Chapter 4

"Ethan... I feel awful... I can't breathe..."

Ethan's expression changed instantly as he leaned back to check on her. "Lauren, what's wrong?"

"I... I think... I'm having an allergic reaction to peanuts..." Lauren's voice came in broken fragments, filled with pain.

Ethan's gaze immediately turned to me, full of accusation.

"Sophia! You knew Lauren's allergic to peanuts. Why didn't you tell the cook ahead of time?"

"I didn't know she was allergic to peanuts." I answered coldly.

"You didn't know?" Ethan's volume spiked sharply. "You did it on purpose! You just can't stand her, can you?"

I was so furious I laughed. "So? What do you want? Should I take responsibility for her allergy?"

"I'll let it go this time!" Ethan said through gritted teeth. "But she's going to be living with us from now on. Be more careful when you cook! Don't let this happen again!"

He expected me to serve her from now on?

I could hardly believe my ears.

Just how shameless could this man be?

Before I could respond, Lauren let out another pained moan from the back seat.

Ethan's rationality shattered instantly.

"No, we need to get to the hospital now!" He started the car and said urgently, "Get out!"

I stood there without moving, staring at him. "You want me to walk back?"

This was a wealthy suburb with extremely limited public transportation. Getting a ride at night was nearly impossible.

Ethan irritably pounded the steering wheel. "The hospital and home are in opposite directions! I don't have time to drop you off. Lauren's condition is more urgent! Figure out your own way back. Sorry for the inconvenience!"

With that, he floored the gas pedal, leaving me choking on exhaust fumes.

I stood alone on the deserted road as the night wind swept past, bringing bone-chilling cold.

He made it sound so easy.

"Sorry for the inconvenience."

Yes, I'd truly been inconvenienced these past few years.

I pulled out my phone and called his personal driver, Richard.

"Richard, could you please come pick me up?"

Ten minutes later, Richard's car arrived.

Seeing only me, he looked surprised. "Where's Mr. Parker? Didn't you both go to dinner together?"

I opened the door and got in, saying flatly, "Something urgent came up at the company. He left first."

But inside, I was thinking coldly: He's busy taking care of his little mistress.

Shortly after I got home, my phone chimed with a message notification.

I opened it, and my pupils constricted sharply.

In a hotel bed, Ethan lay shirtless, sleeping soundly.

His tanned skin was covered with suggestive red marks, extending from his neck down to his chest.

Below the photo was a provocative message:

"Sophia, Ethan's not coming home tonight. He said only at my place can he truly relax."

So the whole "allergic reaction hospital visit" was just an excuse for them to check into a hotel.

Ethan, you really are something.

Expressionless, I took screenshots of the photo and message and sent them directly to my lawyer.

Then I forwarded them to Ethan with the caption: "Giving her the house wasn't enough? You had to give yourself to her too?"

After receiving my message, Ethan rushed home in a panic, his face still showing traces of guilt from being caught.

"Sophia, let me explain. It's not what you think. Lauren and I..."

"Shut up." I coldly cut him off, unwilling to hear those tired old excuses.

He tried to reach for my hand. "Come on, stop being upset. There's really nothing between us."

I yanked my hand away in disgust, turned, and retrieved a thick stack of debt collection notices from the study.

"Ethan, look at these!"

I pointed at the notices, my voice trembling with suppressed rage.

"Do you remember? When your family went bankrupt, I was the one who stayed with you in that basement, the one who survived on one meal a day with you!"

"To pay off those millions in debt, I pawned all my jewelry. I worked in an office building during the day and waited tables at restaurants at night!"

"When you were drunk and collapsed on the street, I was the one who carried you back. When your former friends humiliated you, I was the one who stood up for you and fought them! Where was Lauren then?!"

"And now? You've made your comeback. You're the distinguished Mr. Parker again. You get the beauty, and I become the wife who's outlived her usefulness?"

By the end, I was practically sobbing as I shouted, hurling the notices directly at his face.

"What are you going to do to repay what you owe me?!"