Chapter 174: Chapter 174: They Are Twins
When Nathan Fawcett heard what she said, he saw her self-deprecating look and could tell she was heartbroken.
She had been with Charles Prescott before, and he had cheated on her.
Now, seeing her own father act this way, she must have felt awful.
He comforted her, "I’ve wondered about the same things before."
Anne looked at him in surprise. "Really? Why would you think about things like that?"
Nathan said, "My parents divorced because my dad had an affair. I despise people who are unfaithful in a marriage."
Hearing this, Anne glanced at him. She was rather surprised that a man, of all people, would think about such things.
Nathan turned back and gave Anne a meaningful look. In truth, he had said it deliberately for her to hear.
After all, in his eyes, she was just a player.
When Anne saw him looking at her that way, she sensed the implication in his gaze and said, displeased, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You know perfectly well," Nathan said. "Fickle and faithless!"
"Who are you calling that?" Anne’s temper flared. "Why the sudden personal attack?"
Nathan said, "Do I need to remind you about Charles Prescott and Justin Shields?"
"Charles Prescott, Justin Shields, whatever! I thought you were dead back then! How was I supposed to know? ... And now that Ms. Shields of yours has come to cause trouble at my family’s home! My mother almost had a serious incident today." Anne’s head was throbbing.
She was a little relieved now that her mother had been transferred to the First Hospital.
But for him to turn around and attack her? This was just so unfair!
Nathan walked ahead without a word.
When they got outside, the butler had already arranged for a car to pick them up.
They sat in the car, neither of them speaking after the argument.
...
They were supposed to pick Ian up in the afternoon, but now it was almost ten o’clock.
Anne sat in her seat, thinking of Ian. ’He’s probably asleep by now, isn’t he?’
When they returned to the Fawcett residence, Anne entered first. She saw Ian sleeping on the sofa, covered with a blanket the housekeeper had brought for him. Seeing Anne and Nathan return, the housekeeper said politely, "Mr. Fawcett, Ma’am."
Anne asked, "Why didn’t you put Ian to bed in his room?"
The housekeeper replied with a helpless look, "The young master insisted on waiting for you to return."
Anne asked, "There should still be some of the soup I made this morning, right? Did you heat it up and give some to him?"
"He’s had some," the housekeeper said, "but he still wanted to wait for you. Have you two eaten yet?"
Anne glanced at Nathan, remembering that he had been with her, rushing between two hospitals, and hadn’t even had a chance to eat dinner.
Her anger toward him subsided.
’I guess I can forgive him for what he said.’
’I’ll be the bigger person.’
Anne said, "Not yet. Could you prepare something for us to eat?"
Nathan asked, "Is there any more of the soup Ian had?"
"There is." The housekeeper hurried off and quickly returned with the reheated dishes.
...
Anne sat down to eat with Nathan. He hadn’t eaten much all morning, just a little soup.
Now, sitting there, he barely touched the dishes the housekeeper had prepared, but he finished every last drop of the soup Anne had made.
Anne looked at him. "Is it really that good?"
Hearing her question, Nathan glanced at her. "If you weren’t a decent cook, do you think I’d be this tolerant of you?"
Hearing him bring that up again, Anne retorted, "I’m not so sure who’s tolerating who here! If I didn’t want you to get the Fawcett Group back, you wouldn’t get a single bite of my food or a sip of my soup! And you have the nerve to criticize me? Take a look at yourself and your business with Stella Shields. You know what? Let’s just stay out of each other’s lives from now on! When this is all over, if you want to marry her, then go marry her!"
Seeing her jealousy, and recalling that he had indeed been in the wrong earlier, Nathan explained, "There’s nothing between her and me. I’m just doing it for Ethan’s sake. There are some things you don’t know... growing up, my mom never wanted to see me. In her heart, she only had one son: Ethan..."
Of course, Anne knew all this. She knew how much Anna Linden had always disliked Nathan. "Then why are you being so nice to Stella Shields? You claim it’s for Ethan’s sake—aren’t you jealous? I bet you just like Stella Shields yourself!"
"Ethan was a good person." Nathan’s face darkened as he explained, "Whenever he had the chance, he would arrange for me to see our mother and tell me all about what she was up to. Even though our mother forbade us from seeing each other, he secretly kept in touch with me. We were twins. You wouldn’t understand. He was a really good person."
Even though they hadn’t lived together, their bond as brothers was still very strong.
For someone as good as Ethan to have had an accident and died so young... it was a deep source of pain for Nathan.
If it hadn’t been for Ethan, he might have grown up without experiencing even that tiny bit of warmth.
Although Chairman Fawcett doted on his son, President Fawcett was always busy with work, so Nathan hardly ever saw him.
Nathan found it all rather pathetic.
’It seems unhappy people spend their whole lives trying to heal from their childhoods.’
Anne listened, gazing at him. From the way he spoke, she could feel the profound bond the brothers had shared.
She said, "I never would’ve guessed. You’re usually so caustic, yet you’re so magnanimous about this."
His brother was the favored one, while he was not. It was surprising that someone with his personality didn’t grow jealous.
Nathan looked at her. "I did envy him, and I was jealous. But I never wished for anything bad to happen to him. If it were possible, I would still want him to be alive."
But alas, the dead cannot return.
Those who are gone will never come back.
His words convinced Anne. "Fine. I’ll believe your explanation for now."
He had helped her mother today, and Anne was grateful for that.
As they ate, the atmosphere between them improved considerably, no longer as hostile as before.
...
After moving to the new hospital, Mrs. Sutton’s condition stabilized considerably.
Sean Sutton had been busy every day, but after Nathan had a word with him, he spent the next few days entirely at the hospital.
This meant Anne and Sharon no longer had to constantly rush to the hospital.
With her mother’s situation stable for the time being, Anne could go straight home after work to cook for Ian—which, of course, also benefited Nathan.
That evening, as the family of three had dinner, the butler stood to the side. He was very pleased to see Nathan eating more than usual.
Anne was surprised, too.
She said to Nathan, "Aren’t you all better now? You should be able to eat normally, so why don’t you like the other food?"
He used to have no appetite for anything.
’But his health should have improved a lot over the past few years!’
Nathan rolled his eyes at her. "Are you fishing for a compliment on your cooking?"
Ian, who was sitting to the side eating Anne’s cooking, chimed in. He had been eating the medicated meals Anne prepared for the past two days, and his health had improved greatly; his fever was gone. "Anne, your food is super delicious, that’s why Daddy likes it too."
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