Oliver left.
The hospital room was now left with Samantha, Yurika, and Ethan.
Ethan had a large cut at the corner of his mouth, slightly swollen.
Samantha's heart inexplicably twinged with pain. She said to Yurika, "Yurika, go buy a bottle of ice water."
Thinking she might be thirsty, Yurika didn't ask much and nodded before leaving.
Now, only Samantha and Ethan remained in the hospital room.
The atmosphere suddenly became ambiguous.
Samantha cleared her throat awkwardly, "I didn't intentionally eavesdrop. It's just that your voices were too loud, and it woke me up. As the one involved in your conflict, I didn't know how to face you, so I could only pretend to be unconscious."
Ethan didn't respond directly but changed the subject, "How do you feel now?"
Samantha shook her head, "I'm fine! And you? Are you okay? Your mouth is injured."
Ethan lightly brushed his thumb over the wound, indifferent, "I'm fine! You rest well. I won't let Lloyd bother you again."
"Thank you!" Samantha apologized with a lowered head.
At this moment, all she seemed to have left was apologies.
Regarding Nick's claim that Ethan had fallen in love with her, she found it hard to believe. After all, Suzy had been unable to win Ethan's heart for four years, so how could she, with no special qualities, manage to do so?
Ethan was just experiencing a temporary attraction to her.
Once the novelty wore off, he would treat her like any other woman and abandon her.
Yurika returned shortly, holding a bottle of ice water.
Samantha beckoned to Ethan, "Let me apply some ice to your mouth, so it won't swell up later."
Ethan's eyes carried a complicated look as he obediently sat by the bed.
Gently and carefully, Samantha applied the ice water to his injured mouth.
Ethan sat there calmly, his expression unchanged.
Yurika's gaze wandered between the two.
For some reason, she felt a strange and unexplainable atmosphere between them.
As for what it was, she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
After the treatment, Samantha handed the ice water to Ethan and, avoiding direct eye contact, said shyly, "You should continue applying it for a while. I'm fine now. You can go back; Yurika will take care of me."
Ethan raised an eyebrow and sneered, "Are you chasing me out?"
Samantha's small face instantly turned red, and she lowered her head without explaining.
Let it be considered as chasing him out.
This way, she could quickly distance herself from him.
Unaware of Samantha's thoughts, Ethan gave Yurika a cold glance and advised, "Take good care of her. Call me if anything happens."
After speaking, he turned and left.
A chill enveloped him. Obviously, he was angry. But Samantha had no mood to care about his emotions.
With his departure, the mood seemed to become more desolate.
Yurika, Samantha's close friend for over a decade, despite her usually carefree and fiery temper, sometimes lacking common sense, now seemed to understand Samantha better.
The way she looked at Ethan wasn't like how she regarded an ordinary man.
Before, she had the same expression when facing Justin.
Thinking of this, as if recalling something, Yurika looked at her in amazement and asked, "Samantha, you don't like him, do you?"
Samantha was startled, lifting her head abruptly to deny without hesitation, "How could I! How could I like him?"
Even if all the men in the world were dead, she wouldn't like Ethan.
Her eager denial further confirmed Yurika's speculation, but seeing Samantha vehemently denying it, she didn't want to expose it. Helplessly sighing, she patted her shoulder, "Anyway, handle your relationship with him well. He is Ethan Steele, not someone we can afford to offend. If he wants to deal with you or Justin, you won't be able to bear the consequences. I don't want you or Justin to be harmed."
Samantha nodded with a solemn expression.
"I know! Rest assured, I won't let him harm Justin."
Yurika patted her shoulder, saying nothing more.
...
Under Ethan's deliberate suppression, Miller Group's stock prices plummeted.
The company was plunged into an unprecedented crisis.
Suzy went mad searching for Anna.
However, Anna consistently avoided her.
Samantha looked at the latest information about Suzy in her hands, expressionless, as she placed the documents back into the folder.
Ethan had already broken off the engagement with Suzy.
Suzy would never set foot in the Steele family's door again.
She had taken away the most important thing from Suzy.
Her purpose for returning to the capital had been achieved.
It was time to completely sever ties with Ethan.
Since the day they parted ways in the hospital, they hadn't been in contact for two full days.
She only occasionally learned from Yurika that Ethan had inquired about her situation.
For the rest of the time, Ethan hadn't even greeted her.
She thought it was fine like this.
Naturally distant.
No need for deliberate face-to-face interactions.
An unspoken understanding would suffice.
However, why did she not feel the slightest happiness in her heart, but instead... a hint of discomfort?
She reached out and pressed her chest, not understanding why she had this feeling.
Just then, the phone on her desk suddenly rang.
It was a call from Ethan.
Seeing the incoming call, Samantha's heart trembled violently for a moment.
After hesitating for a while, she answered the call, asking coldly, "What's the matter?"
Ethan's voice was deep, "Tomorrow is Alexander's adoption banquet. You are his adoptive mother, and he hopes you can attend."
"I..."
Samantha was about to refuse when Ethan continued, "After the banquet, we will change his last name back to Steele. This is the last time he will be associated with you by name. From now on, he will be called Alexander Steele."
At this point, he emphasized, "Perhaps, not just the last name, but also the given name will change."
Hearing this, a bitter taste spread in Samantha's heart.
Thinking of the son she had raised for four years about to leave her completely, a wave of sadness overwhelmed her, and her eyes reddened in an instant.
"Alright! What time tomorrow? Where is it?"
"At five o'clock in the afternoon, Steele family's old mansion! I will have someone send you the invitation card shortly."
Samantha nodded, still concerned, "Do your Grandpa and the others know that I'll be there? I don't want my presence to affect their emotions."
Ethan said, "This is my grandfather's idea."
"Okay! Tomorrow at five o'clock, I'll be there on time!"
After saying that, she quickly hung up the phone. Afraid that Ethan on the other end would detect something unusual.
At the moment the call ended, tears uncontrollably fell.
Reluctantly looking through the photos of her and Alexander on her phone, the place that used to house Alexander felt like it had been forcibly ripped away.
Bleeding profusely.
The pain was so intense she could barely breathe.
After tomorrow, she would truly lose Alexander.
From now on, her only child would be Charlotte alone...
***