Chapter 3

Soon, it was dinner time.

Claire, as always, was taking care of my feelings, worried I wouldn't relax. She even asked Ethan to peel shrimp for me.

Ethan's eyebrows furrowed at this, his resistance plain to see.

He never ate these kinds of shellfish—partly because it was too much trouble, and partly because he genuinely disliked them.

The same scene had played out before when I visited. Back then, he'd looked puzzled and asked, "Why would you eat something so troublesome?"

I'd already felt uncomfortable at the time, and hearing that, I immediately gave up on eating the shrimp.

I could only lie and say, "No need, I don't like shrimp."

Even now, he hadn't changed his attitude. He looked at the shrimp on the table with obvious disgust.

I smiled faintly and grabbed a pair of disposable gloves to put on.

"No need, Claire. I can peel them myself."

The smile on Claire's face gradually froze. She shot him a displeased glare, then smiled and told me to eat more.

Leah bit her lip, her gaze drifting meaningfully toward the shrimp. "Emily, you're so good at peeling shrimp. I love eating them too, but I don't know how to peel them."

Hearing this, I calmly looked at the peeled shrimp in my hand and casually put it in my mouth.

"Really? There are tutorials online. You can check them out."

Leah smiled awkwardly. Ethan looked at me with disapproval. He methodically put on disposable gloves, picked up a shrimp, and began peeling it while gently teaching her peeling techniques.

Watching this scene, I suddenly felt like laughing.

If his parents weren't here, I didn't know how many harsh words I'd say.

Claire's expression changed dramatically. She covered her mouth and coughed heavily several times. "Don't play favorites. Take care of Emily too."

Ethan glanced at me sideways and reluctantly peeled one for me.

It was quite intact, but I'd lost my appetite.

From that point on, I didn't eat another shrimp.

The one he placed in my bowl, I never touched either.

I acted as if I hadn't seen it and smiled. "Thank you for having me."

"However, there's something I need to make clear. Ethan and I have already broken up. I'm sorry, Richard and Claire. I've let you down."

Richard and Claire froze. Ethan clenched his fists, staring at me in silence.

Instead, it was Leah whose eyes reddened as she asked weakly, "Emily, Ethan treats you so well. Why do you insist on breaking up? Can't you stay together?"

Seeing her act so innocent, I almost couldn't keep down the food I'd just eaten. My expression turned especially ugly.

I smiled faintly and asked back, "Don't you know the reason?"

"Emily!" Ethan interrupted me sharply. His expression was grim, his face full of displeasure. "I already told you, I only see Leah as a sister. Stop being unreasonable."

Leah's expression changed, unable to maintain her smile.

I looked up at him calmly, suddenly feeling tired.

I slowly stood up and said softly, "Thank you for having me. Next time I'll treat you to dinner. I just remembered I have some things to handle, so I'll leave first."

Claire was a reasonable person who could tell the atmosphere was off. She stood up reluctantly. "Alright then. I made some mango mille-feuille cake. Take it home with you."

Afraid I'd refuse, she hurried to the kitchen to pack it for me.

After leaving Ethan's house, I dragged my suitcase and took a cab home.

I hadn't been back for two days. The hallway was clean, showing no trace that wedding preparations had been made here.