Chapter 56: The Unraveling Past and a Slap of Finality–2
“Didn’t you say you loved this ring before? I bought it for you.”
The ring was instantly recognizable–it was the unique design Olivia once admired in a magazine and casually shared with him. Back then, Ethan had darkened, dismissively saying, “Anything but a ring. I have no plans to get married anytime soon,” as if she was some desperate woman pushing him towards marriage.
That memory made her feel insulted all over again. The audacity of him now offering what he once so coldly denied her burned like acid in her stomach.
Suppressing her disgust, she sneered coldly, “Sorry, I don’t like it anymore.”
She lifted her slender hand, revealing the dazzling moonstone engagement ring Connor had given her. The stone caught the sunlight, sending prisms of color dancing across her skin.
“I only like what my fiancé gifts me now.”
The sight of that ring–their ring–made Ethan’s eyes flash with pain and jealousy, but
he forced a smirk. He knew now that the man beside her was Connor Rivers, the
powerful heir of the Rivers family, and compared to them, the Grey family was still
rebuilding its influence.
Still, he refused to back down, his desperation making him reckless.
“Liv, I heard your engagement ceremony was called off. So technically, you and he
aren’t officially engaged yet, are you?”
When she looked at him as if he were deranged, he leaned closer, voice lowering to a
poisonous murmur. “So what even if you get engaged? People break engagements all
the time. Even if you marry him, I won’t let go.”
His eyes gleamed with a disturbing intensity. “A secret affair… that’s the most thrilling
kind of love, isn’t it?”
Olivia’s patience snapped like a brittle twig. Without hesitation, she raised her hand
and slapped him hard across the face, the sound echoing in the quiet parking lot.
“Get lost!” she hissed, her amber eyes blazing with fury.
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+8 Points >
The force of the slap left a red, swelling mark on his cheek, but Ethan just tilted his head and grinned wickedly. “That was hard. Did your hand hurt?”
“Lunatic!” she spat, stepping away, but he doggedly blocked her path.
“Where are you going? I’ll give you a ride.” His demeanor was becoming increasingly
desperate, his eyes wild with a possessive gleam.
“Go away!” she barked, kicking at him when he tried to get too close.
Dodging swiftly, he taunted, “What happened to the gentle, obedient little woman I
used to know?”
Ignoring him, she stalked towards the open–air parking lot, only for Ethan to stick to
her like a determined stalker, babbling on. “I told my mother you’re the Winters family
heiress. She was so happy.”
His voice took on a pleading tone. “She even told me to apologize to you. She
admitted she was wrong before.”
He tried to sound sincere, but she kept silent, her disgust mounting with every word.
“She agreed to our marriage now. I’m going to court you all over again, Liv.”
His desperation was palpable, almost pathetic. “Just give me a chance. I’m not asking you to say yes now, but at least give me a shot, okay?”
She finally reached the parking lot and stopped in front of the glacier–blue Bentley Continental GT that Connor had gifted her. Ethan froze.
That was the car he’d seen her driving back in Harbor City–the one he and Cassandra
had mocked her for, assuming she had rented it for show.
Seeing it again, realization and regret dawned on him, only to be replaced by a
twisted suspicion. His face paled dramatically.
“That ring on your finger… that’s the one you tried on at Lunar Jewelers that day, isn’t
it?” His voice trembled with accusation. “We were still together then. You couldn’t
wait to try on another man’s ring while still my girlfriend?”
His voice cracked with accusation, eyes turning red with rage. “You betrayed our relationship!”
Olivia felt sickened at his shamelessness. Her lips curved into a cold smile that never
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reached her eyes. “Relationship? Ha.”
+8 Points
Her voice dripped with contempt. “Weren’t you the one who said you were only ever
searching for Cassandra’s shadow in me?”
Her amber eyes glowed with righteous anger, pinning him in place like a butterfly to a
board.
Ethan stiffened, blood draining from his face. “You… you knew all along?”
His expression turned to shock and shame, the realization that she had known about
his betrayal all this time hitting him like a physical blow.
She continued icily, “Not just that. I knew that night you lied about a business
emergency–you went to pick up Cassandra from the Harbor City Regional Airport.”
Each word was a dagger, precisely aimed. “I knew that on Sophie’s birthday, you took her to a hotel after leaving with her. While still with me, you were already seeing
another woman.”
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “So tell me, Ethan Grey, what right do you have to talk about betrayal?”
His face twisted in pain and shame, the truth of his actions laid bare. “No, Liv, listen,
it’s not what you think, let me explain-”
But Olivia no longer had interest in his excuses. She got into her car, slammed the
door, and started the engine. The powerful purr of the Bentley matched her
determination to leave this man in her past.
Ethan ran in front of the Bentley, pounding on the hood, his lips moving desperately, still pleading, still refusing to let go. His eyes were wild, his composure completely
shattered.
Olivia’s patience finally reached its end. Annoyed beyond endurance, she stomped on
the accelerator and drove straight toward him.
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