The unmistakable exhaustion on his face struck a heavy blow to Adam Jones's heart, and, acting on instinct, his hand tightened on the doorknob.
Feeling no movement from the person at the door, Elly Campbell lifted her head in confusion only to see a face she had never dreamed of encountering at this moment entering her line of sight.
When she planned her return home, she hadn't ruled out the possibility of running into Adam Jones, but she didn't expect it so soon and so unprepared.
Gazing at the handsome features engraved in her memory, her hand hidden under the table clenched slightly.
It took her considerable effort to suppress the panic rising in her heart, as she faced him with a detached gaze.
It only then occurred to her that she had just provided emergency care for Lily Jones; as her brother, it was not unusual for Adam Jones to be in the hospital.
"President Jones."
The cold and distant form of address successfully caused Adam Jones to frown.
Four years had passed since he last saw her, and she was no longer the Elly Campbell who was always trying to please him, considering his feelings, affectionately calling him "Adam."
Four years...
He had searched for her for a full four years, and it was during those four years that he came to understand that when this woman set her heart on something, she could be a hundred times more ruthless than he had ever imagined.
Elly Campbell gazed into Adam Jones's deep eyes; time had passed, and those eyes seemed even more inscrutable, impossible to guess or understand.
Especially when he silently stared at her like that, it brought her an intangible sense of oppression.
Feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, she found herself initiating a conversation—
"Your sister will be fine for now; if nothing unexpected happens, she could be discharged within half a month."
Adam Jones, with his lips pursed, still did not speak, his familiar oppressive presence making it harder for Elly Campbell to breathe.
The four years had made her believe she had become a stranger to Adam Jones; evidently, she had overestimated herself.
Not wanting to stay alone in a space with Adam Jones, Elly Campbell furrowed her brow and stood up to leave.
Just as she walked past him, her wrist was caught by his grasp, "After four years, you finally deign to return?"
Elly Campbell stopped in her tracks and looked up at Adam Jones, not understanding the reason behind the anger in his eyes at that moment.
Wasn't he relieved when she left?
"Boston doesn't belong to you, President Jones. If I want to come back, I'll come back. Do I need to wait for an appointed time?"
Elly Campbell looked at Adam Jones, her brow mockingly raised at the brewing storm in those deep eyes, feeling somewhat uneasy deep down.
"Boston may not be mine, but you, Elly Campbell, damn well are still my wife, Adam Jones! What do you mean by leaving without a word!"
The storm in his eyes finally erupted, and to Elly Campbell's astonishment, Adam Jones actually cursed.
The always composed and well-mannered President of Jones Corporation had been driven to cursing by her?
Elly Campbell vaguely felt a sense of achievement.
"You seem to have forgotten, President Jones, that I signed the divorce papers four years ago. I have nothing to do with you now."
The strength on her wrist grew tighter, causing Elly Campbell's brow to wrinkle involuntarily from the pain.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but as long as I haven't signed, you're mine for life!"
Watching the storm intensify in Adam Jones's eyes and hearing his ambiguous declaration, Elly Campbell felt both shocked and bewildered.
Adam Jones hadn't signed the divorce papers?
Four years had passed, and she thought he had long since signed them. After all, during those three years of marriage, hadn't he seemed desperate to get rid of her?