Inside the hospital ward.
Cindy Lynn was listening to the phone, and Vincent Hawthorne pushed the door open and came in.
She handed the phone over.
"It’s Dr. Sullivan’s call."
Vincent raised an eyebrow slightly, puzzled, as Caden, who followed him in, paused. There was no hint of anything unusual on his face, calmly sitting down on the small sofa nearby and then taking out his tablet to start reading international political news.
Vincent took the phone: "Dr. Sullivan, what’s wrong?"
Caden sneaked a glance at dad out of the corner of his eye.
"..." Ian realized upon hearing Vincent’s reaction that Caden hadn’t told him about Tanya Sinclair’s fall at home.
He couldn’t gauge the situation temporarily and thought it over. He decided not to sell out Caden, the young master.
Ian cautiously said, "Mr. Hawthorne, it’s . I just happened to pass by the villa and thought to say hello. I happened to encounter Mrs. Hawthorne falling and getting injured at home, so I treated her wound, thinking to let you know."
Vincent frowned: "Tanya fell and got hurt? Is it serious?"
"It’s not too serious."
Vincent relaxed: "I see. Thank you for your help. Let’s settle this as a house call."
Cindy waited for Vincent to hang up before worriedly asking: "Ms. Tanya got injured? How did it happen? Vincent, why don’t you call home to ask about it?"
Now that they weren’t in work mode, Cindy didn’t address Vincent with his title anymore.
Joy, snuggled in Cindy’s arms, puckered her lips a bit guiltily, absent-mindedly playing with the doll in her hands, the doll’s hair already tangled into a mess.
Her big black eyes turned slightly, showing a bit of concern.
Would that bad woman go and tell dad?
If that bad woman told dad it was because she disobeyed, didn’t eat breakfast, and ran outside, and that’s why she fell while chasing her... then dad would scold her, right?
Joy shrank her neck, looking for help towards her brother sitting opposite.
But this time, Caden didn’t notice her reaction at all, his attention split between the news and his father.
Vincent, dialing the home number, glanced at the two kids and turned to go outside to make the call.
At the window at the end of the corridor.
Vincent patiently waited for the dial tone to be picked up.
After almost a minute, Tanya’s voice came through from the other end.
Vincent spoke with concern: "Tanya, I heard from Dr. Sullivan that you fell at home? How could you be so careless? Does it hurt?"
"..." Tanya gazed indifferently at the bandages wrapping her ankle, Vincent’s concerned voice ringing truthful near her ear.
She suddenly wanted to test if, when she said it hurt, this man would leave Cindy like last night and come running back to her.
"It hurts a lot." Tanya said gently, "Vincent, can you come back to stay with me?"
Vincent paused: "..." ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel-fire.ɴet
Tanya’s response obviously exceeded his expectations.
The Tanya Sinclair he knew would never cry out in pain to him.
No matter how sick or tired she got, to not worry him, she always smiled and told him ’it’s okay’. She never caused delays in his matters because of herself.
Vincent furrowed his brow slightly, a mix of genuine and fake concern overshadowed by a sense of unfamiliarity.
Ian clearly said on the phone that she wasn’t severely injured.
How come she became more pretentious upon waking up?
"Tanya, be good." Vincent had been accompanying Cindy all night without much rest, rubbed his temples, and said tiredly, "I was busy all night at the company yesterday, and now I’m very tired."
Tanya thought she wouldn’t feel sad anymore, but hearing Vincent’s blatant lies hurt her with a sharp pain.
Vincent’s meaning was obvious enough.
—He could leave her to keep vigil over Cindy all night but would never do the same for her.
Vincent’s heart was biased towards Cindy from the start.
Tanya mocked herself with a twitch of her lips,
She didn’t pester him further, speaking calmly: "I was joking with you, take a break at the office after you’re done. Don’t work too hard."
This was the Tanya Sinclair he was familiar with, always obedient, never making demands of him.
Vincent’s furrowed brow relaxed.
He smiled contently, his voice soft: "I know my wife is the most considerate, most obedient. I’ll come home earlier tonight to keep you company."
Tanya responded, her eyes full of sarcasm.
Even the dog at home has its temper, but Tanya doesn’t; she comes and goes at his command.
Vincent Hawthorne was about to hang up, but he heard Tanya Sinclair’s voice again.
He put the phone back to his ear: "What’s up?"
"Daisy is returning to the country today, and I want to go out to meet her for a bit."
Vincent didn’t immediately agree.
Honestly, among Tanya’s friends, he likes Daisy Bell the least and doesn’t want Tanya to get too close to her...
Tanya continued, "Daisy has a friend who’s a well-known ophthalmologist, just returned from abroad. I want to use Daisy’s connections to see him about my eyes. If my eyes recover soon, I can focus better on work."
Her eyes were indeed about to recover, just preparing in advance.
Vincent Hawthorne also urgently needed Tanya to engage in development to strive for further collaboration with Westgard Pharmaceuticals.
He agreed without hesitation: "Alright, be safe. Do you need me to arrange a driver for you?"
"No need, Daisy arranged a driver to pick me up, he’ll be here soon. You take care at work, and remember to eat on time, I won’t disturb you any longer."
Vincent put down the phone and paused slightly as he turned around.
Just a few steps away, his son Caden stood behind him at some point, looking up at him with a serious expression.
"Why did you come out?" Vincent walked over and patted Caden’s head.
Since Caden was born, he displayed extraordinary intelligence soon after, and scientific tests confirmed he was a genius.
Thus, Caden showed an early maturity not typical of his age.
"Dad," Caden asked confusedly, "do you not like our biological mom?"
Vincent didn’t expect his son to ask this question and found it amusing: "What nonsense is that."
Caden wanted to ask more, but at that moment, a call from the company came into Vincent’s phone. He answered briefly, "Okay, I’ll be there in an hour."
Vincent took Caden back to the ward, and as he opened the door, he saw Joy and Cindy Lynn laughing and playing together.
"Joy, come down. Let Aunt Cindy rest properly." Vincent picked up Joy’s backpack and extended his hand to Joy, "Dad has to go back to work and will take you both to school on the way. You only took one class off today, it’s time to go."
Joy clung to Cindy Lynn’s hand, reluctant to let go.
Cindy Lynn smiled gently, "Joy, how about Aunt Cindy comes with you?"
Joy’s expression quickly turned cheerful, "Yay."
Vincent disagreed, "Joy..."
Cindy Lynn protected Joy, looked up, and coyly interrupted him, "Vincent, my fever has gone down, and I’ve taken my medicine. With your attentive care overnight, I’m fully recovered and can go back to work."
Seeing her insistence, Vincent didn’t stop her any further but reminded, "If you feel unwell, don’t force yourself; let me know anytime."
Cindy Lynn obediently raised three fingers, "I promise."
In a daze, Vincent seemed to see the Cindy Lynn from their university days again.
He smiled indulgently.
Then Vincent had Cindy Lynn take the two kids downstairs while he personally handled the discharge procedures for her.
After finishing the paperwork, the four of them walked out of the hospital together, and the driver’s car was parked by the roadside.
Joy clung to Cindy Lynn, holding her hand and bouncing happily, while Vincent and Caden walked half a step behind; Vincent’s appearance was striking, and his demeanor was extraordinary, while Caden, at a young age, already carried the aura of a young mogul.
The scene of the four walking out together was quite picturesque, attracting the attention of many passersby.
A black business car discreetly drove by on the opposite side of the street.
The car’s one-way tinted windows were black from the outside, but inside, people could see the outside clearly.
Tanya was sitting in the backseat, quietly watching Vincent and Cindy Lynn through the window and across the street.
Vincent originally lagged behind, but as they neared the car, he stepped forward and considerately opened the car door for Cindy Lynn.
Cindy Lynn looked up at him and smiled so gently, she said something that made Vincent’s usually calm face break into a smile.
Tanya moved her gaze away expressionlessly and put on her sunglasses.
Out of sight, out of mind.
Today, Daisy’s assistant Mia came to pick her up.
Mia knew very well that Ms. Tanya was the only woman who could keep Daisy Bell in line, so she paid special attention to Tanya.
While driving, Mia observed Tanya and saw her put on her sunglasses.
Mia immediately asked considerately, "Ms. Sinclair, is the sun too bright? Do you need me to pull down the sun visor for you?"
"No need," Tanya said lightly, "just saw something unpleasant."