Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 42: The Sight of You Annoys Me

Damn!

The moment those words were out, the entire table was floored.

’What kind of drama is this? The mistress meeting the *other* mistress? Are they about to have a catfight right on the spot?’

Joanna Lloyd was also incredibly surprised. Miranda Cameron was very private about her love life, and this was the first time Joanna had ever met Ethan Lancaster. But one thing she was sure of was that Miranda was still unmarried; there was no way she could be Ethan Lancaster’s wife.

Raina Reddington picked up her chopsticks and continued eating. After stirring up the hornet’s nest, she acted as if nothing had happened.

Ethan Lancaster was thick-skinned and didn’t care, but Miranda Cameron shrank to the side, not daring to speak again.

The man picked up his wine glass and took a small sip. Perhaps he found the wine not to his liking, as he put the glass back on the table after one taste. "Is it because I don’t give you enough money to spend? Is that why you can’t keep your mouth shut?"

"That’s right," Raina Reddington said, playing along. "Just look at how you play favorites..."

As Raina spoke, she pointed at Miranda Cameron, then at herself. "I have to pinch pennies just to buy a gift for a friend, but look at her. It just doesn’t sit right with me."

"Then what do you want?"

Raina tapped her chopsticks against her bowl. "You make her leave. You stay here and keep me company."

A female classmate sitting nearby broke into a cold sweat. ’It seems being a mistress is a true art form. You really can’t do it without a certain level of mastery.’

Miranda Cameron was on pins and needles. Words rushed to her lips, but she held them back. Raina loved seeing her suffer in silence.

"If anyone’s leaving, it should be you," Ethan Lancaster said, leaning back slightly. ’Even backed into a corner like this, Raina still hasn’t publicly exposed their relationship. Who is she saving face for?’ "I’m sick and tired of you right now."

Joanna Lloyd felt torn. Hearing those words was like a knife to her heart, and she ached for Raina’s awkward predicament. "Raina."

"I’m not going anywhere," Raina said. Spotting a dish she liked, she picked up a large shrimp and popped it into her mouth. "You like shrimp too, don’t you? Want to try some?"

"No, thanks. The sight of you makes me lose my appetite."

Every word he spoke was laced with cruelty, as if he wouldn’t stop until she had nowhere to hide her face in shame. Raina tried to let his words go in one ear and out the other, but they were like nails, embedding themselves in her mind, impossible to pry loose.

Eve Fletcher was practically clapping and cheering from the sidelines. "People should know their place. If it were me hearing those things, I’d definitely want to find a hole to crawl into."

Ethan Lancaster didn’t know who this woman was, but from her words, it was clear she was targeting Raina. ’How laughable. What business is it of hers to butt into their affairs?’

A cold sneer formed on the man’s lips. "With that body of yours, I’m afraid you wouldn’t fit into a small hole, would you?"

Eve Fletcher’s face went pale. Her figure had always been her weak spot, but she had never been attacked for it so directly. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Raina kindly offered her a piece of advice. "You should just focus on your food. Don’t go provoking him for no reason. When he gets vicious, he doesn’t even spare his own woman, let alone you."

This meal was an ordeal for Miranda Cameron. She lowered her voice and urged him quietly, "Ethan, we’re about done eating. Why don’t we leave now?"

"You can go."

Miranda froze for a moment. "You’re not leaving with me?"

"The driver’s downstairs. Have him take you home."

Miranda was now in an awkward position, unsure whether to sit or stand. Of course, she was unwilling to leave Ethan Lancaster here alone. "In that case, let’s just stay a little longer."

"There’s no need. You go on ahead."

Joanna Lloyd heard the finality in his tone and knew Miranda would only be embarrassing herself if she stayed. She quickly stood up and walked over. "Miranda, let me walk you out. There’s something I wanted to talk to you about anyway."

Miranda picked up her clutch and stood. Joanna escorted her out of the private room.

With the talking gone, silence fell over the table. Ethan Lancaster placed his left hand on the empty chair beside him. "What are you spacing out for? Come sit over here."

Raina stared at him. A half-smile played on Ethan’s lips. "I did as you asked and sent her home. What’s with this reaction?"

’Who knows what trick he’s up to now,’ Raina thought, hesitating. Ethan made a move as if to stand up. "Should I come over there, then?"

"Don’t—" Raina grabbed her bag, then picked up her bowl, chopsticks, and cup all at once, moving to the seat beside Ethan Lancaster.

When Joanna Lloyd returned to the room, she saw Ethan Lancaster’s arm draped over the back of Raina’s chair in a gesture that was both intimate and arrogant. She sat back in her original seat and watched as Ethan’s hand moved to wrap around Raina’s shoulder. Raina, however, now looked uncomfortable and tried to push his hand away.

The two of them were pulling and shoving at each other. It was so improper. The key thing was, this man had been brought here by another woman. Everyone present found the atmosphere strange and indescribable.

"Why don’t you introduce me to them?" Ethan Lancaster’s hand tightened, about to pull Raina into his embrace.

Raina struggled, but she couldn’t break free. "Didn’t Miss Cameron just introduce you? Why should I do something so redundant?"

"Look at you, why are you hiding? Shouldn’t we be a little more intimate?"

What Raina feared most was this man’s inappropriate touching, regardless of the occasion. ’He’s probably so used to it he can’t keep it in his pants anywhere.’ She grabbed Ethan Lancaster’s hand. "Fourth Master, isn’t that enough?"

"Not enough."

"Ethan Lancaster!"

Ethan Lancaster gestured toward the others at the table. "You can all go and look it up. See whose name is listed as the spouse after ’Ethan Lancaster’."

Raina tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Joanna looked on, bewildered. "Raina?"

Her tightly pursed lips relaxed slightly. "Joanna, he’s my husband."

"Huh?" Joanna cried out in shock. Ethan Lancaster nodded at her. "I hear Mrs. Lancaster’s gift wasn’t quite up to par. I’ll have someone make up for it another day."

"No, no, no... you don’t have to," Joanna said, frantically waving her hands. Her brain felt overloaded; she still couldn’t process what was happening. "I really love the gift Raina gave me."

"How could I let her lose her dignity as the lady of the house?" Ethan said, patting Raina heavily on the shoulder. "You should have said something sooner. I would have had Seth Sinclair prepare a gift for you too."

Seeing Raina sitting there with her head down, saying nothing, Eve Fletcher thought, ’What’s she so smug about? Running into her husband’s kept woman at a class reunion... She probably wishes she could run off and cry somewhere, right?’

After dinner ended, Raina said goodbye to Joanna and left the private room on her own.

She headed straight for the parking garage with the man following behind her. Raina found her car, opened the door, and got in.

Ethan Lancaster followed her in, settling into the passenger seat. Raina shot him a look. "Your driver is taking another woman home, but you want me to drive you?"

"So what you’re saying is... you want me to spend the night at another woman’s place?"

Raina started the engine and pulled the car out. "I wouldn’t dare. If Grandpa and Mom and Dad blame me for it later, I won’t be able to handle the consequences."

Ethan Lancaster fastened his seatbelt and leaned toward Raina. "Are you just afraid you won’t be able to handle it if I sleep with you every night?"