"I’ll be home soon."

After a hurried goodbye, Chloe Reed hung up and drove straight to Jardinelle.

Her mind raced with thoughts the whole way there.

But by the time she reached the entrance of Jardinelle, she had composed herself, determined not to let her grandmother see that anything was amiss.

After all, her grandmother was elderly and not in the best of health. ’If the shock of everything that’s happened recently gets to her, she won’t be able to handle it!’

When she entered the living room, she saw an elderly woman with white hair on the sofa. Walker Grant was sitting beside her, talking to her.

"Grandma."

Chloe rushed over and threw herself into her grandmother’s arms.

Her grandmother hugged Chloe back, smiling as she stroked her hair. "You’re so grown up, yet you still act like a child. Aren’t you worried your husband will laugh at you?"

Chloe had thought she could act calm, that she could hide everything perfectly.

But the moment she hugged her grandmother and heard her gentle chiding, Chloe almost broke down. A sharp sting pricked her nose, and she quickly squeezed her eyes shut, burying her face in her grandmother’s chest.

’This way, my voice will be muffled, and Grandma won’t notice anything’s wrong.’

"I missed you."

Her grandmother chuckled. "Then why didn’t you come visit me? You little rascal."

Chloe clutched her grandmother’s clothes, fighting to control her emotions. "Grandma, why the sudden visit? Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? I would have picked you up."

’She’s in her seventies. It breaks my heart to see her travel all this way.’

Her grandmother, however, just smiled. "When I heard you mention the sapphire earrings, I just couldn’t sit still at home, so I decided to come straight here. Chloe, darling, do you have a lead?"

Chloe froze, her turbulent emotions settling. She discreetly wiped the corner of her eye before looking up. "Yes, I’ve already found them. I was planning to bring them to you once things settled down at work. I didn’t expect you to come here yourself."

Her grandmother was overjoyed. "Really?"

"Yes, they’re in..." Chloe started to say they were at her apartment, but then she remembered her grandmother didn’t know she and Walker had separated. She quickly changed her story. "They’re in a safe deposit box at the bank. I’ll retrieve them for you tomorrow."

"Oh, good, good!" Her grandmother was ecstatic, grasping Chloe’s hand. She said emotionally, "Chloe, those sapphire earrings mean the world to me. Your grandfather gave them to me as a promise of his love. They were accidentally lost, and not long after, your grandfather passed away. It’s been a weight on my heart ever since. Now that they’re finally found, I can finally be at peace."

Chloe nodded. "Mhm, now you’ll be able to sleep peacefully."

Her grandmother nodded, her gaze full of relief.

"Grandma."

Walker, who had been left out of the conversation, finally spoke up. "I’ve already made reservations. Let’s go have dinner. We can talk while we eat."

Her grandmother nodded. "Alright. You take care of it."

Chloe shot him a complicated look, a flash of coldness in her eyes that she quickly concealed.

They left Jardinelle together and went to the restaurant.

Walker had booked a private room. He let her grandmother go in first, but Chloe grabbed his hand. "Let’s go see if we can add another dish," she said.

Walker’s eyes fell to her hand. He then turned his own and intertwined his fingers with hers in an intimate gesture.

"Alright."

"Grandma, we’ll be right back," Chloe called into the private room.

"Okay."

The two of them went downstairs, heading straight for a deserted corner.