Chapter 441 Mutual Destruction
"Yeah." Willard didn't back off, replying slowly, "You took care of everything. I have no clue where to buy it."
When Willard wanted something, there were plenty of people who'd bend over backward to get it for him. It was just some regular bath products. Figuring out where to buy them would be a breeze.
Anne's focus shouldn't be on the body wash; it should be on the fact that he had just taken a shower and was only wearing a towel.
But she let herself get sidetracked.
Anne said, "Alright, I'll get you some more. Don't use it if it's expired; you might get an allergic reaction."
Willard replied, "Okay."
Anne immediately pulled out her phone to place an order. After buying it, she showed him. "It'll be here in a few days. Use something else for now."
Willard looked at her, staying silent for a few seconds before speaking, "Anne, I'm sorry."
That apology hit her like a bucket of cold water, snapping her out of it.
She suddenly realized she had just been chatting with Willard about body wash and even bought him a new one.
Anne said, "You owe me 150 bucks."
The good mood vanished instantly, and Willard even laughed. "I saw your payment info. It was 100 bucks."
"The other 50 bucks is my service fee. I have no obligation to buy stuff for you, but I did. Got it?"
Willard nodded seriously, "Got it."
Anne demanded, "Transfer the money."
But Willard asked, "Why were you at the door?"
Anne definitely couldn't say she was planning to run away.
She said, "You were showering, so of course, I had to avoid you..."
At that moment, she suddenly realized.
Willard was only wearing a towel!
His upper body displayed perfectly sculpted muscles. Water droplets traced paths down his well-defined abs, disappearing beneath the edge of the towel into unexplored territory.
She quickly turned her back to him, cursing, "You're such a jerk."
Willard's eyes sparkled with amusement as he pulled her into the room.
Anne panicked, "I'm warning you, if you dare touch me, I'll take you down with me."
Willard pinned her against the doorframe, bending down to look her in the eye.
A sly smile played on his lips. "You saw me naked, so you have to take responsibility."
He spoke deliberately, emphasizing each word with a serious tone. She almost lost her composure.
Fortunately, she managed to keep her wits about her.
"You were the one walking around without clothes. How is it my fault for seeing you? You're talking nonsense!"
Willard responded casually, his deep voice tempting her step by step. "It's my room. Why should I get dressed after a shower? And even if I wasn't dressed, you could have looked away. But you kept staring at me, even getting close. I could feel your lips on my..."
Anne covered his mouth, glaring at him with anger and frustration. "You were standing silently behind me. I turned around and accidentally bumped into you. Got it? Don't try to fool me. No matter what, I don't have to take responsibility for you!"
Willard reached out, grabbing her waist and pulling her into his arms.
Anne instinctively pushed him away, her hands landing on his chest.
Before she could react, she heard Willard chuckle.
He teased, "You even touched me."
Anne was speechless, thinking, 'Here we go again! This cunning jerk!'
Anne quickly thought and said, "You touched me just now too. We're even."
Willard nodded, "You got a point."
Before Anne could savor her small victory, a shadow fell over her.
His lips pressed against hers, cool and firm.
Her eyes widened in shock.
She used all her strength to push him away and shouted, "What the hell are you doing! Didn't you say we're even?"
Willard replied calmly, "You kissed me earlier, so now I kissed you. We're even."
Anne was at a loss for words, her emotions a whirlwind.
So, when her hand landed on Willard's face, she didn't even realize what had happened.
Willard's face turned slightly to the side.
He hadn't expected it either. After a brief pause, he pressed his tongue against his left cheek.
His face showed no emotion, and the amusement in his eyes hadn't completely faded.
Anne looked at him, feeling a bit scared.
It would have been better if he hadn't smiled.
"I... you started it... I didn't mean to... if you hadn't gone too far, I wouldn't have hit you..."
After she stammered through her explanation, Willard let out a short laugh and then raised his hand.
Anne instinctively flinched, then offered her face. "You can hit me back. Then we'll be even. You can't use this as an excuse to stop me from getting a divorce."
She closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself.
But the slap never came.
Instead, she felt Willard's large hand cup her cheek, tilting her face up.
Then came a fierce, passionate kiss.
She was caught off guard, her breath quickening as she was led to the bed.
In between breaths, she pushed against him, saying, "What are you doing! I told you to hit me back, not..."
"I can't bear to hit you."
Her words were cut off by Willard's tender voice.
Anne choked for a moment, "But you can't..."
"You said we're even. This is the only way I can think of."
Anne opened her mouth to speak, but Willard kissed her again.
She inadvertently gave him the opportunity.
In the quiet room, the only sounds were the ones that made her blush and her heart race.
Gradually, the temperature began to rise.
By the time Anne realized something was wrong, she was already caught up in his rhythm.
Her palms were burning hot.
"Willard!" She gritted her teeth, but her voice lacked any threat due to the breathless kisses.
Willard looked into her watery eyes, his gaze deep and unreadable.
Anne said coldly, "Don't make me hate you."
Willard's body stiffened, and he abruptly pulled away, heading into the bathroom.
Soon, the sound of running water filled the room.
Anne quickly got up and ran out of his room, heading to the guest room across the hall.
She scrubbed her hands vigorously until they were red, but she kept washing.
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
She cursed Willard under her breath. "Jerk!"
When Willard came out an hour later, he had hoped to be quicker, but his body had other plans.
Not seeing Anne in his room, he had a feeling where she might be.
But he didn't expect the door to suddenly open.
The person he had been thinking about walked in with her head down, not even glancing at him. She lay down on the couch, pulling a blanket tightly around herself.
In the dim light, Willard could see her tear-stained eyes.
His heart ached, as if an invisible hand was squeezing it.
Finally, he said, "I'm sorry," and left the room.
Anne knew she should have asked him to stay.
Otherwise, she wouldn't find him in the morning.
But she didn't want to say a word to him right now.
She held onto a sliver of hope.
Maybe Willard would feel a bit guilty and agree to the divorce tomorrow.
Around the corner, a subordinate nudged their leader, who was resting with his eyes closed.
The subordinate reported, "Mr. Larson's lips are busted. Things got pretty intense. How did he end up coming out of the room after a shower? They went through all that and still didn't make up!"
The leader didn't even open his eyes. "Go run 10 kilometers."
Anne thought she wouldn't be able to sleep after all that.
But eventually, she drifted off into a deep sleep.
In a daze, Anne felt something brush against the corner of her eye, wiping away her tears.
When she woke up the next morning, the room was empty, and she was alone.
She immediately went out to look for Willard.
Not seeing Quinton, who was always by his side, she grabbed someone nearby and asked, "Where's Willard?"
The subordinate replied, "Mr. Larson left last night. I don't know his exact schedule. Please forgive me, Mrs. Larson."
Willard's schedule was always kept secret. Only at the time of an event would it be known. The only person who might know was Quinton, but she couldn't reach him.
Just as she was about to call Willard, her phone rang.
Seeing the caller ID, she quickly answered, "Uma."
"Nothing much, just hungry early in the morning."
Anne glanced at the time and asked, "Uma, do you know where Willard went?"
Uma laughed, "Anne, you and Willard are in the same house. If you don't know, how would I?"
"What?"
Anne had traveled with Willard yesterday. But there were so many possibilities along the way; they could have parted ways at the airport. Yet Uma sounded so certain.
"How do you know we were in the same house?"
"Not just me, the whole internet knows."
"What?"
Uma sent her a link. "Take a look."
Anne clicked on it immediately.
#Breaking News: Larson Family Patriarch Willard Revealed to be Married - Wife Seen for First Time During Last Night's Homecoming.
Anne zoomed in on the picture. It wasn't very clear, but it was almost certain to be him. And her face, though not very clear, was recognizable to those who knew her.
Now the entire internet was discussing her and Willard. There was no intervention to remove the news, photos, or block their names. Her Instagram was flooded with tags. After all, she was a photographer and occasionally needed to be active online.
Anne gritted her teeth. "That jerk!"
Without Willard's permission, who would dare report on his affairs like this?
Anne said, "Uma, I have to go."
Uma, looking at the hung-up call, smiled and sent a recording to Willard.
Uma: [Willard, five million dollars, thanks.]
Willard quickly transferred the money.
With the money, Uma's conscience kicked in.
Uma texted: [Your method is too clumsy. It will only push Anne further away. Let me teach you a way to win her back.]
Willard didn't believe it and didn't reply to that message. Instead, he went online to check the situation.
Quinton reminded him, "Mr. Larson, you can't stay on the trending list forever."
Just as he finished speaking, with his sharp eyesight, he saw Willard's phone ringing with the caller ID "Ann."
Another wave of trouble.
He thought Willard would start sweet-talking Anne.
But to his surprise, Willard directly hung up the call and even blocked her.
When Anne was gone, he better not cry his eyes out.
Willard suddenly looked over, and Quinton quickly lowered his head.
Hopefully, he didn't notice his inner thoughts.
Willard spoke, his voice indifferent, "Call her and tell her I can't take any calls for a while."
Quinton had no choice but to comply.
Anne listened to his words and laughed coldly.
She said, "Tell Willard if I don't see him at City Hall today, I'll file for divorce. If his work gets affected or he loses face, don't blame me."
Quinton had the phone on speaker, so Willard heard everything clearly.
Being his subordinate was tough.
Quinton replied, "Mrs. Larson, you must be busy. Don't wait at City Hall. Mr. Larson will contact you when he's free."
"Bullshit!" Anne cursed, "That jerk! Let's see how long you can hide! I'll wait at City Hall until five. If I don't see you, I'll file for divorce!"
The call ended.
Quinton cautiously said, "Mr. Larson, Mrs. Larson seems to know you're listening."
"Yes." Willard's lips curved into a faint smile, "She's getting smarter."
Quinton felt exhausted, thinking, 'You two can play your games, but don't make it hard for me.'
Anne hung up and sat down at the entrance of City Hall.
Spring in Seaside City brought quick weather changes. It was sunny in the morning, but by noon, it started to rain.
The drizzle wasn't a big deal, but by the afternoon, the rain intensified.
Anne didn't have an umbrella and didn't seek shelter, just sitting in the rain.
She knew Willard had people following her. They would report everything to him.
Quinton received a video and immediately showed it to Willard. "Mr. Larson, Mrs. Larson is sitting in the rain. There are still two hours until five. Even though it's spring, the weather is still chilly. If she keeps this up, she might get sick."
Willard gripped his pen tightly until it snapped, ink staining the documents in his hand.
Quinton sighed inwardly, 'What a mess. If he doesn't want a divorce, hiding isn't a long-term solution.'
Anne was clearly determined to confront Willard.
Willard's heart must be aching terribly right now.
Quinton suggested, "Mr. Larson, think of a way. Stopping Mrs. Larson from getting soaked is the priority."
Willard remained silent for a long time.
When five o'clock arrived, he grabbed his coat and hurried out.
Quinton grabbed an umbrella and quickly followed.
Anne hadn't eaten or drunk anything, just sitting in the rain waiting.
Some kind-hearted people offered her umbrellas, but she refused.
Gradually, she started feeling cold, her eyes burning and sore.
The rain blurred her vision, and she felt dizzy.
Eventually, she just wanted to sleep and lay down on the steps.
In her daze, she heard someone say to call an ambulance.
At that moment, a group of bodyguards broke through the crowd.
The sound of leather shoes on the steps.
A tall man in a black suit, exuding a cold aura, walked closer and finally stopped in front of her.
He knelt down and scooped her into his arms.
Before Anne passed out, she thought she heard him sigh heavily.
With helplessness, pain, and... confusion.
Confusion?
She must be delirious.
Willard, confused?
He was always so cold and indifferent, always in control.
She was the one who was in pain and confused.
Uma arrived at the hospital after hearing the news.
Seeing Willard, drenched and looking disheveled, she couldn't resist taking a photo.
Then she said, "This move of yours really backfired."
*************************
（I highly recommend a captivating book that I couldn't put down for three days and nights. It's incredibly engaging and a must-read. The title of the book is "Revenge of the Entertainment Queen" You can find it by searching for it in the search bar.）
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