked out of the guesthouse.

Back at the airport, Josh had been bundled up so thoroughly that Elise hadn’t caught a proper glimpse of his face.

Seeing him up close now, she had to admit he possessed an incredibly striking, CGI-perfect face.

His features were sharp, handsome, and impeccably proportioned, anchored by a pair of deep, soulful peach-blossom eyes. He wore a sharp buzz cut—a hairstyle few male celebrities in the entertainment industry dared to try, as it was widely considered the ultimate test of a man’s looks.

Josh’s attractiveness was undeniable.

He came to a stop a few paces away from her.

Up close, Josh realized just how stunning Elise truly was.

He was slightly nearsighted and only wore contact lenses when filming; on regular days, he went bare-eyed, which worked well enough for daily life.

From the balcony, her features had been a bit blurry, but at this distance, he could see her with perfect clarity.

She possessed a striking, high-contrast beauty that required absolutely no makeup to dazzle.

Having encountered countless female celebrities in showbiz, Josh was no stranger to beautiful women.

Yet, Elise was the only one who made his heart genuinely skip a beat.

In that exact moment, Josh realized that love at first sight wasn’t just a myth.

He had, quite unexpectedly, fallen for a complete stranger...