Dear Ex-wife Marry Me (Maja and Ian) novel Chapter 1753

As Maja observed Shirley's hesitation, she couldn't help but wonder if Shirley's lack of confidence was because of her age. Was Shirley thinking that at thirty, she was too old for Abner, who was just twenty-four? Was the age gap making her reluctant to confess her feelings?

It was pretty clear that Abner had been the first to fall for Shirley, but at that time, Shirley seemed to be engaged to another man.

So, she had been repressing her feelings, keeping them bottled up until now when she couldn't help but sneak a peek into his life, yet she refused to come face-to-face with him.

"Hey, Ian is planning to grab a bite with Abner soon," Maja casually mentioned to Shirley, "I was wondering if you'd be free to join us, Ms. Dorothy. Since you know each other and I'm keen on making a new friend, why not come along?"

Shirley's response was a momentary freeze, followed by a hesitant pause, and finally a tight-lipped nod without a word.

Maja waited patiently.

After ten seconds, Shirley slowly nodded and said, "Sure, but I don't think he's too keen on seeing me. We ended on a bit of a sour note."

It must have been the whole fiancé situation.

Maja couldn't help but smile.

"Great, I'll text you the details once the place is set. Is it okay to add you as a contact?"

Without hesitation, Shirley pulled out her phone and displayed her QR code. They added each other, and Maja breathed a sigh of relief. This was a good start, especially since Shirley was willing, no one was forcing her. At thirty, Shirley knew what choices to make, and it seemed she wasn't devoid of feelings for Abner.

After leaving the university, Maja headed back to Greenfield Gardens.

Ian was busy training Rocky, who was leaping impressively high, while Coco sat loyally by, wagging his tail more enthusiastically than anyone else.

Pregnancy had put a temporary stop to Maja's pet cuddling sessions, so she could only watch from the sidelines. Coco, understanding as ever, circled around her but kept his distance.

Upon her arrival, Ian asked, "So, what did Shirley say?"

"I reckon there's mutual interest. Maybe there's just some misunderstanding they haven't cleared up. Anyway, we're setting up a meeting. How about you? When are you inviting Abner?"

"I called him, but he hung up as soon as he saw it was me."

Maja sighed.

Ian tried calling again, and this time Abner picked up, though his tone was heavy. "What do you want?"

Ian was inwardly cursing. If he didn't owe a favor, he wouldn't be groveling like this.

"Are you free tomorrow? Let's have lunch. I'll send you the place."

"You're done? So soon, it seems that Queena's poison is still not heavy."

"It's not my friend, it's Maja's. She's quite the looker. Want me to introduce you?"

Abner scoffed and remained silent.

Ian's anticipation grew. He finally understood the thrill Tyler must have felt watching dramas unfold; people truly did revel in chaos.

Once the food was served, Abner began to eat.

Maja glanced at a message on her phone and excused herself, "She's just outside. I'll go get her."

Abner pretended not to hear and continued eating as if he had no manners at all.

When Maja opened the room door to greet Shirley, Abner's hand tightened around his utensils, snapping a piece of cod in his grip.

His lips pursed, and for a brief moment, his breathing quickened.

Ian couldn't resist turning to catch Abner's reaction. He saw him neatly picking up the broken piece of fish with a napkin and cleaning up the mess on the table.

Typical.