Chapter 286: Chapter 284: The One-Year Agreement (4)

Quentin Grant also raised his glass. "This isn’t what anyone wanted to see. No matter what we say now, it’s all pointless. Nora has already forgotten everyone. If she wakes up one day, I don’t know how I’ll ever explain this to her."

A wave of pain washed over Ethan Ellsworth’s chest. He clutched his heart, tears blurring his vision against his will.

He raised his glass, clinked it against theirs, and downed it in one gulp.

After that, he lost all control. The other two men didn’t stop him.

Glass after glass went down, and soon, he was drunk.

His daytime composure crumbled, and he could no longer hide his true emotions.

His face was streaked with tears as he cried.

They watched him cry, watched him rave, watched him roar, watched him cause a scene—they just watched in silence.

He yelled the word "idiot" over and over again.

It was heartbreaking to hear.

In the end, he drank so much that he passed out.

The two men half-carried him back to the Ellsworth Residence.

Seeing the state he was in, Mrs. Ellsworth naturally understood why. "I’ll go make some soup to sober him up."

Quentin Grant stopped her. "Auntie, just let him sleep it off."

Mrs. Ellsworth paused for a moment, then nodded.

*

When Herman Hawthorne got home, Zoe Ellsworth was lying in bed watching the news.

He closed the door and started taking off his clothes. "We got your brother drunk tonight."

Zoe Ellsworth handed him a phone with a video from earlier in the day. "Watch this. You’ll probably feel drunk after seeing it, too."

Herman Hawthorne took it, confused, and pressed play. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

After watching, the color drained from his face.

"Feeling drunk now?"

His fingers rapidly tapped to delete the video before he tossed the phone onto the table. "No. On the contrary, I feel more clear-headed than ever. By the way, I had a DNA test done on the child she aborted. It wasn’t mine."

"And how does that make you feel? Tell me, hubby, so I can share in your feelings."

He gave a helpless smile and reached out to flick her on the nose. "I feel neither happy nor sad."

"Really?"

"No." He sat on the edge of the bed, revealing his true feelings to her for the first time. "I think it’s my fault. I’m the reason she’s become like this. If I didn’t love her, she wouldn’t have had the nerve to do something like this. She was just banking on the little love I had left for her."

’He didn’t deny that he loved that woman.’

’This was probably the main reason he said he couldn’t give me his love.’

Zoe Ellsworth spoke up. "I think my head is starting to get jumbled up, too. Since you love her, why not just be decisive and divorce me? Is it really just about the title?"

"Not entirely." He lay down beside her. "Sweet drinks only make you thirstier the more you drink them. Only plain water can truly quench your thirst. It might be tasteless, but it’s a permanent solution. Zoe, my heart has been overloaded for a long time. That’s why I want to live my life with you. I think... this is what real life is."

They had never talked so openly before. Zoe Ellsworth had never understood his thoughts so clearly.

"I understand, too. If that weren’t the case, you never would have so suddenly asked to marry me."

He looked at her earnestly. "Whatever the reason, I will treat you well."

A sudden, inexplicable bitterness welled up in Zoe Ellsworth. She lay in his arms and said, "You don’t love me, and I don’t love you. I hope that when I meet someone I do love in the future, you’ll automatically step aside."

"I haven’t even asked you to step aside. How dare you say something like that?"

She tilted her head up and huffed, "You’re older than me, so you’re already old in my eyes. You’re robbing the cradle with me while still saying you love someone else. Of course I should also have the chance to find a young stud to fall in love with. We won’t get married, we’ll just be in love. Isn’t that just like you and Bianca Rhodes? That way, we’ll be even, and you’ll have nothing to complain about. Isn’t that a great idea?"

"I’m old? You’re going to find a ’young stud’ to fall in love with? Even?" A series of questions expressed his displeasure.

"That’s right."

"Things were never fair between us to begin with." ’He was only 25, yet in her eyes, he was already an old man.’

"Good, as long as you know."

He held her, nuzzling her long hair as he fell asleep.

*

She got up very early the next morning.

She was driving toward the Ellsworth Residence, but the morning traffic on Goldrun Road was incredibly heavy. Just as she finally got through the worst of it, her car was rear-ended.

With a loud CRUNCH, it sounded like the trunk had been smashed in.

She stopped the car and got out to look. Just as she’d thought, it was wrecked.

Then she saw the other driver—it was Jason Irving, whom she hadn’t seen in a while.

He was driving a car worth several hundred thousand, and he was dressed to the nines. Without any makeup on, he looked less effeminate.

Zoe Ellsworth walked up to his car and tapped on the window. "What’s wrong with your eyes? Did you trade them with a dog?"

Jason Irving sneered. "Zoe Ellsworth, I see you haven’t changed a bit. No wonder your husband was at the hospital for a prenatal check-up with a pregnant woman. I guess he’s getting rid of you, huh?"

Zoe Ellsworth scoffed. "I call you a dog, and you really lean into the part. Don’t you know that slander is like spitting blood at someone? By the time you’ve spat it on them, your own mouth is already filthy. You wrecked my car. So tell me, do you want me to call the police, or... should I call the police?"

"I’ll just pay you, alright? No need to trouble the police." He pulled a wallet from his suit jacket, took out a thick wad of cash, and offered it to her. "I’ve got plenty of money."

Zoe Ellsworth didn’t take it. "Still trying to act like a big shot? This is a Lamborghini my brother gave me for my wedding. It cost over eight million when he bought it. I’d say the repairs will cost at least several hundred thousand. You’re trying to give me ten or twenty thousand? That’s not even enough to cover the towing fee. How about this: I don’t need the money, but I would feel much better seeing you spend a few days in a police station."

She took out her phone to call the police, and Jason Irving’s face paled. "Fine, I’ll pay you!"

"Pay me? Great. Fork over the cash."

He hesitated. "I don’t have that much money on me right now. How about this? I’ll sign my car over to you."

Zoe Ellsworth glanced at his car and nodded. "Alright. You can drive it to a used car dealership now. I’ll get the money first, then get my car repaired. If it’s not enough, I’ll be coming back for you."

With that, she got back in her car.

At the dealership, she learned that his car was almost new and managed to sell it for 600,000.

She took the 600,000 to the repair shop.

It took the whole morning, but the car was finally repaired.

As she was about to leave, Jason Irving called out, "It’s pretty far from the city center here. Can I catch a ride with you?"

Zoe Ellsworth flatly refused. "Given my current status, I can’t be seen with someone like you. The paparazzi are relentless these days, you know. Sorry, not sorry."

And she drove away.

Jason Irving watched her car disappear, seething with resentment. Not only was his new car gone, but now he had to walk back!

*

Chloe Marshall felt terribly anxious. She desperately wanted to know how Boss Ellsworth was doing, how Zeke was doing, and how Nora was doing.