CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 70: ONLY THEY ARE TRULY WELL-MATCHED

"I’ve got all my things." Marilyn pretended she didn’t catch the implication in Conrad Sterling’s words, seriously checking her handbag, "Nothing’s left behind, let’s go."

She belongs to a noble class, always priding herself on being above such unsavory tactics.

But, coincidentally, her family had two cousins who were just like that.

Though Marilyn couldn’t stand them, they were family, tied by blood and interests, so she couldn’t openly oppose them and cause a scene.

Moreover, today’s incident should be blamed on that girl’s own foolishness.

Knowing well that Ethan Hawthorne had a bad reputation, her best friend had already stumbled once, yet she insisted on dining alone with this man and drinking when offered.

How can she survive in the entertainment industry like this? Even if she hadn’t fallen into Ethan Hawthorne’s hands today, she would sooner or later fall into another man’s trap.

Marilyn is naturally aloof and dislikes meddling, and she knew Conrad Sterling was the same.

That’s why they were a perfect match, both understanding the survival rules of the upper class.

After they left the restaurant, Ethan Hawthorne also stood up to pay the bill. He asked the girl, "Are you full? Let’s go."

"Wait a second, Young Master Hawthorne, I’ll call Kiki first to let her know. She’ll be thrilled to see you."

Ethan Hawthorne snatched her phone, "Why call? Just go directly."

"But..."

"No buts, let’s go."

Ethan Hawthorne couldn’t wait, pulling her up, and the girl finally realized she felt dizzy.

"Wait, let go of me. Why can’t I muster any strength? You... you drugged my drink?"

"What does it matter if you have no strength? I’ll do all the work later." Ethan Hawthorne smiled suggestively.

"Where are you taking me?"

"Don’t worry, a place that’ll make you happy! I guarantee it!"

By this time, most guests had left the restaurant. Even if the girl Ethan brought struggled and sought help, there wasn’t anyone to assist.

Moreover, the drug took effect too fast and too fiercely, and she lost consciousness before she could scream for help.

While paying, the sushi restaurant owner noticed the girl who walked in was being carried out by Ethan and took a few extra glances.

"My girlfriend can’t handle liquor well, got drunk, I’m taking her back to rest."

With this brief explanation, Ethan carried her out of the restaurant and into a car.

Upon reaching the nearest hotel’s VIP room, Ethan first laid her on the bed and poured himself a glass of red wine, sitting at the bedside to relish the ’prey’ soon to be his.

He also set up a camcorder on the nightstand.

He had experience subduing such women. Those willing to be coaxed into bed were easy, the unwilling ones he would simply intoxicate or drug.

In fact, many girls just played hard to get, and once the deed was done, they’d drop their pretense.

The drug’s effect lasted at least half a day, so Ethan wasn’t in a hurry.

After putting down his wine glass, he went to the bathroom to shower.

He had just undressed and turned on the shower when he suddenly heard a noise outside.

"No way she woke up this quickly, right?" Ethan muttered to himself.

At first, he thought he was hearing things, but as the noise grew louder, there seemed to be footsteps approaching... someone knocked on the bathroom door.

Ethan, not having finished his shower, casually wrapped a towel around his waist.

Just as he opened the bathroom door, he was nearly blinded by the flash of cameras waiting outside—

"Young Master Hawthorne, there’s been a tip-off to the media that you’re engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior at the hotel. Do you have any comment?"

"What inappropriate behavior? Nonsense!" Ethan pushed away the camera of the nearest paparazzi, scolding, "No more pictures!"

"But what about the woman on the bed? How do you explain that?"

"That’s my girlfriend..."

"The woman on the bed looks like Riley Osborne, who starred in a youth drama and is best friends with Kiki Lee, who had a recent miscarriage scandal. Didn’t you deny knowing Kiki Lee, saying you didn’t know her at all? How then do you know her best friend?"

"Moreover, the person on the bed appears to have lost consciousness, no amount of calling wakes her, and she needs to be sent to hospital immediately!"

...

Meanwhile—

Conrad Sterling’s phone received a new message, reporting on Ethan Hawthorne’s embarrassing situation surrounded by journalists at the hotel.

With just a glance, Conrad deleted the message.

Then he started scrolling through his messages and call logs, moving his finger up and down across the screen several times.

Conrad wasn’t the type to be glued to his phone, avoiding the common tendency in modern people to be engrossed in their devices.

His phone mainly served for calls and emails, rarely installed with frivolous entertainment apps, not even social media ones.

Both Ethan and Marilyn had subtly hinted to him about downloading a messaging app.

Ethan’s suggestion was to create a group chat for company staff for easy communication, while Marilyn’s was naturally for convenient chats.

But Conrad stubbornly believed his current communication methods were already convenient enough. Work through emails, report situations via phone calls, and text messages were no easier than direct voice or video calls.

As for his interactions with Marilyn, if phone calls weren’t enough, they could always meet face-to-face.

This resulted in President Sterling’s inbox being quite monotonous, filled with projects, reports, and partner information... the only standout was a message from Anna Thornton.

The email contained a selfie of Anna Thornton wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, making a peace sign at the camera, with a sign behind her of a ’Famous Pig Liver’ store. It was taken during the time Anna was claiming to pursue Conrad Sterling.

At the time, Conrad took one look and closed it, without deleting the email.

Now, probably out of boredom, he opened it again inadvertently.

Seeing the little woman successfully stealing the spotlight in front of the camera with a playful pout, as if accusing Conrad, saying: "Look at how hard I work every day buying pig liver to replenish your blood, with the queue at the store trailing long, yet you still don’t eat it!"

"Boring!" Conrad responded to this unspoken message, intending to delete the email to avoid cluttering his work inbox.

But at that moment, Marilyn called out to him, and instinctively, the man tucked his phone behind him.

"Conrad, the stores here don’t have new arrivals, unlike your Starlight City. There’s nothing worth shopping for," Marilyn commented.

"Then let’s go." Conrad stood up, "I’ll have the mall send the new arrivals directly to your home."

"So you’re taking me home now?"

"Mm."

Marilyn looked up through the mall’s window at the darkening sky.

It felt like the outing with Conrad was just about eating, and they hadn’t really done anything else. She was a bit reluctant to end their date, after being apart for a few days, just like that.

But Conrad hadn’t planned anything further, and she didn’t want to suggest it unprompted.

When Marilyn was dropped off at the film set, her agent, Sharon Langley, was clearly surprised.

"Marilyn, did you have fun? How come you’re back so early?"

"Conrad was worried my cold hadn’t fully recovered and wanted me to rest well."

"I see, President Sterling is really thoughtful." Sharon looked at her and Conrad enviously.

"Then take care, I’m driving back."

Just as Conrad returned to his car, Marilyn suddenly chased after him.

"Conrad, wait!"

Marilyn, leaning through the lowered car window, suddenly leaned in and planted a kiss on the man’s handsome cheek, affectionately saying, "Be careful on the road."