Right then, Oscar felt a raging flame within his chest, and his expression became tensed. “Why?” For a moment, Amelia could not comprehend why he kept asking for an explanation. “Was it that painful for you to be with me?” Oscar asked meekly. Amelia glanced at him in astonishment. She seemed to trace some fragility in his voice. Meanwhile, Oscar reached out his hand and held her chin with affection. “Amelia, all this while I’ve treated you sincerely as my wife. Am I not able to be your safe haven?” Gaping back at him, Amelia suddenly sighed, “Mr. Clinton, even if you are my safe haven, I am not the only one in it.
I mean, practically everyone wants a piece of Mr. Clinton! That’s why I said that this is all just a joke.” Lost for words, Oscar continued to gaze at her intently. Amelia avoided his gaze. “Mr. Clinton, you should leave. I’m a little tired and feel like going to bed now. So I won’t send you down.” Oscar grabbed her hand and held her captive in his warm embrace. “Do you really want me to leave?” Right at that moment, Amelia had become a little irritated. Since you have other women, why are you still pretending to be affectionate, trapping me in this sticky web?
Maybe love is something you can spare easily, but I’m struggling endlessly all by myself in this deep, dark pit of despair. Pushing him away, Amelia remarked in a distant tone. “Mr. Clinton, if you don’t like me, then don’t give me false hope. I can’t bear to live in such a lie.” Oscar’s gaze turned deep in puzzlement. “Why are you kicking up a fuss?” As soon as he said that, Amelia could feel bitterness welling up her heart. With that, she raised her head and vent in frustration. “Kicking up a fuss? No matter what I do, you’ll always think that I’m kicking up a fuss!” Oscar frowned. “Well, aren’t you?” Amelia wanted to shake off his hand, but Oscar’s grip tightened even more.
“Amelia, you’re biting off more than you can chew. Back when we signed the marriage papers, we agreed that I’d provide you with money, and you’d only need to be a good wife. But now, you are expecting a love that doesn’t belong to you.” Amelia felt as if a knife stab had through her heart that instant. The pain was so real that she could not bear it anymore. “I’m sorry if this made you uncomfortable.” Amelia calmed down and plastered a polite smile on her face. “Mr. Clinton, let me send you to the door. Wishing you and Ms. Yard a lifetime of love and happiness.”
Oscar furrowed his brows deeply at her remark. Just then, the ringing of the phone broke the silence between them. Oscar looked at the screen and realized that it was a call from Cassie. Taking a deep breath, he answered the phone reluctantly. “Oz, it has been more than an hour. Where are you?” Cassie’s voice echoed from the other end. Oscar replied patiently, “I’ll head over now. Did you listen to me and eat well?” “I don’t have any appetite since you’re not here, Oz. Besides, my wound is still hurting, and I can’t sleep without you.” Cassie responded weakly on the phone.
Little did she know that Oscar did not find her actions adorable but rather clingy to the point that he was a tad intimidated. Based on his impression of Cassie, she had always been a naive and playful person. Although she might be a little harsh to outsiders, she was still a relatively considerate girl. Hence, he had never thought that she would be that possessive. “Listen to me and go have your meal. I’ll be there soon.” “No, I’m scared because you’re not here, Oz. Besides, I really don’t have any appetite, so please come quickly.” Becoming gradually irritated, Oscar left a swift reply and hung up.
“I’ll come over now.” After that, Oscar shifted his gaze back to Amelia again. “I’ll leave for a while. Let’s talk again after I come back and don’t overthink things. You’re definitely more important to me than you think you are.” Without haste, Oscar walked out, leaving Amelia alone to digest those words he spitted out. Oscar, do you mean to tell me that I am more than just an employee? You truly think of me as your wife, right? Amelia smiled bitterly in her heart. Oscar, even if you think of me as your wife, I’m still nothing compared to Cassie. Naturally, Oscar did not know how upset Amelia actually was.
He headed downstairs towards his car and drove to the hospital right after that. As soon as Oscar entered the ward, Cassie’s initial pale face instantly shone with delight. “Oz, you are finally here. I miss you so much.” However, Elizabeth was apparently a little dissatisfied with Oscar’s late arrival. “Oscar, why did you come so late? Don’t you know Cassie needs you the most now? She is weak and even refuses to eat. A woman who had a miscarriage must be taken care of. Aren’t you supposed to know that, or are you as ignorant as her too?” Cassie looked at her mother and whined, “Mom, please don’t nag Oz.
I’m glad that he is with me here now. What if he gets angry and leaves?” Elizabeth was speechless as anger started boiling within her. Cassie is not married yet, but she’s always speaking for that man. What will happen once she’s married to him? “Cassie, don’t interrupt. I’m just teaching Oscar how to be a proper husband,” Elizabeth said. Nonetheless, Cassie curled her lips unconvinced. Oscar deliberately changed the subject. “Mrs. Yard, have you eaten?” For some reason, his question truly pissed Elizabeth off. She stared at him with massive discontent. “Even Cassie has not yet had her meal. Do you think I will have the mood to eat?” “Alright, I’ll go prepare some food then. Mrs. Yard, you’ll stay here with Cassie.”
Upon hearing this, Cassie stretched her hands and grabbed only his clothes like a helpless child. “Where are you going, Oz?” Elizabeth could not be more dismayed to see her daughter being so clingy. But since Cassie was her only daughter, she tried to turn a blind eye toward it. “Oscar, you can stay with Cassie here. I’ve already asked our housemaid to prepare some food. She will be here in a while. And since you will be taking care of Cassie for several hours later, you should also stay and eat with us.” Oscar nodded obediently. “Mrs. Yard, Cassie, please excuse me for a moment. I need to head to the washroom.” Just when he was about to step outside the ward, Elizabeth interrupted him.
“There’s a washroom in here. Where are you going?” “I’ll be using the washroom outside since I need a smoke. You know, cravings…” Oscar explained casually without turning his head. Seeing that Oscar had left, Elizabeth expressed her vast dissatisfaction. “Cassie, I believe Oscar is a brilliant man, and I truly admire his capability. But he doesn’t seem to be the right one for you. You’ve lost his child and yet, look at how he treats you. Listen to me and leave him. I mean, just look at you! You’re Cassie Yard, for goodness’ sake! Men would be dying to date you.”
Despite that, Cassie replied stubbornly, “But Mom, no matter how outstanding other men are, they can’t compare with Oscar. I gave up on him five years ago, and I regretted it. He is the only one that I want. Mom, if you don’t help me, I probably won’t ever get married.” Elizabeth jabbed Cassie’s forehead hard with her finger. “Why are you so stubborn? Yes, he’s a great guy from a prestigious family, but our family’s not too shabby either. So why do you have to cling onto him like a parasite? Are you trying to be an embarrassment to us Yards?”
Right then, Cassie lowered her head and murmured in a grim voice, “Mom, the child wasn’t actually Oscar’s.” In shock, Elizabeth swallowed back the accusation that had come to her mouth. Her mouth was left wide open as she could not believe what she had just heard. It took a moment before she was finally able to speak again. “What did you just say? Cassie raised her head. “Mom, the baby wasn’t Oscar’s. He’s never slept with me.” At that instant, Elizabeth’s voice became sharp as she was befuddled. “If the child was not his, whose was it?”
“My ex-boyfriend that I met back in Erihal.” Hearing this, Elizabeth’s chest heaved up and down as she tried to suppress her rage. “Didn’t you break up with that June guy a long time ago? How did you end up pregnant with his child?” Cassie buried her head in shame while confessing. “Mom, I did break up with him, but he followed me here and threatened me with an old video clip. Hence, I had no choice but to do as he wished. This continued until when I returned to Erihal again, and that was when I realized I was pregnant.” Upon hearing this, Elizabeth became so enraged that her heart was about to explode.
She raised her hand and wanted to slap Cassie. But looking at Cassie’s pale face, Elizabeth hesitated. “Cassie, why’d you have to stoop so low? We’ve provided you with the best education and care for all these years, yet you don’t even have any self-respect. Not only did you not hold the actual birth father responsible, but instead, you used Oscar. The Clintons are not fools, Cassie! Didn’t you expect that they will know the truth once they do a paternity test?” Right at that moment, Elizabeth’s heart dropped with a thud as she realized something. “You… didn’t plan this miscarriage, did you?” Cassie kept silent and did not deny. Elizabeth’s eyes widened in shock at her daughter’s response.
Her beloved daughter, Cassie, felt like a complete stranger right then. Is she really my daughter? To think she would go such lengths to cover up every single one of her tracks, leaving her schemes flawless. This is terrible! Initially, she allowed Cassie to be a mistress because she loved her daughter so much and could not bear to see her aborting the baby. However, Elizabeth did not expect that the latter had been planning her abortion all this while. This lovely and naive girl turned out to be such a scheming and heartless person. Her tolerance for Cassie was due to the connivance of a mother.
But this did not mean that she had no moral conscience. The Yard family had a large business, and Cassie was the only daughter. Hence, she would eventually inherit everything that the Yards owned. Undeniably, without a certain amount of courage, she would probably not be able to achieve it. However, being courageous and capable did not mean she should put her own health at stake. A woman who could kill even her baby was beyond horrifying; even a vicious tiger would never harm its own cubs, let alone a human. Thus when Elizabeth found out that this was all Cassie’s plan, she was aghast.
She never thought that her daughter would be such an inhumane person. “Cassie, when did you become like this?” Elizabeth said with an aching heart. Cassie raised her head and replied with reddened eyes. “Mom, I can’t afford to lose Oscar.” “If you love him, why did you run away to Erihal back then? Why did you humiliate yourself like this? Not only did you dishonor yourself, but you also embarrass the Yard family. I can’t believe I have a daughter like you.”
