Chapter 178: Chapter 178: The Wedding
But Ethan Yates’s expression was firm. Summer Lancaster herself wasn’t sure if she should take this final gamble.
Ethan Yates grabbed Summer Lancaster and, without asking for her opinion, pulled her away. Perhaps she hadn’t yet faced her own heart, which was why she needed someone to give her a push at a time like this.
Summer’s hesitant heart finally calmed down. She would go see him one last time. At the very least, she had to ask him why he didn’t come over last night.
The two of them were silent in the car, but Ethan Yates was worried sick seeing Summer Lancaster in this state, his eyes constantly wandering over to her. A truck suddenly barreled toward them, appearing in their path without warning. By the time Summer saw it, it was too late. The massive impact knocked them both unconscious.
When she woke up again, Summer Lancaster found herself in a world of pure white. ’That’s right, we must have been taken to the hospital.’
But... what about him?
Summer sat up with a jolt. The nurse beside her saw she was awake and hurried over.
"The man who was brought in with me, is he okay?!" Summer grabbed the nurse’s arm, her voice tight with a nervous energy. The nurse shook her head. "He’s still in surgery, not out of the woods yet. He’s your husband, isn’t he? He was only hurt so badly because he was trying to protect you."
Summer felt her thoughts grind to a halt. Ethan Yates... that little boy who used to follow her around all day was now hovering between life and death, and it was all because of her. Overcome with self-blame, Summer leaned forward, buried her face in her knees, and began to sob.
"You mustn’t get too emotional. You’re pregnant, but thankfully, the baby is fine!" the nurse carefully reminded Summer.
Summer’s eyes flew wide open. She instinctively covered her stomach. ’Am I carrying that demon’s child? What do I do now?’ She got out of bed and went to the waiting area outside the operating room. Lianne Vance and Lawrence Yates were there. The man she was looking for was leaning against the wall, his face a mask of sorrow. Summer’s heart was in turmoil. She walked over to him and hugged him.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry! This is all my fault!"
The man’s slightly dazed eyes flickered. With a sudden shove, he pushed her away. Summer instinctively shielded her lower abdomen, her face a picture of terror!
"Are you still going to pretend? This was all your design, wasn’t it? I’ve already seen that will. Stop the act, it’s utterly disgusting. Do you have any humanity at all? Ethan was your childhood friend! How could you be so ruthless!" Kenneth Yates’s eyes burned with a fire that looked ready to tear Summer Lancaster to shreds.
"What will? I don’t know what you’re talking about." Summer carefully got to her feet. She had originally planned to tell him she was pregnant, hoping that their relationship might still have a chance, but now it seemed she had been too naive.
Kenneth Yates crudely threw the papers in his hand at Summer’s face. "See for yourself!" Summer picked up the papers, her expression growing heavier with every word. She had no idea this document even existed. It was a will her mother had written before she died, stating a desire to obtain the "single bloodline of the Yates Family." This meant Summer was to marry Kenneth Yates and bear his child. The reason was shocking: her mother had been in love with Lawrence Yates, but after he married someone else, she married Gregory Lancaster in a fit of pique!
’So to secure a single bloodline, I had to destroy Ethan? Is that what he thinks of me?’ Summer’s expression was blank. This was all new to her. ’Could it be that her father had pushed her to get close to Kenneth Yates since childhood all for this? All to obtain the inheritance and title her mother left behind?’
"No, Kenneth, you’ve misunderstood! I didn’t know about this will. My feelings for you are real!" Summer clutched the corner of Kenneth Yates’s shirt, pleading desperately, but he acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
"Get out. The sight of you makes me sick!" Kenneth Yates said coldly, looking at her with disgust. The CLACK-CLACK-CLACK of high heels sounded, and a woman in a fiery red trench coat arrived, looking as if she had rushed over from a long journey.
"Kenneth, how’s Ethan? I rushed right over as soon as I got your call!" Thea Shaw said, breathless. Summer Lancaster, standing to the side, was stunned. ’She’s back. Looks like I really am the abandoned wife of a rich family now.’
’Wait a minute... she has a tiny rose tattoo on her ankle.’ Summer Lancaster would never forget the tattoo she saw by someone’s foot on that day when she had been utterly helpless.
’Does that mean she was the one who framed me? The person who wanted to destroy me was Thea Shaw?’
Kenneth Yates carefully steadied Thea Shaw, told her not to worry, and helped her to a seating area to rest. He, on the other hand, went back to wait outside the operating room.
"Kenneth, I know who framed me that day! It was Thea Shaw! She has a rose tattoo on her ankle, I saw it!" Summer Lancaster grabbed Kenneth Yates’s arm tightly. Even if she couldn’t be by his side anymore, she couldn’t let a venomous woman like that be with him.
Kenneth Yates ruthlessly flung her hand off. "Haven’t you caused enough chaos? Now you want to frame Thea?"
A deep fear enveloped Summer Lancaster. ’He... he doesn’t believe me?’ She had to leave. Right now. She was afraid he would soon find out about her pregnancy, and then he would never let her keep the child.
Summer Lancaster turned and left the area outside the operating room. The only thing she could do now was pray that Ethan Yates would wake up.
Summer Lancaster took out her phone and dialed Caleb Bell’s number. "Caleb, help me. I need to get away!" The urgency in her voice made her desperation clear.
「Six years later.」
A woman’s heart is as tender as water, but not nearly as fickle. All these years, Summer Lancaster had been living on her own, raising two children. She never once thought of remarrying, because her heart already belonged to someone. Every time she saw her son’s strikingly familiar face, she would be reminded of Kenneth Yates. Finally, one day, after six years had passed, she mustered the courage to go back and find him. If he was already married, she would offer her sincere blessings and never let him know of the children’s existence. But if he was still single, she was determined to explain the truth of what happened back then.
A major figure arrived at the Yates Group: a woman known as Alimry, the CEO of a Francelian multinational corporation. Everyone thought she looked incredibly familiar, and after a long while, someone finally placed her. She was Summer Lancaster, the former CEO’s wife!
Summer Lancaster didn’t knock, walking straight into the CEO’s office. The man inside wasn’t too surprised to see her.
"I’m back," Summer said, calm and composed. She had already done her research; he was still single, with no rumored girlfriends to be found.
"Mm. I knew you’d be back." Kenneth Yates stood up, walked over to her, and hugged Summer. "I’ve been waiting for you. Thank goodness you didn’t let me down."
"Why..." Tears welled up in the corners of Summer’s eyes, dripping onto Kenneth Yates’s shirt and blooming into a shape like a small cloud.
"After Ethan woke up, I learned everything. I’m so sorry. I’ve been keeping an eye on you this whole time, but I didn’t know if you had forgiven me, so I didn’t dare to come looking for you." Kenneth Yates gazed deeply at Summer Lancaster before kissing her.
When the kiss ended, they could both feel the years of longing and affection they held for one another.
"And the children? Did you know? I gave birth to two adorable children for you!" Summer finally remembered the children and quickly straightened up to ask him. Kenneth Yates stroked her head dotingly. "Of course I know. I fly to Francelia every year to see them."
"Then how did I not know?" Summer looked at him in surprise. He just gave her a mysterious smile. "Because they promised me they would keep it a secret!"
The door opened, and two adorable little kids walked in, both of them throwing themselves into Kenneth Yates’s arms. "Daddy, we kept our end of the bargain, didn’t we? We kept your secret for so many years! You promised to take us to the amusement park, so you can’t go back on your word!"
Summer Lancaster’s tears turned to laughter. So he had been there all along, watching over her, and yet she had made him wait for so long.
Summer hugged Kenneth Yates and their two children. "Thank you, Kenneth. If it weren’t for you, I might have just given up. But because you were in my heart, I was willing to fight. I love you!"
"Mommy, does that mean you don’t love us?" the little boy asked, grabbing the corner of Summer’s shirt as if he were jealous.
Summer smiled. "Of course, I love you guys too, and Daddy loves you. From now on, the four of us will never be separated again!"
One month later, a wedding of the century was held, watched by the entire world. Kenneth Yates said he owed Summer Lancaster a wedding and was determined to make up for it.
"Melody Donovan? Who did you come with?" Summer Lancaster was a little surprised to see her. They had lost touch and hadn’t contacted each other in six years. She had no idea what ended up happening between her and Dominic Thorne.
Melody Donovan smiled and pointed to Dominic Thorne, who was happily playing with a little girl not far away. "That’s our precious daughter. The other one is my personal punching bag!" Her face was filled with sweetness and joy.
Summer Lancaster hugged Melody Donovan excitedly. "That’s so wonderful, Melody. You ended up with the man you love most!"
"And aren’t you just as happy? You two went through so many trials, but the important thing is you’re finally together. You’d better hold on tight to him from now on and don’t let go. Your best years can’t afford to be wasted six at a time..."
"Mm, I will." Summer squeezed Melody’s hand. This all-consuming love was finally culminating in a sweet and happy marriage. The years of entanglement and mutual misunderstandings would finally come to a perfect end today. All those seemingly absurd resolutions and grand ambitions from their college days had actually come true. The greatest happiness was having the person you love most standing right by your side. Now, they no longer had to watch the people they loved from a distance, too afraid to approach.
Now was their time.
On the eve of the wedding, Summer felt she still had to ask, "Kenneth, what happened to Thea Shaw afterward...?"
"I sent her to Francelia. She’s Noel Lynch’s half-sister on their mother’s side, so naturally, she should be handed over for him to discipline." Kenneth Yates said it so casually, it was clear he had truly let go of anything related to Thea Shaw. Even if she couldn’t have his blessing, Summer still hoped Thea could find happiness.
The bells rang. The radiant, perfect couple smiled as they accepted everyone’s blessings. Seated among the guests, Ethan Yates felt the most gratified. Now, his decision to step aside finally felt truly meaningful.
Champagne Rose: My heart belongs only to you.
