Alice’s eyes looked like they had bright, twinkling stars in them as she stared at him. When Ethan lifted his gaze to
meet hers, he found himself blinded by the twinkle in her eyes. Is she that desperate to get married to Bruce? For
the first time, Ethan found himself developing a rather evil thought in his head. He felt the urge to destroy all the
twinkling stars of hope in her eyes. After giving it some thought, he spoke in a serious tone. “I’m afraid it might be
too late,” he said.
“Too late? What’s too late?” Alice was stunned. She took a while to regain her senses, and the twinkle in her eyes
disappeared when she processed what he had said. Aren’t we discussing this matter right now? We haven’t come
to a conclusion, so why is he saying that it’s too late? “What you said earlier reminded me of something, Miss
Woland. I believe that it’d be good for Caroline if we got married.” Ethan’s voice was extremely stern and firm, as if
he had put a lot of thought into his words before speaking.
Alice stared at him dumbfoundedly before gulping. So, is he saying that I dug my own grave? Did I get myself into
this? For a second, Alice felt like she no longer had the strength to even speak. Wait, that’s not right. If someone like
Ethan approached me, wouldn’t he have considered all these possibilities from the start? Would he be the sort of
person to change his mind because of something that I said? No. That’s impossible! I’m sure that things would’ve
turned out this way even if I had kept my mouth shut from the start. Does that mean that I fell for his trap? How did
I fall for this? Are you retarded, Alice? Are you? Huh?
At that moment, a medium-rare steak was served. Alice lifted her cutleries up and stabbed her fork into the meat
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtbefore slicing it into pieces. She used her knife as if it were a saw. The medium-rare meat had streaks of blood in it,
which made it look even more sinister. Bradley’s eyelids twitched as he watched her slice the entire piece of meat
into smaller slices. He could tell that Alice didn’t genuinely want to cut the steak—she probably wanted to slice
Ethan into pieces instead. Ethan watched her slicing the meat without any change in his facial expression.
Once Alice finished slicing her steak into tinier pieces, she got some relief from all the frustration she felt. Once
again, she told herself that she had to maintain a calm and collected demeanor. I can’t give up just yet. I’m going to
try again. I’ve never been one to give up, anyway. Alice lowered her cutleries and held her head up to smile at
Ethan.
Ethan blinked at her once before shifting his gaze back to the steak in front of her. This time, Alice took a long time
to collect her thoughts before speaking. “Mr. Knight, if you’re worried about how Caroline’s going to adapt to her
new environment in the Knight Family, I can always come over to stay with her for a bit. I’ll leave after she gets
used to the environment.” Alice was also concerned about sending Caroline back to the Knight Residence on her
own, and it had been part of Alice’s plan to stay with Caroline for a while. Alice wanted to make sure that Caroline
could adapt well to her new home.
Ethan finally took his gaze away from the shredded pieces of steak on Alice’s plate. “I will never allow anyone in the
Knight Family to be bullied by others,” he uttered while staring at her. Alice immediately understood what he
meant. The public will probably question Caroline’s presence if Ethan just brings her back to the Knight Residence
without any explanation. If I go along with them, I’ll save Caroline some trouble. In other words, Ethan wants me to
act as Caroline’s shield. If I’m around, everyone will turn their focus toward me. I bet the public would love to gossip
about how I’m trying too hard to squeeze my way into a wealthy family that’s way out of my league. I’m already
one of the hot topics in Rodcaster now, after all. Mr. Knight really thought all of this through.
Caleb finally realized that his boss wasn’t kidding about the marriage. So, he quietly walked out of the room to
make the arrangements as per Ethan’s orders. “Well, Mr. Knight, have you considered the fact that I’d be the one
who suffers in this case?” Alice was willing to do anything for Caroline, but Ethan had come to a decision without
considering her opinions. He doesn’t even seem like he’s willing to negotiate. Isn’t he a little too much? Alice
thought.
Meanwhile, the people who worked for Ethan were shocked to hear Alice’s words. How could she say that she’s
suffering when she gets to marry Mr. Knight? Doesn’t this woman understand the situation? There are tons of other
women who are desperate to marry Mr. Knight. Does she know how all of these women would fight one another
just to get her spot? If I were one of those women, I’d probably murder her right now! Ethan’s workers thought.
“You’re not part of the Knight Family yet.” Ethan gave her words some thought before responding in a serious tone.
His words were simple yet harsh! Yeah, that’s the Mr. Knight we know! Ethan’s workers thought.
Alice blinked a few times upon hearing his words. Is he saying that my suffering doesn’t matter because I’m not
part of the Knight Family? Was I the only one who thought that I mattered to him? Gosh, I really want to shove him
into a corner and beat him up right now! But judging by the looks of it, I don’t think I’d be able to win him in a fight!
Ethan’s words could’ve been interpreted in a different manner. Once Alice became a part of the Knight Family, he
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmwouldn’t allow anyone else to bully her either, regardless of the reason he wanted to marry her. However, Alice was
too furious at that moment, so she didn’t have it in her to consider the positives of the situation.
Alice felt the urge to pick up the plate of steak and throw it in his face. She was so close to doing it—her hand had
even moved closer to the plate. However, her past 25 years of experience reminded her that she was an elegant
and cultured woman—she wasn’t about to lose her cool because of a jerk. Anyway… This b*stard is too f*cking
impressive. I’m no match for him!
Throughout the years, Alice had always thought of herself as a smart, undefeated, and stubborn person who never
gave in. She had always been the type of person who could thrive in the face of adversity. In the past seven years,
she organized and executed everything in an intelligent and calculated manner. She was practically flawless! Alice
also took pride in her negotiation skills, where she had successfully negotiated countless deals while going around
as Tanner. Any project that she laid her hands on would eventually be a success!
However, at that moment, she realized how all her skills seemed useless in front of Ethan. Ethan is no regular
person. No, he’s not human at all! The inhumane Ethan sat in front of Alice with the same indifferent and calm look
on his face right then. Alice quietly took a few deep breaths. In… out… in… out… I need to calm down and think of
a new idea. I still have hope as long as nothing’s set in stone.
Right then, the doors to their room were pushed open, and Caleb walked in. He placed some brand-new-looking
documents in front of Ethan. “Here are the marriage certificates, Mr. Knight.” Alice, who had just tried her best to
calm herself down, was dumbfounded by what she saw before her eyes. Her gaze darted directly toward Caleb.
Does your family own the Civil Affairs Bureau? You only took a few minutes to get these certificates! The two people
who were supposed to get married didn’t even show up at the bureau!