At that moment, Ethan had just finished his bath.
He walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.
His phone began ringing on the coffee table.
He picked it up and glanced at the screen.
The caller name showed one word.
Wife.
Ethan hung up without hesitation.
Then he deleted the contact and blocked Celeste's number.
The whole process was smooth, clean, and complete.
On the other side, Celeste heard the call tone shift and thought he had answered.
She was about to speak.
"Hello, you..."
Before she finished, an emotionless automated voice sounded.
"The number you have dialed is currently busy..."
Celeste stopped.
She looked at her phone.
He hung up?
"He actually hung up on me?"
She could hardly believe it.
In the past, as long as she called Ethan, he answered instantly.
No matter how busy he was, it never took longer than ten seconds.
Now, for the first time, Ethan had declined her call.
Celeste did not believe it.
Nor was she willing to accept it.
She pressed dial again.
"The number you have dialed is powered off..."
This result was no better.
Celeste froze.
She stared at the familiar number, her mind buzzing.
Powered off?
No.
She quickly realized what it meant.
She had been blocked.
Celeste's fingers tightened around the phone.
"He blocked me?"
She had never expected Ethan to be so decisive.
Three years.
No matter what, they had lived together for three years.
It was the first day after the divorce. Not answering was one thing.
Blocking her directly?
What did that mean?
Celeste stared at the screen without expression.
But something heavy churned in her chest.
Not exactly anger.
Not exactly sadness.
Just blocked.
Suffocated.
She considered calling from another number.
Her finger hovered for a long time.
Then she stopped.
"Why should I make the effort?"
She put down the phone and said to herself, "If he doesn't want his things, I'll pack them up and throw them out."
With that, she stood and acted immediately.
She found a large bag and began searching through cabinets and drawers.
Ethan did not own much.
A few changes of clothes.
Some toiletries.
A few old books he sometimes read.
"I gave him so much money every year," Celeste murmured. "Why does he own so little? And why are his clothes so cheap?"
She did not think too deeply about it.
She quickened her movements and threw each item into the bag.
Finally, she zipped it shut and dragged it to the entryway.
Her hand closed around the door handle.
Celeste knew clearly that once she opened this door and threw the bag out, everything between her and Ethan would be completely over.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three.
Her hand stayed frozen.
Then she released the handle.
"Forget it."
Her voice was very soft and not very confident.
"It's late. It isn't safe for me to go out alone. I'll leave it here for now."
She turned back to the living room without looking at the bag again.
Later, Celeste washed up, went upstairs, and lay in bed.
She turned off the light, deciding to end the day.
In the darkness, she lay with her eyes open, hands folded over her stomach, staring at the ceiling.
Her mind would not quiet.
Images flashed one after another.
Celeste closed her eyes tightly and tried to empty her thoughts.
It did not work.
She turned to one side.
Then the other.
Then back again.
That night, she tossed and turned without sleep.
It was not an exaggeration to say it was the worst night of sleep in Celeste Shaw's life.
In comparison, at Summit Ridge House One, Ethan woke from a massive bed worth more than most cars.
He stretched and felt entirely refreshed.
He had not slept so well in years.
He washed up and went downstairs to the kitchen.
When he opened the refrigerator, it was full.
Top-grade wagyu, flown-in seafood, organic vegetables, and luxury ingredients he could not name at a glance.
All of it had been prepared by Summit Ridge as a move-in gift.
"Let's try this first."
Ethan quickly made his decision.
He took out ingredients, tied on an apron, and began cooking.
The system had given him god-level culinary skill.
Perfect timing.
Chopping.
Seasoning.
Heat.
Plating.
His movements were natural and practiced.
Twenty minutes later, several dishes were arranged on the dining table.
Ethan picked up his fork and tasted one bite.
"Damn."
He looked down at the food he had made.
"That much of an upgrade?"
He tasted the seafood porridge.
Sweet, smooth, fresh, and balanced.
"With this skill," he said seriously, "even a five-star chef would get crushed."
Then he laughed.
"System products really are premium."
He sat down and enjoyed breakfast properly.
...
At Celeste's villa, in the second-floor bedroom, Celeste jolted awake.
Her first reaction was to look at the clock.
8:15.
Her pupils tightened.
She shot out of bed.
"No. No."
She dressed in a rush.
"I have a board meeting at nine."
She pulled on her jacket, stepped into slippers, and hurried downstairs.
As she ran, she called out automatically, "Ethan, I have an important meeting today. Why didn't you wake me up? Do you know how important this meeting is..."
She stopped halfway.
She stood at the staircase and looked at the empty living room.
Only then did she remember.
Ethan was no longer here.
They were divorced.
He had already moved out.
Celeste stood there for several seconds before walking slowly into the kitchen.
She opened the refrigerator.
Inside were neatly arranged ingredients, all purchased by Ethan before.
There was plenty of food.
Unfortunately, Celeste did not know how to cook.
She closed the refrigerator door.
After standing in the kitchen for a while, she left the house hungry and drove to the company.
Meanwhile, in Vivian's CEO office at West Group, the door opened.
Vivian looked up.
When she saw Ethan, she was not surprised, though she still asked, "Why are you here this early instead of sleeping at home?"
Ethan walked to the desk and lifted the lunch bag in his hand.
"Ancient wisdom says, if you want to win a woman, win her stomach first."
He placed the containers on her desk one by one.
"I made breakfast. Try it."
Vivian could not help asking, "Which ancient person said that? Why haven't I heard it?"
"An ancestor of the Cole family," Ethan said solemnly. "He was obscure. It's normal you haven't heard of him."
Vivian laughed despite herself.
Ethan opened the containers.
Each compartment held something delicate.
Sunny-side egg.
Crisp bacon.
Vegetable salad.
A small box of seafood porridge.
The colors were fresh, and the fragrance rose immediately.
"You made all this?" Vivian looked at him in surprise. "You can cook?"
In her stereotype, someone like Ethan, born with a golden spoon, probably had little chance to enter a kitchen.
Young people who could actually cook well were rare enough.
"If I didn't make it, did it fall from heaven?"
Ethan handed her utensils.
"Taste it."
Vivian took a bite of salad.
Her eyes widened.
She had not expected something so simple to taste this stunning.
Ethan watched her expression with satisfaction.
"How is my cooking?"
Vivian did not answer.
She immediately took a spoonful of seafood porridge.
After a brief pause, she looked at Ethan very seriously.
"Ethan."
"Mm?"
"Is there anything you can't do?"
The question was sincere.
It truly felt as if this man could do everything.
Ethan thought about it.
"Give birth."
Vivian rolled her eyes.
She was too lazy to respond and took another bite.
It was simply too good.
While she ate, Ethan went to pour water in case she choked.
Vivian took advantage of his turned back and quickly pulled out her phone.
She opened the camera, snapped a photo of the breakfast, and posted it.
Caption: Tastes pretty good.
After posting, she placed the phone face down and smiled brightly.
At Shaw Group, Celeste had just entered her office and sat in the executive chair.
Her phone vibrated.
She picked it up casually.
Vivian had posted something.
Celeste opened it.
The photo showed an open lunch box filled with an exquisite breakfast.
Celeste stared at the image for a long time.
She knew Vivian could not cook.
Since childhood, Vivian's only purposes for entering a kitchen were making tea or instant noodles.
This breakfast could only have been made by someone else.
Most likely the new boyfriend Vivian mentioned yesterday.
If Vivian had bought it herself, there would be no reason to post it.
At least in Celeste's memory, Vivian had never done such a thing before.
The breakfast in the photo had clearly been made with care.
Celeste suddenly remembered the past.
Whenever she had to leave early for work, Ethan had prepared a warm breakfast for her in the same careful way.
Author's Note:
This story will continue updating here.
If you want to read the full story without waiting or more books, you can unlock it here:
/c/TYMercer
Thank you for reading.