Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 145: Taking You Is Perfectly Justified

Chapter 145: Chapter 145: Taking You Is Perfectly Justified

"As long as you understand that."

Raina Reddington wiped away all traces of tears from her face. She leaned against the car window and closed her eyes, not wanting to speak to Ethan Lancaster anymore.

She knew she and Ethan Lancaster were no longer suited for each other. Even just muddling through was agonizing. But she couldn’t understand why he refused to divorce her.

「The next day.」

Seth Sinclair entered the office and placed a freshly brewed coffee by Ethan Lancaster’s hand. "Fourth Master, don’t forget the dinner meeting later."

"What time is it scheduled for?"

"Seven o’clock."

Ethan Lancaster took a small sip of his coffee as his phone on the desk chimed with a notification.

He casually picked it up and saw it was a transaction alert from his bank.

Ethan Lancaster found it a bit strange. He opened the message to take a closer look. He had given that card to Raina Reddington before. Back when their relationship was intimate, he knew she didn’t make much as a doctor, so he had insisted on giving her the card. She had never once used it, but now, she had spent a hundred thousand in a single transaction.

He stared blankly at the phone screen. Seth Sinclair glanced over discreetly. "Is something wrong, Fourth Master?"

"It’s nothing." He placed the phone face-down on the desk.

Raina Reddington took back her bank card. The man at the front desk was bowing and scraping. "Do you need any liquor? I can have someone send it in."

"No, thank you."

She was the first to enter a private room. Not long after, Miles Hawthorne came in.

He casually closed the door but leaned against it without coming further inside. Raina Reddington was sitting on the sofa. Though they were only a few meters apart, Miles Hawthorne felt a vast distance between them.

Raina patted the spot next to her on the sofa. Miles Hawthorne shook his head. "I told you not to come here again."

"I’m just here for the last time."

"Really?"

A faint smile touched Raina Reddington’s lips. "I’m very busy, you know. I’m an excellent doctor whose appointments are hard to get."

Miles Hawthorne couldn’t help but chuckle, crossing his arms. "Yes, the Raina I know is just like that—always excellent."

"And what about the Miles Hawthorne I know? Is he an unkillable cockroach?"

The man’s face settled into a mask of composure and forbearance. He had nearly died more times than he could count, always just one breath away from the end. Since his life had been spared until now, he was determined to keep on living.

"Yes."

Raina finally broke into a real smile. "No one should give you a hard time from now on. You take care of yourself."

Every private room had security cameras, so Raina couldn’t say much more, a fact that Miles Hawthorne also understood.

The people here were all snobs, but there was nothing money couldn’t solve.

Raina got up to leave. Miles Hawthorne stood with his hands in his pants pockets, his tall frame still leaning against the wall. She walked over to him and looked at his dyed hair, a pang of sorrow in her heart.

"I’m leaving."

Miles Hawthorne closed his eyes and said nothing. He heard the sound of the door opening, and by the time he opened his eyes again, Raina was gone.

It seemed this was all she could do for him. Passing by the front desk, Raina paused. "I’ll be back in a while. Don’t worry, you’ll be well compensated."

"Yes, of course. Please watch your step."

As soon as Raina got back, she immediately transferred a sum of money from Ethan Lancaster’s bank card. It would be trouble if he canceled the card. At this point, Raina couldn’t care less about her dignity.

That evening, just as Raina was getting ready for bed, she received a call from an unknown number.

The voice on the other end was somewhat familiar. "Raina? The Fourth Master is drunk. Could you come pick him up?"

Raina numbly hung up. She remembered the last time Al had called her, and all she’d gotten for it was utter humiliation.

Al thought the signal was bad and muttered, "Huh? Why’d she stop talking?"

He glanced at his screen, then tried calling back. "Huh? Why’s her phone off now?"

Ethan Lancaster loosened his tie. He wasn’t so drunk that he was oblivious. He snatched the phone from Al. "Stop calling."

"Her battery probably died. It’s fine, Raina will call back soon."

Cameron Fairchild, sitting nearby, didn’t know whether to laugh at Al’s stupidity or call him naive.

Seth Sinclair brought Ethan Lancaster back to The Verdant Garden. "Fourth Master, let me help you upstairs."

"No need." Ethan Lancaster steadied himself against the nearby railing. "It’s late. You should head home."

"Alright."

He stumbled upstairs, feeling top-heavy. He pushed the bedroom door open with so much force that it slammed against the wall and bounced back. Raina, who had just fallen asleep, was startled awake and heard Ethan Lancaster shout from the doorway, "I’m home!"

She rolled over, ignoring him.

Ethan Lancaster took a few steps in and stopped at the foot of the bed. The room was dark, but the light from the hallway streamed in, stretching his silhouette across the double bed. "I’m home."

There was no answer. Ethan Lancaster bent down, grabbed a corner of the comforter, and yanked it down. Raina was curled up underneath in her pajamas. The man clutched the comforter to his chest and suddenly threw himself onto the bed.

Raina jumped in fright. Ethan Lancaster landed beside her with enough force to nearly bounce her off the bed.

She opened her eyes to see his face just inches away. When Ethan saw she was about to turn over, he grabbed her shoulder to hold her still.

"Where did you go today?"

"Nowhere. I was home."

The reek of alcohol on Ethan Lancaster was strong enough to make one drunk. "Still lying to me? You spent so much of my money. Did you hire Miles Hawthorne for yourself?"

His words were incredibly vile. Raina sneered, "It was only a hundred thousand. It’s not like the Fourth Master hasn’t done the same thing himself. When you hired Gwen Sharp, was a hundred thousand even enough?"

Ethan Lancaster pushed his handsome face closer, his nose almost touching Raina’s. "Of course it wasn’t enough for her. The Regalia Palace is nothing like that place. One is high-class, the other is low-class, don’t you think?"

"Yes, the places you frequent are all first-class and high-end."

"Stop being so sarcastic. Since you spent the money, did you have him serve you well?"

Raina pushed against Ethan Lancaster’s chest with her palm. "You’re drunk. You should go sober up."

"That place is a real dump, isn’t it? Probably doesn’t even have a decent bed, right? Did you just do it on the sofa? Oh, I forgot to remind you—the private rooms all have surveillance cameras. You’d better not have gotten yourself recorded... You think Miles Hawthorne will use it to blackmail you again? If I don’t let him go, he’ll post videos of Mrs. Lancaster’s ’charming’ performance for everyone to see..."

"Have you said enough?" Raina cut him off. "Ethan Lancaster, let’s not be at each other’s throats the moment we see each other. You live your life, and I’ll live mine."

"No matter how I calculate it, I’m the one who’s losing out here. You spent my money on Miles Hawthorne. You touched him, so doesn’t that mean I can sleep with you too?"

Raina’s almond-shaped eyes flew wide, and her voice grew agitated. "What are you trying to say?"

"It’s all about spending money. Neither of us should pretend to be so noble. I’ve spent money on you too, so it’s only right and proper that I sleep with you," Ethan Lancaster blurted out.

Raina’s hand flew out. They were so close that the blow didn’t have much force, but it landed solidly on Ethan Lancaster’s face.