He frowned, his eyes full of suppressed disgust as he looked at me.
But clearly he was the one at fault—yet now I was the unreasonable one.
I gave a bitter smile, locking eyes with him.
“So you do know Chloe is a woman. For a moment I thought you didn’t.”
Ethan froze, blurting out:
“Of course I know—”
He cut himself off halfway.
“Enough! Don’t try to change the subject. You need to apologize to Chloe right now!”
I stared at him in disbelief, the bitterness in my chest nearly suffocating me.
Suddenly, it all felt pointless. I grabbed my purse and walked toward the door—only to be yanked back violently.
“Sophia Harris, I said apologize!”
My stomach slammed into the corner of the table, pain shooting through me until I broke into a cold sweat.
But I still clenched my teeth, lifted my head, and forced out each word:
“No. Way.”
The air froze.
Others rushed to mediate.
“Come on, Ethan, she didn’t mean it.”
“Yeah, man, don’t lose your temper.”
But no matter what anyone said, Ethan still gripped my arm tightly, his eyes dark in a way I had never seen before.
Not until Chloe walked over and tapped his palm.
“Hey, champ, what have I always taught you? Be patient with girls. You’re not being a gentleman at all.”
Then she turned to me.
“Sophia, let me apologize for him. My bro’s a good guy, but he’s always hated seeing me get bullied. That’s why he lashed out at you.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to teach him properly when we get home.”
As soon as she finished, Ethan finally released me, the malice in his eyes vanishing.
Three years married, and I’d never once seen him lose his cool.
Even on our honeymoon, when someone tried to grope me, he just casually asked the guy to apologize.
I always thought he was just emotionally detached. But now I understood—he could care deeply.
Just not about me.
In a daze, I saw Chloe walk over with a glass of wine.
“Sophia, a toast. Let’s just put today behind us.”
She shoved the glass into my hand. I resisted, and she suddenly let go.
The red wine spilled down her neckline, soaking her dress, and the glass shattered on the floor.
Ethan’s rage exploded. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?!”
He shoved me to the ground, shards of glass cutting into my arm.
Blood streamed down, and Ethan froze, instinctively reaching to help me.
But Chloe sneezed behind him.
“Ugh, so cold…”
Without a word, Ethan took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.