My CEO Husband Says I'm Irreplaceable

Chapter 107: Chapter 107: Return to Northolme, We’re Getting Engaged

Jared Hawthorne raised an eyebrow. "You’re very clever, Miss Grayson. You’ve guessed right again."

"..."

After dinner, Jared Hawthorne led Vesper Grayson back to the deck.

The sea breeze carried the night air as it washed over them. The lights of Victoria Harbour shimmered on the surface of the water. The yacht was moored quietly in the center of the bay, gently rising and falling with the waves.

He gently wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on the crown of her head. "The yacht isn’t returning to shore tonight. We’re staying here."

Vesper Grayson’s body stiffened. She snapped her gaze up to him, her eyes filled with obvious surprise.

"We’re spending the night here?"

"Mhm." Jared Hawthorne let out a low chuckle, his fingertips gently tracing her waistline. "The whole yacht is ours. No one will disturb us."

The implication was obvious.

’We’re both adults. What wasn’t there to understand?’

She let the man lead her toward the private terrace at the stern.

The night was deep and the sea was calm. The lights of Victoria Harbour blurred into a soft backdrop behind them.

The yacht swayed gently with the waves.

Jared Hawthorne reached back to lock the cabin door, shutting out the world.

The space suddenly felt confined and quiet. There was nothing but the sound of their breathing, growing closer, growing hotter.

He gently pressed her against the cool railing and leaned in close. His warm breath, tinged with the sea breeze, caressed her cheek. His eyes were dark and deep.

"Do you want to try... doing it at sea?"

Vesper Grayson looked up, her gaze crashing into the depths of his. Her heart hammered like a drum, and her nervous fingers curled into fists.

"Someone might see us..."

The tips of her ears burned. She turned away, unable to meet his fiery gaze, feeling as if her heart were about to leap out of her chest.

Jared Hawthorne leaned in, his lips brushing the shell of her ear. His voice was as soft as the sea breeze, yet astonishingly hot.

"They won’t. Tonight, it’s just you and me."

"..."

He lowered his head and captured her lips, parting them to explore within, deepening the kiss with a conquering passion.

Vesper Grayson’s eyelashes fluttered. Her fingertips dug into his clothes as the sudden, deep kiss threw her mind into a dizzying chaos.

The waves rocked gently, the night deepening with their passion.

All was silent, save for the sound of waves lapping against the hull and their ragged, entangled breaths.

The rest came naturally.

She allowed herself to drown in the deep sea of desire.

...

Vesper Grayson awoke to the gentle rocking of the waves.

A soft blanket was draped over her, and the faint, cool scent of Jared Hawthorne lingered in the air. When she opened her eyes, the sky was just beginning to lighten. The morning mist over Victoria Harbour had yet to dissipate, casting the sea in a gentle, pale blue. At some point, the yacht had quietly returned to shore.

The man beside her was already awake. Propped on an elbow, he watched her with a deep, heavy gaze.

Seeing her eyes open, he spoke, his voice low, magnetic, and sultry.

"You’re awake?"

Vesper Grayson’s cheeks burned. She instinctively tried to look away, but he cupped the back of her head, leaned down, and kissed her.

Jared Hawthorne didn’t release her until she was nearly breathless.

"You got a call a little while ago. I answered it."

"Who was it?"

"Luke Lockwood."

Vesper Grayson froze. "What did he say?"

"You seem very concerned about what he said."

"No. You’re the one who brought it up."

’Why did he seem so pissed off?’

’Could it be that Luke Lockwood said something to annoy him?’

"He sold his shares in Zephyr to pay the penalty for a breach of contract he committed while he was there."

She wasn’t surprised, as Dolly Hughes had mentioned it before.

"That has nothing to do with me."

’She had no idea why Luke Lockwood would bother calling just to tell her that.’

"You helped him establish Zephyr, and now the company belongs entirely to Zenith. Don’t you feel it’s a shame? After all, it was a testament to your love."

"Are you making fun of me?"

’She had given everything without a second thought, sacrificed so much in silence, and in the end, it had all become a complete and utter joke.’

Jared Hawthorne toyed with a soft strand of her hair, his fingers twisting it as he said nonchalantly, "How could I be? My heart just aches for you."

’Her heart ached for herself, too.’

’But that was all in the past.’

"Doesn’t everyone meet a few scoundrels in their life? Luckily, I didn’t lose anything of value. Otherwise, President Hawthorne wouldn’t have had the chance to pick up the leftovers."

Jared Hawthorne’s mind went back to that chaotic night and the glaring red stain on the sheets that morning. His Adam’s apple bobbed.

"Have you forgotten, Miss Grayson? It was my first time, too."

Vesper Grayson froze for a moment.

Gazing at his features, so close to her own, the memory of last night’s passionate surrender was still vivid. Once again, her heartbeat spun out of control.

"He said he won’t give up on you and that he’s coming to Northolme to wage a war of attrition. He also said he’ll wait for us to break up so he can win you back."

’Typical, arrogant Luke Lockwood.’

Jared Hawthorne gave a cryptic chuckle. "He has nothing left. I can’t imagine where he gets the confidence to think you’d ever go back to him."

"Pay him no mind! Some people are just blindly confident. They won’t give up even after bashing their head against a wall."

"Vesper, let’s get engaged when we get back to Northolme."

It wasn’t a question, but a statement.

’He had mentioned finding the right time to discuss their engagement before, but it had never been officially brought up.’

’She had been thinking they would live together for a while, let their feelings develop, and then let an engagement happen naturally.’

"Did you decide to propose because his arrogant, provocative words annoyed you, and this is just about your male ego and a desire to win? Or do you really want to be engaged to me?"

"Do you really think I see him as competition?" His fingers slid between hers, lacing them together tightly. "Of course, it’s because I want this. That’s why I’m moving our engagement up the agenda."

’He was genuinely worried that Luke Lockwood’s supposed remorse and persistence would make her soften, forgive him, and be fooled by him all over again.’

’If that happened, who could he even turn to for justice!’

Vesper Grayson’s lips curved into a smile. "Okay. When we get back, I’ll tell my father."

’A good relationship wasn’t about the amount of time you spent together, but about genuine affection, a connection of souls, and mutual understanding.’

’She felt that Jared Hawthorne was the one she was destined to be with!’

After they returned to the hotel, Jared Hawthorne excused himself to take care of work and business meetings.

Vesper Grayson stayed in the room and took the opportunity to go back to sleep for a while.

Jared Hawthorne returned promptly at noon to have lunch with her. Afterward, they went to the Forrester Family estate to administer acupuncture to the family elder.

Just as they got out of the car, they saw the Grayson siblings being thrown out by the butler, looking thoroughly disgraced.

As Vesper walked past them, Mandy Grayson stopped in her tracks and stared at her.

"Are you another doctor Mr. Forrester hired?"

Vesper Grayson’s expression was cold. "No."

Before she could say anything else, Mitchell Grayson pulled her away. "That’s enough. We need to get back to Northolme."

He was afraid she would cause more trouble and offend someone they couldn’t afford to cross.

"Brother! Something’s not right about that woman. Do you think Mr. Forrester is suspicious of us because of her?"

’If so, she would make her pay!’

Mitchell Grayson’s gaze darkened in warning. "You’re overthinking it. Judging by their clothes and demeanor, they’re clearly not ordinary people. Little sis, it would be best for you to keep a lower profile from now on."

"If the Forrester Family posts that video online, my reputation will be ruined forever..." Mandy Grayson choked out, her eyes red. "Who will ever ask me to treat them again!"

Meanwhile, a video of Mandy Grayson’s confession was going viral online in Northolme.

In it, she sat before a camera and publicly admitted that she had never actually treated Miss Kensington, and that all the rumors circulating about her being a "miracle doctor" were false.

The video’s release caused an immediate uproar, with countless netizens flooding the comments to condemn her.

"So she was a fraud all along. The nerve of her to call herself a miracle doctor. It’s disgusting."

"No wonder the Kensington Family never responded. It wasn’t that they were agreeing with her; they just couldn’t be bothered to deal with a clown like that."

"All that hype about her before... I bet those ’patients’ were just actors hired by the Grayson Family, weren’t they?"

"I heard she went to Portclyde to treat the patriarch of the Forrester Family. She must have finally been exposed and was forced to make this video..."

"She’s brought shame all the way to Portclyde! What a disgrace to the field of medicine!"

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