Chapter 302: Chapter 299: Simply Because You’re My Woman (12)
Ethan Ellsworth couldn’t help but chuckle. "It’s all bound to happen sooner or later, isn’t it?"
Herman Hawthorne nodded. "That’s true. It seems I need to keep trying."
Zoe Ellsworth stood up. "I’m going to see if dinner’s ready. I’ll leave you all to your conversation."
Her words drew laughter from the other three.
The mood during dinner was fairly relaxed; no one deliberately picked at any obvious wounds.
It felt like old times, but deep down, they all knew not everyone was there.
After they finished dinner and tidied up, Quentin Grant took the initiative to update them on Nora Ainsworth’s situation. He knew that if he didn’t bring it up, no one would ask for details, as it wasn’t a pleasant topic.
"Her memory has regressed. She doesn’t remember me or any of you, but the part that I find most thrilling is that I get to start all over again with her."
Zoe Ellsworth sighed worriedly. "Young Master Grant, didn’t Nora have a fiancé before? If he comes back, then—"
Quentin Grant didn’t seem overly concerned. "A while ago, Leon Lynch sent people looking for Nora, but they came up with nothing."
Herman Hawthorne let out a low chuckle. "If it’s something you don’t want known, who would dare to find out?"
"Says who? I’m a man, not a god. There are things and people I can’t control. For example, Jean is with Nicholas Ainsworth now."
"I read about that in the papers," Zoe Ellsworth said. "I think Jean’s choice this time is a lot more dependable than her last one."
Ethan Ellsworth’s expression turned icy in an instant. "Don’t mention her name in front of me. Otherwise, our friendship is over."
Zoe Ellsworth nodded. "Brother, I’m furious with her too. If she wasn’t Young Master Grant’s sister, I would’ve torn her to pieces by now."
"If she wasn’t a daughter of the Grant Family, she... wouldn’t still be alive. I’m leaving now." With that, Ethan Ellsworth stood up and left.
Herman Hawthorne sighed. "I don’t think Young Master Ellsworth will ever forgive Jean in his life."
Quentin Grant understood. "She brought it on herself. Jean... it’s pathetic."
After leaving the residence, Ethan Ellsworth sat in his car, a sharp, throbbing pain piercing his chest. He couldn’t control himself whenever she was mentioned. She was his one and only weak spot.
A place no one else could touch.
It was a wound only he could lick, alone and in secret, far from the sight of others.
「The days passed, one after another, and soon it was the twenty-third day of the first lunar month.」
This was the day of Nora Ainsworth’s medical checkup.
Quentin Grant had been anxiously awaiting news from her side since early that morning. He was tense the entire time.
He was afraid of getting his hopes up, only to be disappointed.
When the call finally came, what he heard proved his worries had been justified.
He had gone to such lengths, yet she still wasn’t pregnant. He couldn’t help but wonder if the ovulation induction drugs were fake.
He was busy on his end for now, so they would have to wait over two months before they could try again.
The mere thought of losing himself in passion with her, of ascending to heaven together, made his heart pound with excitement.
But just as he was lost in his excitement, Mrs. Grant arrived.
"Mom? What brings you here?"
"I’m asking you, is it true Nora Ainsworth can’t have children? That she had cancer, and you’re having her treated abroad?"
Quentin Grant frowned. "How did you find out?"
"I had people investigate!" Mrs. Grant said, her face a mask of fury. "I just wanted to know what she was doing abroad, and you wouldn’t tell me, so I had to pay a fortune to find out! I just never imagined, Quentin, that you would break your mother’s heart like this. You could have any woman you want, so why did you have to pick a barren hen!"
Quentin Grant’s face went cold. "Mom, Nora has already had the surgery. Don’t be so cruel with your words. No matter what you think, she is your future daughter-in-law."
"A daughter-in-law I don’t approve of will never be a daughter-in-law of the Grant Family! Quentin, why are you so pig-headed? What kind of woman couldn’t you have? Why must it be her? What’s so great about her? Women like her are a dime a dozen."
"There may be plenty of good women in this world, but there is only one Nora Ainsworth. I will not let you interfere with my happiness. If you don’t like her, then she just won’t set foot in the Grant Residence."
Seeing his firm stance, Mrs. Grant was too furious to speak.
"If your sister wasn’t so pig-headed, she never would have gotten mixed up with scum like Marlon Marshall! That should be a cautionary tale for you!"
Quentin Grant clearly had no intention of backing down. "A cautionary tale? I’m not Jean Grant, and Nora is not Marlon Marshall. There’s no comparison."
Mrs. Grant glared, utterly exasperated. "We’ll just see how long you can love her!"
With that, she left.
Quentin Grant put his hands in his pockets, lost in thought, his resolve clear.
He sat there, turning it over in his mind. ’He didn’t want her to be without his family’s blessing, but he wouldn’t have spoken to his mother that way if it wasn’t an absolute last resort.’
’He couldn’t lose the woman he loved the way Ethan Ellsworth had. He had tasted that feeling before—it was a living death, and he never wanted to go through it again.’
Mrs. Grant returned home and flopped onto the sofa, fuming. As she recalled her son’s words at the office, she was overcome by a feeling of deep disappointment in him for not living up to her expectations.
Catherine Callahan, beautifully dressed, came downstairs. Seeing Mrs. Grant’s foul mood, she sat beside her with a smile. "Godmother, what’s wrong? What has you so upset?"
Mrs. Grant sighed. "It’s about Quentin. I’ve been wanting to know what Nora Ainsworth is doing abroad, but Quentin is so secretive he wouldn’t say a word. I had to pay a huge sum to risk having it investigated."
Catherine Callahan froze for a second. "She isn’t abroad because she’s pregnant, is she?"
Mrs. Grant scoffed. "She’d have to be able to get pregnant first. She was sick. Endometrial cancer. With that disease, even after surgery, you can’t get pregnant, especially if they remove the uterus. Quentin said she’s already had the surgery, so she must be a barren hen now. And he still wants to be with her. I have no idea what he’s thinking."
Upon hearing this, Catherine Callahan’s heart leaped with joy. ’What does this mean? That I still have a chance? A huge one!’
’Quentin Grant is the sole heir of this branch of the Grant Family. The second and third branches are watching like hungry tigers. Mrs. Grant would absolutely never allow him to marry a woman who can’t produce an heir.’
"Godmother? So your investigators only found out that she was sick and had surgery?"
Mrs. Grant grunted. "Is that not enough? I don’t know where she had the surgery, only that she had this disease. Quentin is deliberately protecting her. I spent all that money just to learn that tiny bit of information."
Catherine Callahan then asked, "So did you find out where she’s living now?"
Mrs. Grant shook her head. "No. If I knew, do you think I’d be sitting here so calmly? Quentin has her under such tight protection, he’d never let her location get out easily. He’s probably hidden her away somewhere. It would cost a fortune to find her."
An idea sparked in Catherine Callahan’s mind. "In that case, Godmother, since Quentin likes her so much, why not just let him marry her? If they can’t have children, they can always adopt."
