Chapter 25: Cuckolded

"..." Vivian's heart skipped a beat.

She prided herself on her stellar acting skills. She had been in the Benton family for just over a month now, and no one had caught onto her act. Was she about to be foiled by a mere laptop?

She maintained her composure, huffed, and walked over to Ethan, "Hmph! Since when did Mr. Handsome start hogging Vivian's toys?"

"Toys?" Ethan was somewhat irritable at the moment, though he couldn't quite pinpoint why he was feeling this way. "What kind of toy is this?"

Vivian opened her mouth, momentarily lost for words.

His expression was one of annoyance, as if he had been made a fool of.

But wasn't he playing the part of a vegetable when she first married into the family?

They were both playing games. She'd simply been at it a bit longer. In such a case, Vivian felt she could totally hold her head high and go toe-to-toe with him.

And so, she let go of the innocence and naivety in her eyes.

But just as she was bracing herself for a showdown, she suddenly realized Ethan wasn't talking about the laptop she had stashed in the lining of her suitcase!

Just two damn photos! Vivian felt like she was falling apart. She almost let the cat out of the bag over a pair of insignificant photos. Thankfully, she was quick on her feet and instantly resumed her role as the simpleton, snatching the photos and clutching them to her chest.

"Uh, these are my other two Mr. Handsomes. You can't take them away."

Ethan's face darkened even more, especially when he saw Little simpleton treasuring these two photos of men.

"Don't you only have me as your Mr. Handsome? Where did these other two come from?"

Pouting, Vivian quickly tucked the photos into her neckline, "These are... Mr. Handsomes from my hometown . I do have many Mr. Handsomes, not just you."

Ethan instantly felt like he had been cuckolded, especially when this little simpleton even pasted those two strange men's photos on her chest.

A place he hadn't even properly touched yet!

"Give me the photos."

Vivian shook her head, "No, Mr. Handsome is being mean. Vivian is scared to take them out." As she spoke, Vivian retreated towards the corner, luring Ethan step by step forward, to keep him as far away from the suitcase as possible.

As expected, Ethan followed her step by step, but when he saw the fear she held for him in her eyes, his heart twisted uncomfortably. He felt restless, a part of him wanted to rip those two photos to shreds.

"So you're saying they're your Mr. Handsomes too, just like me?"

With his long legs, Ethan cornered Vivian against the wall in just a few strides.

Vivian looked up at the towering man before her, her eyes innocent and full of fear. She gave a small nod, "Mhm, the same. Mr. Handsome's eyes are really scary, don't look at Vivian like that."

As she spoke, she clutched the photos in her collar even tighter.

She appeared so pitiful, so afraid of the man before her.

But only she knew that she actually enjoyed watching this man being pushed to his limits by her.

He was not close enough; he should be even closer, bending over, speaking into her ear with his hot breath.

And he seemed to love her innocent eyes.

So she thought, she should shed some tears.

Before long, in the rising tension of this secluded spot, Vivian's eyes began to glisten with unshed tears

"Mr. Handsome, what are you trying to do?"

Her voice, soft yet utterly captivating, filled the air, making Ethan swallow involuntarily.

"What am I trying to do?" Ethan's movements were swift and fluid as he held Vivian's slender wrists above her head against the wall.

"Don't you get it? Can't you see you're hurt?! You're still wrapped in bandages, yet you're throwing caution to the wind! Are you so careless about your own hand for the sake of those two photos?!"

His voice filled with a low growl of anger.

No, it's not like that..." Vivian blinked, her eyes welling up as if ready to spill over. Yet, deep inside, she was absolutely smitten by this man's passionate rage and simmering desires.

"Are you still going to resist?"

"Vivian... Vivian was wrong..."

"Then talk to me," Ethan murmured, leaning in close, his cheek brushing against hers, his voice raw with emotion. "Do those two men really mean the same to you as I do? Have you cuddled with them in sleep? Have you let them corner you against the wall? Have you touched their... monsters?!"

"..." Vivian was momentarily dumbfounded, it took her a good while to understand what he was referring to by 'monsters,' and she had to stifle a laugh at his words.

But she managed to keep a straight face.

Sniffling a little, she played the innocent, batting her eyelashes at the man before her, "No, never. Granny wouldn't allow it. But we can hold hands. Because I regard those two as my brothers."

"Brothers?" Something seemed to click for Ethan, and his brows knitted together.

"Yes!" Vivian nodded vigorously, "Exactly, Mr. Handsome, you're also Vivian's brother."

As she spoke, she lifted her face and planted a firm kiss on his chin. Ethan seemed to be stung by that kiss and the term "brother," quickly releasing her and stepping back two paces.

"Do you know the difference between a brother and a husband?"

"I don't know," Vivian shrugged, a look of innocence on her face. Ethan gazed at her, his eyes revealing an increasingly complex and suppressed emotion, "But I do." He was losing his mind, falling for this little simpleton, even getting jealous over her childish nickname and two photos. He could hardly believe he once had such strong desires for such a simpleton!

He could not accept this side of himself.

It was a two-hour drive from the office to the mansion, yet he left again in less than ten minutes.

Vivian was not stupid. She had some ideas of what Ethan was thinking.

It was all about moral ethics and familial relationships, hence she had intentionally used the term "brother" to provoke him.

Her current priority was to deal with the two photos and her equipment.

But messing with him, teasing him, it was really quite entertaining.

As for the two photos, everything she had said earlier was a bluff.

They were not her country cousins as she had claimed, but young men from the Benton family’s younger generation.

After confirming that Tyler was not the person her grandmother was looking for, Vivian had researched further, identifying these two as the most likely individuals.

However, they were distant relatives of the Benton family, and probably would never have the chance to meet Ethan, the family's direct grandson, so Ethan did not recognize them.

She had been careless having left these two photos behind. But by now, she had shredded and completely flushed them down the toilet.

Meanwhile, Ethan had gone somewhere with a heavy heart…