Chapter 292: Chapter 292 Do Not Touch Me

Henry found himself engulfed in the constant swirl of his demanding job and the social obligations that came with it.

Frustrated, he drank, letting the intoxicating liquid cloud his thoughts more than he should have. The world seemed to sway as he staggered toward his car.

His driver, unfamiliar with his personal life, remarked as he opened the door for Henry, “Mr. Miller, you’ve had one too many. Miss Winters won’t be pleased. Women seldom are when their men are inebriated.”

Leaning into the plush upholstery of the backseat, Henry pulled out a cigarette, letting its familiar scent wrap around him.

He lit the cigarette. As the smoke danced from his lips, he murmured with a hint of irony, “As if she cares.”

Being married to Crystal felt as lonely as being single.

Crystal was indifferent toward him.

It had been a few months since they were intimate with each other.

She refused to let him touch her.

It was only normal for couples to fight every now and then. However, she had resolved to move to another room. It wasn’t just the lack of physical connection. Even a mere conversation with her felt like scaling a mountain.

Not wanting to wade into those deep waters, the driver simply resumed his place behind the wheel.

Just as he was about to depart, a mellifluous voice floated through the air. “Mr. Miller!”

Henry turned, and there, limping unevenly with a cane, was Lara.

She traced his gaze that landed on her injured leg. “The doctor says it’ll heal in a couple of months with no lasting damage.”

She flashed him a woeful smile, expecting, perhaps, even hoping, that he might have visited her during his wife’s cold spell.

Yet, he never did.

However, that was all right. If he wouldn’t come to me, I’ll just find a way to him.

Acknowledging her with a nod, Henry instructed his driver to drive away.

The driver nodded and turned the car around. Lara’s lips twisted into a smirk as the luxurious car pulled away.

She released her grip on the cane, crumbling to the ground in a display of vulnerability.

Henry caught sight of it. He furrowed his brows slightly and ordered to stop the car after a brief moment. of consideration.

The driver was stumped.

In an impassive voice, he ordered, “Help her into the car and send her back home.”

The driver replied hesitatingly, “Miss Winters won’t be pleased if she knows of this.”

Intoxicated, Henry said in a rather exasperated tone, “She won’t know if you keep your mouth shut. Besides, I’m only asking you to send her home.”

The driver bit his tongue and got out of the car to help Lara.

Lara sat beside Henry.

He closed his eyes and did not speak to her, but they were in such close proximity to each other that she could smell the faint scent of pine on him.

She stealthily turned aside to sneak a peek at him, drinking in Henry’s chiseled features.

His side profile was perfect, exuding an air of nobility.

Lara couldn’t help but eye in wonder at the luxurious interior of the car.

She pictured herself being together with Henry. Her cheeks were tinged pink as she leaned in to take in his heavenly scent, imagining herself underneath him...

Will his face contort in ecstasy as he presses down on me?

Lara felt warm tingles all over her body just thinking about it.

An audacious thought flitted across her mind as she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss on his pristine white shirt, leaving behind the faintest trace of her coral lipstick.

It would easily escape one’s eyes if one didn’t pay attention to it.

Henry furrowed his brows and opened his eyes, making Lara fumble to set her back straight.

Half an hour later, the car stopped in front of a condominium in a nice neighborhood.

The driver helped Lara out of the car.

Henry didn’t intend to get out of the car. Lara bowed and said softly, “Mr. Miller, thank you for sending me home. If... if you need me to explain to Mrs. Miller, please do not hesitate to ask me. Nothing happened between us!”

Henry merely stared at her petite face and smiled faintly, saying nothing.

When the car started again, Henry did not have the heart to continue his пар.

In that fleeting moment, when Lara had leaned close, he felt it. Here was a young woman, so eerily reminiscent of that other, and furthermore, she was Audrey’s younger sister. Her attentiveness to him was undeniable.

He knew, with just the barest embrace, he could claim her.

He could possess a young and compliant lover, using her as a substitute.

Henry admitted to himself that those few seconds of intimacy were a test he set for himself.

He was curious at how much he truly cared for Crystal.

When Lara leaned close to him, all he thought about was Crystal, of her vulnerability when her eyes were closed, lost in her music. The surge of emotions he felt then couldn’t compare to any amount of attention from Lara.

Men always weighed their options, and Henry chose his family.

He chose Crystal.

At the Miller residence, as Henry stepped out of his car, he glanced up at the house. In the deepening. night, most of the lights had been snuffed out, but the light from Crystal’s room still gleamed.

He moved through the foyer, ascending the stairs at a leisurely pace.

After he took a look at Skyler and Remi, he gently turned the knob of Crystal’s bedroom door.

She hadn’t locked it. The door yielded effortlessly.

Crystal reclined on the couch, adorned in a soft silk nightgown that shimmered under the lamplight. Her skin pecked through, luminescent and delicate. She had fallen asleep holding a novel.

Henry was always entranced by her.

The alcohol coursing through him and the prolonged dry spell between them stirred a longing.

He leaned down, held her close, and kissed her tenderly yet fervently.

Crystal did not wake.

She proved to be more docile in her dreams.

After a few moments, his hands began to wander more eagerly.

She stirred, her eyes hazy with sleep, and met his, focusing on his handsome visage.

And then, she saw it-the faint hint of coral lipstick on his white shirt collar.

It was a mark of another woman.

Her gaze was fixed, unwavering, even as his passion seemed undiminished, his hands already working at the buttons of her nightgown.

“Let go!” Crystal’s face was pale, as if drained of all blood.

Henry, mistaking her resistance as mere coyness, whispered against the soft spot behind her ears, “Still mad at me, huh?”

As she lay there, her body was a vision of allure, yet her voice was chilling. “You met Lara today, didn’t you?”

His movements faltered.

After a beat, he looked into her eyes and admitted, “It was a chance meeting. I gave her a lift.”

Crystal adjusted her nightgown, her slender fingers deftly undoing two of his shirt buttons to reveal the lipstick stain.

That coral shade was cunningly chosen.

His brow furrowed. “It was just a ride. The driver was there. What could have happened?”

Henry loathed the lingering scent of another woman on him as well. He removed the tainted shirt, discarding it in the trash.

Turning to face Crystal, he declared, “I haven’t betrayed our marriage.”

Crystal felt too exhausted even to be angry.

Sitting silently, tears brimmed in her eyes as she calmly said. “You did nothing, sure. You just helped her resume her studies, rented her a condominium, paid her tuition, and found her a great job. Tell me, Henry, how is that different from keeping a mistress?”

His face tensed. “I don’t have such intentions.”

Crystal refused to look at him.

She moved to stand by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the night, and murmured. “You let her get close to you and allowed her to challenge your lawful wife. Your relationship with her has already crossed the line. If the driver hadn’t been there today, you would have tested yourself further. You might have followed her back to her condominium, let her remove your coat, perhaps even indulged her advances. She could have become your lover, a substitute for... Audrey.”

He was lighting a cigarette when the heat from the ember burned his finger.

After a moment, he said, “Why do you paint it so ugly, Crystal?”

She didn’t argue and merely whispered, “The truth is often harsh. Henry, you have only come! tonight because I’ve been giving you the cold shoulder. If our relationship was going well, an like Lara showed up, I doubt that you’ll resist her advances.”

It pained Crystal to speak her mind.

Truths, indeed, could be ugly.

Henry had drunk a bit too much that his head throbbed.

Observing her silhouette, he felt no point in discussing it further tonight. Rubbing his temple, he said. “Let’s talk tomorrow. Get some rest.”

Crystal stood still, only speaking up when he was about to exit.

“Take your shirt with you.”

He glanced back, seeing just the estrangement in her posture, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she had ever truly loved him.

Had they ever really been in love?

After Henry left, Crystal found herself padding back to the couch.

She grazed her fingertips over the novel, her face betraying little emotion. But deep within, the moment Henry had taken an interest in Lara’s matters, she knew this day would come.

The memory of the intimate encounter between Henry and Audrey from years ago was a hard one to crase.

Now that Henry had regained his memories, and yet his first crush had regrettably passed, what man could resist the allure of an impeccable substitute?

She knew what Henry had in mind.

If they were still not married, and she wasn’t bound by the love for her children, she might have fought. their relationship.

However, for Skyler and Remi’s sake, she refused to let herself be consumed by the uncertainty, by the fear of gaining or losing love.

Perhaps, it was time.

She opened the drawer of her bedside table and withdrew two documents-a separation agreement and divorce papers.

The next morning, Crystal attended to her two children as usual.

The strain between her and Henry was palpable, but they both tried to mask it in front of their children. However, Skyler, with her keen sensitivity, picked up on the changes.

While eating, the girl voiced her concerns. “Mommy, are we moving?”

She had overheard a conversation the previous night about Crystal looking for a larger home with five rooms.

Taken aback, Crystal responded with a gentle pinch to Skyler’s cheeks and a soft smile.

“Would you like to live there with me? It’s closer to your kindergarten. Imagine me holding your hand. every morning on our way to school.”

Sometimes, she envisioned, she could even push Remi in a stroller when picking up Skyler.

Henry, having overheard this, approached them.

Crystal is going to move out with the kids?

He took a seat beside Crystal. The last thing he wanted was a confrontation in front of the kids. Leaning in. he whispered, “Let the driver take Skyler. Crystal, we need to talk.”

Their conversation paused as Crystal tended to Skyler.

She remained indifferent toward Henry.

Even with d’mning evidence from the previous night, she didn’t explode.

After Skyler had left for kindergarten, Henry took the car keys and said, “Let me send you to work today. We’ll talk on the way.”

Crystal agreed.

She sat in the passenger seat. Even after one whole night, the lingering scent of another woman permeated the car.

Crystal reckoned it was Lara’s.

She took out the two papers from her bag.

“If you sign the separation agreement, we’ll divorce in two years. If you sign the divorce papers, it will be immediate. The only real difference is the visitation rights for the children these two years.”

Skimming the papers, Henry realized there was minimal difference between the two, especially concerning property.

Secas Corporation’s assets were under Crystal’s name, to begin with.

She asked for no property, only custody of their children.

He tossed the documents aside, lit a cigarette, and filled the car with a smoky haze.

Choking slightly, she cracked the window just as he said, “Do you really think my father would let you walk away with the Miller family’s children?”

Crystal’s eyes glistened. “He already agreed.”

Henry’s hands trembled as he held the cigarette. “Is this about last night? Nothing happened between us. I did not even kiss her.”

He had only let Lara get close to him because his wife had been giving him the cold shoulder for far too long.

Henry didn’t want to separate, much less a divorce.

He wanted to solve the problem that had been plaguing them. Henry caught onto her wrist and asked gently, “Why not take a trip, just the two of us?”

Crystal retracted her hand.

She leaned back on the car seat and said in an exhausted tone, “Henry, let’s split up.” Then, she got out of the car and prepared to get into another car.

Henry chased after her, smacked on her car door, and pleaded, “Crystal, let’s talk!”

He didn’t want a divorce.

It wasn’t just for the sake of reputation but for the sake of their children. He didn’t want them to have a broken family.

The driver appeared conflicted. “Mrs. Miller?”

Crystal ordered him to drive.

The black sedan slowly drove past Henry. Crystal thought she wouldn’t harbor any more feelings toward him. However, she found tears brimming in her eyes.

She was utterly disappointed with Henry.

While she had once loved this version of him, different beginnings had led them to different endings.