CHAPTER 135: CHAPTER 135: MEMORIES (35)

Fingers interlocked, the person beneath let out a soft moan.

Sweat dripped onto her fair and delicate back, sliding down along her spine.

The steamy, sticky sensation didn’t bother them at all as their bodies were tightly pressed together. Florence Fuller’s pale arms wrapped around Ethan Harper’s neck, leaning her head to kiss him.

Her other hand, locked in his, tightened its grip. The person in his arms pulled away from their entanglement, gasping for breath, "Be gentle."

Ethan kissed the tip of her nose, biting her lip, pulling her close, "Say my name."

Florence’s voice was trembling, "Ethan..."

Tears threatened to spill.

Ethan was slightly out of control, their interlocked hands tightened further. Florence’s voice broke through, "Ow, ow, ow! Ah!"

Ethan suddenly opened his eyes and saw Florence kneeling by the bedside, her arm outstretched, pain evident on her face.

If they weren’t apart, he might have thought his dream had come true.

Florence withdrew her hand, "Let go!"

It was only then that Ethan realized their hands were tightly clenched, palms slick with sweat, just like their bodies had been in the dream.

Ethan let go, and Florence pulled her hand back, shaking it with a teary eye towards him, "You woke up a while ago, didn’t you? You knew I came in, and you did this on purpose. My hand hurts."

Ethan lifted his arm to cover his face; he was really going mad.

He felt he had slept well, but his dreams were filled with scenes of entangled passion.

"Ethan," Florence observed him in silence for a while, then leaned in, "What’s the matter, are you not feeling well?"

"No," Ethan turned his face away, avoiding her, "How did you get in here?"

"It’s already four," Florence took out her phone to show him, "You should get up, or you won’t be able to sleep tonight."

Ethan slightly turned his head, not looking at her, his voice hoarse, "I know."

Florence thought he still hadn’t fully woken up, so she tugged at his quilt, "You should really get up, come on."

Ethan pressed down on the cup with one hand, helplessly turning his head to look at her, "Florence."

Florence watched him, feeling something strange.

"Are you going to get up?"

"I’ll get up once you leave," Ethan said, "I’ll take a shower and come down."

Florence thought for a moment, "Alright then."

"I’ll wait for you outside."

Florence went out, and Ethan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Awake from the dream, with the dream’s figure right in front of him, was a deadly temptation for him.

Florence waited outside for about ten minutes, lost in thought when the door suddenly opened.

Ethan had just finished his shower, hair still damp, wrapped in a gray bathrobe. Florence looked at him, pursing her lips.

Ethan held the door open, "Come in, let’s talk."

Florence: "..."

So why did he ask her to leave just now?

She picked up the box and followed Ethan into the room. The man walked ahead, casually drying his wet hair with a towel. Florence sat down on the sofa.

"Are you giving me something?" Ethan asked.

He had already noticed the bag Florence was holding.

Florence took out a box, opened it, and handed it to Ethan, "Look!"

It was a mechanical watch.

"I wasn’t sure what type you’d like, so I picked it with Aunt Monrose," Florence explained, "Although the price doesn’t compare to your other watches, it’s something I spent money on, so you have to take it!"

"Really giving it to me?" Ethan picked it up and examined it closely, "But you wouldn’t even take my birthday gift."

"Did you really give me any gemstone ring?"

Ethan looked at her.

"So what was it?" Florence asked.

"A ring!"

"Huh?"

So it really was.

Florence sighed, "Forget it, I’ll just pretend that bouquet you gave me last night was my birthday gift!"

She really dared not accept valuable items.

Ethan got up, went to the closet, and quickly came back out.

He sat down beside Florence, opening a box with both hands.

Inside was a heart-shaped purple diamond ring.

The flawless, vivid purple diamond reached the highest purity level; how could a woman not be moved by such a exquisite, precious ring?

"Is your family in the diamond business?" Florence asked seriously.

Ethan reached out to her, "Try it on."

Florence extended her hand, smiled, and in the next second, closed the ring box.

Ethan: "Hmm?"

"I accept your good intentions," Florence said.

Ethan knew she wouldn’t accept it, but he wasn’t worried. Sooner or later, this ring would be on her finger.

"Aunt Monrose already gave me two sets of gemstones," Florence looked at him, "Yesterday I didn’t dare ask the price, so just how much was that set?"

"That set?" Ethan thought for a moment, "Less than a billion."

Florence: "...What!"

She was shocked, "And Aunt Monrose just gave it away like that."

"The whole set is considered a symbol in the Harper Family," Ethan said, "She personally participated in the design and creation of the Yun Lan."

The market estimation was nearly nine to ten billion.

"And she gave me a set of rubies, too," Florence murmured, "Do you know that set?"

"How many pieces?"

"Three! Necklace, earrings, ring."

"I think it was bought at auction for over two hundred million."

Florence was shocked beyond words, "Can I give them back?"

Ethan: "Absolutely not."

Abigail Monrose is the legitimate mistress of the Harper family, Mrs. Harper; the best things are always delivered to her first for her to choose, and she even has a private vault in France.

All kinds of diamonds and gemstone rings stored there are currently hers.

Florence stood there stunned.

She never thought in her lifetime she’d own something so incredibly valuable.

"Help me put it on," Ethan tugged at her hand, "Since you won’t take what I give you, I’ll owe it to you for now."

Florence took out the watch, absentmindedly putting it on.

Ethan looked closely at the watch on her wrist, then at Florence’s expression, "What is it? Does it feel burdensome?"

"I’m just thinking about Aunt Monrose gifting me something so expensive, and all I bought her were clothes. This little sum is insignificant compared to the tens of billions she gave," she said, dejected.

"But I think she must have been really happy when you bought her those clothes."

Indeed, she could distinctly feel how happy Abigail Monrose was when they went shopping for clothes together.

Florence nodded.

"Exactly," Ethan said, "Sometimes it’s not necessary to measure with material equality; perhaps your thoughtfulness is what matters most to your mother."

Florence sighed.

"If you feel burdened, it’s completely unnecessary," Ethan said, "Want to alleviate it?"

Florence looked at him.

Ethan took out the ring box, "Take it."

Florence: "..."