Looking entirely drained of his strength, Ethan's grip suddenly went slack, and his head slumped onto Seraphina's shoulder.

"Don't go, Seraphina... Please don't leave me..."

His muffled voice grew fainter and fainted, and the hand that had been about to caress her dark hair froze entirely.

Seraphina's dilated pupils trembled slightly, and the tears she had held back for so long finally spilled over.

It was only at a moment like this that Ethan would cast aside his icy indifference, losing his usual cruelty.

This single plea, uttered in a submissive tone he had never used before, coupled with the soft chiming of the wind chimes, acted like a needle piercing through her heart, which had been ballooning with grievances and bitter rage.

Her hand, which had been suspended in mid-air, slowly dropped, gently gathering the soundly sleeping man into her arms. Her quiet sobbing echoed through the empty house for a long moment, before ultimately dissolving into two steady, even rhythms of breathing.

A freezing wind blew through the night, howling through the half-open front door and clearing away a great deal of the pungent stench of alcohol.

Ethan's consciousness gradually cleared, a biting chill creeping up from his legs, while his head throbbed with a heavy, drilling pain.

He slowly opened his eyes, only to freeze upon catching sight of a sheet of white fabric before him.

It was only then that he realized a black trench coat had been draped over his body. His right arm was wrapped securely around the waist of the person before him, and a freezing hand rested loosely against the back of his head.

Ethan lifted his head, a familiar face reflecting in his eyes. Seraphina Cross?!

However, before he could even scramble to his feet, he realized the person he was tightly holding felt entirely off.

Seraphina's pale lips were slightly parted, her face flushed bright red, her brows tightly knit, and her breathing notably heavy.

Ethan immediately bolted upright, scooping Seraphina entirely up into his arms, his hoarse voice laced with pure panic: "Seraphina! Seraphina!"

He reached out to touch her face and forehead, the intense heat causing his hand to shiver.

Ethan's breath hitched. Staring down at the trench coat resting by his legs, his heart felt as though it were being driven straight through its softest core.

She had given her coat to him!

Chapter 38: The Fever

Ethan immediately grabbed the coat, wrapping it securely around Seraphina, the drilling pain in his head seemingly vanishing into absolute clarity in a split second.

He looked down at the unconscious Seraphina, and casting all caution aside, he bolted out of the house with her in his arms.

After placing her gently across the backseat, Ethan scrambled into the driver's seat, the car driving off into the distance like an arrow shot from a bow.

Through the rearview mirror, Seraphina's eyes remained tightly shut, her brows knit as her head rolled weakly from side to side; even though she lacked awareness, it was crystal clear that she was currently in immense agony.

Ethan's heart seized fiercely. Gritting his teeth, he pressed down harder on the gas pedal, wishing he could teleport to the hospital this very second.

It wasn't until Seraphina was hooked up to an IV and the crimson flush on her face gradually faded that his heart finally settled back into his chest.

Ethan sat by the bedside, staring at the sleeping Seraphina, the rims of his eyes filled with a tenderness he hadn't even noticed himself.

He merely recalled that yesterday, after Mr. Harrison had announced the final clause of the patriarch's will at the board meeting, he had stormed out.

Then he had drowned his sorrows in alcohol at home, and through his hazy vision, he seemed to have caught sight of Seraphina.

Ethan clenched his fists in profound self-reproach, believing it had been nothing more than a hallucination. Had he uttered those cruel words to hurt Seraphina yet again?

Right then, Leo appeared at the door of the ward. "CEO Vance," he called out softly.

Ethan cast a brief glance at him, stood up to gently tuck the blanket around Seraphina, and stepped quietly out of the room.

After handing Ethan a fresh coat, Leo spoke with a face full of gloom, "CEO Vance, regarding the company... the board members are all pressuring you to return to the office."

Hearing this, Ethan's movements froze, and he let out a mocking sneer. "When a wall cracks, everyone pushes. They want me back simply to force me to hand over the reins."

Leo dropped his head in silence. Although he felt Ethan had truly been lacking when it came to managing Vance Enterprises, he had worked by his side for several years after all, and his loyalty still leaned toward Ethan.

"We wait until Seraphina wakes up." Ethan adjusted his collar and turned back into the ward.

Leo stole a brief glance at her; Seraphina's complexion was indeed terrible, so he could only head back to the office to stall those demanding board members for now.

After an unknown length of time, Seraphina's consciousness finally cleared. Her tightly knit brows fluttered slightly, and she slowly opened her eyes.

The pristine white ceiling and the gentle lighting left her somewhat disoriented, and the pungent scent of disinfectant filtering into her nose made her realize she was inside a hospital.

She blinked her dry eyes, turning her head to the side, only to freeze instantly.

Ethan was sitting right by the bedside, one arm resting against the nightstand, his head propped on his elbow. Shielded from the weak sunlight outside, his face looked far softer than it ever had before.

Seraphina instinctively opened her mouth to call his name, but the moment reality hit her, she closed her lips in profound disappointment.

Her body was still entirely drained of strength, and looking down at the IV needle on the back of her left hand, she assumed she had caught a severe fever because she gave her coat to Ethan last night.

She just hadn't expected... Ethan would be the one to rush her to the hospital.

Seraphina stared at Ethan, who was barely a foot away, a trace of reluctance filtering through her eyes.

His face was somewhat pale, his jaw dusted with a shadow of stubble, and though he looked distinctly different from his usual pristine self, he lacked that sharp cruelty.

Involuntarily, she stretched out her hand, her trembling fingertips just about to touch Ethan's face when a pair of ink-dark eyes snapped open, locking onto her startled expression instantly.

Seeing that Seraphina was awake, a spark of clarity filled Ethan's eyes.

The slender hand before him snapped back like a sensitive leaf closing in on itself. He pressed his lips together, his hand moving ahead of his thoughts to fiercely lock onto her retreating wrist.

Seraphina's heart jolted, and she stared blankly at her captured hand.

Ethan's bloodshot eyes fixed onto her face, the emotions swirling within them an absolute, chaotic mess.

His grip tightened for a brief moment, before he suddenly let go. Seraphina froze, wondering what was wrong with him.

After a long silence, his hoarse, deep voice finally drifted out, "I will take you back in a moment."

Chapter 39 

Seraphina froze for nearly ten seconds, her eyes filled with absolute surprise, as if the man before her was not the Ethan Vance she knew.

Had a single downfall and a night of intoxication completely hidden away all the sharp edges of his entire being?

Ethan suppressed the sharp pain in the depths of his heart and averted his eyes. "You have everything you wanted." You should be happy now.

This time, those words did not strike Seraphina as sarcastic; instead, it felt as though Ethan was mocking himself.

该 lines of her eyes dimmed, and she felt quite uncomfortable in her heart.

The hand Ethan had slowly let drop clenched tightly once more. He forced himself not to look at Seraphina, yet his heart desperately yearned for her to speak, to offer him a few words of comfort, or perhaps to grasp his hand.

Yet, he ultimately felt this was nothing but a daydream. With the tricks the old patriarch had played, coupled with downing several bottles of liquor, he had actually sobered up quite a bit.

Things that did not belong to him would eventually depart one day.

Ethan stood up and walked out without a single word, leaving Seraphina with absolutely no time to react.

Staring at the shut door of the ward, Seraphina knit her brows and lowered her slightly dimmed eyes.

Yet, a mere ten minutes later, Ethan unexpectedly returned, holding a bowl of porridge in his hand.

Seraphina was stunned once again. One look at the packaging of the porridge was enough to tell it had been bought from those street vendors at the hospital entrance or the shop across the street.

She found it truly difficult to imagine Ethan going to street vendors and small shops to buy porridge; it was far too out of character...