Chapter 66: Chapter 66: My Legs Are Numb, I Can’t Move
###Chapter 66: My Legs are Numb, I Can’t Move
"One point two million!" Benjamin Sterling ground out, his voice already tight with obvious tension.
His heart was bleeding. This price had already blown way past his budget!
Ethan Hawthorne calmly raised his paddle. "Two million."
Even the motion of raising the paddle seemed languid, as if he were just killing time.
Benjamin Sterling’s pupils contracted sharply. ’Two million?!’
’Has Ethan Hawthorne gone mad? This painting isn’t worth that much at all!’
But now, all eyes in the room were on him. If he backed down now, all his earlier persistence would become a joke.
’Besides,’ he thought, ’as long as I secure the agency rights, the profits will be way more than two million. This deal is worth it!’
Moreover, this was all happening in front of Maxine Rhodes. He had to show her what a truly decisive man looked like!
"Two and a half million!"
he shouted, betting it all, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.
The moment the words left his mouth, Ethan Hawthorne let out a soft chuckle and elegantly placed his paddle face down on the table.
"Congratulations, President Sterling."
Ethan Hawthorne raised his wine glass, the corner of his lip curling into a meaningful arc. "Two-fifty. That number... suits you perfectly."
The auction gavel fell. Benjamin Sterling had won the painting at an astronomical price.
Watching Benjamin Sterling’s stiff expression, Ethan Hawthorne slowly and deliberately delivered the final blow. "Oh, I forgot to tell you, President Sterling, the artist is signing with my gallery next month."
He savored the look of instant collapse on Benjamin’s face and took an elegant sip of champagne.
"He has over a dozen similar paintings in his studio. If you like them, I can have him sell them all to you at the original price of one million each."
Benjamin Sterling’s vision went black, and he nearly fainted.
Not only had he spent more than double the price on a painting that was useless for securing the agency rights, but he’d also become the laughingstock of the entire auction!
After saying this, Ethan Hawthorne didn’t spare him another glance. He turned calmly, his gaze cutting across the crowd to land precisely on Maxine Rhodes.
He said nothing, only giving a slight nod—a minuscule gesture filled with an understanding that only the two of them shared.
Maxine Rhodes met his gaze, her lips curving into a faint but knowing smile.
Then, she headed for the banquet hall exit.
「In the parking lot outside the banquet hall, the night air was cool.」
Maxine Rhodes stood by the car, wrapping her arms around herself slightly. The evening breeze stirred the hem of her gown, bringing with it a slight chill.
Ethan Hawthorne’s figure soon appeared before her. Without a word, he naturally shrugged off his suit jacket and gently draped it over her shoulders.
The jacket still held his body heat and his familiar, crisp scent, instantly dispelling the surrounding chill.
Maxine Rhodes looked up at him, a cunning glint in her eyes. "Mr. Hawthorne, you really cleaned up tonight."
Ethan Hawthorne looked at her cheeks, flushed slightly by the night wind, a smile rippling through his deep eyes. "Director Rhodes was also outstanding."
They looked at each other and smiled.
Afterward, the car drove smoothly into the night. The city’s flowing lights swept past the windows, flickering across their silent, knowing profiles.
「Back at the apartment.」
Maxine Rhodes walked straight to the bedroom. She could finally take off the evening gown she had been wearing all night.
She walked over to the full-length mirror and reached behind her for the zipper on her side, but after several attempts, her fingertips kept slipping on the smooth fabric. The zipper wouldn’t budge.
She twisted her body slightly, trying to find a better angle.
With her unwitting movements, the satin surface of the dress rippled over her body like water, outlining her slender waist and full curves with increasing clarity.
Ethan Hawthorne had just taken off his suit jacket and loosened his tie when he turned and happened upon this scene.
His gaze instantly darkened, and his Adam’s apple bobbed unconsciously.
"Need some help?" he asked as he walked over, his voice carrying a trace of imperceptible hoarseness.
Maxine’s ears grew warm, but forced by the situation, she could only turn slightly to the side. "Yes, I think the zipper is stuck."
Ethan Hawthorne lowered his head, his eyes falling on the delicate skin of her side and the hidden inner zipper.
As he reached out, his fingertips inevitably brushed against the skin of her waist. The contrast between his cool fingers and her warm skin made them both shudder slightly.
In the enclosed space, the only sounds were the faint friction of the zipper and their own increasingly audible breathing.
He tried for a moment; the zipper was indeed stuck fast.
"It’s really stuck."
As he spoke, in order to get a better angle, the hand that was resting on her hip slid backward, half-encircling her waist and pulling her body more snugly against his.
Their bodies pressed together through the thin layers of clothing, their warmth seeping into one another.
ZZZIP—
Finally, the zipper gave way, and the gown instantly slid down her smooth skin.
Maxine reacted instantly, bending down to catch it, but she happened to step right on the smooth fabric that had pooled at her ankles. She immediately lost her balance and fell backward with a soft cry—
Ethan Hawthorne reacted on pure instinct, reaching out and catching her falling body securely. The momentum sent them both tumbling onto the soft, large bed behind them.
When Maxine recovered from her panic, she realized she was sitting face-to-face on Ethan Hawthorne’s lap, fitting perfectly against him.
Then, a realization that made her scalp tingle struck her like a clap of thunder...
Other than a pair of lace panties as thin as a cicada’s wing and flesh-colored silicone pasties, she was practically naked!
Maxine let out a cry of alarm, subconsciously crossing her arms over her chest, just barely covering herself up.
The dual stimulation of the cool air and the man’s searing body heat instantly raised a fine layer of goosebumps on her exposed skin.
At that moment, her knees were on either side of his body, and she was almost completely enveloped in his embrace. The soft curves squeezed by the edge of the arms she held protectively over her chest were just inches from his eyes.
A clearly visible undercurrent of scorching heat churned in Ethan Hawthorne’s deep eyes. His gaze swept over Maxine’s panicked expression and finally landed on the scenery of her chest, which was rising and falling dramatically with her rapid breaths.
Ethan Hawthorne closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm the physiological reaction that was about to spiral out of control.
In his arms was her warm, jade-like, nearly naked body. The crisp scent of her hair and the faint, warm fragrance of her skin lingered at the tip of his nose. The dual assault on his senses of sight and touch brought all his self-control to the brink of collapse.
The hand he had wrapped around her waist trembled slightly, the veins on its back faintly visible. His voice was impossibly hoarse. "Maxi... if you keep pressing down on me like this, I can’t guarantee what I’ll do to you."
His words shot through Maxine’s entire body like an electric current.
She could clearly feel the man’s tense muscles beneath her, and that change that was impossible to ignore.
Reason screamed at her to flee at once, but her body seemed to be nailed to the spot, enveloped by that intense, pure masculine scent and searing body heat, a trace of craving born from it.
Maxine Rhodes tilted her face up, her eyes shimmering with moisture, her voice hoarse with arousal. "My legs are numb. I can’t move."
Ethan Hawthorne also noticed the change in her body. The hand on her lower back suddenly tightened. Caught off guard, Maxine let out a soft cry as the force pulled her even closer, pressing her flush against him with absolutely no space left between them.
"It’s okay. I can do the moving."
