Mr. CEO, You Look Strangely Familiar

THUD. Quentin Grant’s hand froze in mid-air. He never imagined she could be so weak. Remembering she’d just had a minor procedure that morning, Quentin snapped, ”Just go, Nora Ainsworth. I may have no dignity left, but I won’t let you keep trampling me to pieces.”

Nora Ainsworth pushed herself up. Her mind went blank for a second before she fixed her gaze on him, her eyes now clear.

”Quentin, just let me finish. If you still tell me to go after I’m done, I swear I won’t stay a second longer.”

He remained silent, seeming to give his tacit consent.

”This afternoon, I didn’t go to the hospital for an abortion. There was another woman there with the exact same name as me who was getting one. I didn’t dare let the doctors know who I really was, so I used a fake name. In reality, I went to...” She clenched her hands and said softly, ”get them to stop some bleeding.”

Quentin Grant looked at her skeptically. ”You’re still planning to lie to me, aren’t you?”

Nora Ainsworth froze, not responding to his question. ”The last time I left you so suddenly at your door... it was because I had gone to the People’s Hospital for some tests that day. I have pathological infertility. There’s a ninety-five percent chance I’ll never be able to conceive in my entire life. How could someone like me possibly be worthy of you? How could I put you in such a difficult position in the future? Quentin, if I could have, I would have hidden this from you forever. That way, your hatred and resentment toward me would have at least been temporary. Tell me, how could someone like me get pregnant, let alone go and have an abortion?”

Quentin Grant’s head snapped up, his heart utterly shattered. In that instant, he felt as though he had just heard the most devastating words in the world.

Nora Ainsworth turned away, the tears she’d been holding back suddenly bursting forth and soaking her cheeks. She couldn’t utter a sound.

Her hands clenched, she kept her back to him. Time seemed to stand still in that moment.

Neither of them could utter another word.

Two minutes felt as long as two years. Finally, she lifted her feet and walked toward the entrance, changed her shoes, put on her down jacket, and stepped out of the living room.

’The truth had come a little late, but at least she’d told him herself.’

It had started to snow outside. Large, fluffy snowflakes drifted to the ground. In the dead of winter, the slightest gust of wind was enough to make a person shiver uncontrollably.

The sharp cold stung her face.

Just as she neared the main gate, an earth-shattering roar seemed to make the ground itself tremble.

”NORA AINSWORTH!!!”

Tears welling in her eyes, she turned to see him sprinting toward her. The ground was slippery, and he lost his footing, falling hard and sliding half a meter forward from the momentum.

He scrambled back to his feet and kept running.

Finally, he was in front of her. ”You’re leaving me again, aren’t you!”

”Didn’t you tell me to leave?”

He raged, ”Who told you to be so damn obedient? When I told you not to leave before, why didn’t you listen to me then!”

She looked at him and muttered sullenly, ”Then what do you want from me?”

”And if I tell you, you’ll let me do whatever I want?”

Tears streamed down Nora Ainsworth’s face. The more she tried to stop them, the faster they fell, and she could only let them flow freely.

”I hope you’ll be gentle with me.”

He reached out, his heart aching as he wiped away her tears. ”Don’t cry. I told you, no matter what you do to me, I could never bring myself to abandon you. Just say the word, and I’ll come back. Nora, give me your heart. Don’t hold anything back. My entire life is yours—presold to you. All I need is you.”

Nora Ainsworth suddenly lost control and burst into wrenching sobs, each one tearing his heart to pieces.

He pulled her into a tight embrace, the corners of his own eyes glistening. He kissed her lips, a kiss full of tenderness and sorrow.

In the end, she let him lead her back to the bedroom.

He took off her shoes for her, then joined her on the bed.

They held each other in silence.

Chloe Marshall, who had been waiting outside, went to the apartment across the hall to sleep, planning to return to the film set with Nora Ainsworth the next morning.

**

When a man frequently comes home in the dead of night, reeking of alcohol most of the time, even the most oblivious woman would sense that something was wrong.

It had become a habit for Jean Grant. Every night, she would sit on her bed and stare at the clock, watching time pass, second by second. TICK. TOCK.

It was already ten-thirty, and Marlon Marshall still hadn’t returned.

Jean Grant mulled it over for a moment before an idea struck her. She called one of Marlon’s friends.

”Hello?”

Jean Grant spoke first. ”Hi, this is Drake’s wife. You were in that accident a few days ago—is everything all right now?”

The man on the other end was confused. ”An accident? No?”

Jean Grant was stunned. ”Weren’t you and Drake at the hospital all night a few days ago?”

”Sis, you must have the wrong guy. I met up with Drake a few nights ago at a club, but that was it. I haven’t seen him since.”

Jean Grant clearly didn’t believe him. ”You’re in the same class. How could you not have seen him? Are you skipping? My Drake leaves for class first thing every morning.”

The man on the other end fell silent, then abruptly hung up.

When Jean Grant called back, the phone was off.

’Something is definitely not right.’ She was sure she had heard him correctly—he’d said he went to a club with Marlon a few nights ago.

As far as she knew, the man she’d just called was his only close friend. ’Does he have other friends I don’t know about?’

Filled with suspicion, Jean Grant got dressed and went downstairs.

”Auntie, is my mother-in-law back yet?”

”No, she isn’t. She went out this afternoon and still hasn’t come home. She probably went to play mahjong again.”

Jean Grant frowned. ”I’m going out for a walk. You’ll be fine here by yourself, Auntie.”

”Miss, where could you be going so late?” the housekeeper asked, trying to talk her out of it. ”Can’t it wait until morning?”

”It’s nothing. I’ll be back soon,” Jean Grant insisted.

After putting on her shoes, she headed out the door.

Once outside, she took out her car keys, opened the door, and started the engine, driving toward the complex gate.

Ever since he and Carol Young had gotten together, Marlon Marshall’s car had become their primary rendezvous spot.

Hotels and motels required registration, where they could easily be spotted by acquaintances. It was much safer to conduct their business in a parking lot with no security cameras.

Tonight, when they had spoken on the phone, the two agreed they couldn’t keep ”exercising” in the car. They needed a change of venue.

So, after some discussion, they decided on Carol Young’s house.

Tonight, she had bought her parents two movie tickets and sent them out to enjoy a film and relax.

As Marlon was getting ready to leave, he pulled 10,000 yuan from his wallet and handed it to Carol Young. ”Here, this is for you.”

Carol Young took the money and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Afterward, he went to the bathroom. Before he came out, the front door clicked open—Mr. and Mrs. Young had returned.

Marlon Marshall had no choice but to hide in the bathroom and wait for them to go to sleep before he could leave.

He waited and waited. After more than an hour, they finally went to bed. Just as he thought he was in the clear, Mrs. Young pushed open the bathroom door, pajamas in hand, intending to take a shower.