The Enticing CEO’s Chosen Bride
Chapter 1837

Chapter 1837

Rose lifted her eyes to meet his, her expression frosty. "Morrison, this event was meant to end on a high note, and you just had to go and ruin it."

Morrison pursed his lips awkwardly. "I didn't think it through at the time."

When Rose pushed against him, he held on tight. In the midst of the bustling crowd, his hands pressed firmly on her waist, drawing her close into his embrace.

Feeling his body against hers in such a public display made Rose's ears burn with embarrassment, but Morrison seemed oblivious to the impropriety, gazing down at her intently. "Where were you just now? I went looking for you at the press conference."

Rose, with her arms braced against his chest, blushed even deeper under his unwavering gaze. "Are you sure you weren't there just to mess with me?"

"Am I really that much of a jerk? To go out of my way to mess things up for you?"d2

Rose raised an eyebrow, meeting his stare. "You think pretty highly of yourself, don't you?"

Morrison nodded confidently. "Of course, how could you love me so much if I wasn't a good man? To honor your love, I must be worthy."

With a sideways glance and a scoff, Rose remarked, "I didn't realize until now just how shameless you can be."

Murmurs and gasps echoed from the onlookers.

Morrison's dark eyes never left her. As everyone braced for his temper, he finally spoke. "Then you'd better get used to it. I’m very shameless."

Rose's lips twitched. "Have you no shame at all?"

Morrison tilted his head with a grunt. "Shame won’t get my a kid."

Everyone fell silent. Was this the same man they all feared? And what on earth was going on? Wasn't it said that this couple was incompatible? That since their wedding, Mrs. Witt of R City had been subjected to his cold indifference, living like a widow?

This wasn't at all like the rumors.

Someone shifted their gaze to Mona, who was standing aside. At first, the appearance of Morrison's ex-girlfriend seemed like a delightful surprise for the birthday boy, and perhaps the two would finally make up. But now, it appeared quite the opposite.

Especially considering what Rose had said. With Rose's online reputation, anyone else would've avoided such a controversial time to appear at the banquet. Undoubtedly, this made everyone believe that she and Morrison were the real deal.

Had Rose not cunningly intervened and married Morrison, none of this would have transpired. That was what everyone had believed.

They believed that Rose was the one who should step aside, and she was the true wrecker of a relationship.

Now, people's perceptions began to subtly shift. The seemingly unobtrusive ex-girlfriend now seemed a tad unethical.

Morrison wasn't concerned with what others thought. His heart was overflowing with joy. For the first time in his life, just seeing her brought him an insane amount of happiness. No one knew how excited he was deep down right now.

"You still haven't answered me. Where were you just now? Why couldn't I find you at the venue?"

Rose bit her lip. "One has to dress up a bit for a banquet."

Dressing up? Morrison's expression faltered, and he relaxed his hold to scrutinize her from head to toe. His eyes filled with satisfaction.

"You dressed up for me, didn't you?"

Rose's lips curled slightly. "Wishful thinking. I just didn't want to tarnish my own reputation."

"Well, preserving Mrs. Witt's reputation. How thoughtful of you."

Rose looked away, unsure how to respond to Morrison's comment. She lowered her head slightly, her cheeks still flushed.

Morrison's gaze lingered on her. Her hair was styled beautifully, and her white ball earrings trembled like snowflakes against her smooth skin. She also had a faint, delicate fragrance, as if she had spritzed on some perfume.

He rarely saw her so meticulously adorned.

From years ago, he found it too easy to be captivated by her, never wanting to admit that he found her stunning in every way. Her figure and features seemed tailor-made for his tastes. How else could he explain his growing fondness and the sense of danger he felt?

He always knew getting too close to her would be his undoing. And now, it seemed that even maintaining a distance couldn't save him from falling into her grasp.

After staring at Rose for a while, Morrison lifted her chin to better admire her face. Rose had nowhere to hide, forced to meet his intense gaze. The emotions in Morrison's deep gaze caused a

sudden shiver in her heart, and her eyes trembled.

The warmth of his fingers brushed her jawline, tracing the elegant contours of her slender neck. He relished the soft touch under his fingertips.

"You're beautiful," he said slowly, his eyes tracing her exquisite face before locking onto hers. Pure and unblemished, her dark eyes reflected nothing but his image.

Rose was momentarily stunned, unable to break away from his gaze.

As the couple stood there, their interaction left the onlookers puzzled.

"Can't figure out what's going on. Is this all an act for the Witt family's image?"

"Do you think Mr. Witt would let a woman he despises call him shameless, even if it's just an act?"

"Uh. so they're actually on good terms?"

"It seems that way."

"Wow..."

A low murmur rippled through the crowd.

Just moments ago, the two were locked in a tender gaze, but now they were locked in a kiss.

Rose was caught off guard as Morrison leaned in. She had never imagined that one day he would be bold enough to do such a thing in public. It wasn't until his kiss deepened that she blinked out of her stupor, her blood rushing to her face in a hot flush.

The crowd cheered them on, and though she tried to push him away, he was unyielding. Finally, after a firm pull, he seemed satisfied and let her go.

Rose's cheeks were so red they could've steamed. Head lowered, she dared not look at anyone. Her forehead rested unnaturally against Morrison's chest.

Morrison couldn't help but feel a damn, inexplicable sense of achievement as he watched her blush. The same girl who used to butt heads with him every day, never showing signs of backing down, was now showing her shy side.

"Hmph!"

He used to hate anyone flaunting their romances, but he now found himself in the thick of it without the slightest hint of embarrassment. Instead, he gently nudged Rose's chin upward, noticing the smeared lipstick on her lips and reached out to tidy it up.

Though touched by Morrison's gesture, Rose's warm feelings were quickly chilled by his next words.

"Hope this lipstick isn’t toxic. Wouldn't want to be kissed to death."

Rose, who felt as if her heart had been dipped in ice, pushed him away and touched her flushed cheeks. "Kiss you to death? You gotta count yourself lucky."

But Morrison pulled her back in and kissed her again. "Don't worry, it’d be a novel way to go."

Molly, who had been watching the whole scene with delight, couldn't help but disagree with their banter. As she was about to say something, she was interrupted.

Morrison felt a sharp pain on his back.

"Snap out of it, kid! Do you even realize what day it is, spouting such unlucky nonsense?" scolded Megan who had appeared out of nowhere, disrupting the lovebirds.

Molly shook her head in resignation at the interruption.

The two were forced to part, and Morrison turned to see Megan, biting his lip in a show of acquiescence.

"Alright, hit me if you must, but go easy, will ya?" he said, keeping one arm around Rose.

"You think you're the one who gets to be in pain?" Megan snorted. "As if she'd be upset over you. You're far worse off if you make her sad."

Morrison glanced at Rose, who remained impassive. The more she withheld, the more suffocated he felt, wishing she would bring up their past so he could apologize properly.

The crowd's attention, however, quickly shifted to the drama surrounding Mona.

"So, the ex-girlfriend's grand entrance didn't quite pan out?"

"Isn't it obvious? She must have thought the couple was on the rocks and came to stir the pot, putting pressure on Rose in the background."

"If that's actually the case, then this fashion showdown is deliciously ironic. That outfit, that 'queen bee' vibe, really makes me believe she was going to be the future Mrs. Witt."

"Now, she seems all too eager to climb the social ladder and get her claws into things that do not belong to her."

Mona stood at the forefront of the guests, witnessing Morrison and Rose's public display of affection. Her heart seethed with resentment and humiliation as she clenched her dress, tears welling up in her eyes. "Morrison." she couldn't help but speak up, drawing everyone's attention. "Didn't you hear what they're saying?"

Morrison frowned and looked her way. "What about it?"

Mona forced a sorrowful laugh. "What have I done? I just came to celebrate your birthday."

Her gaze fell on Rose. "And now I'm painted as a schemer, trying to pressure you into divorce? Don't twist my words, Rose. You've made everyone misunderstand me."

"Mona, you act as if you're the victim of some grave injustice. Some things are not true just because you say them. Before I got here, I'm curious, in the hearts of everyone present, who do they truly see as Mrs. Witt?

"If you had no ulterior motives regarding Morrison and genuinely wished his marriage to be free from gossip, you’d have known better than to fan the flames today. I'll apologize if I've wronged you, but you really should've known better."

Rose's words left Mona trembling with rage. "I should've considered more thoroughly."

As Mona stood isolated, someone chimed in, "Mrs. Witt, just let it go. Mona was, after all, Mr. Witt's guest."

Rose looked up at Morrison, who felt his heart skip a beat under her cold gaze and quickly interjected, "She wasn't my invite."

Mona stiffened.

Rose raised an eyebrow. "Not your invite?"

Morrison hugged her tighter, though his face darkened. "Did you invite her?!"

Rose paused, then turned to Mona with a sly chuckle. "So, it was me who invited her."

The audience was left speechless.

Morrison's brow furrowed. "No?"

"Do you really think I enjoy the online trolls enough to invite her and add fuel to the fire?"

Morrison's expression darkened as he looked back at Mona, whose eyes were dodging, filled with panic.

The gaze of everyone also focused on her.

"She wasn't invited by Mr. Witt?"

"It seems so. He said it was his wife."

"Obviously, Mrs. Witt would have no reason to invite her."

"So she came uninvited?"

"And she still puts on this act of being so unjustly aggrieved?"

Rose coldly looked at Mona. "It seems I wasn't wrong about you. Was it a lie when you told me Morrison invited you to the birthday bash at the hospital?"

Mona, now unable to defend herself, said, "I just wanted to wish him a happy birthday before I left."

Rose chuckled softly. "That's normal. But why lie?"

Mona bit her lip, remaining silent.

"To convince me that you still hold significance in Morrison's heart? Or to make me believe that Morrison sees me as the cause of the public criticism?"

Rose nodded, "Yes, I do blame him. I'm the butt of every joke now, and it's all his doing. Over and over, he's found new ways to embarrass me. I'm even torn about whether to show up for his birthday bash tonight."

"You are really good at this, Mona. You can quietly make me give up on him."

Mona shook her head, "Rose, I've done nothing but come to Morrison's birthday party. Your hostility towards me is one-sided, just because I used to date Morrison."

"I'll admit that I've got my issues with you." Rose owned up to it, "But don't you feel the same about me?"

Mona retorted, "I don't."

Rose chuckled with a chill in her eyes, "I've lost count of how many times I've wondered if you played me that winter we graduated on this very day."

Molly and Megan exchanged glances before turning their attention back to Mona.

Already flustered, Mona now stepped back twice, her eyes flickering fiercely. And Morrison, who had been shielded behind Rose all this while, suddenly spoke up with a dark tone.

"What happened?"

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