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Chapter 9 Are you in love with her?

Olivia was taken by emotions and remained silent for a moment. On the opposite side of the phone, Phoebe seemed to sense her state and cautiously inquired, "Olivia, is everything alright?"

After a pause, the young woman spoke up, "Phoebe, I'm pregnant." However, her tone lacked any joy, which puzzled Phoebe who had no idea of what had happened between her friend and her husband.

During their previous conversations, Olivia had always sounded happy and enthusiastic about sharing details of her relationship with Ethan Williams. But now, something seemed off.

"That’s great but why do you sound so sad? “Phoebe asked in an anxious tone. “Did Ethan mistreat you? That bastard promised to treat you well and never bully you. I seriously hope for him that he didn’t dare to go against that.

"Phoebe, please don't worry. Our relationship is fine. I'm just feeling a little tired because of the pregnancy," Olivia reassured her.

Phoebe was skeptical, but since Olivia had already sworn, she did not press the matter further. After a short conversation and updates on her life and situation, she ended the call.

Soon after, Olivia’s phone rang again, and this time it was her adoptive mother, Sharon. Their relationship was strained, and the older woman rarely spoke kindly to Olivia.

The last time Sharon had smiled at her was when she received a large sum of money as a bride price from Ethan. Olivia hesitated before answering the call:

"Mom, why are you calling so late? Is everything okay?"

Sharon responded in an oddly sweet tone, "It's nothing serious, dear. My son-in-law's secretary called and informed me that you're pregnant. How are you feeling? Do you want your mother to come and take care of you?"

Olivia was surprised by her adoptive mother's sudden concern. And on top of that, Ethan’s secretary, did not seem like someone who would voluntarily report such news to her mother.

Olivia remained silent for a moment before responding to Sharon’s questioning. "I’m pretty sure I can handle this on my own, mom. It’s not like you have been the most helpful until now so I learnt to take care of myself.”

“Well, you better not do anything stupid and piss off my son-in-law. I heard rumors of a divorce…I hope that’s a joke.”

Olivia rolled her eyes before she calmly corrected her mother's assumption and revealed that it was Ethan who wanted to divorce her to make room for his first love.

“What first love?”

“She’s a model. Her name’s Lina and Ethan has loved her for years. I find out now that the only reason why she married me is because I kind of look like her…Ironic, isn’t it?”

“Ironic or not, you better hold onto your marriage for the sake of the money and status that come with it.”

Olivia couldn't help but laugh at her adoptive mother's words. In the end, these were the only things that mattered to her: money and status. A normal mother would have expressed some concern, knowing that her daughter had been used and lied to. She should have been angry at Ethan for breaking her heart in such a way but no. His status exempted him of all blame.

Olivia made it clear that she was not going to listen to her adoptive mother's advice and that she would handle her situation with Ethan on her own terms.

Britney received news that Ethan was at the mansion and immediately rushed over. Without hesitation, she went straight to her brother’s study, knowing that he was a workaholic who would sacrifice his sleep to work late into the night. As expected, when Britney pushed the door open, she found him still busy with documents.

"Brother," she called out.

Ethan raised his eyes and looked at her, asking, "What's the matter?"

Britney’s gaze wandered over to a beautiful picture frame on his desk. In it, a woman sat on the grass, smiling back at the camera, with seductive eyes that seemed to light up the otherwise cold-colored office. The person in the photo was Olivia and Britney knew that picture-frame wasn’t there the last time she’d been inside her brother’s study.

"Ethan..." She gasped, her eyes wide with disbelief, "You're not actually in love with Olivia, are you?"

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