Mr. CEO, You Look Strangely Familiar

Chloe Marshall handed him the phone. Since Ethan Ellsworth couldn’t take it at the moment, she put it on speaker.

”I’ve called you so many times, why didn’t you pick up? Was it your little assistant not letting you answer on purpose?”

Nora Ainsworth and Quentin Grant, who were standing nearby, overheard.

Ethan Ellsworth explained, ”No, I just finished filming. She’s been here the whole time, not with me.”

Jean Grant just said, ”Oh,” then added, ”Ethan, you’ve wrapped up filming, right? Are you coming back tonight? I want to see you. I’m squatting outside your front door right now.”

Quentin Grant looked at Ethan Ellsworth in shock, appearing to have a question.

Ethan gestured for him to wait a moment.

He said, ”Yeah, I’ll be back in a bit. I’m going to hang up now. I’m taking off my makeup. You should go back inside, it’s cold out.”

Jean Grant agreed, and the call ended.

Ethan Ellsworth held the phone back out for Chloe Marshall to take. But his arm started to ache from holding it up, and still, no one took it. He thought Chloe had left, but when he turned his head, he saw her sitting there, staring at the floor, lost in thought.

”Spit it out. Did something happen to Jean?” Quentin Grant demanded.

Ethan waved his hand, dismissing the makeup artist. Then he looked at Chloe and Zeke Marshall. ”You two head out first, as well.”

The siblings left and closed the door behind them.

Ethan thought for a moment before saying, ”Quentin, I suspect Marlon Marshall must have done something awful to Jean. That’s why she was so determined to have the abortion without telling anyone.”

Quentin Grant could hardly believe his ears. Then, a mix of anger and heartache in his voice, he said, ”Jean is just too damn stubborn!”

”She told me not to tell you yet. You have to pretend you don’t know anything. Otherwise, I’m afraid she might do something foolish. She said she wants to punish Marlon herself. Young Master Grant, you can’t act rashly.”

”If Jean’s been wronged, how can I just sit back and do nothing?”

Ethan held up a hand. ”Listen to me. Don’t interfere right now. Let her do what she wants. Otherwise, Young Master Grant, aren’t you afraid that if you scold her, she’ll get upset and do something drastic?”

Nora Ainsworth nodded. ”Quentin, just stay quiet for now. It won’t be too late to talk about it when she’s ready to be honest.”

Quentin Grant thought about it and finally nodded, agreeing to Ethan’s request to pretend he didn’t know for the time being.

Zeke Marshall looked at his sister, Chloe Marshall, seeming to want to say something but holding back. Finally, he asked, ”Sis, are you feeling really down?”

Chloe was silent for a moment before saying, ”No.”

Zeke stared at her. ”You can lie to yourself, but you can’t lie to me. Sis, your eyes are all red.”

Chloe lowered her head and said nothing more.

An awkward silence fell between the siblings.

The dressing room door opened. Nora Ainsworth came out first, took Chloe Marshall’s hand, and led her a few steps away.

The three men followed close behind.

The car was quiet for the entire ride back to the city. Chloe Marshall kept her gaze fixed out the window, not saying a single word.

Finally, the car pulled into an upscale residential complex.

It stopped in front of Quentin Grant’s villa.

The moment Ethan Ellsworth got out of the car, Jean Grant rushed forward and threw her arms around him in a tight hug.

She clung to him as if she’d never let go.

Everyone stared, dumbfounded.

Chloe Marshall stood there, suddenly feeling the pre-dawn air was cold enough to make one tremble. The dead of night had frozen the world and her heart along with it. It was a bone-chilling cold.

Watching the two of them embracing nearby, she suddenly felt like a third wheel.

Quentin Grant finally spoke up. ”Your own brother is standing right here, and you don’t even see me. You hug someone else first. I guess I doted on you for nothing.”

Hearing this, Jean Grant abruptly let go of Ethan Ellsworth.

Her expression was a little strange. ”Brother, so you were all together.”

Quentin Grant retorted, ”What do you think? Let’s talk inside. Are we just going to stand out here and freeze in the middle of the night?”

”Okay.”

As Jean Grant replied, she subconsciously glanced at Ethan Ellsworth.

His expression was calm as he said softly, ”Let’s go inside.”

For some reason, Jean Grant steeled herself, grabbed his hand, and said, ”Let’s go.”

Ethan turned to look at Chloe Marshall and found her watching him. She didn’t say a word.

The group entered the main gate of Quentin Grant’s home.

They walked into the living room, where a servant served tea.

Everyone sat down.

Quentin Grant looked like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

He looked at his once proud and confident sister, who was now haggard and worn. In just a few short months, a spirited woman had been reduced to this. ’Something is clearly wrong,’ he thought. ’If she were happy, why wouldn’t she be smiling?’

”Brother, I’m going to divorce Marlon,” she said, bringing up the topic herself.

Quentin Grant considered this. ”Give me a reason. I want to know the real reason.”

Jean Grant seemed to summon her courage. ”I paid a heavy price for this marriage. I think that’s reason enough.”

He didn’t press further. ”You’ve always been like this. Jean, don’t you know that your personality will make you suffer? Just do what you want to do. Don’t forget, your brother will always have your back.”

Tears welled up in Jean Grant’s eyes. She sniffled. ”Mm, I know.”

Nora Ainsworth didn’t say a word. She felt it wasn’t her place to comment.

”All right, it’s the middle of the night. Everyone should get some sleep.” Quentin Grant stood up and took Nora Ainsworth’s hand, leading her upstairs.

Zeke Marshall whispered, ”Sis, we’ve had a long day. Let’s go home and rest too, okay?”

Chloe Marshall nodded, then looked at Ethan Ellsworth. ”Boss Ellsworth, you—”

She knew asking was pointless, but she had to ask anyway.

Ethan replied, ”You head back first. I’ll be home soon.”

Hearing this, Chloe Marshall left.

The living room fell silent.

Jean Grant sat there quietly for a moment before asking, ”Are you with her now?”

Ethan Ellsworth didn’t deny it. ”I guess you could say that.”

Disbelief flashed in Jean Grant’s eyes. ”Are you really going to marry her, have kids with her, and spend the rest of your life together?”

At that moment, Ethan Ellsworth found himself unable to answer. Because, in his heart, he didn’t know either.

”What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”

”It’s because I don’t know how to answer that question.”

Jean Grant slowly rose to her feet, her voice turning cold. ”Then don’t ever answer it.”

She walked briskly toward the living room entrance. Ethan Ellsworth hurried after her. ”Jean!”

They reached the front door but stopped before they could open it.

Ethan grabbed her hand. ”Jean Grant, you were the one who told me we should just be friends. So let’s act like friends.”

But his words were like a sharp knife, and Jean Grant couldn’t believe they were coming from him.

”Ethan Ellsworth, does your love for me over the past decade-plus mean less than the one or two years you’ve spent with your little assistant? I’m asking you, do you still love me or not?” Tears quickly gathered in her eyes. ”Tell me, do you still love me?”