“Does your Ethan have a girlfriend?
If not, I can introduce a few to him.
They are all excellent matches.
It’s fine for Ethan to focus on his career at this age, but he shouldn’t forget about the important matter of marriage.” Winona Hayes was growing fonder of Ethan Paine the more she looked at him, so she kept playing matchmaker for him in her head.
“Look who’s talking,” Mark Austin said with a smile, then took Winona’s hand.
“You’re the one eager to arrange things for Ethan.
Next time I introduce someone to him, don’t try to stop me.”
“Ethan’s mother passed away early, and I never remarried.
Partly for his sake, and partly because I just didn’t have the desire anymore.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s because of me that he doesn’t seem interested in girls.
He doesn’t have a single friend around him either.
Especially after returning from abroad, he’s become even more withdrawn.
In the past, Chloe used to take him out to play, but now…” A wave of guilt toward Ethan suddenly welled up, filling Wayne Paine’s heart.
Mark pushed up his glasses.
He seemed to be comforting Wayne, but in reality, his mind had drifted back to the events of those years.
“Old Man Paine, don’t think like that.
If those people hadn’t played dirty tricks behind your back back then, why would you have taken Ethan abroad?
You had no other choice.”
“It’s in the past.
It’s all in the past,” Wayne said, drinking his tea as if he were downing alcohol.
“Now Ethan has grown up and has a stable job.
I also sold my company to someone else for a good price.
I can finally consider myself retired with success.”
Mark took the opportunity to suggest they have a real drink.
“No more drinking.
What’s there to drink?
I gave it up a long time ago.” Wayne hurriedly waved his hand.
However, sitting in the corner, Ethan had listened to their entire conversation.
“It’s good not to drink,” Mark joked with a smile.
“We’re getting on in years and should focus on our health.
Otherwise, when your Ethan gets married, you won’t even have the energy to look after your grandchildren.”
Wayne acted as if he hadn’t given it much thought.
In the car, Jensen Austin kept observing Chloe Austin’s expressions.
Seeing that her face looked a bit pale, he continuously probed to find out what was wrong.
“Are you feeling unwell?
Do you want me to take you to the hospital?”
“No need, Jensen.
I just texted Aunt Miller.
I want to eat some oatmeal,” Chloe said with her head down.
Jensen nodded.
“Why the sudden craving for oatmeal?
I remember you only liked it for a short while back when you were in school.
I haven’t heard you ask for it since.”
“Oh, then I won’t eat it.” Chloe seemed to realize something and nodded.
“Eat it if you want to.
Aunt Miller is at home anyway.
Besides, didn’t you use to love whatever she cooked?” Jensen sensed that something was wrong and asked again, “Is your stomach hurting, or is it something else?
Chloe, if you’re not feeling well or if something happened, you need to tell me.”
He grew a bit anxious, speeding up the car considerably.
“Jensen, what do you think Caden Sterling would do if he found out about this baby?”
“There is no way he will find out,” Jensen said, offering words of comfort to the restless Chloe.
“Your hospital records state that you had a miscarriage.”
Jensen brought Chloe back to the Austin Family home.
Aunt Miller had already prepared oatmeal, and Chloe forced herself to eat a little.
“Chloe, you seem a bit plumper than before.
But that’s a good thing.
Gaining a little weight makes your complexion look much better.”
Aunt Miller had wanted to say something nice to please Chloe, but Jensen immediately shot her a glare as sharp as a knife.
“Chloe, I didn’t mean it like that,” she quickly corrected.
“I meant that you look like you’re in great shape now, and your color is much better.”
“I know what you meant.
Don’t worry, Aunt Miller.
I won’t make things difficult for you.”
Chloe ate the oatmeal, savoring the familiar taste from the past, but it also reminded her of her previous history with Ethan Paine.
Back then, the reason she had clamored for oatmeal was that Ethan had undergone surgery and could only consume a liquid diet for a while.
And his favorite was oatmeal.
Wayne Paine used to be so busy with his business that he couldn’t properly look after Ethan.
So, Chloe would bring food from her home for him, even though she knew Ethan didn’t lack the money to buy his own.
“Chloe, does it still taste the same as before?” Aunt Miller smiled genuinely.
Chloe nodded.
“That’s good.
I haven’t made oatmeal in a long time.
My family doesn’t like it, but I’ve always thought it’s the most nutritious and delicious thing to eat.
You used to be able to eat so much of it all by yourself.” Aunt Miller’s words helped Chloe reminisce about the past, but she could only force a tight smile.
“Alright, I won’t eat too much tonight.
I’ll save the rest for breakfast tomorrow.
Aunt Miller, your bedroom is the third one on the second floor.
Jensen and I both stay on the third floor, so we won’t disturb your rest.”
After saying that, Chloe went upstairs.
She took a shower and fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
Waking up the next morning, Chloe grabbed her bag and headed to the company.
The design department didn’t have many tasks recently, so she was just slacking off and listening to gossip.
“Amore has been hit with a lawsuit recently,” one colleague said.
“I heard they not only plagiarized President Austin Jr.’s design but also copied others.
It seems they are in the mediation phase right now.
The public only knows they committed plagiarism, but they don’t know who they copied from.”
“It’s actually pretty easy to guess,” another chimed in.
“It’s just that Amore’s PR team is quite formidable right now.
They aren’t some famous brand anyway, but for a scandal like this to break out right after they were founded…
I don’t know what Vivian Sullivan was thinking.
She’s a public figure, for crying out loud.”
“Who would’ve thought?
Vivian Sullivan is already looking for a scapegoat.
I just don’t know which unlucky soul will take the fall for her.
Either way, the blame definitely won’t land on her head.
Otherwise, how could she continue her career as a female celebrity?”
Everyone was treating the incident as a joke, but Chloe’s expression grew increasingly grave.
“Everyone, get back to work.
You’ve had your break.
Do you really have nothing else to do?” After noticing Chloe’s expression, Zara Miller shooed everyone back to their seats.
The interns were sensible enough to quickly shut their mouths and switch to chatting on their phones instead.
It was just that neither Zara nor Chloe were in that group chat.
Chloe smoothed her hair, adjusted her mindset, and threw herself back into work.
Over the next few days, Chloe waited for her divorce from Caden Sterling.
As time passed, she could feel the connection between her and the baby in her womb growing stronger.
Sometimes, if she didn’t actively think about it, she wouldn’t even realize she was carrying a child.
But recently, whenever she touched her abdomen, she would unconsciously begin looking forward to seeing what the baby would look like in the future.
On the day they had agreed to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau for the divorce, Chloe brought her ID card and marriage certificate and arrived early at the bureau’s entrance.