Regret Came Too Late (Grace and Ethan)

As the car stopped in front of Palm Bay, Grace stepped out first, reaching to steady Ethan.

But his hand jerked away, quick and sharp, like she had burned him.

Grace stared at him with a deadpan look.

Just hours ago, he had practically melted into her touch in the backseat. Now, he was recoiling like she had insulted him.

She stepped back and gestured for the others to help instead.

Ethan was helped out slowly, the magnolia still in his hand.

Grace glanced at it, and her irritation slipped-just like Ed, he liked the same flower and shared the same taste.

"Take care, Mr. Henderson. I'll get going now. Don't forget your meds, and stop pushing yourself so hard."

"Mm."

Ethan was already being wheeled inside and didn't even glance back.

Grace didn't wait, and she had no interest in reading his silence.

However, there was no way she would get a cab out here.

A few minutes later, a car pulled out from Palm Bay, sent to drop her off.

She accepted it.

After all, it was still snowing, and there was no need to freeze for pride- Christmas was around the corner.

Inside Palm Bay, Ethan looked oddly cheerful.

"Give me a vase," he said to Tim.

Tiim knew exactly where the magnolia came from.

He brought one over, but Ethan barely gave it a glance before pulling the flower back out.

"Too plain. Get something prettier."

They tried vase after vase, but even after fifteen vases, nothing pleased him.

The light in his eyes dimmed, and his mood soured fast.

Tim quickly made some calls, asking people to send over some high-end vases.

20 minutes later, a one-of-a-kind piece by a famous master of traditional carving arrived—it had once gone for 20 million dollars at auction.

The vase was expected to appreciate further.

Ethan glanced at the elegant, antique piece. His brow eased.

He placed the magnolias inside.

"It'll do," he muttered, heading for the elevator with the flowers.

Tim dabbed his forehead, baffled.

How could a mountain-picked magnolia look only "acceptable" in a vase worth millions?

Plus, Ethan was treating this like a game of house with Grace, completely ignoring work.

Ethan carried the vase to his bedroom on the second floor, setting it by his bed so it would greet him every morning.

But the flowers wouldn't last, and that thought dragged his smile downward.

Tim followed him up and, spotting the shift, chimed in, "There's advanced tech for this-we can preserve it forever."

Ethan hummed a reply, then added, "Though I don't really care."

Tim winced and silently made the call, too drained to comment.

By the time Grace got home, she was so drained she could barely lift a finger.

Looking back, the whole trip had revolved around Ethan.

It hit her—she hadn't gotten anything out of it. But surely, he wouldn't lie... he couldn't have gone through all that just for a flower.

Even so, a wave of irritation crept up on her. It felt like she had been strung along.noveldrama

She grabbed her phone and shot Ethan a message.

"Have you taken your meds, Mr. Henderson?"

"Yes."

What a cold response.

The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became, even if she couldn't quite figure out why.

She wanted to ask him if he was playing her, but really-the mighty CEO of Henderson Group, pulling stunts just for fun?

She sighed deeply and tossed her phone aside, refusing to send another message.

When she woke up again, it was already ten at night. She was hungry, and the fridge was empty. With no better option, she decided to hit the supermarket.

As soon as she opened the door, she ran into Selene heading out too.

She was holding a woven basket and raised an eyebrow.

"Grocery run?" Grace asked.

Thus, they ended up going together.

Grace only realized it was almost Christmas when she saw the festive displays at the supermarket.

She couldn't even remember how she spent it last year-only that back then, everyone in the Lambert family was still around.

This supermarket catered to the upscale villas and townhouses in the area, so most of the goods were premium imports.

She spotted Selene standing by a display of emerald bracelets and asked, puzzled, "Who are you buying it for?"

Selene picked up one of the bracelets. "My mom. Her birthday's in a few days." "You're heading back then?"

"Yeah."

Going back meant seeing Damien again, and that thought soured her mind.

Grace only picked up some food, but as she passed the flower section, her gaze instinctively drifted to the magnolias.

She ended up buying a small bouquet to take home. Then, she heard Selene ask, "Planning to spend Christmas alone?"

Everything that had happened

the Lamberts was well known in their social circles. Even now, people were still guessing what Grace's mysterious boyfriend looked like.

"Probably. I might visit Liam then," Grace replied.

Just as the words left her mouth, a familiar voice caught her ear-Jodie.

"Wrap all these up for me. Every single magnolia."

Jodie had just left Palm Bay after hearing from the staff there that Ethan seemed to like magnolias lately, which was odd, as she had never known him to care about flowers.

Since she was visiting a friend nearby, she decided to swing by this upscale market and buy the entire selection of magnolias to take to Ethan.

Jodie hadn't expected to run into Grace, especially not with magnolias in the latter's arms.

Was Grace seriously trying to cozy up to Ethan with those?

She stormed over, her vrone clipped. "Leave the flowers, Grace. I'm not in the mood to argue today."

Grace felt annoyed just hearing her. The flowers were for Ed, so why would she back down?

Jodie's face flushed with rage, her fingers jabbing dangerously close.

"Don't act like I don't know your game. How many times do I have to say it? Stay away from Uncle Ethan!"

The anger boiled over before she could stop it. It felt like someone was ripping away something she had held dear for years. Her whole body trembled with

panic.

When her eyes landed on the magnolias in Grace's arms, she lashed out, tearing the branches to shreds.

Selene stood there in disbelief, rushing to defend Grace.

However, Grace was quicker. She hurled the broken flowers straight at Jodie's

head.

"Are you out of your mind, Jodie?" she snapped.

Jodie clutched her wounded

forehead, eyes reddened with fury.

Every fight she had with Grace flashed before her, and it suddenly hit her-she needed to kill this woman.