Chapter 9 Still Mrs. Gray

Hearing the man's blunt, crude words, Anna froze for a moment before they fully sank in. Furious and embarrassed, she snapped, "Ethan, you shameless jerk!"

"Don't move!"

Her resistance was like an ant trying to shake a tree against Ethan's overwhelming strength. His burning palm pressed against her stiffened back.

"Ethan, snap out of it!" Anna turned her head desperately to avoid him as he leaned closer. "Our marriage has been dead for ages. How is this any different from forcing yourself on me? Aren't you afraid I'll report you?"

"Report me?" Ethan raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Go ahead."

Anna sat up straight, biting her lip as she watched Ethan calmly straighten his clothes.

"How's your sister doing?"

Anna instantly tensed up. He couldn't care less about her, his wife of three years—he rarely even asked about her. Why would he ask about someone who had nothing to do with him?

Bringing up her sister at a time like this was clearly a threat.

"I heard leukemia treatment burns through money like water. Without a suitable bone marrow match, she won't live much longer either. Can that so-called good friend of yours, Henry, pay for all those follow-up treatment costs? Or is your relationship with him so good that you can get an unsecured loan of hundreds of thousands of dollars from him?" Ethan's lazy voice carried a cold edge.

Anna bit her lower lip and stayed silent, her hands at her side clenching until her knuckles turned white.

Ethan glanced at her indifferently and stood up to leave.

Seeing this, Anna quickly reached out and gently tugged at the corner of his clothes.

She needed the money. For her sister's sake, she could only swallow her pride.

"Still going to report me?" Ethan asked flatly.

Anna had no choice but to swallow this humiliation and shook her head.

Ethan's hand rested on Anna's slender shoulder, then slowly slid upward, brushing along her neck as if teasing a kitten.

"Anna, remember your place. As long as you haven't signed the divorce papers, you're still Mrs. Gray. You have no right to flirt with other men, and no right to tell me what to do."

Anna endured his cold, searing gaze, her chest tight as though a heavy stone pressed on it, making it hard to breathe.

"Mrs. Gray?" Her eyes quickly reddened, tears welling up but stubbornly refusing to fall.

Ethan lowered his gaze slightly, looking at Anna with an amused expression, as if inviting her to continue.

"Being Mrs. Gray was like a three-year prison sentence. Nothing but humiliation. I was faithful for three years, and what did I get? You and Emma flaunting your relationship in my face. You made me design wedding rings for you and another woman. Do you know how much that hurt?"

"So what?" Ethan asked flatly, his expression cold and indifferent.

Anna lifted her chin high to keep the tears from falling—that would be too pathetic. "Ethan, we'll be divorced soon. This status won't mean anything much longer."

"Divorce? You think you can divorce me just because you want to?" Ethan sneered. "Do you have the ability to invest and manage money? Can you maintain your current social status without sliding down? Can you provide the medical resources Lily needs for treatment? Even if you divorce me and take some assets, the money won't come with my connections and influence."

The words struck Anna hard, leaving her unable to respond.

Her lips moved as she tried to argue back, but she found she couldn't say a single word.

Yes, she really had nothing.

From the moment she married him three years ago, she lost her financial independence. Everything depended on Ethan's generosity—even his sister's well-being has been temporarily at his mercy."

A huge sense of powerlessness swept through her body, making her go weak all over.

The strength she had been using to struggle desperately disappeared, leaving only undisguised desolation and despair in her eyes.

Ethan noticed her submission, and the hostility in his eyes darkened slightly, replaced by an even stronger, almost obsessive possessiveness.

He leaned down close , his warm breath brushing her ear. "Since you owe me, it's time to pay up."

With that, Ethan's hand slowly slid down her waist, deliberate and forceful, his touch making her tremble with every inch.

Anna's whole body tensed as a slight cramp twisted in her lower abdomen.

It was a silent reminder of the tiny life growing inside her.

She snapped back to her senses, her pupils contracting as a strong protective instinct surged through her.

She couldn't let this child be harmed in any way, absolutely not!

Anna pushed Ethan away with all her strength, stepped back two paces , and pressed both hands tightly over her lower abdomen.

Realizing her reaction was a bit extreme, she forced a smile to explain. "I got my period today, it's not convenient."

These words were like a bucket of ice water, extinguishing the heat on Ethan's body.

He narrowed his eyes, his sharp gaze sweeping over her pale face, tense body, and evasive eyes, as if judging whether she was telling the truth.

"If you don't believe me, you can check. I have no reason to lie to you."

Anna felt uncomfortable under his gaze, cold sweat dampening her palms as her heart pounded, afraid he would see through her.

She felt her cheeks burning and her breathing quicken. She forced herself to stay calm and meet his gaze.

Silence spread through the spacious living room, each second like a hammer blow striking Anna's heart.

"What perfect timing," Ethan muttered. He grabbed his coat from the sofa and slammed the door as he left.

Seeing this, Anna let out a long sigh of relief. Unable to hold herself up any longer, she slowly slid down the wall to the floor, and the tears she had been suppressing finally spilled uncontrollably.

She hugged her knees, buried her face deeply as her shoulders shook violently.

The thought of him having sex with Emma made her feel sick.

She had an obsession with cleanliness and couldn't bear to share a man with someone else.

She didn't know how long she cried until her tears dried up and her throat felt raw. Only then did Anna gradually calm down.

She raised her hand to wipe the tear stains from her face and slowly lifted her head. The vulnerability and helplessness in her eyes gave way to a hint of determination.

Anna stood up, stumbled upstairs, opened her computer, and began secretly organizing her designdrafts accumulated over the years.

She sorted the design drafts by category and backed them up on an encrypted USB drive.

After finishing , she checked her remaining money and realized it would barely last. It was nowhere near enough to fully pay for her sister's treatment.

The sense of powerlessness hit her again, anna felt dizzy and disorientated.

But thinking of her sister waiting for her to raise money to save her life, she had to pull herself together.

Right now, besides the child in her belly, she only had her sister left.