Chapter 264: Chapter 262: Whether to Be Responsible for a Lifetime (13)

"Why are you here so early in the morning?"

He handed her the breakfast he was carrying. "It’s Saturday. Don’t you get a day off?"

Chloe Marshall shook her head as she took it. "Thanks. My job doesn’t really have weekends. I get one day off a month."

"Have you taken your day off for this month yet?"

"Not yet." She opened the breakfast bag. "This smells amazing. I haven’t even washed my face yet."

With that, she dashed to the bathroom, then came out and sat down to eat.

"Take tomorrow off. We’ll have our first official date."

Chloe Marshall agreed. "Okay."

Liam Preston dropped her off at her company. Just as she reached the office door, a colleague handed her an express package. "Chloe, a delivery for Boss Ellsworth."

Chloe Marshall asked, "Has it been checked?"

"Don’t worry, it’s not from a fan. It was sent from a high-end residential complex. The sender is a friend of Boss Ellsworth, so it’s fine."

"Okay, thanks. I’ll give it to him in a bit."

Just as she placed the package on the desk, the door was pushed open by Ethan Ellsworth.

"Boss Ellsworth, you have a package."

Ethan Ellsworth hummed in acknowledgment. He picked it up and had just started tearing it open when his phone rang.

He set the package down. "I’m heading to President Harding’s office."

As he turned, he knocked the package off the corner of the desk, and it fell to the floor.

"Pick it up."

He walked out the door without looking back.

Chloe Marshall bent down and picked up the package with both hands. Her eyes unconsciously glanced inside. It was a single sheet of paper.

She took it out. The handwriting on it made Chloe Marshall’s hands tremble uncontrollably.

The note contained a few lines: "Ellsworth, I was really satisfied with your technique. I’ll be waiting for you tonight. You have to come. —Jean"

’Last night, they...’

She quickly put the paper back inside and placed the package on the desk. Her heart was in turmoil, and it took a long time for her to calm down.

When Ethan Ellsworth pushed the door open, he saw her standing by the desk, her face pale.

His gaze fell on the package on the desk.

"What’s wrong?"

Chloe Marshall looked up. "Nothing."

She sat down in her seat and began typing rapidly on her computer, her eyes fixed on the screen.

Ethan Ellsworth opened the package, saw the contents of the note, and immediately tore it up.

When it was time to get off work in the afternoon, Chloe Marshall packed her things and said, "Boss Ellsworth, we don’t have any out-of-town work for the next two days, so I’d like to take my day off tomorrow."

Ethan Ellsworth was about to say "Okay," but then he paused. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"My boyfriend and I have a date tomorrow. It’s our first one, so I can’t cancel, so—"

Ethan Ellsworth lowered his head and muttered, "But I just got a call from Young Master Grant. We have to go to Yarnia tomorrow to see Nora. I heard she still hasn’t woken up since her surgery last night."

Chloe Marshall’s eyes widened. "I’m going too."

"What about your date—?" Ethan Ellsworth’s tone shifted. "It wouldn’t be right to cancel, would it? After all, it’s your first date—"

"It’s fine! Nora is more important!"

A smile played on Ethan Ellsworth’s lips. "Alright."

After leaving the company building, she saw Liam Preston standing by his car in the distance, his handsome face turning quite a few heads.

When he saw Chloe Marshall, he smiled and waved.

Chloe Marshall hurried over. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to pick you up."

"I’m so sorry, I have to go abroad tomorrow, so I’m afraid I can’t—"

He smiled. "Are you free now? We can have it now."

Chloe Marshall nodded. "Okay."

Standing at the company entrance, Ethan Ellsworth was suddenly in a foul mood.

He took out his car keys, got in his car, and for some reason, ended up following their car.

’That idiot isn’t actually going to get a room with him, is she?’ was his first thought.

As the thought crossed his mind, his eyes locked onto the car ahead.

He tailed them for a long time until they finally stopped in front of a five-star hotel.

Watching them at the hotel entrance, a fire of anger ignited in Ethan Ellsworth’s heart.

’Just as I thought. If I hadn’t followed them—’

He grabbed a hat from the back seat and put it on. A face mask and sunglasses were, of course, essential.

He followed them into the hotel.

Chloe Marshall followed Liam Preston into the room.

The moment he pushed the door open, she was stunned.

The room was like a sea of flowers, and the table was laden with food and red wine.

There were so many potted flowers of all kinds and colors, but the most numerous were, by far, the roses.

Chloe Marshall said, her heart aching for his wallet, "This must have cost a fortune, right?"

"It didn’t cost that much. Seeing you smile makes it all worth it."

Chloe Marshall nodded. "I love it. Thank you. You really spent too much."

He took out a camera. "Can we take a picture together?"

"Of course."

He set up the camera, quickly stood next to her, and they took a picture side by side.

Then, they sat down at the table to eat and chat.

The atmosphere inside was endlessly warm, but out in the hallway, Ethan Ellsworth paced back and forth like a thief.

’Time is ticking by, and they still haven’t come out!’

His phone rang several times before he heard it. When he finally registered the sound, he answered.

It was Jean Grant.

Ethan Ellsworth had no choice but to drive back to the high-end residential complex.

He opened the door, but before he could even step inside, Jean Grant threw her arms around his neck and moved in for a kiss.

Ethan Ellsworth didn’t refuse.

Back in the living room, there was takeout on the table.

"Ethan Ellsworth, let’s get married."

His hand paused. He glanced at her. "I haven’t been home in a few days. I’ll go back and talk to my mom about it later."

Jean Grant’s face lit up with a smile. "Okay."

"I’m going home first. Call me if you need anything."

Jean Grant didn’t try to stop him. ’Ethan Ellsworth is just a reserved man,’ she thought. ’He acts timid on the surface but will come back late at night instead.’

She deliberately just closed the front door, leaving it unlocked.

She took a bath early, washing herself sparkling clean in anticipation of his arrival that night.

***

Ethan Ellsworth went home.

Mrs. Ellsworth was sitting in the living room watching the news, pretending not to see him.

He sat down next to Mrs. Ellsworth with a cheeky grin. "Mom, are you still mad?"

"Who are you? What are you doing in my house? Get out!"

Ethan Ellsworth broke into a sweat. "I am, of course, the son of the beautiful, elegant, noble, and charming Madam Ellsworth. This is my house, and you are my mother. If I leave, am I supposed to go find another mother?"

"You could certainly try."

Ethan Ellsworth shook her arm. "Alright, Mom, don’t be angry anymore."

Only then did Mrs. Ellsworth turn to look at him. "Tell me, how can your face look so much like mine, but your brain not at all? You’re just like your father!"

Ethan Ellsworth snorted. "If Dad weren’t so devoted, you’d be crying your eyes out, Mom."

"Stop with the smart mouth. Let me ask you, now that your dream has come true, are you thrilled?" Mrs. Ellsworth stared at him.

Ethan Ellsworth shook his head. "No. I thought I would be, now that the day has finally come, but in reality, it’s just an indescribable feeling."

"You just don’t want to believe that this is how it feels after getting the woman you’ve loved for so many years. Generally speaking, when a man is chasing a woman, the first phase is a period of delusion, the middle is a period of defiance, and the final phase is the Ashen Period."