The CEO's Contract Bride

Chapter 2: The First NightUntitled Episode

The Gu mansion was bigger than Ava had imagined.

White walls, tall glass windows, a garden full of roses. It looked like a palace. But when Ava walked in with her small old suitcase, she felt like a stranger in someone else's dream.

A woman in her fifties waited at the door. Her hair was perfect. Her smile was not.

"You must be Miss Lin," the woman said. Her eyes moved slowly from Ava's cheap shoes to her plain face. "I am Vivian, Ethan's stepmother. Welcome to the Gu family."

"Thank you," Ava said quietly.

Vivian's smile grew colder. "The Gu family has rules. Dinner is at seven. Be on time. Don't touch Ethan's study. And..." She paused. "Try not to embarrass us in front of guests."

Ava's face turned red. Before she could answer, a deep voice came from the stairs.

"That's enough, Vivian."

Ethan walked down, still in his suit. He looked at Ava. "Your room is upstairs. The second door on the left. My room is on the right. Remember the contract — we sleep separately."

"I remember," Ava whispered.

Ethan nodded and walked past her without another word.

A servant took Ava's suitcase and led her upstairs. The guest room was beautiful — soft bed, big window, fresh flowers on the table. But Ava sat on the edge of the bed and felt completely alone.

One year, she told herself. Just one year. For Mom.

At seven o'clock, Ava went downstairs for dinner.

The long dining table was already set. Vivian sat at one end, elegant as a queen. Ethan sat at the other end, reading his phone.

Ava took the empty seat in the middle and felt very small.

"So," Vivian said, cutting her steak slowly, "tell me, Miss Lin. What do your parents do?"

"My father passed away when I was young," Ava said. "My mother... she is in the hospital."

"I see." Vivian smiled thinly. "And what do you do?"

"I work at a small bookstore—"

"A bookstore?" Vivian laughed softly. "How... cute. Ethan, you married a bookstore girl. Your grandfather must be so happy."

Ethan put down his phone. "Vivian, eat your dinner."

The table went quiet. Ava stared at her plate and forced herself to eat.

Then the front door opened.

"Ethan! I'm back!"

A beautiful young woman ran into the dining room. Long black hair, red dress, bright smile. She threw her arms around Ethan's neck.

"Chloe?" Ethan stood up, surprised. "When did you come back?"

"Just now! I wanted to surprise you!" The woman named Chloe laughed. Then she noticed Ava. Her smile froze for half a second — then grew even brighter.

"Oh! You must be Ava! Ethan told me about the marriage." Chloe walked over and took Ava's hand warmly. "I'm Chloe Xu. Ethan and I grew up together. Welcome to the family!"

Ava felt dizzy. Everything about Chloe was perfect — her dress, her smile, her confidence. Next to her, Ava felt like a gray shadow.

"Thank you," Ava managed to say.

Dinner continued, but Ava could barely taste the food. Chloe sat next to Ethan and talked and laughed the whole time. They shared jokes Ava didn't understand. Memories Ava wasn't part of.

Vivian watched all this with a satisfied smile.

After dinner, Chloe pulled out her phone. "Ethan, look what I found while cleaning my old room! Do you remember this night?"

She held up the phone. On the screen was a photo of a grand hotel ballroom, full of people in evening dress. "The charity gala, three years ago. You disappeared halfway through the night, remember? Everyone was looking for you!"

Ethan glanced at the photo. "I don't remember."

But Ava wasn't listening to them anymore.

She was staring at the photo. At the background. At the hotel lobby behind the crowd — the marble floor, the crystal lights, the elevators.

She knew that lobby. She would never forget it.

It was the hotel where she woke up alone, three years ago, on that rainy morning.

Ava's hands began to shake under the table.

What was Chloe doing at that hotel? And why did Ethan disappear that night?