REFUSING THE CEO'S LOVE

Chapter 8

Chloe turned around, her figure freezing in disbelief. How could Ethan be here! With a mixed feeling, she looked at him.

Aiden, seeing Ethan approaching the ceremony stage, quickly pulled Chloe behind him.

"What are you doing here?!" Aiden asked.

"Just picking up my bridesmaid," Ethan said casually but with a firm tone.

Aiden tightened his grip on Chloe's hand, "There's only my bride!"

"It's not up to you," Ethan retorted. He raised an eyebrow at Chloe, "Am I right, Chloe?"

Chloe looked at Ethan coldly, "I've already let Evelyn explain for me."

Ethan's expression darkened, "Do you think that by marrying into the Tinsley family, you'll never be short of money again?"

The bouquet of flowers in Chloe's hands was tightly clenched, almost deformed.

"I didn't say that." With those words, Chloe felt her hand being held by the person beside her.

Aiden looked at Chloe with sincerity. "I believe in you."

Chloe gently returned the grip, a faint smile on her lips, "Thank you."

Ethan, watching the 'loving" scene between the two, had a cold and gloomy expression.Suddenly, he curled the corner of his mouth and spoke slowly, "Aiden, do you know that your bride has long been my woman?"

With the words, the faces of Elizabeth and Chloe's father changed instantly.

The guests in the room instantly erupted in discussions, mostly commenting on Chloe's lack of shame or her fickleness.

Chloe's face turned pale, and she stood frozen in place. She never expected Ethan to say such things in front of so many people. The murmurs of the guests below felt like arrows piercing into her heart. Her hands stiffened suddenly.

She looked at Aiden, her face filled with apologies. She wanted to explain but ended up saying, "I'm sorry."Aiden stared at Chloe and asked a question, "Is this the reason you didn't want me to touch you?"

Chloe choked for a moment, unsure of how to answer.

At this moment, someone suddenly exclaimed loudly, "Mr. Shen, are you okay?!"

Chloe turned to look, only to see Henry clutching his chest, collapsing to the ground.

"Dad!" Chloe immediately rushed towards Henry, and Aiden, disregarding everything else, followed closely behind.

Chloe held onto her father's body, her face filled with anxiety and helplessness, her voice choked with emotion, "Dad, wake up..."

Aiden quickly took out his phone and dialed 911.

After the call, he stepped forward to support Chloe's shoulders and comforted her softly, "Chloe, your dad will be fine."

The ambulance arrived quickly.

Chloe only realized, upon getting on the ambulance with her father, that she was still wearing her wedding gown. At this moment, she couldn't care less about it.

Aiden didn't immediately follow because his mother held him back.

"If you dare to go with them, from now on, I'll consider you as if you were never my son!"

"Mom! Chloe is alone right now, she won't be able to manage on her own," Aiden retorted.

Elizabeth sneered, "Humph, she's so capable, would she lack for a man by her side? Ethan just now went up ahead."

Aiden's face stiffened, lifting his eyes to scan the hall, but there was no sign of Ethan.

In the Tranquil Wellness Hospital, Chloe leaned helplessly against the corridor wall, her gaze fixed on the operating room, her eyes red.

Ethan walked up to Chloe and was about to speak. Suddenly, Chloe lifted her head, looked directly at him, and without hesitation, raised her right hand."Smack—" A crisp slap echoed in the empty corridor.

Chloe stared coldly at Ethan, enunciating each word with emphasis, "Ethan, if something happens to my dad, I won't forgive you!"

Ethan touched his left cheek, where she had slapped him, and sneered, "So, what's your plan?"

Chloe didn't respond. She just quietly stepped back to her original spot, continuing to gaze at the operating room.

Suddenly, Ethan noticed that Chloe was still wearing high heels. His eyes darkened for a moment. Glancing at his watch and then at the operating room, he took a step forward, grabbed her arm, and asked, "Are you planning to stand here until the surgery is over? What about your feet?"

Chloe forcefully shook off Ethan's hand, "I don't need you to worry about it."

Ethan's face darkened, and he directly picked her up, placing her on a nearby chair. The two sat in the chairs, still in their unchanged clothes. To an uninformed observer, they might appear to be a newlywed couple.

After an unknown amount of time passed, the lights in the operating room finally went out. A doctor came out, and Chloe hurriedly approached.

"The patient's condition has stabilized, but he still need to be transferred to the ICU for some time." Saying this, the doctor handed Chloe a payment bill. "Settle the bill first,and you don't have to worry too much about the rest."

Chloe took the bill, and the amount on it surprised her. two thousand per day for the ICU. With such a substantial cost, she couldn't afford it with her current financial situation.

Stepping forward, Ethan took the bill from Chloe's hand, examined it carefully, and then spoke suddenly, "You might want to reconsider the job I offered last time."

Chloe snatched the bill back, saying, "No, thanks!"

Ethan's lips curled slightly, "With such an incident, even if Aiden is still willing to marry you, the Tinsley family won't allow you in anymore. Now, there's no one who can help you except me."

Finishing his words, Ethan squinted slightly, his expression turning dangerously serious, "Or do you want to become Aiden's mistress?"

Chloe stared at Ethan in disbelief, never expecting him to utter such words. She clenched her fists tightly and spoke coldly, "I will never be anyone's mistress!"

Ethan's expression remained unchanged, as if he had already anticipated Chloe's response. But he wasn't impatient at all because he knew that sooner or later, Chloe would come begging to him.

——

After arranging her father's hospital room, Chloe took a taxi back to the hotel. By this time, the people from the Tinsley family and the guests had long dispersed. She changed back into her own clothes, picked up her luggage, and left the hotel.

Returning to the house where her father and mother lived, Chloe calculated the money she had left in her hands, only about eight thousand. Among them, more than fifty thousand had to be used to repay debts...

Chloe hugged herself tightly, feeling a sense of helplessness spreading from the depths of her heart.

In the next few days, she focused on promoting her artwork drafts, hoping to receive more commissions. With both her father and mother in the hospital, she needed to take on more projects.

——

In the Blackwood family's living room.

These days, the entire Middleton was buzzing with rumors about Ethan suddenly leaving the wedding banquet and rushing to the scene of the Tinsley family's wedding.

Skylar sat beside Ethan's mother, Zoey, her face filled with tears of grievance and sadness. Ethan glanced at her, feeling irritated.

Ethan's father looked at his son with an angry expression, "Tell me, what exactly do you want to do!?"

"If the Kenyon family feels insulted, they can cancel the wedding," Ethan replied casually.

He was about to leave, but he was suddenly grabbed by Skylar rushing up to him, holding onto his clothes.

"Ethan, I don't want..."

Ethan glanced at the place where Skylar was holding onto him, furrowing his eyebrows slightly. He calmly removed her hand and spoke without much emotion, "If you don't mind her existence, you are still Mrs. Blackwood."

to be continued........