CHAPTER 51: CHAPTER 51: STRIPPING FOR CLAIRE SHAW TO SEE

On the sea, the luxury cruise ship Cupid was sailing.

Today, The Lockwood Group was organizing a company retreat, a five-day, four-night cruise trip.

Usually, Caleb Lockwood would not participate in such company retreats in the past years.

But this year was an exception.

The entire company knew Caleb was doing this for Claire Shaw.

"Serena, aren’t you going to change into a swimsuit?"

In the cabin, Claire Shaw had changed into her pink polka-dot bikini swimsuit, and asked Serena Jennings.

Serena and Claire were assigned to the same room this time.

Claire didn’t request to change rooms.

Serena also didn’t want to bring it up herself.

She wasn’t afraid of anything.

"I don’t feel like going right now," Serena replied.

"What a pity! The water park up there is really fun."

After Claire said that, she happily left.

Of course, Serena knew that the large water park on the deck was the highlight of the Cupid Cruise.

But she knew well enough that if she went, she would see Claire and Caleb flaunting their affection openly.

She didn’t want to watch.

Caleb was never someone who enjoyed water parks.

At least, in Serena’s memory, he wasn’t.

Back in college, when Caleb was pursuing her, she had mentioned wanting Caleb to accompany her to play in a water park.

Caleb refused.

Even so, she naively thought Caleb loved her at that time.

The afternoon sun was abundant, it really wasn’t a suitable time to keep herself cooped up in the room.

Serena hesitated for a moment but still went up on deck to sunbathe.

On the deck, the large water park was bustling with people, even though the cruise had only The Lockwood Group’s staff aboard, the pool was as crowded as dumplings in a pot.

Among so many people, Serena spotted Caleb at a glance.

In all the time since she and Caleb got married, this was the first time she had seen Caleb in a swimsuit.

Perhaps, as the CEO of The Lockwood Group, he was mindful of his position and didn’t want to be too bare in front of employees.

Today Caleb wore a set: a black swimsuit with swimming trunks.

Even without exposure, his physique was impressive beyond words.

Beside him, Claire was playfully splashing water at him with a smile.

Caleb was not to be outdone and picked up a water gun to retaliate against Claire.

Their playful and bantering interaction made them seem like a couple in the throes of romance to any observer.

Serena had never seen this playful side of Caleb before.

In their three years of marriage, it seemed their interactions were limited to the bedroom.

Was she too boring?

Or was it simply because Caleb didn’t love her?

Serena sighed lightly and turned to leave.

On the first day of the sea cruise, the evening event was a gala party.

Serena hadn’t prepared a new dress; she brought the one she had worn at the last annual party.

But it wasn’t the three-million-dollar dress from ZM.

That dress had wine spilled on it by Owen Warren, leaving a stain at the chest that was unremovable.

Back then, Caleb gave her a new one.

Serena had never been too concerned about dresses, she didn’t want to buy dress after dress unless necessary, so she brought the one Caleb gave her this time.

With the dress prepared, Serena went into the bathroom to take a shower and then blow-dried her hair.

When she came out, the dress was still hanging in the closet, but the skirt had been cut with a pair of scissors into a large gash.

Only she and Claire were in this room.

Serena hadn’t expected Claire to do something so childish.

In the banquet hall, the cocktail party had started.

Everyone from The Lockwood Group was there.

Except for Serena.

Claire, dressed to the nines, stood alongside the suited Caleb, they were the perfect couple.

Inside the Cupid Cruise, there was also an indoor pool, and Serena was swimming there now.

Unable to enjoy the water park and not able to attend the party, shouldn’t she at least be able to swim without being disturbed?

And so it was.

Serena couldn’t remember how long she had been swimming, when suddenly someone appeared in the lane next to hers.

The person had on a swim cap and goggles, and with her peripheral vision, Serena couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman.

The person was swimming freestyle.

So was she.

For no apparent reason, Serena felt a sense of competition arise.

She began to pick up speed.

The other person seemed to understand Serena’s intention and began to accelerate too.

The two ended up competing, and in the end, Serena was a step behind.

Emerging from the water, Serena removed her goggles, looking over at the adjacent lane.

The person in the lane also took off their goggles, revealing their face.

"What are you doing here?"

Seeing Caleb, Serena widened her eyes, "You didn’t attend the party?"

"The party ended a while ago."

Upon hearing Caleb say this, Serena realized she had been swimming for quite a long time.

Caleb in the water, unlike during the day at the water park, wasn’t wearing a top, just swim trunks.

His bare upper body was muscular and well-proportioned, looking like a smooth marble sculpture in the blue pool.

Serena hadn’t expected she had just been competing with Caleb.

Her loss was understandable, after all.

Serena got out of the pool.

Although Caleb was in the water, his gaze followed Serena as she stepped out.

Serena was wearing a sporty one-piece swimsuit.

Not at all sexy, very conservative, not revealing anything that should or shouldn’t be seen.

However, the sleek design of the black one-piece swimsuit perfectly complemented her already excellent figure, with its high-quality material and tailoring, creating a unique allure.

Caleb’s eyes flickered with light.

"You’re done swimming?"

"I’m done."

"Because of me?"

Serena’s steps paused as she was about to leave.

Before she could reply, Caleb asked again:

"Why didn’t you go to the party tonight?"

This time, Serena turned to face Caleb in the pool.

"Because the dress I brought got ruined by someone."

Caleb’s eyelids lifted slightly.

"Claire is sharing a room with me; she’s the prime suspect."

After saying this, Serena saw the suspicion in Caleb’s eyes turn into a sneer.

She knew Caleb wouldn’t believe it.

Just as Serena was about to leave the pool, Caleb called out to her again.

She didn’t understand why Caleb was so talkative tonight.

"Serena, do you like black?"

Serena didn’t reply.

Three years of marriage, and he knew nothing about her.

Just as she closed the pool door, Serena ran into Claire.

Claire had changed into another swimsuit, still pink, but the style was even more sultry and seductive than the one from earlier, especially the bikini bottom, which could fall off with a tug at the thin string.

Seeing Serena, Claire gave a smug smile.

"Caleb’s in there, right? He and I planned to swim together, Serena, why don’t you join us too!"

Serena also wondered why, with no outsiders around, Claire was putting on a show for whom!

"I’ve finished swimming, you two enjoy!"

Serena discreetly left.

She realized Caleb wouldn’t just come to the indoor pool without reason, he had planned it with Claire.

So he specifically wore only swim trunks, removing his swimsuit top, just to show off to Claire.

Serena felt a bit nauseated.

The next three days of the itinerary were all about going ashore for sightseeing and shopping.

Under normal circumstances, unless colleagues were particularly close, everyone defaulted to moving around with their roommates.

Yet from start to finish, Serena was alone.

Because Claire was constantly accompanied by Caleb.

Though it was called a company retreat, Serena felt this cruise was essentially a tool for Claire to flaunt her romance with Caleb.

At night, Serena was yet again alone keeping company with the empty room.

Claire was her roommate in name.

But Claire hadn’t spent a single night sleeping in this cabin.

She knew whose room Claire went to.

She just didn’t understand why, if they were going to sleep together, they weren’t arranged to room with each other from the start!

The phone chimed once, Serena looked, it was a friend request.

The note read: Sales Department Xiao Li.