He threw his suit jacket hard onto the sofa, grabbed The Husband's tie, and questioned coldly: "You go to places like that—why do you never tell me?"

The CEO was yanked off balance, and as he lowered his head, he planted a kiss on Little Wife's lips. "Why should I report to you about where I go?" he said, and then, without warning, scooped him up horizontally and strode toward the bedroom.

"Ethan Bolton, how many things are you still hiding from me?" Ryan Carter was tossed onto the bed, rolled up to get up, only to be pinned down again.

"Heh, of course there are things, but why should I tell you?" The CEO played with Little Wife's soft ear. The secrets deep in his heart—how could he possibly tell this heartless corporate spy?

Ryan Carter held back and held back, barely restraining the urge to slap him: "I knew you wouldn't dare say it. Afraid I'm a corporate spy, huh? You're really useless!"

"Hmph, trying to goad me into revealing my secrets," the CEO sneered as he tore open Little Wife's shirt, "I'm not falling for that! As if I'd ever tell you that I love you so much it hurts, that I want to be with you forever, even if you're only here for the money."

The sudden confession left Ryan Carter truly stunned. After a moment, he snapped back: "Who wants your money?"

What is even going on here? These are totally lines from a novel.

"Whatever you want, I'll give it to you." Ethan Bolton propped himself up, smiling at his Little Wife, his eyes full of tenderness.

"Who am I?" Ryan Carter stared into his eyes.

"Yanyan." Ethan Bolton answered without hesitation, kissing those moist lips. Earlier at the nightclub, Little Wife had a drink, leaving a heady taste between his lips and teeth, making it irresistible to savor again and again.

Ryan Carter licked the corner of his lips and hugged that big head: "Since you didn't cheat at the nightclub, I'll let you off for now... mmph..."

They fooled around until the second half of the night. The thoroughly satisfied CEO hugged Little Wife and snored softly in his sleep. Ryan Carter lay with eyes open and tapped on his smart assistant.

"What was I doing on the 3rd, 16th, and 28th of last month?"

The smart assistant pulled up the work log.

[August 3: New feature launched on the streaming platform, executive dinner, returned home at 10:20 p.m.]

[August 16: Inauguration dinner for Feiteng Corporation CEO William Parker.]

[August 28: Qixi Festival half-price membership event bug on the video platform, all staff worked overtime, returned home at 12:30 a.m.]

The 28th—turns out that was Qixi?

He vaguely remembered that at noon that day, Ethan Bolton called him.

"What time are you getting off work tonight? I'll pick you up and treat you to something good."

Ryan Carter touched the big hand wrapped around his waist, slowly slid his own hand in, and it was immediately held tight. He rubbed the soft web of the thumb with his own, nuzzled his head against the firm chest, and fell asleep.

The next day, Ethan Bolton groggily opened his eyes, feeling a headache. He grimaced and rubbed his temples, unable to recall what happened yesterday. Sensing the warm body beside him, he instinctively pulled it into his arms.

...

"Heh, that's still far from enough!"

"Shut up!"

...

The mortifying lines from last night surged into Ethan Bolton's chaotic mind like a rising tide. The CEO shot up in bed, his face turning from blue to white.

Oh god, what has he done these past two days!

He took Ryan Carter to a nightclub!

He bragged about having lots of lovers!

He gave Ryan Carter a check after sleeping with him!

He brought Ryan Carter to the company office to play!

Heavens! This is the road to divorce!

Chapter 8: The Stand-in Lover of the Rich and Powerful (1)┃When you smile, you don't look like him anymore.

Ryan Carter let out a soft hum, rubbed against the pillow, and opened his eyes tiredly. Three days of fooling around had left him exhausted. Clinging to The Husband's waist, he climbed up and nestled into his arms, yawning: "Why are you sitting up, Mr. CEO?"

The CEO's back stiffened even more. He struggled to find his voice and tried to sound as devilish as possible: "Still have the energy to joke? Looks like you didn't get enough of a lesson last night." Even as he said this, his hands unconsciously hugged him tighter, making him more comfortable.

Hmm?

Ryan Carter looked up at him, his brows gradually arching. Just as he was about to speak, a dull pain mixed with nausea shot up from his stomach. "Tsk..." He sucked in a breath, pushed away The Husband's arm, and curled back onto the bed.

Ethan Bolton was startled, instantly forgetting all about being the CEO: "What's wrong? Is your stomach hurting?"

"It's nothing." Ryan Carter managed to sit up, weakly waving his hand.

He'd always had a bad stomach. When they first got married, he often had stomach problems, sometimes breaking out in a cold sweat from the pain. For his sake, Ethan Bolton had learned to make soup and porridge, and nursed his stomach back to health so it rarely acted up anymore. But if he missed meals, drank alcohol, or ate spicy food, it would still flare up.

Last night he hadn't eaten, and even drank on an empty stomach.

Ethan Bolton stroked his pale face, heart aching, and got out of bed to make him breakfast. As soon as he slipped his feet into his slippers, he suddenly felt Ryan Carter staring at him. He didn't even need to turn around to know it was that suspicious look.