Chapter 8 Ethan's Odd Behavio
1012 Words
Ethan was in a meeting, his phone beside him. When he heard the notification sound, he glanced at it and saw a message from Harper. He paused for a moment.
Henry, who was giving a report and was good at reading the room, noticed Ethan's reaction and stopped, sneaking a peek at Ethan's phone. He only managed to see the name "Charlotte" before Ethan flipped his phone over and looked up at him.
Startled, Henry thought Ethan was about to scold him, but instead, he just coldly glanced at him and said, "Continue!"
Henry hesitated, then resumed explaining the design plan. As soon as he finished, Ethan frowned.
"Who approved this terrible plan?" he asked, his voice low but instantly heightening the tense atmosphere in the room.
Caught off guard, Henry hesitated and looked at Ethan, unsure of what to say.
Ethan looked at the other people in the room, but no one answered.
Everyone immediately looked down, pretending to think deeply, afraid of making eye contact with Ethan and being called out.
"Can't anyone answer?" Ethan asked.
No one dared to speak.
Everyone's pleading gaze covertly turned towards Henry.
Henry, as Ethan's assistant and the company's vice president, usually took the brunt of the criticism, especially recently.
Even the dullest people noticed something was off with Ethan. He wasn't just more irritable or picky. He exuded a strange, tense vibe and was unusually strict with work. His gaze seemed to cast a chill wherever it landed.
Most importantly, he seemed to have memory lapses, perhaps due to distraction.
Under the pressure of everyone's eyes, Henry felt overwhelmed. He usually managed the criticism, but could he handle it this time?
Henry tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible, but Ethan's gaze still turned to him with everyone else.
"Since everyone's looking at you, Mr. Daniel, please answer on their behalf," Ethan said, glancing at the European-style building design on the big screen behind him. "Who approved this terrible plan?"
Henry's hair stood on end.
Ethan looked at him. "Mr. Daniel?"
Henry, with no other option, looked at Ethan. "I... don't know."
He didn't have the courage to speak the truth.
Ethan glanced at him first, then at the others.
Everyone pretended to be deep in thought.
"Mr. Roberts, you tell me," Ethan randomly called out.
The general manager, Carter Roberts, nervously glanced at Henry, then threw the question back to him. "Mr. Daniel... Mr. Daniel was in charge of this project."
Ethan's gaze returned to Henry. "Henry."
Henry looked at his colleagues, all of whom were pretending to take notes. He hesitantly looked at Ethan, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Ethan said, "Speak up."
Henry gritted his teeth. "You approved the plan yourself, Mr. Brooks."
Last night," he added in a low voice.
The room fell silent.
Henry cautiously looked up at Ethan, seeing a flicker of surprise on his face.
Ethan turned to look at the design behind him.
Henry carefully observed his expression. "Mr. Brooks, you seem a bit off these days. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Ethan's expression had returned to calm. "Sorry, my mistake. Redo the design. Meeting adjourned."
With that, Ethan grabbed his phone from the table and walked out.
As the meeting room door closed, the tense atmosphere eased.
Everyone gave Henry a thumbs-up.
"Brave man."
Henry pointed at each of them. "After all I do for you, and this is how you repay me at crunch time? I'm so disappointed."
"You're the only one who can handle Mr. Brooks' anger."
"Mr. Daniel, you've worked hard. We'll treat you to dinner someday."
*****
In CEO's office.
Ethan had already sat down in his chair, tossing his phone to a corner of his desk. He was clearly in a bad mood.
Henry guessed it had something to do with "Charlotte," which he accidentally glimpsed in the text earlier.
He had met Charlotte a few times and had a good impression of her. She was good-looking, with a pure and gentle demeanor, quiet and simple. She spoke softly, with a warm and pleasant voice, not impatient or pretentious. She was polite and courteous, unlike Ethan's mother, Harper, who always had a haughty air.
Henry knew about Ethan's divorce because Ethan had asked him to contact the lawyer.
But he didn't know why they divorced.
He only knew that Ethan had been acting strange lately, especially after Henry told him that Charlotte was selling the house. Ethan couldn't even remember the approved plans he had signed.
After a moment of silence, Ethan glanced at the phone he had thrown aside, paused, and then picked it up. He tapped the message from Harper on w******p, which included a photo. In the photo, Charlotte was staring blankly at the bar, and Aiden was staring blankly at Charlotte.
Ethan's hand paused as he looked at the two in the photo.
The photo, taken in low light with a portrait mode, vividly captured every detail of their expressions.
As a man, Ethan understood the look in Aiden's eyes when he looked at Charlotte. It wasn't just a surprise or a fleeting interest. It was a deep, buried affection that was intense and everlasting.
Ethan didn't know who Aiden was. He had never seen him, nor had he seen any photos of him with Charlotte.
Charlotte...
Ethan paused on his phone. He realized he had never even checked Charlotte's phone, so how could he have seen any photos?
Henry couldn't see what was on Ethan's phone, but he noticed his gaze growing colder and more detached, almost icy. His face was nearly expressionless, yet extremely calm. This calm reminded Henry of the sea before a storm.
Henry thought Ethan might erupt. But then he saw him tap the phone again and reply to Harper, "It's the person I arranged. You don't have to worry."
Ethan turned off the phone, tossed it aside, and called out, "Henry! I'm going to the airport now."
Henry stood up, confused. "What? Mr. Brooks, you're leaving now? What about the meeting with Mr. Grayson?"
Ethan replied, "Cancel it!"
- Writer
