Eleanor looked at him, bewildered, wondering if her sadness was making her hear things wrong. "What...did you say?" She couldn’t help but ask for confirmation. "I said, I want to take advantage of the situation." Adrian Grant released her slightly and wiped away the tears at the corner of Eleanor’s eyes with his thumb. "Understand now? Eleanor, do I need to repeat it for you?" Eleanor stiffly shook her head. The dim light made it difficult for her to see Adrian’s expression, only his silhouette. The darkness allowed people to hide their comfort, giving rise to reckless courage. "Adrian, haven’t you disliked me since we were young?" she asked earnestly, truly puzzled. Adrian was momentarily stunned, incredulous: "Who told you that?" Adrian laughed, amused, not knowing where Eleanor got this misconception. "Zia Winslow, since you were young, you’ve always focused on my brother. You could even sense me?" Eleanor opened her mouth, wanting to refute that she didn’t. She noticed him too—secretly! Before she could speak, she heard the man say, "Hmm, you know how to slander me." He...he never disliked her... The conversation made her briefly forget Melody Nash, and the room returned to silence with Eleanor not speaking again. Adrian held Eleanor’s hand. Eleanor wanted to break free, but after crying earlier, she was completely exhausted and could only let him hold her. Adrian even gently stroked the back of her hand with his finger, like comforting her, or perhaps showing affection. "Eleanor, I’m not saying these things to you for nothing." "You’re thinking too highly of me," Adrian chuckled. "Eleanor, I don’t like comforting people. Even if I did, I wouldn’t use such means." Adrian said, "I want you to reconsider, Mrs. Grant." After truly confirming and seeing Melody, Eleanor had been trapped in the pain of abandonment. Her most beloved mother abandoned her in her youth; she experienced pain and hardship in her memories, like a joke. And now, Adrian’s words made Eleanor feel ’needed.’ —He needed her as a person and her love. This feeling of being needed was like a rope suddenly appearing, pulling Eleanor back from the edge of a cliff. Eleanor blinked, used an inappropriate metaphor, and uncertainly asked, "You want to pursue me?" Whose divorced husband or wife used the word ’pursue’? But Adrian did not refute, as it wasn’t the point and didn’t need correction. He suddenly stood up, leaned his whole face toward her, and stopped just inches away from Eleanor. With a voice that had an alluring tone, he asked, "Give me a chance, Mrs. Grant?" Eleanor found the scene before her incredible, with nothing seeming real. Could Adrian like her this much? Like her enough that, such a proud person, after she repeatedly brought up divorce, would still say ’give me a chance’? "What if, in the end, I still want a divorce?" Eleanor asked. Adrian casually replied, "We’ll talk about it then." The dark concealed the man’s gloom and aggression. There was silence again for a few seconds. Eleanor suddenly stood up. "Where are you going?" Adrian asked, holding her arm tightly, with tension in his voice. "..." Eleanor was speechless, "To the bathroom." The faucet’s water flowed steadily. Eleanor scooped up water to wash her face, the water and tears mixed, hiding any embarrassment and leaving only complexity in her eyes. She looked at herself in the mirror. She used to think Adrian liked Mia Winslow, but it turns out he didn’t. She thought Adrian’s feelings for her were just habitual after marriage, but they weren’t. She thought the person who loved her most was her mom, but in the end, it wasn’t. She had always been wrong. So, would this time be right? She...Should she give Adrian a chance, and also give herself one? The door was knocked. Adrian’s voice came from outside, with some concern: "Eleanor!" She had been inside for a long time. Eleanor wiped her face with a towel, opened the door expressionlessly, with two words on her face: What’s up? Adrian felt relieved when he saw Eleanor was fine. "Aren’t you going to work today?" Eleanor started to issue a dismissal. Adrian nodded naturally. Bosses have the right to give themselves a vacation. Eleanor was at a loss for words, saying, "You should leave." Adrian raised his brow slightly: "Didn’t you just agree to let me pursue you?" Eleanor had never witnessed Adrian pursuing someone, nor had she thought Adrian would pursue someone, let alone that Adrian wanted to pursue her. The living room light shone again, and the coffee table still had files Adrian left behind from staying over recently. Eleanor was not in the mood to argue with him, throwing that line and then returned to her bedroom to sleep with the covers over her head. Once asleep, she wouldn’t have to think about anything. However, her mind stayed in a hazy state, like a nightmare, with various scenes repeatedly playing out in her mind— On one hand, there was his unprecedented candidness, and on the other, the sudden appearance of Melody, leaving her physically and mentally exhausted. When Eleanor woke up again, there was a glass of water on the bedside table, and when she touched it, it was still warm. She glanced at the time; it was 7 am. She had slept straight through to the next morning. To keep the water warm meant Adrian came in from time to time to check on her and change the water. Eleanor’s heart skipped a beat. She changed clothes and walked out of the bedroom, finding Adrian sitting on the sofa, holding files in one hand, not having changed his clothes. It looked like he hadn’t slept all night. Noticing Eleanor’s movement, he looked over. "You’re not going back home?" Eleanor’s state of mind seemed better. "Does Mrs. Grant expect me to pay rent?" Adrian Grant acted as if he hadn’t caught Eleanor’s hint for him to leave. Eleanor knew that Adrian was stubborn; he always went with his own ideas, and if he wanted to stay here, he’d certainly find a way not to leave. Eleanor nodded, "Then you can stay here, it’s just right as I’m going to accompany Blake." Before Adrian could say anything, Eleanor had already left the house. Adrian wanted to be angry, yet he couldn’t find it in himself to be so. After all, she left her house to him, not only did she not forcefully drive him away, but she also trusted him with looking after the place. Blake Lockwood didn’t expect Eleanor to adjust so quickly, coming to see him as if nothing happened the very next day. Eleanor did not bring up the matter with Melody Nash proactively, so Blake didn’t mention it either. Blake’s residence was a small villa, guarded by bodyguards outside, with two maids inside, making life very convenient. During that time, Eleanor received another call from the Aethelgard University Law School. The dean urged her again to stay at the school. Partly because the dean admired Eleanor greatly, and partly because Eleanor had shone brilliantly again in the debate competition. The school believed in retaining their talent. After careful consideration, Eleanor ultimately agreed to stay on for her doctoral studies, becoming the first Aethelgard University doctoral student in a collaborative program with Harvard University. "Why did you suddenly decide not to study abroad?" Blake knew Eleanor had spent a lot of effort on her overseas application process earlier. Her hand landed on her abdomen as she suddenly realized, "You wouldn’t be staying in Aethelgard for me, would you? Eleanor, I can take care of myself." "Back when I was in the psychiatric hospital, it was you and Uncle and Aunt who arranged for someone to look after me and visited me frequently, or else I might have really gone insane in there." Eleanor wanted to reassure her, "This doctoral program carries a lot of weight. Staying is a good choice." Before long, it was the eve of Mia Winslow’s engagement banquet. Eugene Winslow called Eleanor, reminding her to be present. Previously, Eleanor behaved dutifully in front of Eugene, wanting to uncover the truth about her mother’s death. But now, she discovered that her mother was not dead, but had abandoned her. Although Eugene hadn’t treated her well, he hadn’t abandoned her. Eleanor felt emotionally conflicted. Even setting aside the gratitude of upbringing, just for not being abandoned, Eleanor planned to show up tomorrow and give Eugene some face. "Miss Lockwood, someone from the Hawthorne Family sent an invitation." A servant, returning from grocery shopping, handed over an invitation from outside. It was the invitation to Zane Hawthorne and Mia Winslow’s engagement banquet. "Ha, what kind of people are these?" Eleanor commented coldly. Blake and Trevor Hawthorne hadn’t officially divorced yet, and she was still considered the Hawthorne Family’s young mistress, Zane Hawthorne’s sister-in-law. Never seen a sibling-in-law needing an invitation to the younger brother’s engagement banquet. "This must have been sent by Trevor Hawthorne to remind me to attend." Blake Lockwood ripped up the invitation without a second thought, "Don’t be mad, I wasn’t planning on going anyway." She had no desire to see Trevor Hawthorne again. Although Zane Hawthorne was an illegitimate child, he was highly favored in the Hawthorne Family and had a considerable degree of influence within the company. Thus, the scale of the engagement banquet was no less than Trevor Hawthorne’s. Fresh chapters posted on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦•𝘯𝘦𝘵 Eugene Winslow and Yvonne Vance dressed particularly formally and mingled with guests in the flower hall. Eleanor scanned around but did not spot Mia Winslow. "Eleanor’s here!" Eugene saw Eleanor at a glance and approached her with a smile. Seeing that she was alone, he asked, "Where’s Adrian?" Eleanor hadn’t told Adrian Grant about the event at all. Eugene wanted his prospective son-in-law Adrian Grant to be present to bolster his image. Hearing her words, his smile froze. He was just about to get annoyed when a male voice interrupted, "Eleanor." Eleanor looked over to see Adrian Grant suddenly appear, "?" "Son-in-law!" Eugene immediately smiled wide, switching his expression as he gave Eleanor a chiding look, "Didn’t you say Adrian was busy? You’re something else!" Eleanor looked up at the sky, then at the ground, pretending not to hear. Just as Eugene wanted to discuss some business matters with Adrian, Adrian noticed Eleanor’s absent-mindedness and deftly rejected the conversations, taking Eleanor away. Yvonne Vance remarked sarcastically, "You fancy Adrian Grant so much, yet look at what he’s given back, less than our Mia’s Zane, I’d say!" "Zane’s just an illegitimate child; the Hawthorne Family’s main assets still rest with Trevor. How can he compare to Adrian Grant?" Eugene quietly reprimanded, "Women have such short-sightedness!" Is being illegitimate inherently inferior? Yvonne felt indignant but dared not contradict her husband. "Why did you come?" Eleanor asked the man beside her. "I had time." Adrian Grant had arrived long ago, but just stayed in the car, finding engaging with these people unnecessary. It was only when Eleanor arrived that he made his appearance. "Miss Winslow!" Trevor Hawthorne appeared from nowhere, "Where’s Blake?" Trevor was formally dressed today, the pinstripe suit smoothing out some of his rebellious aura, making him seem like a shrewd and ruthless businessman. Eleanor immediately noticed Vivian Quinn trailing a few steps behind Trevor, her face rounder, stomach noticeable, displaying signs of pregnancy. "Trevor, you’re walking too fast, wait for me!" Vivian Quinn whined. Eleanor rolled her eyes, mocking Trevor, "Blake is naturally resting at home. Why come here? It’s so unpleasant with all the mistresses around—it’s no good for prenatal education!" Mistresses and their offspring abound! "Eleanor!" Vivian was infuriated, her harsh voice drawing the attention of nearby guests. Vivian shifted gears, softening her tone, "I’m thinking of Blake’s best interest here. It’s the Hawthorne Family’s big day, and yet Blake’s absence on such an important occasion is quite impolite." Eleanor felt her statement ridiculous, "If even you can show up here, what’s the point of talking about etiquette?" "You—!" Vivian, angered, pointed her finger at Eleanor. However, before she could extend her finger fully, Adrian shifted slightly to shield Eleanor behind him, looking at Vivian with indifference. Terrified, Vivian withdrew her hand; she didn’t dare point at Adrian Grant. The guests exchanged glances and murmured among themselves: "Isn’t the Grant couple supposed to be divorced?" "With the way Adrian Grant is protecting Eleanor, can they really be divorced?" "After all that uproar, they’re not divorcing? Even Trevor and Blake are getting divorced, but these two aren’t?" "Shh! Keep it down, I heard Young Master Grant gets unhappy hearing that talk, and might bear a grudge!" "The main event is here!" Someone in the crowd suddenly shouted. Mia Winslow walked over in a pink custom qipao with jacquard patterns, standing beside a tall and thin man with attractive features. He bore some resemblance to Trevor Hawthorne, but standing next to someone as distinguished as Trevor, he seemed somewhat ordinary. In terms of grace, his demeanor was also nowhere near Adrian Grant’s. Mia Winslow spotted Eleanor and Adrian Grant in the crowd, instinctively clenching her teeth, trying hard to hide the resentment in her eyes. The man she had adored for years was standing by Eleanor, while she had to stand next to an illegitimate child, why! Eleanor couldn’t help but glance at Adrian Grant. The man immediately looked at her, wrapping his long arm around her waist, pulling her into his embrace. "Hey!" Eleanor, in her high heels, almost stumbled into him. Then she heard Adrian say, with a hint of gritted teeth in her ear, "How many times do I have to say it, I don’t like her." Originally, the rumors about Adrian Grant and Mia Winslow were rampant. Now that Mia Winslow was engaged, and Adrian Grant had personally shown up, many were quietly observing the situation. Adrian’s action directly drew everyone’s attention. Eleanor’s ears turned slightly red, and she quietly nudged Adrian, whispering, "Let go!" The man, unfazed, slightly loosened his grip, yet his hand remained at Eleanor’s waist in a possessively close manner. He glanced around calmly, prompting onlookers to pull back their gazes immediately. His eyes displayed no amusement; yet he smiled and asked, "What are you looking at?"