THE FOOT AND THE AXE

Amelia was shocked to see Ethan pulling her inside like that. She had been secretly watching him, but Ethan had already guessed it.

Before Amelia could comprehend anything, she found herself inside Ethan's gym. Ethan caught her and tied her to the gym door, keeping the door closed.

Ethan stood right in front of her, looking into Amelia's eyes. He asked, "What are you doing here?" Ethan held onto Amelia while asking this, his arms forming a barrier on both sides of her.

Amelia's words got stuck in her throat as she stammered, "Tha...tha...I...I..."

Ethan teasingly interrupted her, "Well, you usually have so much to say. Why is your tongue tied now? I asked what you're doing here."

Ethan's body was drenched in sweat, and his skin had turned red due to the intense workout.

Amelia's gaze was fixed on Ethan's face, and he noticed it. He waved his hands in front of Amelia's face to break her trance. Amelia lowered her eyelids in embarrassment.

Ethan, bowing slightly towards Amelia, asked her again why she had come there, but Amelia stood there blankly. It was all because Ethan had come so close to her.

Then Amelia's phone rang in her pocket. She quickly took out the phone and said, "It was because of this that I came. I was heading to the room, and I thought you might have an important call, so I brought it here."

Ethan said, "Next time, think of a better excuse." With that, he released Amelia. But now Amelia was angry after hearing Ethan's words, insinuating that she had come up with an excuse to see him.

Amelia gritted her teeth in anger and retorted, "What did you say? Excuse? Are you implying that I came here to see you? Get real, Mr. Blackwood!"

"I didn't say anything about seeing me. But you've just proven it yourself!" Ethan raised his eyebrows and teased her.

"Am I the only one you think people want to see? Clear your misunderstanding. I'm not interested in seeing you," Amelia told Ethan firmly.

Ethan said to Amelia, "If you don't mind, I'll take this important call you came for." Saying that, Ethan picked up the phone and answered, "Hello, Adriana!"

Amelia's ears perked up. Who could be so impatient? Then she reminded herself, "Why do I even care?" She headed back to her room. Charlotte was still there playing with her toys.

Amelia freshened up quickly with a shower and came downstairs. Meanwhile, Ethan went straight to the study room from his gym. He had called all his staff members there. What happened the previous night couldn't be taken lightly.

There were a total of six staff members in Ethan's house, including a cook and caretaker, Mrs. Thompson. Out of the six, three staff members worked 24 hours, and the remaining three only worked from morning to evening. It was evident that the person who was outside Ethan's room last night would be a 24-hour staff member. However, everyone was under suspicion at that moment, so they were all called in.

Among them was Venessa, the staff member who had been involved in all these activities. Even though she tried to hide it, nervousness was clearly written on her face. Two of the staff members were hired recently for daytime work, and one was Venessa, working 24 hours.

Ethan had caught a glimpse that Venessa was the one who had been spying for Sarah. When Ethan threatened to call the police, Venessa spilled everything in front of him.

Venessa folded her hands and said to Ethan, "Sir, I did all this because of money. I was in desperate need of money."

Ethan angrily retorted, "So you're willing to do such things for money? Get out of my sight, or you might not survive." Ethan pointed towards the door as he spoke.

Venessa left without wasting another moment. Ethan let out a sigh of relief. Today was his day off, and Adriana had convinced him to go for dinner.

Amelia was coming downstairs with Charlotte when her eyes met Ethan's. She lowered her gaze and avoided making eye contact with him. Ethan said to Amelia, "Tonight we have to go for dinner. Be ready."

Amelia looked at Ethan and asked, "Why would I want to go with you?"

"Because I said so," Ethan replied promptly.

Amelia didn't say anything further and came down with Charlotte. Ethan had a reason for taking Amelia to dinner. He wanted to show Adriana that he was committed, even if the nature of their relationship was uncertain. When he shook hands with her, he sensed that she had something on her mind regarding him. Moreover, Adriana's words hinted at the same.

Ethan went to his room, took a shower, and then came downstairs for breakfast. Amelia had already fed breakfast to Charlotte. Amelia asked Charlotte, "Come on, sweetheart. Today I'll treat you to ice cream. You like it, right?"

Charlotte nodded enthusiastically. Ethan overheard their conversation and interrupted Amelia, saying, "Charlotte will be taken by her uncle today after having ice cream."

Amelia quickly replied, "Okay, then you can take Charlotte with you."

"Will you also come with us?" Ethan ordered Amelia.

Amelia lifted Charlotte onto her lap and said, "Let's go, sweetheart! We're ready to come. Today, Uncle will take you to have ice cream." Ethan was sitting on the sofa, reading the newspaper, when Amelia came downstairs with Charlotte. When Ethan glanced up and saw Amelia, he remembered the morning incident.

Amelia approached and stood next to Ethan. He put the newspaper aside and immediately stood up. Mrs. Thompson handed him the car keys.

Ethan went to his car and opened the door for Amelia to sit. Amelia had Charlotte in her arms. After sitting in the passenger seat, Ethan asked Amelia to fasten her seat belt. However, his hands were occupied with Charlotte, so he couldn't reach the seat belt.

Realizing the situation, Ethan moved closer to Amelia's seat and started helping her fasten the seat belt. Ethan placed his hand on the other side of Amelia to hold the seat belt, bringing his face very close to hers. Amelia found the moment a bit awkward and stared at Ethan as if silently indicating that he should not get too close.

Ethan quickly fastened his seat belt and returned to his seat. He drove the car and stopped outside an ice cream parlor. Ethan knew Charlotte's favorite flavor, but not Amelia's. He asked Amelia, "Which flavor do you like?"

Amelia replied, "Strawberry."

Ethan muttered to himself, "Just like you smell!"

Amelia asked Ethan, "Did you just say something?"

Ethan replied to Amelia, "I might as well hit my foot with an axe for saying something in front of you." Finishing his sentence, Ethan went to get ice cream for both of them. Meanwhile, Amelia found it hard to wait, so she made Charlotte sit in the car and stood outside. As she stood there, a person started walking towards her car. Unaware of the approaching person, Amelia continued to wait, as the person was walking up from behind.