Mr. CEO, You Look Strangely Familiar

Every time Lillian Bancroft went out, he wore a mask to cover his face. For the past few days, he would make breakfast in the morning and then leave, only to return at mealtimes. For several days straight, he had spoken very little to Chloe.

Seeing how quiet he had been lately, Chloe Marshall felt a little guilty.

At the dinner table that evening, she finally asked, ”Are you going out again after we eat?”

He grunted in affirmation. ”You go to sleep first. I’ll be back later.”

Chloe Marshall lowered her head, chopsticks in hand, and broke the silence. ”Silly, are you mad at me? You’ve barely spoken to me these past few days.”

His hand paused, and he forced a smile. ”What are you talking about, darling? Why wouldn’t I talk to you? I’ve just been a bit busy lately. Once this is over, I’ll stay home with you every day, how about that? Right up until you give birth.”

Chloe Marshall nodded. ”There’s only about a month left before the baby is born. Silly, I’m so scared. I’ve been having nightmares about... unclean things. I dream that lots of people are chasing me, trying to kill me. One time, they caught up to me and came at me with a knife. I woke up terrified.”

He looked at her seriously. ”It’s just a dream. It won’t come true. You’re my wife. Listen to me, even if I die, I will never let anyone harm a single hair on your head. Because you are the woman I have chosen.”

His expression was incredibly serious.

Chloe Marshall looked at him. ”The woman... you’ve chosen?”

He chuckled softly. ”Of course. You’re the woman I’m going to spend the rest of my life with. If that’s not ’chosen,’ what is? Once the baby is born, the three of us will have a good life together, just like before. Darling, I’ll use all my strength to be good to you. I’m willing to give my life to you, just to be with you. You promised my nanny you would stay with me. I won’t let you go back on your word.”

A lump suddenly formed in Chloe Marshall’s throat. ’When a man tells a woman he’s willing to give his life to her, there are only two possibilities. Either he says it so often it has become meaningless, or he truly sees her as the most important woman in his life.’

’Clearly, he was the latter.’

For some reason, Chloe Marshall just believed that there was no falsehood in his heart.

’The only way to explain this feeling,’ Chloe Marshall thought, ’is that either his acting is impeccable, or his feelings are completely genuine.’

But she was willing to believe it was the second option.

”Silly, the man I love is—”

Her words caught in her throat when she saw the smile on his face instantly vanish, replaced by an exceptionally ugly expression. His entire face was taut, forbidding her from continuing.

A chill ran through Chloe Marshall’s heart. She didn’t want to deceive him, but she also didn’t want to be controlled by him. The desire to go back home was growing stronger. She wanted to know how Zeke was doing, how Nora was doing. She wanted to see Boss Ellsworth, too. But these wishes seemed impossible to fulfill.

She knew he wouldn’t allow it.

”Is it Ethan Ellsworth?” he suddenly sneered. ”I saw it long ago. The way you burst into tears at the mere sight of him... someone with no connection to you wouldn’t do that. But so what? You’re my wife now. That was the last time you will ever see him. Chloe, I won’t give you a second chance to meet him again. I will completely eliminate any possibility of you two meeting. If I ever regain my status, he will become the first foreign celebrity banned from this country!”

Hearing this, Chloe Marshall felt a cold dread wash over her. ’Doesn’t this mean I’ll never be able to escape this place? That I can never go back to Fravia?’

”My brother is still there. He’s my only brother. Is it really okay for you to do this?”

”Darling, it was announced late last year, just before the New Year, that you died in a plane crash. Everyone knows you’re dead.”

Chloe Marshall’s fingers dug into the tabletop, her face a mask of utter disbelief and shock. ”What did you say?!”

”You heard me correctly. Everything I said is true. Therefore, you can only stay here by my side. As for the chain on your ankle, I’m going to replace it with one that nobody can open. That way, you’ll never be able to leave me again.”

Chloe Marshall fell silent, sitting there as flames of rage surged in her heart.

She was suppressing it.

’Based on what he said, I really might never be able to go back.’

”You’re going to imprison me for life, is that it, Silly?” The red in her eyes slowly intensified as she stared at him.

”Do you think I have a better way?” He put down his chopsticks. ”Get some rest. I’ll be back later.”

Chloe Marshall sat there, unmoving and silent, until she saw him walk out the door.

Suddenly, she was the only one left in the living room.

Only then did a sob escape her lips. She had always believed she would have a chance to leave this place, but she was destined for disappointment. The thought of never seeing them again made it impossible to control her emotions.

A lifetime isn’t necessarily long, nor is it short. But for her, it felt longer than forever.

For someone to whom every day was an eternity, this was a chasm of time and distance that could never be crossed.

She missed Boss Ellsworth. She missed him so much she thought she was going crazy.

If she could just be by his side right now, she would be willing to die.

Her heart throbbed with a sharp, stabbing pain. Chloe Marshall collapsed onto the table, burying her face in her arms.

The figure at the doorway remained completely still.

Her sobs were like an excruciatingly sharp knife plunging deep into his heart, impossible to pull out. The slightest movement caused it to bleed, bringing a pain worse than death—just like the thought of that man who posed such a great threat to him.

His sense of danger was intense, and he was highly paranoid. Whatever he wanted, he would chain it firmly to his side, no matter the cost—even if it meant breaking her heart.

Lillian Bancroft clenched his fists and finally walked down the stairs.

*

”What are you doing here again?” Zoe Ellsworth leaned against her front gate, frowning at the woman before her. To be honest, she used to be furious with Bianca Rhodes’s cheap tricks, but lately, she had grown indifferent.

’Arguing with a bitch just drags you down to her level, doesn’t it?’

”Zoe Ellsworth, let me tell you something. I’ve already gone to the police and told them that if I go missing for three days, you are the prime suspect. So you’d better not try anything with me. If you do, I’ll make sure your name is dragged through the mud. I’m not here to see you—I’ve said that many times already. You’d better get out of my way. I’m in this state now, what do I have left to fear?”

Bianca Rhodes’s tone and attitude made Zoe Ellsworth’s blood boil. The message was clear: ’You can’t do anything to me. I can do whatever I want, and you just have to stand there and watch.’

But ”standing there and watching” had never been Zoe Ellsworth’s style. She wasn’t the type to endure things quietly. Therefore, the consequences of Bianca Rhodes’s little speech were predictable.