The CEO’s Secret Lover Watched Him Choose Another Chapter 03

The CEO’s Secret Lover Watched Him Choose Another Chapter 03

The room erupted with questions. Everyone wanted to know who it was.

Ethan’s expression darkened as he stared at his phone, typing.

I felt my phone buzz twice, but I didn’t look at it. I just said, “He couldn’t make it.”

Seven or eight guys from our class hadn’t come on the trip.

Jake looked disappointed but was about to press for more when Sophia suddenly let out a small cry.

She’d knocked over her cup, water soaking into her pants.

Ethan immediately grabbed napkins to dab at the spill. She blushed. “Sorry, I’m so clumsy.”

“It’s fine. I’ll walk you back to change. Wouldn’t want you to catch a cold.”

He guided her out. With them gone, the documentary lost its appeal, and soon everyone trickled out.

When I got back to my room, my suitcase was open.

Ethan’s things were gone.

I spent the night staring at my phone.

The unread messages were still just his two texts, [Don’t say anything.] and [Don’t ruin the mood.]

Right. As his girlfriend, I couldn’t ruin his romantic tension with another girl.

Just like sophomore year, when I raised the most money at the charity sale but had to give the award to Sophia so the class beauty queen wouldn’t be outshone.

Or junior year, when Sophia casually mentioned wanting to “try playing in a match” and I had to withdraw so she wouldn’t get discouraged.

For three years, Ethan had been good to me. Shielding me from the summer sun, keeping me warm in the winter. He did everything a boyfriend should do, except acknowledge me.

Except when it came to Sophia, I was always second.

The sun rose. My phone stayed silent.

I watched the light spread across the sky, and the calm inside me grew.

The next day was for sightseeing.

Ethan and Sophia, linked by their red wristbands, walked together the entire time. He used the camera I’d bought him to take photos of her at every photo-worthy spot, and then selfies of the two of them.

We stopped to rest by a bridge, and people started asking about my plans after graduation.

“Olivia, are you staying in Meadowbrook or moving back to Crestwood?”

I answered quietly, “Crestwood.”

Ethan twisted the cap off a bottle of water for Sophia, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye.

Jake nudged him. “Sophia’s from Meadowbrook. You’re definitely staying here, right?”

Ethan didn’t hesitate. “Of course.”

Sophia’s eyes lit up as she shifted closer, pressing against him.

A classmate looked at me curiously. “Olivia, I thought you already had a job lined up here. Why are you going back?”

I smiled. “I turned it down. I want to be closer to my parents.”

“Really? Is it for your parents or for your boyfriend?”

The group leaned in, excited. I let my smile grow. “Both. My parents want me close, and he… decided to move to Crestwood, too.”

More teasing, more demands for a name, but I just shook my head and stayed quiet.

At the next stop, Ethan cornered me outside the bathroom.

“Did you really turn down the job?”

He looked genuinely rattled. We’d found those jobs together. The company had wanted me based on my grades, and my condition for accepting was that they also hire my boyfriend. If I backed out, he lost the offer too.

I nodded calmly. “Yeah. My parents found us jobs in Crestwood. We’re getting engaged once we’re settled.”

“Olivia!”

His voice cracked with anger, though he kept it low enough that no one else could hear. His face had gone pale. “Who said you could plan my future without asking me?”