My CEO Husband Says I'm Irreplaceable

Chapter 39: Chapter 39: Getting Used to Taking Advantage?

"President Hawthorne, please stop joking. Regardless of the circumstances, I won’t betray my marriage."

The man before her was one in a million in terms of physique, looks, and presence. If she weren’t engaged, perhaps she would have genuinely fallen for him, willing to linger a little longer in his company.

Unfortunately, as wonderful as he was, he wasn’t the man she was supposed to marry.

She’d long heard that the head of the Hawthorne family was self-disciplined, proper, and inflexibly serious—utterly boring. But he was, after all, a man in a powerful position. The last thing such a man would tolerate is being cuckolded.

She wasn’t sure of Jared Hawthorne’s exact status, but she knew in her heart that no matter how impressive he was, he was no match for Elias Hawthorne.

Jared Hawthorne raised an eyebrow, a lazy smile playing on his lips. "Miss Grayson, don’t be so quick to reject me. If you come to regret this one day, I won’t be giving you a second chance."

"I’ve thought it through quite clearly. You should save this opportunity for someone else, President Hawthorne."

She shoved him away, grabbing the doorknob to make her escape.

But when she glanced down the hall and saw a familiar figure, her expression changed instantly, and she scrambled back inside.

Jared Hawthorne leaned languidly against the wall. He was just about to light a cigarette when he paused, watching the woman who had just returned.

"Miss Grayson, what’s the meaning of this?"

"Shhh—"

Vesper Grayson held a finger to her lips.

A moment ago, Luke Lockwood had caught a fleeting glimpse of a figure who looked just like Vesper heading upstairs, and he had immediately given chase.

It was impossible to get into a summit of this caliber without an invitation.

He’d been skeptical of what Adler Crawford had told him, but after seeing that familiar figure, he was suddenly more lost than ever.

’Vesper... what is her true identity?’

He searched one private room after another, struggling to contain his surging desperation.

’Why is Vesper avoiding me?’

’Does she really not want to see me that badly?’

Vesper Grayson listened as the footsteps outside the door grew closer, her fingers curling into a fist.

The instant the doorknob began to turn, she lunged at the man, grabbed him by the collar, and stretching onto her tiptoes, kissed him.

Jared Hawthorne’s gaze darkened instantly.

’This woman... she has no hesitation about using me at all.’

"Getting comfortable using me, are you?"

He turned his head aside, refusing to play along.

Anxious and annoyed, Vesper Grayson hissed in a low voice, "You’re a grown man. How can you be so petty?"

The instant the door swung open, Jared Hawthorne suddenly seized the nape of her neck. He forcefully spun them around, pulling her securely into his arms, and brought his head down to kiss her with a vengeance.

"Mmph..."

The sudden pain on her lips nearly made her cry out.

She clutched his clothes tightly, her eyes wide as she stared at the man in front of her.

Luke Lockwood pushed the door open and immediately saw two people locked in a passionate kiss. The man held the woman so protectively that only a sliver of her slender neck was visible.

"My apologies."

He quickly closed the door and moved on to the next room.

But even after searching the last room, he still hadn’t found Vesper Grayson. A deep sense of loss filled his dark eyes.

’Could it be that I was mistaken?’

The next second, a detail he had overlooked flashed through his mind.

He remembered the figure who looked so much like Vesper had been wearing a camel-colored blazer.

And the woman he’d just seen in the man’s arms—the corner of her jacket that he could see was also camel-colored.

At that thought, he spun around and sprinted back to the room he had just left.

The room was already empty.

Only a faint scent of gardenia lingered in the air.

That scent... He had smelled it for three years, falling asleep next to it every night.

It was Vesper’s scent. He could never mistake it.

Luke Lockwood tore downstairs like a madman, desperately searching for her.

But she was nowhere to be seen.

’The security room. Yes, I need to see the hotel’s surveillance footage.’

On the pretext of having lost a valuable item, he demanded that the hotel manager pull up the security footage immediately.

The manager wore an apologetic expression. "I’m sorry, sir, but the hotel is currently undergoing a complete renovation. The surveillance system is under maintenance and temporarily unavailable. If you tell me what you’ve lost, I can arrange for my staff to help you look for it right away."

’How could it be such a coincidence?’

Luke Lockwood’s expression was utterly grim. "Stop giving me the runaround," he said, his tone icy. "Pull up the footage. Now."

"Sir, we are happy to help you find your lost item. But if you’re going to cause a scene, my only option is to call the police."

Just as Luke Lockwood was about to lose his temper, Ivy Joyce trotted over, gently tugging his arm. She advised him in a soft voice, "Luke, this is Northolme, not Ashmore. Making a scene here will not look good for you."

’Whether Vesper Grayson was here tonight or not, I can’t let Luke find her.’

Luke Lockwood forced down his anger, but his expression remained grim.

’Who was that man? Why was he being so intimate with Vesper? How could she let another man kiss her?’

"Then call the police," Luke Lockwood’s voice was ice-cold. He didn’t care if it caused a scene; he was going to find Vesper Grayson tonight.

The hotel manager called the police on the spot.

The police arrived quickly. After a brief rundown of the situation, they confirmed that the surveillance system was, in fact, under maintenance and that the manager wasn’t deliberately withholding anything.

Faced with this outcome, Luke Lockwood’s expression was as black as thunder.

"My girlfriend went missing in this hotel! I’m worried for her safety. Please, you have to help me find her right now!"

’If Vesper won’t see me, I’ll have the police find her for me.’

When Ivy Joyce heard the word "girlfriend," all the color drained from her face, and she swayed slightly.

"Luke, you and Ves..."

"Shut up."

Luke Lockwood shot her a frigid glare, his voice biting.

Ivy Joyce clutched the hem of her clothes, not daring to speak again.

The officer asked him a few simple questions, then turned away to make a phone call.

A few minutes later, the officer returned and looked at him with a solemn expression.

"We’ve contacted the person you mentioned. They stated clearly that they do not know you."

"Furthermore, we’ve just confirmed with the hotel that no one by the name of Miss Vesper Grayson was registered upon entry tonight."

"The doorman also confirmed that your companion for the evening was this young lady, Miss Ivy Joyce."

"Sir, if you continue to make these baseless claims, you will be held legally responsible!"

Luke Lockwood seemed completely deaf to the warning. He insisted stubbornly, his voice low and firm, "Vesper Grayson is my girlfriend. It’s impossible that she doesn’t know me. I demand to see her now!"

"Since you refuse to cooperate with the investigation, you’ll have to come with us to the station for further questioning."

The police took him into custody on the spot.

Ivy Joyce hurried after them.

As soon as the two were gone, the hotel manager immediately pulled out his phone and dialed President Hawthorne’s number. He reported in a low voice, "President Hawthorne, everything has been handled as you instructed. That Mr. Lockwood is extremely agitated... he seems like he won’t stop until he finds her..."

Inside the police station, Luke Lockwood sat quietly on a bench after giving his statement.

He insisted that Vesper Grayson was his girlfriend, that she had gone missing in Northolme, and he repeatedly demanded the police pull up her personal details and photograph.

Northolme wasn’t his turf; this was the fastest way he knew to find Vesper Grayson.

’If Vesper’s identity truly is something special... then that information Harold Warner dug up... the eldest daughter of the Grayson family who shares her name...’

’Could she be my Vesper?’

The officer pulled up Vesper Grayson’s registration file on the system. Just as he was about to turn the tablet for Luke to identify her, the phone on the desk began to ring urgently.

He glanced at the caller ID, his expression instantly turning serious. He immediately stood and walked to a corner to take the call.

After a brief conversation, the officer’s expression shifted from calm to grave. Finally, he just gave a short, deep-voiced reply.

"Understood. It will be handled as you instructed."

After hanging up, he put away his phone and walked back to Luke Lockwood. His tone was placid, but left no room for argument.

"Sir, based on our further investigation, the information you’ve reported is severely inconsistent with the facts. Therefore, we cannot provide you with any information."

Luke Lockwood’s head snapped up, his voice tight. "But you just said you contacted her."

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