You're Just My Ex-Husband,My Lord-Chapter 281- have a good time

It was indeed a hectic day for Bert—at least mentally. Outwardly, he remained composed and calm. Together with the few assistants he had brought in, he forcefully suppressed the protests of several shareholders at the board meeting, and then dove straight into the regular work routine.

Dave had given prior instructions to the staff under him to cooperate with Bert’s efforts.

Bert’s first task was to meet with each department manager one by one, listening to their reports on performance and ongoing projects. With so many departments and such a wide range of operations under Washington Co., by the end of the day, Bert felt utterly drained.

Even though he kept insisting to Dave and Daniel that he didn’t care about how well the company was run—that all he wanted was to gain control of Washington Co.—his pride and self-respect would not allow him to fail.

He longed for success. He wanted to turn Washington Co. into a thriving business. He wanted Daniel’s approval.

So, despite the exhaustion, he persevered through the day and even worked late into the night.

Meanwhile, for the easygoing Dave, the day had been light and pleasant—until the evening, that is. His good mood was completely tied to one person: Laurent.

That afternoon, shortly before getting off work, he picked up his daughter from kindergarten and then called Laurent to ask what she wanted for dinner. But Laurent told him she wouldn’t be home—she had a team dinner with her department that night.

That instantly put a damper on Dave’s mood. He was a bit annoyed.

Still, he knew that in the working world, such gatherings were inevitable. They helped strengthen bonds with colleagues—a basic rule for surviving in the workplace.

The dinner turned into a late-night affair. After eating, Laurent and her coworkers went out for karaoke and ended up staying out quite late.

Normally, Laurent would skip the after-dinner activities and head home early to be with her daughter. But now that Dave was home to watch over the child, she didn’t feel the need to return so soon.

Besides, ever since she joined the company, she had always left early from these gatherings. This time, her colleagues insisted she stay and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Not wanting to kill the vibe, she went along with them.

Dave’s barrage of phone calls was as relentless as ever, but since Laurent was singing, she didn’t hear them at all. Even if she had, she wouldn’t have been able to take the call.

It was her first time going out to sing karaoke with her coworkers, and after performing just one song, she was met with a wave of enthusiastic praise—everyone said she was amazing, a hidden gem.

Laurent had always been good at singing and dancing; back in school, she had been part of the arts club. Naturally, singing came easily to her—especially English songs, which she could belt out effortlessly.

But after spending years at home as a devoted wife and mother, she rarely had opportunities for entertainment. On the rare occasions she did go out, it was usually with Vivian—who had heard her sing so many times that it no longer felt like anything special.

Her colleagues, on the other hand, were hearing her voice for the first time. And with her singing being as beautiful as it was, once she finished one song, they clamored for more, not even letting her leave the little bar counter in the private room. Caught up in the moment, Laurent sang several songs in a row, only managing to excuse herself when she claimed her throat couldn’t take it anymore.

But instead of water, it was alcohol.

There was no water in sight—everyone had ordered booze.

While another colleague took the mic, Laurent took several big gulps of her drink, hoping to soothe her dry throat. Then she pulled out her phone for a quick glance.

She just meant to check the time, but what she saw instead was a long string of missed calls—all from Dave.

Laurent stared at the screen, torn between laughter and tears.

Had he really been calling nonstop this whole time?

Then she focused on the time. Oh God—it was almost midnight.

A sense of dread crept into her heart. She quickly started gathering her things, intending to say goodbye to her colleagues. It was far too late now. They’d all gotten so excited asking her to sing that she lost track of time entirely.

Just as she turned to speak to the coworker next to her, her phone rang again.

It was Dave. Again.

Laurent stepped out of the noisy private karaoke room with her phone in hand and answered the call, bracing herself.

She braced herself because she knew all too well—she was coming home way too late. Dave was bound to be upset. The long string of missed calls on her phone was already proof of that.

He’d never been the easygoing type when it came to this sort of thing. In the past, even if she was just out for dinner, he would bombard her with calls urging her to come back.

Now it was nearly midnight. Of course he was going to be angry.

She expected to be scolded the moment she picked up, but to her surprise, his voice on the other end was calm.

"When are you coming home?"

For a second, Laurent was caught off guard by how gentle he sounded. She had mentally prepared herself for a lecture, but instead, he wasn’t even angry. The unexpected softness made her momentarily forget to respond.

He asked again,

"Why aren’t you saying anything?"

"Oh,"

She snapped back to reality and quickly replied,

"I’m leaving now."

He continued,

"Where are you? I’ll come pick you up. It’s too late for you to go back alone—it’s not safe."

Laurent realized he had a point. It was pretty late, and she had drunk a little too much to drive, so she told him the location.

After hanging up, she went back to the room and hurriedly tried to say goodbye to her coworkers. But they insisted on all leaving together since things were wrapping up anyway—and they begged her to sing one last song to end the night. She couldn’t refuse, so she sang another one.

Eventually, the whole group spilled out of the karaoke lounge, laughing and chatting as they walked out. Dave’s car was already waiting by the entrance. After bidding everyone farewell, Laurent jogged over to the car.

Sliding into the passenger seat, her face was filled with guilt.

"Sorry for making you come pick me up so late," Laurent said softly.

She had drunk a bit, and her cheeks were flushed with a rosy hue. Her lips were a delicate red, and under the night sky, her eyes sparkled like clear water—beautiful and mesmerizing.

Dave glanced at her, then shifted his gaze to the group of coworkers standing outside, and finally, his eyes settled on her waist.

He said nothing. Just started the engine and drove off with her.

Laurent wasn’t sure what that look in his eyes meant, but she didn’t ask. She had enough sense to know that staying quiet was probably the wiser choice right now.

Instead, it was Dave who broke the silence.

"Did you have a good time tonight?"

There was no hint of emotion in his voice—no warmth, no anger. Laurent had no choice but to answer truthfully.

"It was okay," she said. "You know how it is... these kinds of gatherings are just meant to help coworkers bond."

"Mhm."

Dave responded with a low grunt, and then said nothing more. The rest of the ride was silent.

Though he hadn’t shown any obvious emotion, Laurent could still tell he was upset. After all these years of sharing a bed, how could she not know when he was angry? If she couldn’t even sense that, how was she supposed to survive future arguments?

Sure enough, once they parked downstairs, the real talk began.

Laurent had been planning to make a quick escape as soon as the car stopped, but Dave locked the doors before she could get out. She sighed and sat back down, turning to him with a playful grin.

"What? Can’t this wait until we’re inside?"

She tried to ease the tension with a joking, almost coy tone, but Dave didn’t budge.

He shot her a cold look and said,

"The world out there must be really exciting, huh?"