CHAPTER 20: CHAPTER 20: DID YOU KNOW TALIA SEEMS TO HAVE A BOYFRIEND?

When Ethan Grant was brought back to the villa by the driver, it was already three in the morning.

He stumbled all the way to the bedroom and collapsed onto the bed, falling asleep instantly.

When Ethan opened his eyes again, it was from the pain.

"Talia, my stomach hurts." Ethan mumbled, "Bring me a box of stomach medicine."

No response.

Ethan called out a few more times, "Talia, Talia—"

Suddenly, he jolted awake and sat up in bed.

Reality sank in, and Ethan remembered that Talia Rhodes had already moved out.

His emotions were mixed, feeling an emptiness inside and also stifled.

Clutching his stomach, Ethan got out of bed and rummaged around the house, but he still couldn’t find the stomach medicine.

The pain was unbearable, so he took out his phone and called the housemaid.

Auntie Zhang was bewildered when she received the call.

"Where’s the stomach medicine?" Ethan’s voice.

Auntie Zhang clenched her fists and took a deep breath, constantly reminding herself.

[It’s fine, it’s fine, he pays a lot; losing some sleep is just losing some sleep.]

Then she glanced at her phone to check the time—four in the morning.

Darn it, is he nuts?

It’s resting time now!

She repeatedly took deep breaths, suppressing her urge to quit, and replied with a good temperament, "The medicine box is on the first shelf of the cabinet in Miss Rhodes’ room."

Ethan hung up the phone, opened the door to Talia Rhodes’ bedroom, and leaned against the wall as he struggled to walk to the cabinet. He opened the cabinet door and found a medicine box, filled with various medications that overwhelmed him.

He found the medicine, but...he didn’t know which one to take.

In the past, when his stomach acted up, it was always Talia Rhodes who would feed him the medicine personally.

He couldn’t help it. Enduring the sharp stomach pain, he roughly skimmed through the instructions of the various medicines and resorted to taking two pills.

He thought it wouldn’t kill him anyway.

The medicine took effect, and Ethan once again fell into a deep sleep.

When Ethan woke up, it was already midday.

He called for the maid.

"Cook me a bowl of stomach-soothing porridge."

The maid’s mouth twitched, "Sir, are you asking for the porridge Miss Rhodes often made?"

"Yes."

The maid shook her head, "I can’t make that."

Ethan’s expression darkened slightly, "Why can’t you?"

The maid explained, "That stomach-soothing porridge requires soaking lilies and coix seed the night before, and fresh yam and beef need to be bought. It’s already too late for soaking."

"Besides, I only know the ingredients, not the exact method or how to season it, so I can’t make it."

Ethan’s eyebrow twitched, "You can at least make plain porridge, right?"

Auntie Zhang laughed, "That I can do."

"Then make me a bowl of plain porridge."

Ethan’s headache was getting worse, and after speaking, he leaned against the bed, closed his eyes, and massaged his temples to relax.

"Knock, knock, knock—" the sound of knocking came.

Ethan suddenly opened his eyes, a glimmer of happiness rising in his heart.

Was Talia back to find him?

He knew Talia wouldn’t be so heartless to leave him.

"Come in."

As soon as Ethan finished speaking, Vivian Coleman opened the door and entered.

The smile on Ethan’s lips froze instantly, with a tone of evident disappointment, "Why is it you?"

Vivian caught the flash of disappointment in his eyes and quietly clenched her fists.

She didn’t question who else it could be because she already knew who Ethan was anticipating.

Vivian put on a smile and asked with concern, "I heard from Auntie Zhang that you were unwell, so I came to see you. Are you feeling better, Ethan?"

Ethan shook his head, "I’m fine now."

Vivian walked over and sat by the bed, taking out her phone to show Ethan.

"Ethan, look at this travel guide I found online for a trip to Zheria. We could have a road trip and bring two drivers to drive. Zheria is so expansive, and driving is much more convenient. After we visit Kanara, we could then..."

At that moment, Ethan found Vivian very annoying.

He already had a headache, and she just kept rambling in his ear, which was really irritating.

If it were Talia Rhodes, she would definitely be concerned about him, cooking porridge herself and feeding him spoon by spoon.

"Enough." Ethan interrupted impatiently, "We’ll talk about it tomorrow. I’m a bit tired today."

Vivian put away her phone, her head hanging low with a hurt expression.

"Ethan, are you annoyed with me?" Her tone was full of grievance.

Ethan sighed, not quite able to bring himself to rebuke her.

"No, I just have a headache now. The travel plans aren’t urgent; let’s talk after I’ve rested."

"Okay." Vivian leaned into Ethan’s embrace, wrapping her arms gently around his waist.

...

Oakhaven.

In a leisure club’s card room, a few wealthy young men were playing cards together.

Andrew Donovan, with a cigarette in his mouth, noticed the watch on Adrian Jennings’ wrist and laughed carefreely, teasing, "Hey, got a new watch?"

Adrian played a card, grinning widely, "How is it? Looks nice, right? Talia gave it to me."

"Tsk tsk, Talia gave it to you, huh? I’m so envious. You gents with fiancées are on a different level," Ryan Quinn teased with a chuckle.

Andrew Donovan looked puzzled, "How come you’re in an arranged marriage with The Rhodes Family? Your parents’ idea? Doesn’t seem right."

Even though Andrew was in the same social circle as Talia Rhodes, there was still a hierarchy within the circle.

Adrian Jennings was from the highest-ranking family, as The Jennings Family was the most powerful. Adrian, being the legitimate heir, would not typically have The Rhodes Family as the first choice for an arranged marriage.

Adrian smiled, his eyes soft, "It’s not an arranged marriage."

"Huh?" Ryan Quinn was shocked, "If it’s not an arranged marriage, then what is it?"

"Three years ago, I approached Shawn Rhodes myself." Adrian said, "I waited for Talia to graduate for quite a while, and the moment she did, I went to find Shawn Rhodes."

"I told him then, name any conditions, as long as I can marry Talia, anything would do." Thinking of this, Adrian’s eyes lit up. After all these years, he was finally about to fulfill his wish.

"You’ve had your eye on Miss Talia for a long time then?" Ryan Quinn clicked his tongue in disbelief, "You’ve hidden it so well. I’ve been your buddy for so many years and didn’t even notice."

Andrew Donovan laughed and teased, "So you’ve been doing the secret love thing all along? You should’ve said something earlier. All these years, seeing you disinterested in women, I thought you might be into guys."

Ryan Quinn got interested, starting to gossip, "When did you start liking Miss Talia?"

Adrian looked at his cards, not even raising an eyebrow.

"It’s a secret."

"Tsk tsk tsk, still putting on airs." Ryan Quinn appeared annoyingly curious, "Back then, Miss Talia even ran away from home to avoid the arranged marriage. Who knows if she doesn’t even think of you that way? The gift she gave might just be a customary return gift. Don’t get excited too soon."

Upon hearing this, Andrew Donovan glanced up, his tone calm, "It seems Talia has a boyfriend. Do you know about this?"