Part 9
An hour later, the entire penthouse was completely quiet.
Lily had fallen asleep from pure emotional exhaustion, still holding onto Ethan's jacket sleeve.
Ethan gently laid her down on the soft bed in the guest room and pulled the blanket over her.
He walked out into the hallway and found Rosa in the kitchen.
She was quietly packing her few personal belongings into a small cardboard box.
Ethan stopped at the kitchen doorway, watching her.
"What are you doing, Rosa?"
Rosa didn't look up at him. She kept her eyes focused on the box in her hands.
"It's better if I leave, Mr. Mercer. Veronica’s family is incredibly powerful and vengeful."
"They will target your company because of what happened to her. I cannot let you lose your business because of us."
Ethan walked into the kitchen, his steps quiet.
He reached out, took the cardboard box gently from her hands, and set it down on the counter.
"My business is perfectly fine," Ethan said. "And I don't care about her family's power."
Rosa finally looked up at him, her eyes wide, watery, and completely vulnerable.
"But why? Why are you protecting us like this? We are just your staff."
Ethan looked at the small box, then looked back into Rosa's beautiful, honest eyes.
For many years, he had lived in a cold, empty world made of nothing but money, power, and contracts.
Veronica was never a romance; she was just a business arrangement.
But over the last few days, because of Rosa and Lily, he had realized what a real home felt like.
It felt like the warm smell of breakfast in the morning.
It felt like a little girl laughing happily in the living room.
It felt like Rosa’s quiet, unconditional kindness.
"Because," Ethan said, his voice dropping to a soft whisper.
"You belong here. And I don't ever want you to leave."
He reached into his suit pocket.
He pulled out Lily's yellow plush rabbit.
The broken ear was now neatly, carefully stitched back together with clean white thread.
"I fixed it myself," Ethan said.
May you like
Rosa looked at the repaired rabbit, then up at Ethan’s soft expression.
Her heart skipped a sudden, warm beat.
