Chapter 155 Justin's Hair Used for a Secret Paternity Test
From the time Jasmine finished breakfast to when she took Justin to school, her mood seemed subdued.
She was preoccupied, lost in thought.
Ethan glanced at Jasmine and asked in a serious tone, "Are you feeling all right?"
Jasmine quickly shook her head. "No, it's not that..."
She was just worried about Richard.
Jasmine was acutely aware of the boundaries in her relationship with Ethan. There was a line that couldn't be crossed, an understanding of limits.
Richard, on the other hand, was somewhat emotionally naive.
Once, Richard had a crush on a girl, but their potential romance was destroyed before it started when Serena publicly accused him of being lecherous and abusive.
Since then, Richard led a simple life, raising Justin alone. In all these five years, no one dared to set him up with anyone. Those who were interested lost their enthusiasm upon learning he had a child.
Richard had no interest in seeking a partner either. He had grown accustomed to his solitary life, his focus on Justin and his mother, who was still in prison.
Actually, Jasmine's five years in prison were a torment for Richard as well—a shared suffering, one inside the prison walls, and the other outside.
"Pull over here for a moment," Ethan instructed the driver to stop by the roadside.
The driver hesitated but quickly parked the car.
Ethan got out and bought a milkshake from a nearby shop.
Jasmine, surprised, hurried out of the car. "Mr. Ethan, you like milkshakes? I can buy it next time."
Ethan handed her the milkshake. "It's for you."
Holding the milkshake, Jasmine was at a loss.
He bought it for her.
Tears briefly welled in her eyes before she lowered her head and followed Ethan back into the car.
"I saw you add a lot of sugar into your coffee," Ethan speculated, "I figured you might like sweet things."
Jasmine didn't reply. Her fondness for sweets came from bitter times when Ethan had told her to have a piece of candy whenever life felt too harsh.
"Thank you, Mr. Ethan."
...
At Stellar Enterprises, Jasmine's presence as Ethan's personal assistant was taken for granted.
"Good morning, Mr. Ethan," the employees greeted Ethan.
He gave a distant nod in response.
It wasn't Jasmine's imagination; Ethan seemed icily aloof from the moment he stepped inside the company.
The difference between Ethan at home and at the office was stark.
"Jasmine, come here for a second," Liam called her over just before they got on the elevator.
Ethan's eyebrows furrowed. "Work hasn't started yet, what do you need her for?"
Liam looked puzzled. "Mr. Ethan, you've had breakfast, but we haven't yet. I'm going to take Jasmine out for breakfast."
Jasmine was embarrassed. In fact, she had eaten already. She had eaten with Mr. Ethan.
"She's busy, doesn't have time," Ethan curtly replied and closed the elevator door.
Liam was left standing outside the closed elevator door. He couldn't help but think that Ethan was really pushing his employees too hard.
Jasmine just seemed so pitiful.
Sighing, Liam felt more and more that he had been too harsh on Jasmine in the past. He decided to be nicer to her from now on.
Everyone seemed to pick on Jasmine. Clara had even maliciously planned to disfigure Jasmine with sulfuric acid.
No matter how he looked at it, Jasmine seemed like a victim.
Inside the elevator, the atmosphere was tense.
Jasmine glanced up sneakily at Ethan, not understanding why he suddenly seemed so glum.
"M-Mr. Ethan," Jasmine called softly.
"Stay away from Liam from now on," Ethan said with a deep voice.
Jasmine was confused. "Liam is nice, and we have to work together, how can I stay away..."
She didn't quite catch Ethan's drift.
"What I mean is..." Ethan started to say something but then stopped. He cleared his throat and snorted before falling silent again.
He knew Liam all too well; Liam wasn't the type to overflow with kindness, especially not for just anyone. He was only that way with beautiful women.
After speaking ill of Jasmine behind her back, now he was openly defending her and subtly telling Ethan not to overwork his employees. It was pretty clear that his intentions were not good.
'Men,' Ethan thought with a scoff.
"Mr. Ethan, here's the schedule for the week from Kimberly," Jasmine said as they entered the office, showing Ethan the tablet with her work notes. "The collaboration with Mr. Otis from Stellar Enterprises in Hawaii has been successfully finalized. According to company policy, there is supposed to be a celebration tonight. Will you be attending?"
Ethan's fingers lightly tapped on the desk. He usually avoided company social events.
Jasmine obviously knew this but asked anyway. She was probably hoping he would make an exception just this once.
"If possible, could you break tradition and attend, and also personally commend Branson from the investment department in front of the executives and project team? It would greatly boost his sense of honor and pride in the company," Jasmine softly suggested with a hint of pleading.
There was a moment of silence, then Ethan nodded. "All right, you handle it."
Howard had already called him, insisting he come home tonight and mentioned that Clara was cooking herself.
He didn't know if this was an offer of an olive branch or an attempt to shirk responsibility.
"The team-building is over, mind coming home with me?" Ethan asked Jasmine for her opinion.
"Sure..." Jasmine nodded. "Whatever you decide is fine."
Ethan felt a bit helpless; Jasmine was treating this relationship strictly business.
"Don't worry about tonight, no matter what happens, I'm here for you," Ethan assured her again.
He would not let the incident of Clara putting sulfuric acid in the water go easily.
Jasmine clenched her fingers tightly, nodding nervously.
...
At the kindergarten, Justin was focusing on his mental math lesson with Kimberly, a teacher called out his name from outside the classroom.
Justin obediently stood up and walked out, looking at the teacher. "Ma'am, did you need to see me for something?"
"Justin, your hair has gotten quite long, haven't you gotten a haircut?" the teacher asked softly.
Justin shook his head. "Uncle says my hair isn't long enough to cut yet."
"Let me trim it a bit for you," the teacher gently suggested, taking Justin by the hand to the office.
"My mom should agree before you cut my hair," Justin said warily, objecting to the haircut.
"It's just a little trim, it won't be a problem," the teacher coaxed.
"No, Uncle said that we shouldn't let others cut our hair carelessly. Our hair and skin were gifts from our parents," Justin refused.
"Be a good boy, Justin." The teacher was clearly losing patience, reaching out to grab a few strands of his hair, including the hair follicles.
However, Justin quickly dodged. "If my hair is long, my mom will take me to get it cut, not the teacher."
"All right then, let me just tidy it up," the teacher said with a smile, putting down the scissors, and waved Justin over.
Justin eyed the teacher suspiciously and approached.
"Teacher, you're pulling my hair," he winced as his hair seemed to be yanked out by the roots, his eyes reddening with pain.
It seemed like the teacher had plucked out several strands of his hair.
"Sorry, Justin, I didn't mean to. Your hair was tangled, and I was just trying to help," the teacher said with a smile, fumbling with his hair. "Go back to your class now."
Justin looked at the teacher, puzzled, then ran back to the classroom.
Looking at the strands of hair with follicles in hand, the teacher slipped them into a small plastic bag. "Harper, I've got Justin's hair with follicles ready. I checked, and we should get it tested within two weeks; otherwise, the result might not be accurate if we wait too long."
On the other end of the phone, Harper's voice was hoarse. "You did good, send the hair out to me."
The teacher had managed to secure the strands of hair with the follicles attached, now it all depended on Zelda.
However, although kids were easy to fool, Henry might not be as easy to deceive.
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