Exposing the Charade of Deep Affection (PDF)

Chapter 28

Chapter 28 Shameless

Listening to Ashley’s voice coming from the other end of the line, I had no idea what to say to her, so I

simply said straightforwardly, “The doctors and the Hinton family are all there in the old house. Don’t

worry. You’ll live.”

Hearing my voice, Ashley paused. Then her tenderness was all gone and replaced by anger. She

roared, “Tabatha, who says you get to grab Walter’s phone? Where is Walter?”

I was almost deafened by her roar. I moved the phone away from my ear, glanced at Walter, who still

had his eyes closed, narrowed my eyes, and said to the phone, “Walter? He worked so hard just now

that he broke a sweat. He’s in the shower right now. Why don’t you call back later?”

“You shameless bitch, Tabatha!” Ashley probably didn’t sleep last night at all. She failed to control

herself and roared.

I was glad that I foresaw her anger and moved the phone away. After she finished roaring, I sneered,

“I’m shameless? Ashley, Walter and I are legally married. How come married couples having sex in the

morning is called shameless? Compared to the incest between you and Walter, who is your brother-in-

law, things happening here are nothing but normal. Don’t you think?”

Before she could continue to shout, I hung up the phone. Then I looked at Walter, who had already

opened his eyes and was staring at me. A bit frightened because of his gaze, I said, “I didn’t want to

upset her, but she messed with me first. You heard her. She called me shameless.”

“I worked so hard?” he suddenly said, missing the point. He looked at

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me with a half-smile. “Tabatha, shall I make that true?”

I was speechless.

Someone was shameless indeed.

I had thought that Ashley would stop making trouble after moving into the Hinton’s old house, but I

underestimated her determination to marry Walter.

I was in a meeting at the Conner Group when I got a call from Eileen.

Eileen’s broken voice sounded so anxious. I put down my phone and went straight to the hospital.

I arrived at the hospital.

Eileen stood guard outside the emergency room, her eyes swollen from crying. When she saw me, she

started to burst into tears again.

I found some tissues from the bag and wiped her tears. Looking at her, I asked, “Mom, what

happened? How come he was suddenly sent to the emergency room?”

She frowned and looked at me. “Tabatha, tell me. What’s going on between you and Walter? What is

the Hinton family going to do?”

I failed to react. I looked at her and said, “Mom, what do you mean?”

She looked at me in distress. “Tabatha, I know everything. What happened five years ago has

happened, and there’s nothing you can do to change that. I know you’re worried about me and your

dad, which is why you’ve kept everything from us. Ashley was here earlier, and she told your dad and

me everything. Tabatha, I just want to know what you’re going to do next.”

Ashley was here earlier?

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I wasn’t sure exactly what Ashley had told them. After a pause, I said, “Mom, Carley did know about

what happened five years ago. Don’t worry. I’ll deal with it.”

“How?” Eileen was anxious. “She values the Hinton family’s reputation the most. Now that she knows,

she will surely force you and Walter to divorce.”

I comforted her, smiling, “Don’t worry, Mom. They won’t force me to divorce, because I’m pregnant. You

can rest assured.”

“You’re pregnant?” Eileen was surprised. She wiped the tears from her face and said, “Why didn’t you

tell us you were pregnant? When did this happen? How long have you been pregnant? Do you feel any

discomfort? What do you want to eat?”

Parents cared about their kids the most. Hearing her string of questions, I couldn’t help but smile. I

said, “Mom, don’t get so excited. I’m only two months pregnant. I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

After saying that, I looked at the tightly closed operating room door and said to her, “Is he … Dad in the

emergency room, because the Hinton family knows what happened to me five years ago?”

Eileen nodded and grabbed me, saying, “Yes. As soon as Ashley told him, he vomited blood due to

great mood swings. He was so worried about you. Both he and I know that the Hinton family treasures

their reputation. He used almost all his connections to keep it from them, and now that they know the

truth somehow, they will most likely make things difficult for you. That’s why he got so worried and was

sent to the emergency room.”

I looked at the door of the emergency room and said nothing.

Seeing me like that, Eileen sighed, “Tabatha, listen to me. He’s your dad, not some stranger. He’s been

strict with you all these years for

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your own good. Don’t blame him. He’s more afraid of anything happening to you than anyone else, and

that’s why he always has high expectations for you and demands you to do everything perfectly. In

such a way, you won’t make any mistakes.”

I looked back and nodded slightly. Then I looked at her and said, “Mom, did Ashley tell you anything

else?”