When Love Breaks (Josephine)

To avoid another awkward situation, Josephine chose to sit in the front passenger seat. But the moment she did, she noticed Ethan's expression darken even further. He remained completely silent the entire drive, his gaze fixed on the scenery outside the window.

Last night, he had barely spoken on their way home, and she had let it slide. But that day was different. They were about to meet Nick, and this was important. If he was still refusing to talk now, Josephine was starting to get anxious.

When the car stopped at a red light, she decided to break the silence and ease the tension between them. "Mr. Dane-"

"You promised to call me Ethan." He cut her off before she could finish, his gaze sharp, like he was accusing her of going back on her word.

Josephine felt even more awkward. "I just thought maybe you wouldn't like me calling you that."

"I was the one who asked you to call me that. Why wouldn't I like it?"

Fair point. But after the way he'd been acting-hot one moment, cold the next- how was she supposed to know what was on his mind?

Noticing her ears turning red and her biting her lip with a worried look, Ethan sighed quietly. "What am I even doing?"

He had endured her disappearance. He had survived watching her get married. Now, after all this time, he finally had the chance to be near her again... Yet he was wasting it by sulking like a child.

He softened his tone. "What were you going to say?"

"I wanted to ask if there's anything I should know before meeting Nick; anything I should be careful about?"

Ethan shook his head. "Not really. But I should warn you-he's arrogant. He doesn't respect most people and isn't afraid to say things that might offend you. If you want to work with him, you'll have to put up with that."

Josephine let out a small breath of relief. "That's not surprising. Someone in his position should be a little arrogant." Besides, she could handle it. No matter what he said, she'd just pretend not to hear it.

The car pulled up in front of an apartment complex. As Josephine stepped out,

she looked around in surprise. "I thought he'd live in a mansion."noveldrama

Ethan, still looking at his phone, glanced up at her. "He prefers the lively neighborhood vibe over living alone in a mansion."

Josephine blinked. "He's not into square dancing, is he?"

Ethan chuckled. "Who knows?"

His smile made him seem like the usual, gentle Ethan again, not the cold, intense stranger from last night and earlier. "You look much better when you smile," she blurted out.

His smile widened and reached his eyes. "So... Would you say I have the best smile out of all the men you've met?"

Why was he competing with other men now? Did he seriously want to be Prince Charming? He was clearly trying so hard because of some vain, image-obsessed woman he liked. She almost pitied him. It was like he didn't even realize he was being manipulated.

To reassure him, she nodded firmly. "So far? No one beats you."

As soon as her words fell, he smiled in relief. "So, all my efforts haven't been in vain. Let's go inside."

Josephine walked beside him and

added, "You know, it doesn't really matter what I think. What matters is what the woman you like thinks. But just as a friendly warning-if a girl only picks her partner based on looks, she might be a little shallow. And people like that... tend to lose interest pretty quickly."