The Red Rose of Manhattan Chapter 20

Her presentation was professional, confident, charismatic—completely displaying the qualities of an international superstar. It formed a stark contrast to Ethan's privately motivated interference.

The brand executives exchanged approving glances, all previous hesitation swept away.

Finally, the meeting ended harmoniously.

The CEO decided on the spot: Lily's global ambassadorship contract was officially signed!

Ethan's screen went dark first amid polite but distant farewells.

He sat alone in his vast, cold office, listening to the dial tone, face ashen, fists clenched, veins bulging on the backs of his hands!

His carefully planned ambush had not only completely failed but had become a backdrop highlighting Lily's capability and Ryan's strength!

That evening, in the most exclusive private club in New York's penthouse, Ethan dismissed everyone, facing his loyal assistant who stood with head bowed, not daring to breathe.

Like a caged beast, he growled in a low voice filled with frustration and incomprehensible obsession:

"Why?! Why won't she even give me a chance to make amends?!"

"Everything Ryan can give her, I can give her too—and more! Wealth? Resources? Status? I can give her ten times, a hundred times!"

"What does she want?!"

The assistant, seeing his near-manic state, hesitated before carefully suggesting in a low voice: "Mr. Frost... perhaps... what Miss Sterling wanted was never these external things."

Ethan froze like he'd been struck, standing rigid.

Not these things?

Then what did she want?

For the first time, he began truly, painfully considering this question he'd never deeply thought about.

Unreserved trust? Unwavering choice? The intention of putting her first?

Love?

This realization was like blinding lightning splitting his confused mind, but bringing deeper bewilderment and... panic.

Just as Ethan was trapped in his spiral of obsession and reflection, sudden news struck like thunder, shaking his world.

Breaking News: Catastrophic flash floods and mudslides in French Alps due to heavy rain, multiple towns cut off, roads destroyed, situation critical!

And the urgent intelligence his assistant sent next made Ethan's heart stop—

Lily was in that region!

She'd been invited to an international children's charity photo shoot near the hardest-hit town!

Currently, the entire area had lost all communication. Life or death unknown!

At that moment, Ethan was chairing a crucial board meeting about the group's next decade of strategy.

When his assistant whispered the news, Ethan shot to his feet from the head seat, face instantly deathly pale!

Without a word of explanation to the shocked board members, he threw down his documents, turned, and rushed from the conference room!

"Get the plane ready immediately! Fastest speed! To Nice! No! Directly to the nearest landable airport!" He barked into his phone while racing to the elevator, his voice unprecedented in its panic and terror. "Contact every local rescue organization! Hire the best rescue teams! Any price! I'm going myself!"

Corporate strategy, business empire—all became insignificant compared to hearing she might be in danger!

Only one thought filled his mind—

Find her! Must find her immediately! She can't be hurt! Absolutely not!

Hours later, Ethan's private jet took enormous risks, forcing a landing during a break in the storm at the nearest small functioning airport.

Weather was extremely poor, thick dark clouds overhead, wind and rain battering. Ethan didn't pause, switching to a waiting helicopter to fly directly toward the disaster zone.

The helicopter couldn't land directly, only hover relatively safely.

Ethan ignored the crew's warnings, first to rappel down the rope to the muddy ground. He'd brought a team of heavily paid, experienced professional mountain rescue experts.

"Mr. Frost! The road ahead is too dangerous! The mudslide is still active! You can't go in!" The rescue captain looked at the water-destroyed road ahead—collapsed everywhere, broken trees scattered—and urged anxiously.

"Cut the crap! Lead the way!" Ethan's eyes were bloodshot, voice hoarse, his expensive custom trench coat already soaked through with rain and mud, but the determination and madness in his eyes was terrifying.

Driven almost by instinct, by desperate faith, he pushed ahead through the treacherous terrain.

Walking through calf-deep water, freezing cold; rocks constantly rolling down the mountainside; wind threatening to knock them over.

Once, dodging a small rockslide, a falling stone headed straight for the backpack containing critical rescue equipment. Without thinking, Ethan threw himself against the pack, taking the hit—his left arm gashed open by the stone's edge, deep enough to see bone, blood instantly gushing out, staining the muddy water red!

"Mr. Frost!" Team members cried out, trying to bandage him.

"I'm fine! Keep moving!" Ethan's face was pale as paper, forehead covered in cold sweat mixed with rain. He just tore off cloth to roughly wrap the wound, gritting his teeth and pushing forward.

Pain kept his nerves sharp—he had to hurry! Faster!

After over ten hours of non-stop, death-defying searching, they finally found Lily in the broken classroom of a primary school on slightly higher ground but surrounded by floodwater like an island!

She was with several teachers, comforting dozens of frightened children.

Her hair was disheveled, face pale, clothes dirty, but her eyes were remarkably steady. She was even telling the children stories softly, trying to dispel their fear.

When Ethan appeared in the doorway—covered in mud, bloodstained, looking like he'd crawled from hell—stumbling forward, everyone was stunned.

Lily looked up. Seeing him in that instant, her pupils contracted sharply, her face written with utter disbelief!

She clearly never expected to see him here, like this.

Their eyes met.

Time seemed to freeze for several seconds.

Ethan, seeing her standing there safe and sound, felt the heart he'd held suspended for days finally crash down!

A massive relief and indescribable ache instantly destroyed his rationality!

Ignoring his arm's piercing pain, his bedraggled state, he rushed forward in a few strides and, before everyone's shocked eyes, pulled Lily into a crushing embrace! So hard he seemed to want to meld her into his body!

His body trembled uncontrollably, voice hoarse and broken, thick with tears, repeating over and over: "Thank God... thank God you're okay... thank God..."

It was the relief of recovering something lost, nearly collapsed with fear.

Lily, held tightly against him, could clearly feel his violent heartbeat and trembling body, could even smell the heavy scent of blood, mud, and... fear emanating from him.

Her stiff body wavered for a moment, her eyes flashing with extremely complex emotions—concern, being moved—but ultimately, reason prevailed.

She pushed him away—firmly but not roughly.

Taking a step back, creating distance, she looked at his bloody arm and disheveled appearance, her tone calm with distant politeness: "Thank you for the dangerous rescue, Mr. Frost. I'll remember this favor."

With that, she turned away, back to caring for the frightened children, as if he were just a rescue worker who'd come to perform his duty.

Ethan's embrace fell empty. Watching her resolute back, the relief in his heart ebbed like tide, leaving only boundless loss and icy cold.

He stood there like a puppet drained of strength, frozen in place.

Just then, the sound of a helicopter landing came from outside.

Ryan arrived with another rescue team and supplies.

He rushed into the classroom, immediately searching for Lily. Seeing her safe and unharmed, visible relief washed over him.

Then his gaze landed on Ethan—disheveled, seriously injured—his expression becoming extremely complex, showing shock, scrutiny, and barely perceptible unease.

In the temporary shelter, medical staff were cleaning and bandaging Ethan's wound.

The gash was deep, requiring stitches.

But Ethan seemed to feel no pain, his gaze constantly following Lily's busy figure in the distance.

He asked his assistant in a low voice, carrying barely perceptible, humble hope: "When she saw my injury... did she... even a little bit... worry?"

The assistant looked at his boss's pale, stubborn profile and silently lowered his head.

The answer was self-evident.

The disaster rescue incident was like a boulder thrown into a lake, stirring massive waves in everyone's hearts.

Ryan had witnessed firsthand how Ethan could risk his life to save Lily, making him feel unprecedented, genuine threat.

He realized Ethan's feelings for Lily went far deeper and more obsessive than he'd imagined—far beyond simple "unwillingness."

And though Lily appeared calm on the surface, Ryan keenly noticed that flash of emotion when she looked at Ethan's wound—she wasn't completely unmoved.

He couldn't wait any longer.

He had to move their relationship forward, stand beside her with legitimate status and protect her.

The night before Lily's team was set to return home, after disaster relief work had stabilized, Ryan chose a quiet moment.

On a small hill near the temporary settlement where they could see the stars, just the two of them.

The night breeze was cool, dispersing some of the exhaustion and tension from recent days. Ryan looked at Lily beside him, her profile soft and serene in the moonlight as she gazed at the stars.

"Lily," he began, his voice rarely serious and tender, shedding his usual flippancy, "there's something I've been thinking about for a long time. I think it's time to tell you."

Lily turned, looking at him with some confusion.

Ryan took a deep breath, his gaze burning as he looked at her: "I know you probably always thought I was annoying when we were kids, always antagonizing you like a pest. Actually... that was because I didn't know how to get your attention. You were too dazzling, like a little sun, always surrounded by people. I could only use that clumsy method to make you at least... remember I existed."

He laughed self-deprecatingly, continuing: "Later, growing up, I had endless women around me, looked like a playboy... and I was. Because seeing you with Ethan hurt, and I didn't know what to do. I could only numb myself that way, and... maybe wanted you to see that I, Ryan Chase, wasn't unwanted either."

His tone carried bitterness: "When you went abroad three years ago, I followed immediately. Not for any other reason—just because... I like you, Lily. Since we were kids, I've liked you like crazy."

These words flowed like warm current into Lily's heart.

She stared at him, seeing the undisguised devotion and nervousness in his eyes.

These three years, Ryan's kindness to her, every detail—she remembered it all.

He'd accompanied her through the loneliness of arriving in a foreign land, quietly supported her when her career hit setbacks, stayed by her bedside all night when she was sick, respected every decision she made, never pressured her. His companionship was warm and solid.

Ryan took her hand, his palm warm and dry: "Lily, I know your heart still hurts, that you haven't completely let go of the past. I'm not rushing you. I can wait. I just want to ask—can you give me a chance? Let me be your boyfriend officially, protect you, treat you right."

His confession had no flowery language, no exaggerated romance—only the most genuine sincerity backed by years of companionship.

Lily's heart was deeply touched.

She looked at Ryan—this man she'd grown up with, laughing and fighting, who'd stayed by her side through her darkest times.

She'd long since developed deep dependence on and affection for him. Perhaps it was time to try starting a new, healthy relationship.

Perhaps this was the true way to say goodbye to the past.

She was silent for a long time, so long Ryan's heart nearly sank to the bottom.

Finally, she lifted her head, meeting his anxious gaze, nodding gently, her lips curving into a faint but genuine smile:

"Okay."

One word, light as a feather, but it sent Ryan into immediate ecstasy!

He pulled her into his arms excitedly, holding her tight like recovered treasure.

News of their official relationship, though not deliberately publicized, quickly spread through their close circle of friends. Everyone was happy for them—after all, Ryan's three years of devotion had been plain to see.

However, when this news reached Ethan's ears, it became the final straw that broke the camel's back.

He was in the hospital treating his arm wound—the rain-soaked search and infection had triggered high fever, requiring observation.

When his assistant carefully reported the news, Ethan first froze, then seemed to hear the world's most absurd, unacceptable thing!

"Impossible!!" He shot up from the hospital bed, ripping out his IV needle—blood instantly spurting! His eyes were bloodshot, looking possessed, sweeping the medical cart beside the bed to the floor, instruments and medications crashing everywhere!

"How could she... how dare she!!" He roared, completely losing his usual controlled composure. "Ryan! What right does he have?!"

Ignoring doctors' attempts to stop him and his assistant's pleading, he forced himself to discharge, driving straight to Lily's villa.

He'd even forgotten his arm was still bandaged, forgotten his fever hadn't broken—his mind held only one insane thought:

Go find her! Demand answers! He wouldn't allow it!

Night was deep. Like a drunk, he staggered to the villa's closed iron gate, pounding the cold bars, hoarsely shouting Lily's name, his voice desolate and desperate:

"Lily! Come out! Tell me this isn't true!"

"You can't do this to me! I was wrong! I know I was wrong! Give me one more chance!"

"Lily—!"

His manic behavior quickly attracted security.

Several large guards tried to remove him. He fought like a cornered beast, still shouting her name, image destroyed, utterly pathetic.

Finally, he was forcibly dragged from the scene and shoved into his car.

The car window slowly rose, cutting off his desperate roars from the cold night outside.

On the villa's second floor, curtains moved slightly.

Lily stood behind the window, watching the absurd scene below, watching that once-commanding man being dragged away like a madman. Her face showed no expression, only something extremely faint and complex flickering deep in her eyes.

Then she drew the curtains tight, shutting everything out.