Chapter 143 The Taste of You
I'd already made peace with it. Ethan would get engaged to someone from his world, and we would part ways amicably. For me, this was the best possible ending.
As I lay waiting for him to finish his shower, my emotions were a mess. Were we really separating after a year together? Was I relieved? Heartbroken? I couldn't tell.
To say I didn't care would be a lie. We'd spent a year laughing, arguing, touching, learning each other. We'd grown closer than I expected. Now it was ending. Of course it hurt.
But I always knew this day would come. Our separation was inevitable. This brought a strange calm—no surprises here.
I waited for him to confess about his engagement. The shower stopped. The bathroom door opened with steam carrying his expensive body wash scent. Ethan walked out with a towel around his waist.
Without mentioning engagements, he lifted the covers and slid into bed beside me.
"Still awake?" He wrapped his arm around my neck and pulled me against his chest. "Go to sleep."
I turned toward him and nestled closer, inhaling his clean scent.
His hand slid from my waist down to my thigh, his voice dropping to that deep, seductive tone that always made my skin tingle. "Feeling needy tonight?"
"No, it's not that." I quickly grabbed his wandering hand and pulled it away from under the covers. Lifting my head from his chest, I said, "Blake came by tonight."
Ethan's eyes narrowed immediately. "You saw him?"
"Yes, through the gate. He didn't come in," I answered quickly.
Ethan returned his hand to the warmth beneath the covers, this time exploring more boldly. His voice hardened slightly. "What did he say?"
As his fingers caressed me with slow, deliberate movements, I let out an involuntary whimper before biting my lip to silence myself.
Ethan pinched gently, demanding an answer. "What did you talk about with him?"
I gripped his shoulder, breathing heavily. "He said nice things about you. Said all the male affection he felt in childhood came from you. I think he actually respects you, but you're the one who—"
"I'm the what?" Ethan's eyes narrowed further as his fingers pressed deeper, forcefully. "You think I stole his girlfriend, is that it?"
I pushed against his muscled arm, trying to stop his movements. "That's not what I meant. I meant he's your nephew—you should get along better. Stop fighting."
Especially since continuing this feud would hurt everyone, including me. It would only make his family hate me more.
Ethan withdrew his hand and pressed his moistened fingers against my lips. "He's the one who keeps provoking me."
I pushed his hand away in disgust. "Even without you, I wouldn't have ended up with Blake."
Ethan smiled. "Why not?"
"We went to the same school. I knew his dating history. I don't like playboys with his reputation."
He tilted my chin up with his finger. "How do you know my history isn't just as extensive?"
I looked directly into his eyes. "You told me once you weren't married, didn't have a girlfriend, and hadn't been with other women. Ethan, I believe what you say. If you say you didn't, I trust you."
Ethan suddenly flipped me onto my back, pinning me beneath him. He bit my lip hard enough to make me gasp.
I turned my head to avoid his kiss. "You just put your fingers on my mouth, and now you're kissing me? Aren't you disgusted?"
Ethan kissed me again anyway, chuckling against my lips. "As if I haven't tasted you before."
My face burned hot. I turned away, too embarrassed to look at him.
The sight of my flushed face and shy expression seemed to ignite something in him. He lowered his head again, giving me a kiss so deep and tender it made my heart race. When we were both breathless with desire, he threw back the covers and moved down my body.
I kicked at him half-heartedly. "Ethan, you—"
My protest dissolved into a soft moan.
After a while, he raised his head and moved up to kiss me.
I quickly placed my hand against his face, pushing him away. "Don't you dare kiss me!"
Ethan captured my wrists, laughing as he pressed down. "You're disgusted by your own taste?"
I blushed furiously. "That's different! What if I collected what you... produced and fed it back to you? Would you like that?"
His eyebrow arched playfully. "How do you know I wouldn't? Want to try?"
---
I overslept the next morning, waking up well past ten. Ethan had already left for the day.
He never mentioned the engagement. Not one word.
And since he didn't bring it up, I didn't ask.
After lunch, I called Ethan.
"Can I go out this afternoon? I've been cooped up for so long. I want to walk around, maybe catch a movie."
The Christmas releases looked interesting, and several had caught my attention.
"Sure," Ethan replied. "Wait there. I'll come back and take you."
"You don't need to come back. I can go with Sarah."
"It's fine. I'm not busy."
Thirty minutes later, Ethan arrived. The streets were packed with Christmas shoppers, and the mall was overflowing with people. The movie theater had barely any seats left.
Ethan took us to a mall owned by Bennett Enterprises. Without informing the manager, he privately booked an entire VIP luxury theater suite.
While the movie hadn't started yet, I dragged Sarah through the mall, arm in arm, each holding a drink, laughing as we wandered from store to store.
Ethan waited for us in the VIP theater instead.
I entered a luxury flagship store and reached for a blue crocodile handbag when I overheard a blonde girl nearby say, "So when are you and Ethan getting engaged?"
My hand froze mid-air before slowly withdrawing.
Sarah, standing beside me, had clearly heard it too. She squeezed my arm gently.
I put a finger to my lips, signaling her to stay quiet. She nodded, wide-eyed.
We continued browsing as if we'd heard nothing.
Emily replied, "Probably next October."
The blonde girl tossed her golden hair. "Why wait so long?"
"I just got back. We need time before making that decision."
The blonde laughed. "What's there to decide? He's the Bennett family's third son. Every socialite in Los Angeles would kill to marry him. Look at Victoria—she's engaged to Silas, but she still thinks about Ethan. I bet if Ethan showed any interest, she'd break her engagement in a heartbeat."
Emily smiled faintly. "That's why patience matters with someone so desirable. You can't rush."
"Well, he's agreed to the engagement, so you've already won."
The blonde continued, "He was perfect, really—no scandals at all. Too bad he couldn't resist having a college girl on the side. That's probably his only flaw."
Emily didn't respond, just examined a handbag with casual interest.
The blonde added, "But don't worry. Girls like that are just canaries in a gilded cage—playthings, not to be taken seriously."
They walked out, still talking.