Chapter 11 Bored

Little Simpleton was gone! Ethan searched the entire bedroom, study, and bathroom, but there was no sign of Vivian. Where could she have gone at this late hour? Ethan even checked the windows, fearing she might've jumped out. Thankfully, there were no signs of the windows having been opened. After all, she was a fool! While a typical fragile woman might choose suicide after being humiliated, she wasn't like that. Her mind probably didn't have such complex emotional feelings. Once he realized this, Ethan felt a bit calmer. He decided to check the playroom dedicated to Little Simpleton downstairs. However, just as he stepped out of the room planning to go downstairs, he saw Brevard leading Little Simpleton upstairs. Little Simpleton had a reluctant look on her face, and even pouted angrily when she saw him. Clearly, Little Simpleton was still angry, but Ethan breathed a sigh of relief nonetheless. He asked Brevard, "What happened? Where did you find her?" "In the servant's quarters," Brevard shrugged, "She said she was in pain, so she went to get medication applied." "She's got a minor tear in her ear, probably from the tussle earlier. But don't worry, it's not serious. It'll be fine in a few days. The servants have already treated it." Hearing the word "tear," Ethan immediately walked over to Vivian. His voice held an urgency he didn't even notice himself, "Let me check." "No! Bad brother." Vivian pouted, hiding behind Brevard while saying, "Mr. Glasses, protect me!" Ethan's eyebrows furrowed. When did she start calling Brevard Mr. Glasses again? Wasn't she calling him Nasty Glasses before? Ethan didn't know what was going on with him, but he felt a bit uncomfortable. Even the way he looked at Brevard was somewhat displeased, "It's late. You should go rest." Brevard quirked a brow, "But there's still something I need to talk to you about." "Vivian, you should head back to your room and get some sleep. I'll dress your wound again tomorrow. The cut on your ear will heal soon. If you're a good girl, I'll give you a very sweet candy tomorrow," Brevard told Vivian. Vivian yawned, "Alright, Vivian will go to sleep. Mr. Glasses, don't forget about Vivian's candy." After an emphatic stomp of her foot at Ethan, she ascended the stairs back to her room. … "What's with you?" Brevard asked, looking at Ethan with curiosity. "You seem to care a great deal about that little simpleton. The way you were looking at me earlier... it was as if you were jealous." "Jealous?" Ethan chuckled, "You must be joking. Why would I be jealous of you because of a silly woman?" "Alright!" Brevard shrugged, "Maybe I can interpret that as possessiveness and protectiveness. To be honest, the moment I saw that surveillance video, I wanted to kill Tyler myself. I also wanted to protect that poor little girl." "Enough, don't bring up that scene again." It would only remind him of how helpless he was when he was pretending to be in a coma, "Let's talk business." "Ok, business it is. Honestly, you woke up quite abruptly. It wasn't what we had planned." "What? Given the situation just now, if you were in my shoes and lying next to the little simpleton, could you have held back?" "Alright, any man would have done that. And Tyler, thanks to you, is heavily injured. He won't be able to move for a few months, let alone leave the country. It's a boon for our plans." "Is that all you wanted to tell me? Nothing else?" "Nothing else. What else do you want to hear?" "Fine, I'm leaving then." Without a backward glance, Ethan finished speaking and walked away. He'd made his exit quickly, but by the time he returned to his room, the little simpleton was already asleep. "Heh, she fell asleep so quickly," Ethan chuckled to himself. "The simpleton really is worry-free." Vivian, who was only pretending to be asleep, thought, "You're the simpleton, and so is your whole family!" She was just about to swear silently when she felt a slight dip in the mattress beside her--Ethan had gotten into bed. Shortly after, she felt a warm touch on her ear. It was unmistakably a man's fingers brushing against her ear. Damn it! Vivian couldn't help but curse internally. Her ears and neck were her sensitive spots, and this man dared to touch her! Could he be another Tyler? If that were the case, she wouldn't mind sleepwalking and giving him a swift kick! However, he did nothing but check her ear. All she heard was Ethan sigh lightly. "Such a delicate flower, getting hurt so easily." Heh, a delicate flower? Vivian wanted to laugh. Anyone who knew her well knew she was more like a carnivorous plant. Who would have thought someone would describe her as a delicate flower? "Sleep well. Tomorrow is a new beginning." After checking that the little simpleton's wound wasn't serious, Ethan turned off the bedside lamp. Perhaps it was because of the close proximity, but the warm breath from his words sprayed onto Vivian's neck, causing her to shiver all over. So, he was just going to turn over and sleep after getting her all riled up? Was there such an easy thing in the world? In the darkness, Vivian suddenly curled her lips into a smirk, and quickly rolled over on top of Ethan. Ethan froze instantly. "Little simpleton, are you awake?" His question was answered with Vivian's long breaths. Ethan furrowed his brows. His body instinctively wanted to hold onto the warm, soft body, but his mind told him no. After all, she was just a little girl with the mental age of a toddler, and he was a man. How could he lay a hand on a girl who didn't understand anything? He would be no different from the beast, Tyler! Even if he had developed a sense of sympathy for her, it was just the protective and possessive instinct Brevard mentioned. In the end, Ethan retracted his hand and closed his eyes numbly. Vivian deliberately fidgeted a bit, but when she found that the man made no more moves, she felt bored and rolled over to sleep on her own side. The next morning, Ethan left for a visit to the Benton Group. Now that he had recovered from his vegetative state, it was time to reclaim what was rightfully his from Clive Benton. As for Vivian, she dove headfirst into her playroom. Opening the laptop hidden in her toy suitcase, she sent a message to her partners. "Show up! There's a big fish for grabs. Wanna slice off a piece with me?"