Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 136: Is He Her Boyfriend?

Raina Reddington reached for the door, opened it, and was already stepping out.

Ethan Lancaster hurried after her, yanked her back, and ground the words out from between his teeth. "I’m asking you, where are you going?"

She tried to shake him off but couldn’t. Raina Reddington pushed against his chest with both hands, but Ethan Lancaster used the momentum to pull her back into the room. "Who are you going to see?"

Raina Reddington remained silent. The man’s grip tightened. "You’re still looking for Miles Hawthorne, aren’t you?"

’If he already knows, why bother asking?’

"Raina, you’ve saved all your patience for him, haven’t you?"

She broke free from his grasp. Instead of trying to leave again, she walked to the side of the bed, threw back the covers, and lay down.

’I can’t find him anyway. What difference does one less day of searching make?’

Seeing her get into bed, Ethan Lancaster turned off the light. He stood in the pitch-black room, unsure whether to stay or just turn and leave.

"If you dare to keep looking, I’ll make your friends pay the price, one by one. I’ll make sure you end up without a single friend left."

Raina Reddington let out a dry laugh. To Ethan Lancaster’s ears, the sound was strangely terrifying. She didn’t care about anything anymore, so what was there to be afraid of?

They slept in the same bed, but they were worse than strangers.

The next day, Seth Sinclair picked up Ethan Lancaster and asked instinctively, "Fourth Master, where to?"

"The Verdant Garden."

’It’s been a long time since I’ve heard that name.’

The corners of Seth Sinclair’s mouth lifted slightly. Ethan Lancaster immediately added, "Grandpa gave me a direct order to go back every day. I have to at least put on a show for a while, or he’ll be a real pain."

Seth Sinclair knew all about his stubborn pride. Mr. Lancaster was just giving him an out.

Ethan Lancaster went to see Gwen Sharp every day, and the girl eagerly awaited his visits. He was truly good to her; she could spend his money freely, and he even sent all sorts of luxury goods to her home. Even Cameron Fairchild said that Gwen Sharp’s luck had finally turned.

But she was the only one who knew the truth: Ethan Lancaster wouldn’t touch her.

She had made a move on him twice. The first time, he had coldly rejected her. The second time, he had scolded her, telling her to behave and not to harbor any foolish fantasies.

Gwen Sharp knew perfectly well that he ultimately looked down on her. After all, he had taken her out of *that* kind of place.

When Ethan Lancaster returned to The Verdant Garden, he didn’t see Raina Reddington’s car in the garage. By all rights, she should have been home from work by now.

The only possibility was that she had gone out looking for him again.

The tall, imposing man stood there and asked Seth Sinclair, who was beside him, "How have things been with Miles Hawthorne lately?"

"He’s had a taste of hardship. He’s been behaving himself lately."

His phone vibrated twice in his pocket. Ethan Lancaster glanced at it; it was a call from Gwen Sharp. He didn’t want to answer, but then he remembered that she never caused trouble and never called him proactively. It might be something urgent.

"Hello?"

"Fourth Master, I’m sorry. I really had no other choice but to call you..."

Ethan Lancaster looked up at the balcony of The Verdant Garden. In his hazy gaze, he could still picture himself there, teasing Raina. "What is it?"

"My mom came to Stoneworth by herself to see a doctor. I only just found out she was having surgery today. When I was signing the consent form, I realized the surgeon in charge is... is your wife."

Ethan Lancaster turned and took a couple of steps forward. "She’s a doctor. Isn’t it normal for her to perform surgery on people?"

"I’m worried she’ll... because of me... I’m really scared now, Fourth Master. I signed the form in a daze, and my mom is already in the operating room. Can I request a transfer to another hospital now?"

Ethan Lancaster wanted to curse her for not using her brain. "They might have already cut her open with a scalpel, and you’re only telling me now that you want to transfer her?"

"I only thought of it afterward. I’m really scared."

"Don’t worry. She’s a doctor; she won’t do anything reckless."

Gwen Sharp was pacing anxiously outside the operating room. "I don’t know what to do about what comes next..."

After a few seconds of silence, Ethan Lancaster said softly, "I’m on my way."

"Thank you, Fourth Master."

Mrs. Sharp’s condition wasn’t serious; it was just a rather large cyst. The surgery was still in progress when Ethan Lancaster arrived at the hospital.

When the patient was wheeled out, the anesthesia hadn’t completely worn off. Gwen Sharp rushed over, calling out softly, "Mom, Mom."

Seth Sinclair had arranged for a private room. When Raina Reddington walked out of the operating room, she saw Ethan Lancaster sitting on a chair in the hallway.

She walked past him quickly, not even pausing for a moment.

Inside the hospital room, Gwen Sharp held her mother’s hand and chattered, "Mom, why did you come all the way to Stoneworth without telling me?"

The woman was awake by now. The laparoscopic surgery hadn’t been too taxing, and she smiled as she looked at Ethan Lancaster, who was leaning against a wall not far away.

"You’re so busy with work, I didn’t want to bother you. Besides, it was just a minor surgery."

Raina Reddington knocked before entering. She picked up the chart clipped to the foot of the bed and glanced at it. "I’ve already gone over the post-op instructions. If there’s anything else you don’t understand, just ask a nurse."

"Doctor, thank you. You’ve worked hard." Mrs. Sharp was still very weak and couldn’t sit up.

"Mom, don’t move."

"Wendy, is that your boyfriend?" Mrs. Sharp’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was just loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

Gwen Sharp’s face went pale, and she shot a cramped, uneasy glance at Raina Reddington.

’So what if she’s his favorite? Can she even introduce Ethan Lancaster to her own mother without any shame?’

Raina Reddington wanted to laugh, but she couldn’t summon a smile. May Sullivan had spent her last days just like this, lying in a hospital bed. The pitiful thing was, she didn’t have a single family member by her side.

Gwen Sharp stammered, unable to answer. Crucially, Ethan Lancaster didn’t chime in or step forward to greet the woman, making the atmosphere even more awkward.

"Mom, he’s the one who arranged for your hospitalization and surgery," Gwen Sharp could only say.

Mrs. Sharp was an honest woman, and hearing this made her even more embarrassed. "Oh, you shouldn’t have! We’ve troubled him too much."

"Mom, you just focus on getting better."

"Wendy, can you get time off from your company? Maybe you should just go back to work."

Gwen Sharp’s face alternated between pale and flushed. The main issue was that Raina Reddington was still there; anything she said would be wrong. "I can take time off. I’ve already arranged it."

"I know you don’t have any money. You insisted on paying for the surgery—did you have to borrow from a friend again?"

Gwen Sharp sat there, on the verge of tears. The more her mother asked, the more mortified she felt. Every penny she had came from Ethan Lancaster. Raina Reddington raised an eyebrow at her. Fearing that Raina would make a scene, Gwen shot her a pleading look, a silent appeal for mercy.

In comparison, Gwen Sharp was a truly pitiful sight.

Ethan Lancaster straightened up and took a couple of steps forward. "Don’t worry about the money. You just focus on getting well."

Mrs. Sharp stared at him and asked again, cautiously, "Are you... our Wendy’s boyfriend?"

Raina Reddington’s fingers flipped through the medical chart as she heard Ethan Lancaster’s voice say, "Yes."