Chapter 5

A sleek black Bugatti lowered its rear window slowly, revealing a face with sharp, austere features.

Alexander Russell narrowed his eyes, his gaze deep and unreadable as it fixed on Catherine. 

The vibrant, confident woman he remembered seemed to overlap with the fragile figure before him, but he could find no trace of her once-spirited demeanor.

His assistant noticed the enigmatic darkness in Alexander's eyes and followed his gaze, puzzled to see only a thin, frail woman.

The assistant's eyes widened in disbelief. The normally unapproachable, cold CEO was intently watching a woman—an ordinary one at that.

"Mr. Russell, would you like me to invite that lady over?" the assistant cautiously asked, studying his boss's reaction in the rearview mirror.

"No need," Alexander replied, his voice calm yet cutting, his gaze still fixed on the slender figure outside.

After a long moment, he finally tore his eyes away, feigning indifference. "Let's go!"

The assistant immediately raised the window.

At that moment, Catherine felt a burning gaze on her back. She turned, but saw nothing unusual. 

Frowning slightly, she dismissed the feeling.

Ahead, Juniper led Ethan off the Ferris wheel. 

The boy’s flushed, excited face beamed as he wrapped his arms around Juniper's neck, begging to ride again.

Juniper wiped the light sweat from his forehead and happily agreed.

Ethan kissed her cheek in gratitude, but as he pulled away, he noticed Catherine watching him from a distance.

That strange woman again!

Catherine noticed his glance, feeling both nervous and excited. She awkwardly adjusted her windblown hair and offered her brightest smile, waving at Ethan.

Seeing her eager expression, Ethan recalled what she had told him. His small brow furrowed in confusion. "Mom, who is she really?"

Could she actually be his mother, as she claimed? Why had he never seen her before?

Ethan's eyes were filled with bewilderment.

Hearing this, Juniper's brow tightened as she glanced at Catherine, her gaze momentarily cold and venomous before quickly softening.

When she looked back at Ethan, her expression softened into its usual warmth and kindness. "The Ferris wheel is starting again."

At her words, Ethan forgot his question, hugging Juniper happily as they walked away.

Catherine stared at their retreating figures. The brightness in her eyes dimmed as she bit her lower lip, tasting blood. Only then did she snap back to reality, hurrying to follow their steps and sit in the car behind them.

From a distance, she saw Ethan say something to Juniper in the opposite car, making her laugh uncontrollably.

For the first time, Catherine felt the sharp sting of jealousy, accompanied by a rising resentment toward both Juniper and Richard. 

If not for their cruel scheming, she wouldn't have missed her son's childhood, and Ethan would not be rejecting her now.

Each time she saw the intimate interactions between Ethan and Juniper, a sour, burning feeling swelled in her chest.

Her fingers curled into tight fists, nails biting into her palms. Pain radiated sharply through her body, making each breath difficult.

Amid the howling wind outside the Ferris wheel, Catherine felt as if her heart were bleeding.

When they finally disembarked, Juniper's phone rang incessantly. She glanced at Ethan, captivated by a nearby clown, and bent down to speak to him patiently. "I need to take a call over there. Stay right here and don't move."

Ethan, eyes fixed on the clown's ever-changing balloons, nodded absentmindedly.

Juniper pulled out her phone confidently and walked a short distance away.

Catherine spotted her chance and moved toward Ethan.

"Ethan..." she began, but before she could finish, she noticed two small boys in her peripheral vision—one clutching a pinwheel, the other chasing him.

The two children played boisterously, and in the blink of an eye, reached Ethan. One accidentally bumped his shoulder, knocking him off balance.

The ground was littered with small, jagged pebbles that could injure even an adult in a fall, let alone a child with delicate skin.

Without thinking, Catherine lunged forward, using her body as a cushion to protect Ethan.

The jagged stones tore into her skin. Blood seeped from the wounds, causing her to gasp in pain, but her first concern remained Ethan.

"Are you hurt? Let me check," she axiously said, examining him from head to toe. 

When she confirmed that not even a speck of dust had touched him, she breathed a sigh of relief.

The boy who had caused the accident was terrified. His pinwheel tumbled to the ground as he began to cry.

Ignoring her own pain, Catherine picked up the pinwheel and handed it back to the boy. "We're both fine," she said softly. "Don't be afraid. Go find your parents."

She then turned her attention back to Ethan, who remained silent. 

Fearing he might be frightened, she raised her hand to comfort him, only to see his gaze fixed on her bleeding arm.

"You're bleeding," Ethan said, biting his lip as an unfamiliar feeling stirred within him.

Though her sudden appearance at home annoyed him, her embrace had given him a warmth that felt oddly familiar, as if he had been held in those arms countless times before.

Especially when he thought about how she had protected him without hesitation, even knowing she might be hurt.

Still conflicted, he asked awkwardly, "Does it hurt?"

The concern in her son's eyes brought tears to Catherine's eyes; it felt like progress.

She held back her tears and shook her head repeatedly. "It doesn't hurt at all."

Tentatively, she reached out to Ethan, her voice soft and pleading. "Ethan, may I hold you for a moment?"

Ethan pressed his lips together, shifting his gaze from her face to her still-bleeding arm. 

Just as he was about to nod, Juniper returned from her call, holding a Mickey Mouse ice cream cone.

"Ethan, look what I got for you!" Juniper called, waving to him.

Ethan turned, his face lighting up with delight at the ice cream. "It's Mickey!"

Under Catherine's hopeful, yearning gaze, Ethan dashed straight into Juniper's arms.

Juniper handed the ice cream to Ethan and took his hand. Before leaving, she gave Catherine a look that was both challenging and condescending.

'Catherine, what good does it do you to return now? Not only is your husband mine, but even your son recognizes me as his mother. The title of Mrs. Rivers will ultimately be mine alone!' Juniper thought with satisfaction.

Catherine understood the challenge in Juniper's eyes. She clenched her teeth and fists, silently vowing that one day she would make this treacherous pair pay for what they had done.