To avoid Nana being left alone with nothing to do, Ava Moore gave her the keys to the rented apartment and asked her to go back first.
Now, only Ava, the man, and Emily Zhang—lying unconscious on the hospital bed—were left.
The man crossed his arms and looked at Ava coldly.
"Who are you? Why didn't I know Emily knew someone like you?"
Ava hesitated, then asked, "Then who are you?"
"I'm her brother—Alex Zhang."
Her brother?
Ava instantly felt embarrassed. She really had gotten involved in someone else's family matters.
"I… I'll step outside for a moment," she said awkwardly.
She planned to call Ethan Sterling to explain what happened. But to her surprise, not long after the call went through, Ethan arrived at the hospital in person.
By the time he arrived, Emily had already woken up.
"Ethan Sterling, what are you doing here?" Alex Zhang said sharply. Then he suddenly realized something and turned to Ava. "You called him, didn't you?"
"She's just my assistant," Ethan said calmly, stepping forward and pulling Ava behind him. "You don't need to speak so harshly."
He looked at Alex Zhang, but his words were directed at Emily.
"Miss Zhang, Mason Fang has something he wants to say to you."
As he spoke, Ethan took out his phone and dialed Mason's number, preparing to pass it to Emily.
But Alex Zhang stopped him immediately.
"She doesn't want to hear anything from him!"
"You are not her," Ethan replied coolly.
He handed the phone to Ava. "Give it to her."
Ava walked over and gently passed the phone to Emily.
Emily took it. The moment she heard Mason's voice, tears slid down her face. She cried softly while listening, but her expression slowly eased. She looked much better than before.
After a while, Ethan took the phone back.
"Let's go," he said.
Without staying another second, he turned and left with Ava.
The next few days were hectic.
Since Nana arrived, Ava had been extremely busy—leaving early, coming home late, and often working overtime. She barely had time to talk to Nana at all.
That morning, Nana woke up early and prepared breakfast, determined to finally have a proper talk with Ava.
"Ava, let's talk today. We haven't really talked since I came here."
"Okay," Ava replied while sipping her porridge. She glanced at the time. "But I might not have much time."
"That's fine. As long as we can talk. You—"
Before Nana could finish, Ava's phone rang.
She glanced at the screen and immediately answered.
"President."
"You don't need to come to the company," Ethan said. "Go straight to the venue."
"Okay."
Ava hung up, quickly finished her porridge, grabbed her things, and stood up in one smooth motion.
"Nana, I'm sorry. I have to go to the venue. Next time—next time for sure!"
Before Nana could say anything, the door slammed shut.
Nana stared at the closed door, cheeks puffed in frustration.
What is this? Waking up early was completely pointless!
As soon as Ava arrived at the venue, Ethan Sterling walked out.
"How did you get here?" he asked, already moving forward.
He didn't stop walking, so Ava had no choice but to follow.
"I live pretty near here…"
She watched as Ethan got into the car.
"President, where are we going?" she asked in confusion.
"Why are you standing there? Get in," he said impatiently.
Ava got into the car obediently. Before she could even close the door, Jason had already started driving.
What's going on?
Wasn't today the day Lana West was supposed to shoot the promotional video?
Did something happen to Lana?
"President…" Ava asked carefully. "What about the promotional shoot?"
She could tell his expression was terrible.
"Call Lisa Chen," Ethan said, coughing lightly. "Tell her to inform the venue that the shoot is postponed. Also, have her contact the person in charge at Heyu Company. She'll know what to do."
Ava followed his instructions and made the call.
Everything was arranged quickly.
When she hung up, she noticed Ethan was still coughing, one cough after another.
She stared at him for a moment, distracted.
Then suddenly, Ava looked outside the window and spoke loudly.
"Jason—pull over!"
Her sudden shout startled Jason, and he slammed on the brakes.
Before the car had even fully stopped, Ava opened the door and jumped out.
"Wait for me!" she said quickly.
"Ava!" Ethan called after her