Chapter 130: Chapter 128: Hurry Back and Have a Good ’Exchange’ (8)
Watching Nora Ainsworth leave, Ruby muttered to herself, "What’s so special about this woman that Young Master Grant would spend a fortune looking for her? Well, no need to look anymore. She just delivered herself to his door."
Nora Ainsworth put on her cloak and walked down the hallway, her footsteps echoing with stark clarity on the floor.
When she found herself standing before that same door again, Nora Ainsworth took a deep breath and knocked.
From inside came Ethan Ellsworth’s drunken voice. "Come in."
Nora Ainsworth reached out and pushed the door open. In that instant, all eyes in the room turned to her, blazing with light.
After just a moment, as if by silent agreement, they all went back to pretending to be drunk.
"You’re here to play the piano, right? Go on inside and play," Ethan Ellsworth said.
Nora Ainsworth gave a slight nod, pulled her cloak tighter, and walked toward the inner room.
"Young Master Grant, what song should I play?"
Quentin Grant uttered a few words. "The same one as yesterday."
Herman Hawthorne leaned back on the sofa, slurring drunkenly, "Young Master Grant, you want me to call a woman for you? To keep you company."
In the other room, Nora Ainsworth’s fingers pressed down hard on the piano keys, producing a jarringly discordant sound.
’You’re one to talk, Herman! Always trying to stir up trouble!’ she fumed internally.
Little did she know how brightly Herman Hawthorne was smiling when he said that. He was genuinely happy for the two of them.
And when they heard that abrupt, heavy note, the men couldn’t help but stifle their laughter.
As the piano piece neared its end, Herman Hawthorne and Ethan Ellsworth pulled Chloe Marshall along and gave Quentin Grant an ’OK’ sign. Then, the three of them tiptoed to the door, opened it, and slipped away.
The room was utterly silent. When Nora Ainsworth played the final note, she lifted her head to look behind the curtain, only to be stunned by the man standing beside the piano.
A perfectly tailored, expensive suit, gleaming leather shoes, a fatally handsome face, and his unique scent—all of it was pressing in on her now.
Their eyes met. As Quentin Grant looked into her eyes, his own suddenly reddened.
A part of Nora Ainsworth’s heart swiftly melted.
She looked at him, her vision blurring with tears. He had recognized her after all.
Neither of them spoke. They just stood there, gazing into each other’s eyes, trying to see into the depths of the other’s heart.
Finally, his Adam’s apple bobbed. With a trembling hand, he removed her cloak. Then, he reached out again, tossed her veil aside, and saw her face in perfect clarity.
Who else could it be but his Nora?
He kissed her fiercely, then bit her just as fiercely. A sharp pain stung her lip, and the taste of blood spread in her mouth.
Nora Ainsworth’s lovely eyebrows knitted in displeasure. "The first thing you do is bite me? Were you born in the year of the dog? This isn’t the first time!"
A warm feeling spread through Quentin Grant’s chest. He stared at her intently. "I just love biting you. What are you going to do about it?"
Nora Ainsworth stood up and pouted angrily. "Please have some self-respect, sir. Don’t be like a cornered dog, biting people indiscriminately!"
He moved closer to her. "You’re wrong. It’s a cornered *man* who bites people indiscriminately!"
With that, he swept a long arm around her, picked her up, and carried her out from behind the curtain.
Nora Ainsworth struggled. "Hey! What are you doing! Put me down!"
Quentin Grant placed her directly on the sofa—the same spot as last night.
"Have you forgotten?" He took her earlobe in his mouth and licked it gently. "Want to have some fun tonight?"
Nora Ainsworth stopped struggling and just looked at him. After a long moment, she said, "You really are a dog. Biting and licking me like that."
Quentin Grant didn’t get angry. "If I’m a dog, then you’re a dog. We’re a perfect pair. In the future, our babies will be dogs, too. So tell me, are you scolding me, yourself, or our future son?"
Nora Ainsworth’s face twitched. "Who... who wants to have kids with you? In your dreams!"
He cupped her face in his hands. "You, of course. Or would you rather I have children with another woman?"
Nora Ainsworth was at a loss for words.
Seeing her suddenly fall silent, Quentin Grant didn’t press the issue.
He leaned over her, planting a flurry of kisses on her face until she couldn’t take it anymore. "It’s all spit."
"It proves you taste good."
Nora Ainsworth’s tone suddenly shifted. "Aren’t you going to ask me why I’m still alive?"
His smile slowly faded. He looked at her. "As long as you’re alive, what is there to ask? As long as you’re alive, that’s more important than anything."
Nora Ainsworth felt both touched and conflicted. "Didn’t you say we had nothing to do with each other anymore? So what exactly are you trying to do, lying on top of me like this?"
He closed his eyes. "I want you. I want to fuck you, kiss you, touch you. I want to be with you for the rest of my life, have a son and a daughter with you, and never leave your side."
Nora Ainsworth’s facade immediately crumbled. She looked at the face so close to hers, thinking of all the hardships she’d endured with him, and then thinking about how he had, incredibly, fallen in love with her. If she had been unlucky before, wasn’t being alive and with him now the greatest luck of all?
No matter what storms came their way in the future, they would bear them and face them together. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
"Then how do we account for the fact that I was constantly getting hurt and nearly died while I was with you?"
He opened his eyes, his smile radiant. "I’m giving you myself as compensation. Isn’t that enough?"
"There’s no deed of sale. What if you go back on your word?"
Quentin Grant’s voice was full of meaning. "Honey, stop fooling around. I’ll sign one for you as soon as we get home."
The door was suddenly thrown open. The other three were standing in the doorway, grinning from ear to ear. Nora Ainsworth shoved him away and immediately sat up straight.
Ethan Ellsworth walked in, sat down on Nora Ainsworth’s other side, and mimicked Quentin Grant’s tone. "Honey~~~ stop fooling around~~~"
Quentin Grant shot him a freezing glare, and Ethan Ellsworth immediately fell silent.
"Now that your ’honey’ is back, your bros get kicked to the curb, is that it? Young Master Grant, have you forgotten? Who was the first one to tell you Nora was in trouble? Who stayed up all night with you instead of going home? Who rushed to catch a flight back just to wait for Nora with you? Have you forgotten all that?"
His mournful tone was just like a jilted wife’s.
Nora Ainsworth stood up and bowed to him. "Thank you, Ethan Ellsworth."
Everyone was dumbfounded. Ethan Ellsworth gave a dry laugh. "No need to thank me. I should be calling you ’sis-in-law’ anyway. What’s there to thank me for? We’re all friends here."
Quentin Grant nodded in satisfaction.
"Nora!" Chloe Marshall had been stunned for a long time before she could finally be sure it was really Nora Ainsworth in front of her.
Nora Ainsworth snapped back to reality and looked at her. "Chloe!"
Chloe Marshall rushed forward and hugged her, tears instantly streaming down her face. "Nora, we really thought you were dead! Thank goodness, thank goodness you’re so lucky!"
Nora Ainsworth had always thought of Chloe Marshall as just a good friend, but she never realized she was more important to her than she’d imagined.
Her own eyes grew moist. "I just have dumb luck."
