Chapter 519 Mutual Harm
"What are you doing here?" Marlowe froze as she emerged from the kitchen to find Grant standing in her family home.
Grant ignored her question, focusing instead on Katerina beside her.
"Mom," he said warmly.
Marlowe's eyes widened in shock. Since their wedding, he had never greeted her mother with such warmth.
"I apologize for being late," Grant said with perfect composure. "Marlowe and I had planned to visit you together, but I was held up with company business."
Behind him, Kevin nearly choked on his own saliva. Grant was spinning a complete fabrication with remarkable confidence. When had his boss developed such shameless skill?
Marlowe was equally stunned. When had she ever agreed to return with him?
Grant's blatant lies left her parents speechless. Undeterred by their silence, he made himself comfortable and instructed Kevin to bring in the gifts.
Finnegan, Katerina, and Marlowe stared at the mountain of presents filling the living room—food, drinks, household items, decorations—everything imaginable.
Marlowe wondered if he'd bought out an entire convenience store.
Elliot and Grant exchanged glances. Grant's eyes blazed with hostility and challenge.
Elliot found the display both childish and shameless, forcing him to reassess his understanding of Grant.
Grant's arrival had transformed the atmosphere into something unbearably awkward.
"Grant, come outside. We need to talk," Marlowe said coldly before walking out.
Grant nodded politely to her parents and followed her.
In the yard, Marlowe took a deep breath before turning to face him. "What exactly are you trying to do?"
Grant maintained his composure. "You came to visit your parents. I couldn't be impolite."
Marlowe turned around, looking up at him with skepticism. "Grant, hand on heart, do you actually believe what you're saying?"
"I never include false information in my statements," he replied with complete sincerity.
Marlowe fell silent. She couldn't communicate with him anymore. Lately, he'd developed a knack for shutting down every conversation.
"Whatever your purpose—or even if you have none—please leave my home now." She stepped aside with a dismissive gesture, refusing to look at him further.
Grant narrowed his eyes, studying her as he pressed his tongue against his back teeth.
After a moment of silence, he stated simply, "I'm not leaving."
Marlowe looked up. "You..."
"If Elliot, an outsider, can stay, why can't I?" he interrupted.
For several seconds, Marlowe stood bewildered. Was she hallucinating? Because Grant almost seemed to be... pouting? And was that a hint of hurt in his expression? She must be seeing things.
Collecting herself, she replied, "You and Elliot are different. My parents welcome him."
"How do you know they don't welcome me?" he challenged.
Marlowe hadn't expected such brazenness. Wasn't the answer obvious? If her parents hadn't been raised with good manners, they'd probably have chased him out with a mop by now. Couldn't he see their expressions hadn't been pleasant since his arrival?
Was he deliberately playing dumb?
Seeing that firmness wasn't working, Marlowe tried a gentler approach. "Mr. Scott, my parents already know I want a divorce. You..."
The mention of divorce made Grant's chest tighten. He didn't want to hear it.
"I haven't eaten all day while searching for you, Marlowe. Can you be so heartless?" he interrupted, playing the victim.
Marlowe stared at him in disbelief. Searching for her?
Their eyes locked.
"You disappeared without a word," he continued. "No message, no answered calls. I searched all of Rihegde, thinking you were hiding from me again."
Marlowe remained silent.
Grant leaned forward, gently gripping her chin. "Marlowe, are you really so cruel that you won't give me even one chance?"
Marlowe frowned.
Hadn't she given him enough chances? Five years' worth of chances that he never took. Now that she'd given up, he had the audacity to ask why she wouldn't give him a chance?
How absurd.
Grant saw the mockery and coldness in her eyes, and his chest ached as if gnawed by a thousand ants.
Suddenly, he didn't want to hear her answer. More accurately, he didn't dare hear it.
He released her and straightened up. "I'm hungry. And as long as Elliot stays, I'm not leaving."
Without another glance, he turned and walked back inside as if he owned the place.
Marlowe could only stare at his retreating figure.
What had been planned as a dinner for four now awkwardly accommodated a fifth person. The atmosphere grew strained and strange, largely due to Grant's overwhelming presence. He sat like an imposing statue, completely out of place.
Dinner concluded with everyone lost in their own thoughts.
In the kitchen afterward, Katerina asked, "Marlowe, what's going on with you and Grant? Didn't you say you were divorcing him? Why is he here?"
Marlowe, cleaning up kitchen waste, didn't know how to answer. She didn't understand Grant's intentions herself. Since that incident, he'd been acting strangely.
She gave her mother a brief explanation.
Meanwhile, in the living room, three men sat together, with Grant clearly the odd one out.
It wasn't exactly that they were excluding him—he simply couldn't join their conversation.
Elliot and Finnegan had plenty to discuss, while Finnegan didn't know how to interact with Grant given the awkward circumstances.
Grant, however, showed no discomfort. He sat casually drinking his coffee, occasionally interjecting into Elliot's conversations—less like participating and more like disrupting.
When Finnegan thanked Elliot for bringing Marlowe home and taking time out of his day, Elliot responded, "It's no trouble at all. The company had nothing urgent today."
Grant remarked casually, "Mr. Sullivan, I heard your company has been quite anxious about a piece of land recently. You had time to escort my wife home today—has that matter been resolved?"
Elliot met Grant's challenging gaze and smiled. "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Scott. Company matters are never as important as Marlowe, especially given her pregnancy. I couldn't let her travel alone."
Elliot's comment was a subtle jab at Grant's excuse about being delayed by business.
Grant replied with a half-smile, "Then I should thank you for escorting my wife home."
Elliot maintained his gentle smile. "That's unnecessary. Marlowe and I have the kind of relationship where such formalities aren't needed."
"Is that so? What kind of relationship would that be?"
"Whatever kind you imagine it to be."
The atmosphere was tense, with Finnegan caught awkwardly in the middle.
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