Chapter 1516 Want To Settle Down

Everyone knew who Bill was referring to.

It could be none other than Estelle.

His words angered Ethan. The casual expression on his face darkened and his eyes became chillingly
cold. He exclaimed in response, “How dare you!“

Bill was a sore loser and he knew he wasn't going to win again. So when he finally won a round, he
made sure to rub it in. With a boastful smile, he said, “Ethan, you should know not to mess with me.“

Ethan clenched his fists in anger. That woman was his whole world and he wasn't going to let anyone
hurt her.

If Bill dared to even mess with her, Ethan wouldn't hesitate to cut ties with him.

“Ethan, I'll give you some more time to think about it. Come to me when you've finally made up your
mind,“ Bill said while chuckling. From the very start, he knew Ethan wouldn't put up a fight.

However, Ethan wasn't going to simply let Bill off the hook if Estelle was involved. With a threatening
tone, he replied, “Bill, it seems that you don't quite understand what kind of man I am. Sure, I'm
passive, but if you lay even a single finger on the woman I love, I'll make sure you regret it.“

When he was done talking, Ethan stood up and strode out of the room. He didn't even wait to see how
Bill would react.

Ethan's words stunned Bill, leaving him with a dumbfounded look on his face. He was completely
infuriated to the point that he couldn't stop clenching his fists. He gritted his teeth together and let out
threats of his own. “Ethan, just wait and see! I'll come for you one of these days!“

A week passed by in the blink of an eye.



It was another wonderful, sunny day for Estelle. She was in her apartment and she had just finished
handing in the design draft for Love and Dream. Full of contentment, she came out of the study room
and massaged her stiff shoulders.

She was excited for tomorrow since it was a weekend. It was finally her time to have a good rest since
there was no more work to be done.

It was almost twelve o'clock at noon when Estelle finished. She went to her room and changed into
some cozier clothes before eating lunch.

While changing, Estelle thought about what to eat and do in the afternoon. When she was all done, she
casually walked over the kitchen.

On the way over there, she passed by Ethan, who was sitting on the sofa. His head was tilted down,
focused on peeling an apple. He was wearing all black, which made him look taller than usual.
Additionally, his clothes made him seem unapproachable, or even a little intimidating. Despite that, his
movements were an unexpected contrast to his frigid presence. Watching his hands gave Estelle an
unusual sense of warmth and joy.

She hadn't expected to see him there, so she subconsciously asked, “Why are you back so soon?“

Ethan handed her the peeled apple and replied, “Since you have no work tomorrow, I thought it would
be a good chance to spend some time with you.“

Upon hearing this, Estelle's cheerful smile turned into a frown. She felt like something was off.

Ethan hadn't been like his usual self the past week. He had become abnormally strict with her and
watched her like a hawk. Normally, he would just send someone to pick up the surveillance video after
work. But now, he didn't even leave her house.



She hadn't expected that he could be such a lazy person.

“I just peeled this apple. Have some.“ No matter how hard she tried, Estelle couldn't figure out what
was going on with Ethan.

Since she couldn't think of a reason why he was acting that way, she just took the apple with a subtle
smile on her face and said, “Let's eat together, okay?“

Ethan gave her a slight nod, cut the apple into two pieces, and handed her the one without the core.

Estelle was still in a daze at that moment and just stood in the middle of the living room. After handing
over the apple, Ethan pulled her over to sit on the sofa.

He was like a very clingy dog. Most of his body was leaning over Estelle's arms, so she couldn't even
use her other hand to eat.

Ethan was so close that she could feel the warmth of his breath. Although they had been intimate
before, she couldn't bear the sensation of his hot breath on her earlobes.

'What's wrong with him today? Why is he so clingy all of a sudden?' Estelle wondered.

While eating the apple, she looked out of the corner of her eye and meekly asked, “Is something
bothering you? Have you had anything to eat yet?“

Ethan buried his head in her neck and tightly wrapped his arms around her slender waist, leaving her
with no chance to escape.

Then, he smiled at her and said in a low voice, “I just want to hold you like this. Do you have a problem
with that?“



Estelle's cheeks blushed a rosy red color from embarrassment. His sweet words went straight to her
heart. Every time they were together, he would always act like a teenager in love.

“By the way, what do you want to eat for lunch? I'll make it for you,“ Ethan casually asked out of the
blue.

Ethan was the sweetest man in the world at that moment. Estelle couldn't refuse him even if she tried
to. Just like a married couple, the two of them happily ate lunch and watched a movie right after.

A few hours later, evening came and the sun was just starting to set. The two of them quietly watched
the sunset while sitting down on the sofa. When it was over, Estelle looked at Ethan. He was still
holding onto her and there was no sign of him letting go. She let out a subtle sigh and asked, “Don't
you feel uncomfortable? You've been holding me the whole day.“

Ethan chuckled when he heard her and replied, “As long as it's you, I'll never be uncomfortable.“

Although Estelle felt happy at that moment, she was just doing what Ethan wanted. That fact didn't sit
well with her. No matter what they did, he would only be a few inches away. He was like a stalker that
didn't know when to stop. It seemed like he wouldn't let her go no matter what she said.

Nevertheless, even though Estelle allowed Ethan to do what he wanted, she knew that he was hiding
something from her. Unfortunately, he seemed like he didn't want to talk about it, so she couldn't just
force it out of him.

Just as Estelle was thinking about how to ask him to let her go, Ethan broke his silence and suddenly
uttered a question. “From now on, can you stay at home with me when you don't need to work?“

Estelle frowned when she heard him. She decided to finally confront him, so she looked straight into his
eyes and said, “What's wrong with you? You're acting weird today. Just tell me the truth.“



Ethan was seemingly unfazed by her questions. He looked deep into her eyes and hugged her even
tighter.

Estelle felt even more uncomfortable than before. Her arm started to hurt but she didn't let that stop
her. She added, “How can I help you solve your problem if you don't even tell me about it?“

After a long time, Ethan let out a light sigh. After that, he lovingly pinched her cheek and buried his
head in her neck. A few seconds later, he told her the truth.

“I'm worried that Bill might do something to hurt you.“

'Bill?'

Upon hearing his name, Estelle suddenly felt uneasy. 'So Ethan was acting weirdly the past week just
because he wanted to protect me from Bill?'

Estelle thought to herself. She had already had a rough idea of what was going on, but now, everything
was crystal clear to her.

Her lips turned pale and her body started to tremble. After some time of thinking to herself, she
hesitantly uttered, “Ethan, do you still want to stay there?“

While she spoke, tears started to form in her eyes. She nervously looked at Ethan's frigid eyes while
she waited for his answer.

Upon hearing her words, Ethan was quite overwhelmed. The reason why he stayed with Bill was to
accompany the little girl who had been abandoned by her father for such a long time. But now, the little
girl was a grown woman. After a bit of thought, he realized there was no reason for him to stay there
anymore.



After all, Ethan had only done it for her. And if she didn't want him to be there anymore, then what was
the point of his actions?

“Do you want me to stay there?“ Ethan asked with a straight face.

Without hesitation, Estelle shook her head and said, “All I want is for both of us to focus on our bright
futures. I think that's the most peaceful way to go about this.“

After a while, Ethan let out a chuckle. He understood what she meant and firmly said, “Okay, I'll do
what you want, I promise.“

At that moment, it was Estelle's turn to be stunned.

She didn't expect that Ethan would do what she asked that very moment.

He left in the blink of an eye without even uttering a single word.

When Ethan walked outside, the sun was almost completely gone. He stood quietly in front of a window
and looked out at the neon lights and tall buildings not far away.

After that, he lit a cigarette and smoked it like it was the last cigarette of his life. He attentively watched
the ashes fall gently to the ground.

He savored that cigarette until there was nothing left.

At that moment, Ethan seemed like he was completely out of touch with reality. He didn't show a single
shred of emotion. To make matters worse, he didn't even feel pain from putting out the cigarette on his
bare palm. A few moments later, he took out his phone and dialed a familiar number.


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