Chapter 36

"It's just a garment," Jason complained. And he pondered, "What was there to boast about anyway?" Jason pursed his lips, glanced at his watch for the time, and chuckled softly, "Mr. Powers, it's already 8 p.m., aren't you going to hurry up and go home?" Ethan had at least a couple of drinks at the last gathering, but today he's been silent and absent-minded the whole time. It would be better if he left and didn't make it awkward. Jason felt that he had endured Ethan's peculiar temper for over twenty years, all thanks to his excellent self-control. Moreover, Ethan's behavior had been abnormal recently. But despite Jason's typically patient demeanor, he found himself unable to tolerate it any longer! ... Ethan heard his words, but he didn't seem annoyed. He stood up and nodded lightly, "Okay, then I'll go back." He still had other things on his mind right now, and he didn't have the time to chat with them. When Stella bid farewell to her friend and returned home, the living room lights were on. Even though there was no one in the living room, she knew that Ethan must have already come back. After changing into her home clothes upstairs, she walked into the kitchen and washed the lemons and sweet pears she bought from the supermarket. She wanted to make some lemon and pear syrup. Ethan often had social engagements, and there were times when he had to drink even if he didn't want to, just to please others. She knew that his throat would always feel rough the next day after drinking, so she wanted to make some lemon and pear syrup for him to have. According to Layla, this was called melting the other person in the details without them noticing. As the saying goes, "opportunity knocks but once." Since she was living with Ethan, it was convenient to act accordingly. When making lemon and pear syrup, Stella had to carefully watch the heat, or it would easily stick and burn. She stood for over an hour, watching as the small pot of lemon and pear syrup gradually thickened, finally turning off the heat. As she reached for the glass jar on the shelf, the soreness from standing for too long hit her fingers, causing them to tremble, and the bottle containing red dates and chestnuts on the shelf also fell down. Seeing the bottle about to smash onto her arm, Stella had no choice but to protect the nearby glass jar. However, the expected pain didn't occur. The heavy bottle didn't change its direction and smashed straight onto the suddenly appearing palm. With a crack, it shattered on the ground. Turning her head, Stella saw Ethan pursing his lips, his eyes filled with concern. Stella furrowed her brows tightly and quickly asked, "Are you okay?" Ethan lightly clenched his fist and shook his head. "I'm fine." Stella breathed a sigh of relief, then went to see the mess on the kitchen floor. The glass bottle was originally filled with red dates and chestnuts sent by Troy, but now it was shattered into pieces. Ethan caught her gaze on the shards and held her wrist. "Let me handle this." The man first cleaned up the broken glass, then together they put the red dates and chestnuts into a clean cardboard box. After cleaning up the mess, he glanced at the ceramic pot on the gas stove and said lightly, "It's so late, why are you still cooking in the kitchen?" When he noticed her return, Ethan went downstairs shortly after. But she remained busy in the kitchen, never stepping out. He passed by the kitchen several times, seeing her standing there in a daze, seemingly lost in thought. Hearing Ethan's words, Stella remembered the contents in the pot and quickly grabbed two not-so-large glass jars, filling them with the lemon and pear syrup. She replied, "It's lemon and pear syrup, good for soothing your throat. Your throat always gets hoarse after drinking, so you can take a jar to the office." Ethan looked at her deeply, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. With a faint smile playing at his lips, he paused for a while before casually saying, "Thank you." Stella's hand hesitated as she stirred the syrup, lowering her gaze and then shaking her head. "Actually, you don't... need to thank me." He never let her thank him, so it felt strange to hear him express gratitude now. Taking the glass jar she handed him, Ethan raised an eyebrow, casually smiling. "Yeah, got it." Finally, some progress was made. ... Half an hour later, the lights in the living room went out, and they each returned to their respective bedrooms. The master bedroom and the guest bedroom were separated by a not-so-thick wall. Stella finished washing up and stepped out of the bathroom. After lying down on the bed, she took out her phone and opened Ethan's Moments. His Moments were always simple, just random photos from daily life, without any captions. The two latest photos were of this morning's fried egg and the packaging of the coat she bought. Though she knew Ethan was just casually documenting life, flipping through these photos on his Moments, it seemed like she was involved in each one. Even if it was just a coincidence from living together, she couldn't help but feel a secret sense of joy. Thinking of what Layla said, she spent a few minutes liking every post on Ethan's Moments. After doing all this, Stella opened their chat and edited two messages to send. "Be careful not to crush your hand while sleeping." "Goodnight." Looking back at her SnapChat conversation with Ethan, apart from the few emojis she sent at the beginning, the rest were just his messages saying 'Arrived' or 'Heading downstairs' when he picked her up from work, cold and devoid of any romance. Layla recently bought a few love guides, saying the key to starting a relationship is to create an ambiguous atmosphere. And saying 'Good morning' and 'Good night' every day is a necessary trick to create that atmosphere. After sending the messages, Stella was about to turn off her phone and go to sleep when she saw [Typing...] appear above the chat box. She waited with her phone for a good ten minutes before receiving Ethan's brief message. "I know. Goodnight." Stella clicked on the chat box, pondered for a long time, and ultimately regarded Ethan's message as a polite reply. She then set aside her phone and drifted off into a deep sleep. Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, Ethan sat on the edge of his bed, his brows furrowed as he stared at the screen displaying [Typing...] for a long time, without saying a word. As he lay in bed, he noticed the bruise on the back of his right hand. He quietly pursed his lips, then switched hands to hold the phone, resting his swollen arm on the pillow beside him. A sleepless night ensued. ... The next day, after Stella finished washing up and walked out of the room, she bumped into Ethan just as he emerged from the adjacent room. Compared to his usual tidy appearance in suits, the man looked a bit different today. The suit jacket draped over his sturdy arm, tie loosely hanging across his chest, the white shirt unbuttoned at the top two buttons, revealing a glimpse of his clean collarbone. Hovering between sophistication and ruggedness, it tantalized the eyes, making it hard to look away. Catching sight of her, Ethan raised an eyebrow casually, leaning against the doorframe. "Hand injured. Need help tying my tie," he remarked nonchalantly. Stella's gaze fell on his swollen hand, lips pursing slightly before she shook her head. "I'm not very good at it." The man smirked faintly. "Hmm, let me show you." For Stella, tying a tie wasn't particularly difficult to learn. But what Ethan was trying to teach her wasn't all that helpful either. After some fumbling around, she ended up following an online video to get it right. As she pushed the tie up, Ethan lowered his head slightly, and suddenly, they were very close. Stella instinctively raised her eyes and collided with his deep gaze. His straight eyebrows seemed more three-dimensional, his high nose and nice lips delineating his handsome features sharply in the close proximity. They say the initial exploration between a man and a woman begins with a gaze. Stella leaned against the doorframe, the man standing close, gazing down at her. In this quiet and prolonged moment of eye contact, she couldn't help but hold her breath, her fingertips slightly curling, as if the air around them had frozen. After a moment, Stella heard Ethan's casual tone. "Am I that good-looking?" Apparently, he had even left her speechless. In his blue eyes, there was a hint of playful amusement. Seeing her silence, he continued, "You mentioned last time that women also appreciate men, so does that include you among these people?" There was a hint of scrutiny in the man's casual gaze, as if he could see through her thoughts directly, leaving her with nowhere to hide. Stella's gaze shifted downward, landing on his lightly trembling Adam's apple, stirring up that restless feeling in her heart once again. Shifting her gaze away once more from his intense stare, she finally found a way to ease the awkwardness and asked, "Did you not sleep well last night?" The man's gaze lowered slightly. "Yes." "Why?" she asked. "You guess," he replied. "How would I know?" "Don't know?" Ethan raised an eyebrow, patting her head lazily. "Stella, if you can't figure it out, then take your time." He knew Stella might have some thoughts, but that probably wasn't enough. Being too eager might scare her off. He had waited for a long time, but he didn't want her to start carrying too much pressure. Maybe it was better to wait a little longer. ... The weekend passed in the blink of an eye. Before the pursuit plans could be fully implemented, Stella returned to her work mode as soon as she arrived at the company. She officially stepped down from the interim general manager position, handing it over to Wyatt, who returned to Carlson Group at her persuasion. Being specialized in her own field, Stella was well aware that she wasn't proficient in Carlson Group's main business. This was one of the reasons why she chose to stay at the New Era instead of rushing back to her city. After clearing the Fletcher family out of the group, she had considered the idea of independently developing new business, but it hadn't taken shape yet. For now, she continued to handle the North City project. Originally, Aurora was supposed to go with Marcel to coordinate the second round of investment for the North City project with Horizon Group and the Director, Simon. However, during lunch, Stella noticed Aurora's pale face and sweaty forehead, realizing that she had caught a cold, so she insisted that she take sick leave. In the afternoon, after much consideration, Stella decided to personally visit Horizon Group with Marcel. Excluding the time when Ethan had brought her to sign the marriage agreement on the weekend, this was still Stella's first time at the Horizon Group Building. To avoid suspicion, she didn't go straight to the top floor to find Ethan. Instead, she took Marcel directly to the 12th floor to meet with Simon. After all, it was an impromptu visit, and they were there for business discussions. In addition to discussing the second round of investment, Marcel also had to make a brief report on the first quarter's project cooperation. The two of them spent a full two hours in the conference room, meeting with the Horizon Group project team. As the meeting concluded, to express her gratitude for their cooperation during this time, Stella ordered some desserts from the Sio Hotel. However, when they were about to leave, they unexpectedly ran into Jason in the elevator. He seemed surprised to see Stella. "Hey, what are you doing here?" Stella smiled. "I came to discuss the second round of investment for the North City project with Simon." "Didn't Ethan know you were coming?" "Nope," Stella shook her head. With that, she handed the remaining dessert in her hand to Jason. "I just ordered some desserts from the Sio Hotel, they taste pretty good. You should try some too." Originally, she had planned to bring it home for Ethan, but since she ran into Jason, she could always order another one. Jason took the dessert handed to him by Stella, feeling somewhat touched. Recalling Ethan's face when he was boasting about lemon pear water in the office just now, he couldn't help but feel that it was a pity for someone as gentle as Stella to be exploited by Ethan every day. With this in mind, Jason said angrily, "You know what, if Ethan is too much of a jerk, don't indulge him. If you spoil him for too long, he'll end up being ungrateful!" Stella looked puzzled. Seeing her reaction, Jason extended his righteous hand. "You don't have to hide it from me. I know that you definitely can't stand a jerk like him with such a bad temper." Stella didn't know what Ethan had done to provoke Jason. After a moment of silence, she still advised, "Actually, he's fundamentally good, just a little careless with his words. I am sorry. Please ease up on him." Hearing her still speaking up for Ethan, Jason's pupils dilated, feeling even more resentful. "It's unfair! How can such a jerk marry such a caring and tolerant wife like her, while I don't have one!" he complained to himself silently. He forgot to get off the elevator and followed Stella to the first floor in a daze. Watching her bid farewell and leave, he pressed the button to the top floor again after a moment. In the CEO's office, Ethan saw Jason, who had just left in anger, return with a bag. After sizing him up for a moment, he set down the documents, cleared his throat, and said, "Um, you've been working a lot lately and now you have some free time, so I'm giving you two weeks off." "Ethan! Let me tell you, this time I won't bow down easily for these trivial benefits!" Jason spoke with conviction. Why should he? Ever since this guy got married, he had dumped all the overtime work on him! That was bad enough, but he also had to endure the sight of the guy flaunting his affection incessantly, which was intolerable! Ethan glanced at him lightly and raised an eyebrow. "Well, then, a 10% bonus at the end of the year." "Alright, Ethan, where do you think I should go on vacation this time? Speaking of which, have you and your wife not gone on a honeymoon yet? I could help plan something for you two while I'm at it?" Jason quickly changed the subject upon hearing Ethan's words.