The call came to an abrupt end. Don’t be self-deluded. This sentence is like a curse, echoing repeatedly in her mind. Talia’s heart was bleak, the tenderness and affection that Adrian once nurtured were now gradually fading away. The snow outside the window was falling heavier, the piercing north wind howled, shaking the branches of the trees. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel~fire~net Talia stared blankly at the swirling snow outside the window. After a moment of silence, the phone began to ring desperately again. With tear marks still on her face, the noisy ringtone made Talia feel suddenly very weary. The call was from Shawn Rhodes. "Talia, the Jennings Family came to end the engagement today." Her heart was already numb with pain, Talia responded with a low voice. Shawn hesitated, seemingly unable to bear it, "Adrian is having rumors with a female celebrity, have you seen it?" Talia remained silent without answering. Shawn continued, "I will have a press conference tomorrow, to announce the dissolution of the engagement with the Jennings Family before the media. This time the responsibility lies entirely with them, Talia. The Jennings Family is at fault, don’t feel pressured. Annulment isn’t disgraceful, I’ll find you someone better in the future; our Talia is so beautiful and excellent, what kind of man can’t she find." Talia still stayed silent. She didn’t know how to respond. She didn’t expect that the Jennings Family would move so quickly, Adrian mentioned breaking up last night, and today they came to annul the engagement. So impatient, aren’t they? Thinking of the seductive voice on the phone just now, a pain gripped Talia’s heart. Is Adrian in such a hurry to sever ties with her to quickly give Lana Larsen a title? "Talia, get some rest, I’ll send a car to pick you up after the press conference tomorrow." After the press conference, the Rhodes Family and the Jennings Family would no longer have any ties, Vincent Fletcher probably wouldn’t try to target the Rhodes Family again. Shawn thought so, and reminded Talia not to be overly saddened and harm her health. Talia casually fobbed off his concerns. The dimly lit private room of a club. Ethan Grant sat on the sofa, his entire face hidden in the darkness, making his expression indistinct. A group of people were drinking, chatting, and flirting, but Ethan showed little interest; the busyness was unrelated to him, he just wanted to sit alone in the corner and get lost in thought. Recently, Talia had been out of touch. After being discharged from the hospital, he found out that Talia had moved; the apartment next door was already vacant. He didn’t know where she had moved to, and the phone wouldn’t connect. It seemed as if Talia had suddenly vanished from his world. He wallowed in dejection for a while, numbing himself with alcohol every day. Once when he was heavily drunk, in a daze it seemed as though Talia had returned. She wore the dress he had bought for her when they were dating, giving him a gentle smile, "Ethan." He cried with joy, holding Talia while laughing and sobbing. Talia reached out and lightly touched his face, eyes full of pity, "Don’t drink anymore, drinking too much harms your health, I’ll take you to rest." He covered Talia’s hand with his own, softly rubbing against her palm, tears streaming down his cheeks, "Talia, I really know I’ve been wrong, will you come back?" Talia smiled warmly, her voice soft, "See, I’m back now." Ethan, eyes reddening, asked, "I swear I’ll love only you from now on, be good only to you. Can we start over?" Talia’s gaze was tender and affectionate, "Alright, I won’t leave again." "So good." He muttered, "I thought... I’d never have a chance again..." The man couldn’t restrain his sobs any longer, he cried out loud. It was the touching sentiment of regained loss and repentance for past mistakes. His Talia had come back. Talia was as gentle as water, softly wiping away his tears, leaning in to kiss him on the lips. Desire was stirred, the atmosphere gradually heated up. That night, he wanted her many times. A wanton descent, an ecstatic oblivion. Yet, opening his eyes the next day, the person lying naked beside him was Vivian Coleman! At that moment, it felt like the sky was falling! How could it be Vivian Coleman? Last night was clearly Talia. He angrily berated Vivian. Vivian was not angry, instead she looked at him tearfully, biting her red lips, crying prettily. "Ethan, you like someone like Talia Rhodes, so from now on I’ll imitate her. Didn’t you say I looked somewhat similar to her? I can mimic her clothes, her makeup, and hairstyle, however you like. Please don’t drive me away, alright?" Recalling the scenes of last night, he hesitated. Last night, Vivian indeed seemed a lot like Talia! Vivian grasped his hand and gently shook it, speaking softly and coquettishly, "Ethan, last night you also felt good, didn’t you?" "Let me stay by your side, I am willing to be Talia Rhodes’s stand-in." Vivian pleaded in a low voice. No man can resist a woman’s humble plea . Especially a beautiful woman, a woman who wholeheartedly loves him! Ethan rubbed his nose bridge, deeply sighed. He really missed Talia too much; not seeing her these days was driving him insane. The moment Vivian pressed her body against his and kissed him, Ethan resigned himself to fate. He sadly thought, without Talia, having a stand-in is good enough. After that day, Vivian stayed by his side. It had to be said, she was a very competent stand-in. As she mentioned, she mimicked Talia’s style and hair, used the perfume Talia favored. Ethan especially liked to embrace Vivian from behind and smell her scent; their backs looked very much alike, and the fragrance on them was identical, driving Ethan wild with delight. That’s how he deluded himself, gradually sinking deeper. Yet, a stand-in is just a stand-in, it can never replace Talia’s place in his heart. She would never become Talia. Ethan sat there, in such an intimate atmosphere, Talia’s memory spread like wild vines, uncontrollable. His heart ached, suffocatingly, leading him to drink cup after cup, letting the alcohol numb himself. Someone suddenly said, "Check out the hot topics on Weibo, there’s big news." Ethan paid little attention at first. He had no interest in gossip. Until he heard Adrian Jennings’s name. He turned his head to look over, his eyes sharp, "What did you just say about Adrian Jennings?" A girl looked up, "He’s having rumors with the female celebrity Lana Larsen! Check Weibo’s trending, there’s paparazzi footage of them going into a hotel together, and insiders claim they’re dating. Lana Larsen is a top celebrity, this is big news!" Autumn Sterling interjected, "Isn’t Adrian Jennings Talia Rhodes’s fiancé? How could he..." Autumn Sterling stopped midway, paused slightly, then looked meaningfully at Ethan Grant, "Ethan, you know Talia well, did she break up?" Vivian Coleman’s expression stiffened, the dim light hid her pale face. "Impossible!" Vivian unconsciously raised her voice, "Their relationship is so good, they’re about to get married, you must be mistaken!" She was so close to succeeding. Ethan had already become addicted to her body; once she was pregnant with the Grant family’s child, she could use that to marry into the family. At this critical moment, she would not allow anything unexpected to happen! Talia Rhodes and Adrian Jennings couldn’t break up, couldn’t give Ethan Grant an opening. "Look, Vivian, it’s clear on the Weibo trending topics, we’re not mistaken." Autumn Sterling held out her phone. Vivian barely reached out before Ethan snatched the phone away.