Divorced, But The Billionaire Flusters!

Chapter 5 She Was Adopted

Charlotte offered an awkward smile. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop. It was an accident. I'm really sorry for causing so much trouble for you and your family. This marriage was a mistake from the beginning. We're from different worlds. You have someone you can't let go of, and I have my pride. Your parents can't accept me, and I don't want to force myself into a situation where I don't belong... So, let's just leave it at that."

Ethan stared at her, his lips pressing tightly together silently.

Charlotte quietly met his gaze.

"My background doesn't match up with yours, and I'm really not a match for you. But there's someone out there who's right for me, so I won't force this." Charlotte smiled. "I hope you and Ms. Hughes end up happily together."

Ethan remained silent.

Charlotte didn't say more. She smiled politely and turned to go back to her room.

"Amelia... She's Liam Hughes' youngest daughter. She got lost when she was five, and I was responsible for that," Ethan suddenly said.

Charlotte turned back in surprise.

Ethan was still looking at her. "If she were still alive, she'd be about your age now."

"I'm sorry. I didn't know about her..." Charlotte apologized instinctively.

"It's okay," Ethan interrupted. "It's not about who deserves whom between us. I didn't take good care of you, and I'm very sorry for that."

Charlotte said, "It's my fault."

"It's not," Ethan said, exhaling softly, his demeanor returning to its usual calm. "I'll have the lawyer handle the divorce and the division of assets."

"No need," Charlotte declined with a smile. "They were never really mine."

Ethan said nothing. He just watched her quietly from a short distance, his gaze calm and cool, like a deep, unfathomable pool.

Charlotte struggled to maintain her smile, pointing behind her. "Well... I should go..."

Ethan suddenly stepped forward and hugged her tightly.

"Take good care of yourself," he whispered in her ear, then quickly let her go and walked away without looking back.

Charlotte stared blankly, watching him leave. His tall figure moved with the same steady determination, but there was a finality to his steps, no hesitation, no regret.

It was still the Ethan she knew.

Charlotte couldn't help but smile, but tears began to fall uncontrollably.

She wanted to stop, but for some reason, she couldn't, and her throat felt tight.

She tilted her head back slightly, forcing the tears back. When she returned to her room, she deleted Ethan's w******p and phone number and then began to focus on preparing for her studies abroad.

She was lucky. Her visa was approved after thirty working days.

The day before leaving the country, Charlotte made a quick trip home.

As soon as she entered the house, she saw her brother, Mason Parker, lying on the couch playing video games, looking at ease.

Mason, six years older than her, was good-looking and well-educated.

He had worked hard during his school years, but as the only son in the family, his mother, Evelyn Parker, also Charlotte's adoptive mother, had spoiled him since childhood, unwilling to let him suffer, which had unknowingly ruined him.

He couldn't handle hardship, aimed too high, and never held a job for more than six months. He found those jobs tedious and a waste of his life and thought the salaries were too low. He even believed his bosses were idiots who didn't understand him. In his eyes, it was always someone else's fault, never his.

As a result, despite graduating from college seven or eight years ago, he had accomplished nothing. He spent days dreaming of starting his own business and making a fortune, draining his parents' retirement funds. Sadly, despite his ventures, he had gained nothing and ended up spending his days at home.

He didn't notice Charlotte coming in, but Evelyn did even if she was busy in the kitchen. She dried her hands and came out, habitually looking behind Charlotte. "Charloty? Why are you back alone? Where's Ethan?"

Engrossed in his game, Mason looked up instinctively at the mention of Ethan and also looked behind Charlotte. "Ethan's here?"

Not seeing Ethan, Mason looked at Charlotte. "Did you guys have a fight?"

Charlotte denied, "No."

"Is he very busy then?" Mason moved his legs from the coffee table. "By the way, have you spoken to him about the resort project? Since it's got to be done anyway, it's better if I earn the money rather than some outsiders."

"What about Manhattan? Did you talk to Ethan about that? The lakeside villa is really nice and big and has great lighting. It's in high demand. The sales office keeps calling, saying if we don't put down a deposit this week, the one we want will be taken by someone else," Evelyn chimed in.

Charlotte said, "If you have the money, then buy it."

Evelyn replied, "Come on. You know we were hoping to borrow some from Ethan."

Charlotte looked at her and said, "Mom, a villa there costs tens of millions of dollars. You're asking to borrow ten million dollars with no ability to repay. That's not borrowing. That's robbing."

Evelyn's voice softened. "Once your brother secures the resort project, he'll have the money to repay."

"Yes, Charlotte," Mason chimed in. "Don't worry. We don't want your money. We'll borrow it for now and pay you back with interest later."

Charlotte stared at him, questioning, "What collateral do you have for that project? Your shell company?"

Ever since she married Ethan, Mason saw it as a financial opportunity.

He knew Ethan's family was involved in real estate, and he had heard from his friends that construction was profitable. So, despite having no experience, he quickly set up a construction company, hoping to leverage his connection with Ethan to get some projects.

But Mason had never intended to actually do the work. He planned to subcontract it out for a high price, then sub-subcontract it at a lower price, pocketing from the process.

Charlotte knew what he was up to and how incompetent he was. Thus, she always stopped his attempts to approach Ethan for help.

But Mason was persistent. She could stop him once or twice, but not forever.

When he realized she wouldn't help, he went directly to Ethan, just like Evelyn did.

Evelyn wasn't trying to make big money off Ethan like Mason. She simply wanted Ethan's money.

Since Charlotte married Ethan, Evelyn took pride in it arrogantly, boasting to everyone that her daughter married into wealth.

Evelyn loved to brag about Ethan's wealth and generosity, leading to all kinds of relatives, even distant ones, coming to them for help with money, jobs, and connections.

Evelyn, eager to maintain dignity, agreed to all their requests, no matter what, and then turned to Charlotte to fulfill them.

Charlotte didn't let her do it her way, and she always refused. But she never knew that Evelyn and Mason shared the same flaws. When Evelyn saw she couldn't get anywhere with Charlotte, she started using her identity as a tool and went directly to Ethan or his parents.

Ethan's parents thus didn't like Charlotte, seeing her as a scheming woman who tried to benefit her own family through her marriage to Ethan.

Charlotte understood their attitude, but she didn't know how Ethan felt about it because he never mentioned it.

But probably he also looked down upon her.

Charlotte felt deeply embarrassed about the situation.

But Mason didn't understand her discomfort. When she called his company a shell, he exploded, "How is my company a shell? You married a rich man, and now you think you're too good for us, your poor relatives. I get it now. No wonder you always find excuses when we ask for help."

Evelyn's face also turned sour. "Charloty, how can you talk to your brother like that? It was just a favor. Why can't we consider family first if someone else can do the project? We're not after his money."

"Then let him bid for it on his own," Charlotte said, putting down her bag. "I'm going back to my room."

As the door closed, she heard Evelyn's enraged voice outside.

"When your Dad brought her home, I said we shouldn't keep her. I said we shouldn't. She's not ours, and she was not trustworthy. But your Dad didn't listen and insisted. Now look at this. We raised her, worked hard to send her to school, and now that she's grown and successful, she looks down on us."

Charlotte sat down silently at her desk, her gaze drifting from the empty room to a jewelry box on the table. After a moment's hesitation, she reached for it.

Inside, there was an old, elegant necklace.

Charlotte vaguely remembered wearing it as a child, but she couldn't recall who had put it on her.

The necklace was her only memory from childhood.

She had always known she was adopted.