Chapter 23
Brian said while giving me meaningful looks.
I got the hint, kept quiet, and quietly walked over to sit down beside Brian.
Mr. Phillips looked at Brian and me with suggestive eyes and said, "Since Mr. Ethan values your little assistant so much, I won't push it."
His words carried an uncomfortable undertone that made me feel disgusted.
Brian waved his hand dismissively without saying much and downed his drink in one gulp.
At the dinner table, drinks kept flowing, and Brian drank enough for both of us.
By the end of the meal, Brian was completely drunk and could barely walk straight.
I struggled to support him while standing by the roadside trying to hail a cab.
After getting in the car, I gave the driver the hotel address and finally leaned back in my seat with a sigh of relief.
Brian squinted his eyes - he seemed to have fallen asleep already.
Looking at Brian's obviously tired expression, I felt genuinely grateful.
Without a doubt, Brian was a good boss.
He understood that I had Jessica to take care of and tried his best not to make me work overtime or go on business trips.
He knew I was allergic to alcohol and couldn't drink, so at every business dinner, he drank enough for two people by himself.
If my boss weren't Brian, my life would definitely be much harder.
While I was lost in thought, the taxi went over a speed bump.
Brian's body swayed unsteadily, and his head leaned onto my shoulder.
I frowned slightly and pushed him away with my hand.
But after a while, Brian leaned over again.
I reached out once more and pushed him away.
Brian woke up.
He asked, "Are we at the hotel?"
Brian rubbed his eyes and spoke groggily.
I looked at him calmly and said, "Not yet, but if you deliberately lean on me again, we'll take separate cars back to the hotel."
Brian said awkwardly, "I didn't do it on purpose, I'm just really tired today."
I didn't say anything, just quietly watched his performance.
Brian's lips moved, but in the end, he didn't say anything more.
The car fell silent. I leaned against the window, lost in thought.
It wasn't until the taxi stopped at the hotel entrance that Brian spoke again, "Ms. Wilson, can you help me? I can't stand steady."
I sighed inwardly but still reached out to support him.
Brian wasn't lying - he was truly so drunk he could barely walk.
I had to use almost all my strength to barely keep him steady.
When we reached his room door, I swiped the card, opened the door, pushed Brian inside, and closed the door.
"Mr. Ethan, rest well. I'm going to rest too." I called out from the doorway and quickly went back to my own room.
Whether Brian's behavior in the taxi was intentional or not, I needed to always be mindful of boundaries.
I needed this job to support my family and had no interest in becoming Brian's girlfriend.
After a busy day plus the evening dinner, I had picked up some odors too.
I went straight to the bathroom to shower.
When I came out, drying my hair, I heard my phone vibrating.
Looking up, I saw it was a video call from Jason.
Why was he calling again? It was so late - what did he want?
Was he checking to see if Brian and I were sleeping together?
I angrily hung up!
But as soon as I hung up, Jason called again.
The vibrating sound kept grating on my angry nerves.
I hung up again through gritted teeth.
This time the phone didn't ring again. Instead, Jason sent a voice message suppressing his anger: "Sue, don't answer at your own risk! Don't forget Jessica is still with me!"
What did that mean? Was he threatening me with Jessica?
I had no choice but to call him back on video with a dark expression.
"You're back at the hotel?" On the video screen was Jason's face, also suppressing anger.
I responded sullenly, "Yeah."
"Alone?" he asked again.
I said through gritted teeth, "Yes!"
"Let me see your room tonight." Jason didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with what he was saying.
I stared hard at Jason in the camera. Considering Jessica was still with him, I picked up my phone.
"See for yourself!"
I showed him the balcony, the bed, and the bathroom.
I let Jason see every single part of the hotel room in detail!
"Satisfied now?" I asked coldly.
After confirming that I was indeed alone in the room, Jason's expression clearly softened.
He nodded slightly. "It's getting late. You've had a long day - get some rest."
"Jason, what right do you have to control me?" I couldn't hold back and questioned him.
"What's our relationship now? Even if I slept with another man today, what could you say? What right do you have to demand I let you know everything about me?"
We had already broken up.
Five years ago, when he left without a word, we stopped having any relationship!
Since we broke up, we shouldn't be in contact anymore, right?
Why did he kiss me that day? Why was he now acting like a boyfriend monitoring me?!
Didn't he have someone he liked?
Why was he treating me with this ambiguous attitude?
And threatening me with Jessica!
"I..."
Jason seemed to want to say something, but I cut him off sharply: "Shut up! I don't want to hear it!"
The bitterness suppressed in my heart suddenly exploded. The surging emotions swallowed my rationality like a tsunami.
In the second before my rationality collapsed, I quickly hung up the phone.
I tossed my phone aside and lay on the bed. The harsh light irritated my eyes until tears came out.
Even though I'd been busy all day and my body was exhausted, I still couldn't sleep.
When I closed my eyes, I thought of Jason.
He was Kean, who once loved me, but now he was the cold Jason.
And there was that kiss that night that made my heart race.
I hugged my blanket and tossed and turned in bed until 3 AM, when I finally couldn't hold on anymore and dozed off in a daze.
For the next three days, Jason didn't call me again, and I didn't contact him either.
Whenever I had free time, I'd call Jessica to ask about her daily routine.
Three days later, I returned from the business trip.
By the time my plane landed, it was already 9 PM.
Although it was late, I still planned to pick up Jessica.
On one hand, I hadn't seen Jessica in so long and couldn't wait to hold her in my arms.
On the other hand, I wanted to cut ties with Jason as soon as possible. If this continued, I'd go crazy sooner or later.
When I arrived at Jason's neighborhood, the security guard recognized me and let me in directly.
Standing at the villa entrance, I didn't knock but instead dialed Jason for the first time since our argument.
The phone rang a few times before someone answered.
"What is it?" Jason's deep but cold and distant voice came through the phone.
I took a deep breath and spoke as calmly as possible: "Mr. Cooper, I'm at your front door right now. I'm here to pick up Jessica and take her home. Please open the door."