He Watched Me Shine Without Him novel Chapter 121

Rose sent Houston a text: “Houston, I’ve waited for a long time. When are you coming?”

His reply came quickly: “Rose, after thinking it over, I don’t think we’ve reached the point where divorce is necessary. Haven’t we been getting along well lately? When a marriage has problems, I think we should fix it—not throw it away. I’ll change all the things you don’t like about me, okay?”

Rose nearly exploded. He stood me up?

Then another message arrived, syrupy and soft: “Rose, just go home for now. Give me a few days and I’ll explain everything properly. Okay?”

Fuming, she got up and stepped into the twilight-soaked street.

…

Back home, Sam and Linda greeted her warmly.

“Where’s Houston?” they asked when they didn’t see him behind her.

“He had something come up. He won’t be joining us for dinner,” Rose replied.

She didn’t want to see their faces fall, so she lied.

And the moment the lie passed her lips, she froze.

She hated liars. But here she was—lying too.

Could it be that Houston had also lied with a good intention?

…

Meanwhile, Ethan lay in bed, staring through the gauzy curtains at the building across the way. The heavy drapes couldn’t hide the light behind them.

His mind kept flashing back to Rose crying in the hallway, so shattered, so helpless, so lost. It clenched at his heart.

He made a decision: no matter what, Houston had to compensate them both.

He dialed Daniel’s number and snapped, “Mr. Daniel, did your CEO bully my junior?”

“Rose is so devastated she’s practically suicidal. If she goes public and sues your CEO, it’ll destroy his reputation. Don’t you think it’s best if he offers her a generous compensation to make up for what she’s suffered?”

Daniel, who’d been sleeping soundly, stared at the message in disbelief.

This guy really thought he was somebody.

Trying to threaten him?

He texted back: “Ethan, do you have any proof our CEO mistreated Ms. Rose?”

Ethan fumbled. “She can testify.”

Daniel: “Ms. Rose? If you can convince her to stand up and accuse him, then we’ll talk.”

Daniel found the whole thing hilarious. Rose and the CEO are married, and Ethan was here making a scene like a jilted lover.

How does he even have the nerve to show up in front of me again? After what he’d done… shouldn’t he be hiding in shame?

Of all the things to say, he chose that?

Her eyes turned darker and colder by the second. “Do you think that’s something a human being would do?”

“Rose, I was thinking of your future. Look at us—we’re just regular nobodies. We could work our whole lives and never get anywhere. But if you get close to Houston, that all changes. You make him happy, he might just buy you a house on a whim. That could save you decades of struggle.”

Rose felt sick.

“Ethan, not everyone’s dignity is as cheap as yours.”

“Laugh all you want. The day I make it big, you’ll see I was right.”

She didn’t bother responding. Instead, she took out her phone, casually snapped a photo of herself in his car, and posted it to her Moments feed. She made sure to push it directly to Vivian.

Then she closed her eyes again.

Let’s see how that jealous woman reacts when she sees this.

Sure enough, the moment Vivian saw the post, she exploded with rage. She stormed out of the house, baby in her arms, completely ignoring her postpartum recovery.

…

When Ethan and Rose entered the clinic side by side, Vivian was already waiting inside.

The moment she saw them together—

Her face twisted into a monster’s snarl.