365 Days of Rejected Proposal: CEO's Rebellious Pet-Chapter 143: Jenson Forrest Is in Trouble

"What if I insist on leaving?" Zinnia demanded angrily, trying to force her way out.

The two servants instantly formed a wall of flesh in front of her, tearfully pleading.

"Mrs. Forrest, I’m a single mother. My child’s father is a gambling drunkard who is completely undependable. It’s not easy to find a job, so please have pity on me."

"Mrs. Forrest is the kindest person I know. My elderly mother is paralyzed, so I can’t afford to lose my job either."

Zinnia was speechless. She, too, had once had a devil of a father who was a drunkard and a gambler, and she also had an older brother who was in a vegetative state.

Zinnia didn’t know if the servants were telling the truth, but she instantly empathized with them. She had always been soft-hearted, and with a frustrated sigh, she turned and went upstairs.

Zinnia ran to the study and opened the computer, only to find that the internet was disconnected.

She stormed out of the study, bumping into Aunt Kramer, who was bringing her a fruit platter.

Aunt Kramer advised, "Mrs. Forrest, please don’t be so confrontational with Mr. Forrest. If you just yield a little, you’ll see. Mr. Forrest really does care about you."

"He cares about me by imprisoning me? Then I really ought to thank him."

Zinnia rolled her eyes and held out her hand. "Aunt Kramer, let me use your phone."

Aunt Kramer immediately shook her head. "Sorry, ma’am, I don’t have my phone on me."

"I’m calling Jenson Forrest."

Hearing Zinnia’s words, Aunt Kramer, without batting an eye, pulled her phone from her pocket. "Oh, look at my memory. It was in my pocket all along. Let me dial for you, ma’am."

Aunt Kramer dialed the number and handed the phone to Zinnia.

A man’s deep, steady voice quickly came from the other end. "Is she behaving at home? What is she doing?"

Zinnia let out a cold laugh. "She’s being very good. Right now, she’s obediently cursing you to step in dog poop when you go out, get stuck in traffic every time you’re in a car, choke on water, trip every time you take a step, have bad luck if you don’t smile, and lose a tooth if you do!"

Zinnia spewed out the string of curses, not yet satisfied, but she was interrupted by a deep, magnetic laugh from the other end of the line. The sound seemed to vibrate from his chest and travel directly to Zinnia’s ear, sending a jolt like an electric current through her.

Zinnia rarely heard him laugh with such joy. He must be insane.

She grew even more furious. "What are you laughing at?!"

"Mrs. Forrest, you’re truly adorable." Jenson Forrest reined in his laughter, but his voice remained light.

Even her curses are so gentle and cute, not at all vicious. What kind of damage could they possibly do? Deep down, her heart was still soft toward him.

As he thought this, a part of Jenson Forrest’s own heart seemed to give way, softening.

He continued, "The doctor said you’ve been too exhausted lately. Rest well at home. Tell Aunt Kramer what you want to eat. If the servants can’t make it, let me know. I’ll bring it home after work, or we can go out together in the evening."

The man spoke in a low voice, but Zinnia’s brows only knitted tighter.

"Give me back my phone and have the servants let me out. I promise I won’t leave for the time being, okay? I need to contact Yara..."

Before Zinnia could finish, the man interrupted her.

"I’ll let Yara Fairchild know. You don’t need to worry."

Zinnia gritted her teeth. "Jenson Forrest, what exactly are you up to?"

"Zinnia, like I said this morning, I wasn’t a competent husband in the past. I hope I can have a chance to make amends during this cooling-off period."

With that, the man hung up.

Holding the phone, Zinnia felt as if she had punched a wad of cotton, leaving her even more suffocated. But what doctor was he talking about?

Zinnia frowned and looked at Aunt Kramer. "What doctor was he talking about?"

Aunt Kramer gently took the phone from Zinnia’s hand and smiled. "I don’t know, ma’am. If you want to know, you should ask Mr. Forrest later. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading downstairs."

She handed the fruit platter to Zinnia and went downstairs.

Left with no other choice, Zinnia decided to channel her anger into her appetite. She viciously speared a piece of dragon fruit, carried the platter into the bedroom, and slammed the door behind her.

She must have been truly exhausted, because she ended up taking another nap that afternoon.

When she woke, a vast, magnificent sunset was unfolding outside her window, dyeing the floor in brilliant colors.

Zinnia went downstairs, where Aunt Kramer greeted her with a smile. "You must be hungry, ma’am. Mr. Forrest isn’t back yet. Would you like some dessert first?"

Being confined, Zinnia had done nothing but eat and sleep. She felt like Jenson Forrest was treating her like a pig to be fattened up.

She didn’t feel hungry and shook her head. "Did he say when he’s coming back?"

After a day of processing her emotions, Zinnia had calmed down considerably. She decided she needed to have a proper talk with Jenson Forrest when he returned.

Aunt Kramer shook her head. "Mr. Forrest hasn’t called. Or, I could get the phone for you, ma’am. You could hurry him along. I’m sure he’d be delighted."

As Aunt Kramer started to look for the phone, Zinnia immediately held up a hand to stop her.

"No, that’s fine. I’m not waiting for him. He can come back whenever he feels like it."

She refused to call and pressure him. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Zinnia thought back to all the times she had personally cooked meals and waited at home for Jenson Forrest to return. Hadn’t she called him countless times to hurry him along or just to ask where he was? Her calls often went unanswered, and many times, she had to call Timothy Cohen instead. The answer was always the same: Jenson Forrest was busy and couldn’t come home.

Zinnia sat on the living room sofa and turned on the TV out of boredom.

The sunset on the horizon was slowly devoured by darkness, and the garden lights outside lit up one by one. There was still no sound of a car pulling into the driveway.

Zinnia was hungry. She stood up and told Aunt Kramer to serve dinner.

Aunt Kramer hesitated. "Perhaps you should wait a bit longer for Mr. Forrest, ma’am. Or I could call and ask..."

Zinnia’s gaze turned cold as she walked toward the dining room. "So if he doesn’t come back, I don’t get to eat, is that it?"

"No, no, that’s not it! It’s just that Mr. Forrest said he was coming home, so I’m sure he will..." Aunt Kramer explained, waving her hands frantically.

But Zinnia’s expression only grew colder. Aunt Kramer seemed to realize Zinnia had been stood up again. She didn’t say any more, silently turning to instruct the servants to set the table.

Jenson Forrest didn’t return, but Zinnia’s appetite was unaffected. She ate a hearty meal.

After dinner, Zinnia walked a couple of laps in the garden, accompanied by the servants, to help with digestion. She then changed into her dance attire and practiced her basic exercises for an hour in the dance studio before returning to her room to wash up and go to bed.

「The next morning」

When Zinnia woke up, she instinctively reached for the space beside her.

It was cold and empty.

How ridiculous.

The man who said he would return, who said he would make amends and fulfill his duties as a husband, had locked her in here while he himself stayed out all night.

What was even more ridiculous was that she couldn’t manage to remain unaffected. No matter how calmly or indifferently she acted, disappointment and pain still spread through her heart along with the coldness of the empty sheets.

Zinnia lay on the bed, slowly retracting her hand. She curled up and closed her eyes again. She couldn’t stop herself from wondering if Jenson Forrest was with Crystal Sutton again.

Just then, the sound of footsteps suddenly echoed from outside. They were hurried, clearly the sound of leather shoes on the floor, and they quickly approached the bedroom door.

The door was pushed open, and a fire ignited in Zinnia’s heart.

She gritted her teeth and said, "I literally just burned incense for you in my dreams last night, so how can you be back already? Now I know why you confiscated my phone. Were you afraid the crematorium would call to ask me how well-done you wanted to be?"

After she spoke, she heard no response. So angry that she grabbed a pillow, she hurled it at the door without looking.

"Mrs... Mrs. Forrest, it’s me."

The pillow hit someone, but it wasn’t Jenson Forrest.

Timothy Cohen stood at the door, taking a moment to process what he had just heard. Good heavens. Mrs. Forrest was just finding a roundabout way to curse the President for still being alive. But a real disaster had struck him... he was in the ICU!