30 Days of Passion and Revenge-Chapter 255: When Love Meets Suspicion

"Why do you assume it’s Alex?" Lily Anderson asked, her voice tinged with exasperation. Alex Carter? The idea was absurd.

Ethan Blackwood slammed his fist against the car window, his jaw clenched tight as he glared at her. "Why do you trust him so much?!"

"Because I have no reason not to," Lily replied calmly, though her patience was thin.

She couldn’t understand Ethan’s relentless suspicion. "According to you, Alex tried to harm you and killed my father to take control of the Carter Group. If that’s true, why would he go out of his way to help me while you were in a coma? He arranged for me to see you immediately and ensured my father’s burial was handled properly."

"Because he’s still in love with you! He’s acting!" Ethan’s voice was low, his anger barely contained.

Lily’s gaze faltered, fragmented memories swirling in her mind, leaving her thoughts in disarray.

"That’s impossible. He’s married now. While you were unconscious, he acted like a friend—nothing more," she said weakly.

"Being married doesn’t mean he loves her!" Ethan shot back, his frustration boiling over. "If Alex Carter truly has feelings for Alice Johnson, I’ll chop my head off!"

No one understood the tension between men better than another man. Ethan could feel Alex’s animosity, every subtle provocation.

"Even if..." Lily hesitated, her ears still ringing from Ethan’s outburst. She didn’t know how to respond, but one thing was sure. "Even if the whole world would do something like that, Alex wouldn’t."

They had grown up together. From when her father exposed the previous generation’s scandal, Alex had gone from resentment to acceptance, always carrying himself gracefully.

The world might change, but Alex wouldn’t. In her eyes, he was still that gentle, unwavering presence.

The car pulled into Shallow Bay and stopped in front of the Blackwood family villa. Ethan stepped out, his expression stormy as he glared at her. "Lily Anderson! In your eyes, is the whole world full of villains, with Alex Carter being the only good man?!"

Lily stepped out of the car, meeting his furious gaze with a calm one of her own. "That’s not what I meant."

All she wanted to say was that she didn’t believe Alex could do such a thing.

"He’s the one who killed your father! He could take full control of the Carter Group by doing that!" Ethan shouted, his voice echoing in the quiet night.

How could she not see the obvious? Who stood to gain the most from Henry Anderson’s death if not Alex Carter?

"Alex isn’t that kind of person," Lily insisted, her voice steady.

The thought of Alex being involved in her father’s death was something she couldn’t even entertain. But Ethan seemed convinced, his jealousy and suspicion clouding his judgment.

Lily softened her tone, trying to defuse the tension. "Ethan, let’s not argue about this, okay?"

Why were they even fighting over something so baseless? It felt like a childish game.

"Lily Anderson! Are you still not over him?!" Ethan yelled, kicking the car in frustration, his fiery gaze locked on her. "He’s your father’s murderer!"

Still not over him.

Lily’s expression hardened, her chest tightening as if his words had struck a nerve. She stared at him coldly. "Ethan Blackwood, do you not trust me, or do you not trust yourself?"

Could he doubt where her heart lay?

Her accusatory tone struck a chord with Ethan. He said nothing, though his anger was still evident.

"You’re accusing Alex of being my father’s murderer—do you have any proof?" Lily asked.

"I’ll get it for you!" Ethan growled.

"Then let’s argue about it when you have the evidence," Lily said calmly. She brushed past him and walked toward the villa door.

Leaning casually against the doorway, Tommy Blackwood watched the scene with amusement. As Lily approached, he whistled. "You two fight? And Ethan didn’t hit you?!"

In his experience, Ethan never argued without throwing punches—whether with a man, woman, or child. Yet, it seemed like Ethan had lost this round.

"One more word out of you, and I’ll break you!" Ethan snapped, his anger redirected toward Tommy.

"Wow, taking your anger out on your brother because you’re upset with your woman? I’ve been playing the saint in your house, not even looking for women, and I haven’t hit you once..."

Lily ignored them and walked into the house. Before removing her shoes, she heard scuffling outside, followed by Tommy’s cries for mercy. "Brother... Why are you hitting me because you had a fight with her?!"

His pained wails echoed into the night.

Violent man!

Lily glanced outside, silently voicing her complaint, but didn’t intervene.

"Miss Anderson, there’s a phone call for you," Nanny said, coming out to greet her. She glanced toward the commotion outside. "What’s going on with Mr. Blackwood?"

"He’s in a bad mood," Lily replied curtly before heading to the living room and sitting on the sofa to take the call. On the other end of the line was Alex Carter’s apologetic voice. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for the dinner to end so awkwardly."

It was Alex...

And he was apologizing to her...

Even though it was Ethan who had been targeting him the whole time.

Lily chuckled awkwardly. "We’re the ones who caused you trouble."

"Not at all. If it weren’t for you, Ethan and I would’ve fought tonight," Alex said with a faint smile. "To be honest, my intentions tonight weren’t entirely pure. I just wanted to see my father. It’s been so long since I’ve seen him."

"I know," Lily said softly, pressing her lips together as she hesitated. "But..."

She trusted Alex, but she couldn’t risk Ethan’s safety.

"I understand. It’s a sensitive time, and Ethan is very cautious," Alex said. "How about this? I’ll send you a video of our wedding and a photo album. Could you show them to my father? And if possible, maybe take a few photos of him for me?"

"Show him your wedding video?" Lily was taken aback. The request didn’t seem unreasonable.

"Lily, I know you still resent my father for what happened with the previous generation, and perhaps you don’t even want to see him. But... I really just want to know how he’s doing," Alex said sincerely, his voice gentle.

Lily didn’t know how to respond.

No matter how fiercely she and Ethan argued, it was between them. She wouldn’t let her anger drive her to make decisions that could endanger Ethan—no matter who asked, even if it was Alex.

"Is it that Carter guy again?! Hang up!" Ethan stormed into the room, glaring coldly at her as he reached for the phone.

Lily quickly moved the phone behind her back, staring him down defiantly. "This is my choice."

He wanted to control even who she talked to on the phone?!

"Not with him!" Ethan growled, kneeling on the sofa and stretching his arm to grab the phone. He quickly wrestled it away from her and ended the call.

Lily stared at the disconnected phone in disbelief, her frustration mounting. Did he really have to be this irrational?

"What did he say?!" Ethan demanded.

Lily turned away, refusing to answer, silently stewing in her anger.

"Lily Anderson!" Ethan barked, his voice so loud it made her ears ring. She knew he wouldn’t stop until she answered, so she relented, her tone indifferent. "He asked me to show his father their wedding video and some photos."

"No!" Ethan snapped.

"It’s just showing his father some videos and photos. Why not?" Lily countered, sitting on the sofa and staring at the overly domineering man before her.

She hadn’t agreed to let Alex meet Bill Carter—she was just delivering something.

Such a stubborn and unreasonable man!

"If you take the video there, the next second military forces will storm in!" Ethan said sharply. "He could tamper with the video, plant a tracker on you, and follow you straight to the location."

"Alex isn’t that kind of person!" Lily exclaimed, looking at Ethan in frustration. "Do we really have to keep arguing about this?"

He had no evidence, yet he was pinning everything on Alex. Why?

Did they really have to argue?

Tommy walked in, holding his swollen face. Still, upon seeing the tension in the living room, he hesitated and backed away.

"Lily Anderson." Ethan’s tone suddenly softened, though his dark eyes still carried a hint of hurt. He let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Between me and Alex Carter, do you trust him more than me?"

He had said so much...

And yet, she still blindly trusted Alex. What did she take Ethan for?

He was her man, but she seemed to think Alex was better.

Ethan’s voice dropped a few notches, becoming heavy and subdued.

Lily was momentarily stunned. When he was shouting, she could at least feel angry with him...

"This isn’t the same," Lily said weakly. Her tone softened as well, and her instinct to yield came through.

"You’re treating my words like garbage!" Ethan’s frustration was palpable.

"But Alex wouldn’t do something like that!"

"Fine, then let’s make a bet! If this time, it turns out he leaked information to the central government and the military comes for us, I’ll blow his head off. You’d better not say a word!" Ethan threw his ultimatum.

Talking to her wasn’t getting anywhere!

"Fine!" Lily pointed at the phone, her words deliberate. "If Alex didn’t do it, you’re not allowed to assume the worst of people anymore. And—stop hanging up my calls!"

He was so bossy and unreasonable. No matter how much she tried to change him, he still couldn’t act like a normal person.

"Who am I assuming the worst about?!" Ethan snapped. "That Carter guy? How am I wrong?!"

"You’re such a towering man, but you’re acting so petty!" Lily retorted, mimicking his snort as she sat back on the sofa, refusing to look at him.

"Don’t be jealous just because you’re short!"

"..." Who was even discussing height right now? They had gone entirely off-topic.

Lily decided to stop engaging and ignored him altogether.

Ethan was still fuming, but he didn’t resort to violence. Instead, he sat on the other end of the sofa.

The two sat at opposite ends, refusing to speak to or even look at each other.

Tommy, still nursing his bruised face, looked on in amazement. Turning to Nanny, he asked, "Do they always fight like this?"

"..." Nanny silently handed Tommy a boiled egg to press against his face, then wordlessly walked away.

Mr. Blackwood’s arguments could be... rather childish at times. She was used to it by now.