Chapter 107: Chapter 107: You Are Being a Mistress
###Chapter 107: You’re Being a Mistress!
Maxine Rhodes felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze.
"...What do you want, then?" she asked.
Ethan Hawthorne didn’t answer. He leaned in slightly, closing the distance between them.
His gaze traveled slowly from her eyes to her lips, where it lingered before rising again to meet her somewhat dazed expression.
Then, he lowered his head and kissed her.
The kiss was gentle and lingering, full of undisguised possessiveness.
His palm gently cradled her cheek, his thumb caressing the skin behind her ear, completely enveloping her in his presence.
Maxine was surprised at first, but she quickly sank into his familiar warmth and rhythm, her hands unconsciously creeping up to his shoulders.
Meanwhile, in a nearby taxi, Benjamin Sterling was watching, his eyes blazing with uncontrollable rage.
He could only watch as Ethan Hawthorne brazenly kissed Maxine Rhodes in a place where anyone could walk by at any moment!
And Maxine... she wasn’t pushing him away! She’d even closed her eyes!
He wanted to storm out of the car, smash the window, and drag Maxine away!
But... he didn’t dare.
Ethan Hawthorne was there, and he couldn’t afford to cross him.
"Fuck!"
Benjamin Sterling slammed his fist into the back of the front seat, startling the driver.
"Whoa, buddy! Take it easy! These seat covers are brand new!"
The driver was a man in his forties, and he had the worldly nonchalance of someone who’d seen it all.
He glanced at Benjamin Sterling, who was red-eyed and grinding his teeth, then followed his gaze to the beautiful couple kissing up ahead. He instantly got the picture.
"TSK." The driver shook his head and sighed. "Kid, you gotta learn to let things go," he said, his tone a mix of worldly sympathy and gentle ribbing.
"There are plenty of fish in the sea. Look at me. My wife left me for some guy with a Mercedes back in the day. At first, I was just like you, ready to grab a knife and go after them. But then I thought, forget it. What’s the point? I’m doing just fine now, right? I drive my cab, make money, go home for a little drink... Life is good!"
The driver’s words were casual, but Benjamin Sterling couldn’t take in a single word.
He just felt every word the driver said was another needle stabbing at his pride.
’Maxine must be being forced! Or she’s been tricked! She used to love me so much!’
But then he watched them finish their kiss. He saw Ethan Hawthorne gently tuck a stray strand of hair behind Maxine’s ear before wrapping an arm around her and leading her toward the apartment building’s entrance. He couldn’t lie to himself any longer.
"No... I can’t just let this go!"
Swallowed by a surging tide of bitterness and jealousy, Benjamin Sterling threw open the car door and rushed out. Unsurprisingly, he was stopped at the gate.
"Sir, visitors require confirmation from a resident. Do you have an appointment code?" the security guard said, polite yet distant.
Benjamin Sterling pointed ahead. "I’m here to see Miss Rhodes, the woman who just went in!"
"I’m sorry, but without an appointment or notification from a resident, we cannot let you pass," the guard said firmly.
"She’s my ex-girlfriend! I need to talk to her about something urgent!" Benjamin tried to force his way through.
The guard immediately stepped forward, blocking his path completely. At the same time, he pressed the button on his radio. "Unidentified individual attempting to force entry at the entrance to Building B7. Requesting backup."
The voice from the radio wasn’t loud, but Maxine Rhodes, who hadn’t walked far, heard it clearly.
She stopped short and turned toward the sound. Her gaze traveled over Ethan Hawthorne’s shoulder and landed on Benjamin Sterling, locked in a standoff with the guard.
He had clearly seen her too, his gaze a mixture of shock, jealousy, and the fury of a man betrayed.
’So he did see what happened earlier.’
In that instant, Maxine Rhodes understood why Ethan Hawthorne had kissed her.
She tilted her head, glancing at the composed man beside her. The corners of her lips twitched into a smile. "You did that on purpose, didn’t you?"
Ethan Hawthorne didn’t answer, merely tightening the arm he had around her waist.
He lifted his gaze and looked coolly at Benjamin Sterling, who stood a few meters away. His expression was placid, without a ripple of emotion.
A chill shot through Benjamin’s heart under Ethan Hawthorne’s gaze, and he instinctively took half a step back.
He didn’t dare lash out at Ethan Hawthorne, but the churning jealousy and self-righteousness in his chest wouldn’t let him just leave.
He looked at Maxine, his lips trembling. Finally, he rushed forward and hissed in a low, urgent voice laced with anguish, "Maxine! Don’t you know Ethan Hawthorne is married?! You’re being a mistress! You’re breaking up a family! Snap out of it!"
Maxine’s tone was flat. "I know."
"You know?!" Benjamin Sterling’s eyes widened in astonishment, and his agitation grew. "You know and you still... What are you after? Money? Status? You weren’t like this before! How could you become like this..."
Maxine Rhodes couldn’t be bothered to explain, nor did she want to.
Just then, Ethan Hawthorne took half a step forward, placing himself in front of Maxine and completely blocking Benjamin’s view of her.
"Benjamin Sterling," Ethan Hawthorne began, his voice carrying an invisible pressure, "you seem very interested in my private affairs."
Intimidated by his powerful aura, Benjamin’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His voice dropped. "Mr. Hawthorne, I-I’m just looking out for Maxine. She’s young and naive. You... you can’t deceive her like this..."
"Deceive?" Ethan Hawthorne sounded as if he’d heard a joke. He glanced at the calm Maxine beside him, and when he turned back, his eyes had grown cold. "Since when do outsiders like you have the right to comment on what goes on between her and me?"
He took a step forward, and the closing distance exerted a suffocating pressure on Benjamin Sterling.
"I don’t care what happened before. But now, she’s my woman. Everything about her is none of your business."
He paused, his gaze stabbing into Benjamin Sterling like an ice pick. "You’ve seen enough, and you’ve heard enough. Are you going to leave with some dignity, or..."
He tilted his head slightly, gesturing toward the complex’s security guards, who had noticed the commotion and were now heading their way.
Benjamin Sterling’s face went pale. He knew staying any longer would only lead to his own humiliation.
He shot one last, venomous glare at Maxine Rhodes. Then, before the security guards could reach them, he turned and scurried away.
After Benjamin Sterling left, Ethan Hawthorne wrapped his arm around Maxine Rhodes and led her into the elevator.
The elevator doors slid shut, and in the confined space, only their mingled breaths and the soft light from above remained.
Almost immediately, Ethan Hawthorne released the arm around her waist. He turned and gently pressed Maxine against the smooth wall of the car, planting his hands on either side of her.
Then he lowered his head, his voice returning to a gentle intimacy. "I didn’t get to kiss you enough just now. Shall we continue at home?"
Maxine Rhodes coughed lightly. "Well, actually... according to science, the healthiest frequency is two to three times a week. We could use that as a reference..."
Ethan Hawthorne replied with a faint smile, "You said it yourself, it’s a reference. These things vary from person to person. And I’ve been in a drought for almost thirty years."
"Then... four times is fine, I guess," Maxine muttered.
The words had barely left her mouth when—DING.
The crisp chime of the elevator’s arrival sounded.
Before the light from the hallway could flood in, Ethan Hawthorne’s arms had already wrapped around her.
"Four times?"
His voice grazed her flushed ear, full of undisguised hunger.
"That’s not nearly enough..."
With his arms still around her, he walked straight to the apartment door without breaking stride.
He nudged the door open with his shoulder, and it swung shut behind them with a heavy thud.
The dim light of the foyer outlined his profile, so close to hers, and highlighted the turbulent undercurrent in his eyes.
He pressed her against the door. His hand slid down her back and settled on her waist, and with a gentle tug, he pulled her flush against him.
"I want you every day. What are we going to do about that?"
Maxine’s heart pounded in his embrace. She didn’t shy away, but tilted her face up to his, her red lips slightly parted.
"Then..."
"You can have me."
With those words, they came together in a tangle of fierce passion...
...
...
*****
