His tone was so hostile that Anne Sutton was already having second thoughts.
Still, she did as he said, removing her mask and hat to reveal the delicate face beneath. Unlike her stern appearance at the hospital, she was actually quite beautiful without her glasses. Her skin was a cool, pale white.
The moment Nathan Fawcett saw her, he recognized her. "It's you?"
He had seen her before, so of course he knew she wasn't Sharon Sutton, but Anne Sutton.
Charles Prescott's fiancée!
Anne Sutton said, "It's me! Uncle, long time no see."
Seeing that she showed no sign of guilt despite being exposed, Nathan Fawcett asked, "What are you doing here?"
Anne Sutton was actually very nervous. In her memory, Nathan Fawcett had always been an intimidating man, so the moment their eyes met, a heavy, oppressive feeling washed over her.
But perhaps it was the thought of what a scumbag Charles Prescott was that gave her courage.
She said, "My sister, Sharon, had something come up today, so I've come to take her place and care for you, Uncle."
Hearing this, Nathan Fawcett laughed. "You? Take her place? Do you even know what 'caring for me' entails? Why the family hired someone?"
"Of course I do," Anne Sutton said. "To bear you a child. To continue the Fawcett family line. Charles Prescott told me before."
"Then get the hell out! What a damn nuisance."
Anne Sutton walked right up to Nathan Fawcett. Looking at him from such a close distance, she realized he... wasn't so intimidating after all.
She said, "It's just about having a child. I'm a woman. I can do it too."
Nathan Fawcett hadn't expected her to say something so brazen.
'Does she have no shame?'
"Does Charles Prescott know you're here?"
"He doesn't," Anne Sutton said. "His precious little thing is pregnant, and he's with her right now. When would he have time to care about what I'm doing?"
Hearing the hint of resentment in her voice, Nathan Fawcett understood. "So, you came here on purpose?"
"Of course," Anne Sutton replied. "He can get another woman pregnant, so why can't I have his uncle's child?"
Nathan Fawcett sat down, sizing her up. "I have high standards. You think I'm not picky? I'm not interested in a woman another man has touched."
"You can rest assured on that front," Anne Sutton said. "I'm clean. Charles Prescott has never touched me."
'Every time she thought about him being with other women, she couldn't let him touch her.'
'And he was always too proud to force her.'
'So, in all these years, they had never done anything.'
"A woman even Charles Prescott doesn't want, and you think I would?" Despite being sick enough to be on death's door, despite the rumors outside calling him a useless cripple, he was still full of arrogance.
Anne Sutton looked at him and said, "Uncle, I actually have a secret about Charles Prescott I'd like to tell you."
Nathan Fawcett raised his eyes to look at Anne Sutton. "What secret?"
Anne Sutton took a deep breath, summoned her courage, and leaned in close to him. Just as Nathan Fawcett was listening intently for the secret, she planted a kiss on his cheek.
Instantly, the man's eyes flew wide with anger. He glared at her. "You..."
Anne Sutton's eyes turned sultry. "Are you sure you can refuse me?"
'She was the first woman audacious enough to try and pull a stunt like this on him.'
Nathan Fawcett stared at her. "You're very bold."
'The strange thing was, the moment she kissed him, his body had reacted uncontrollably.'
'The reason he hadn't touched a woman in years was that he felt repulsed whenever one got close. He'd always had them thrown out immediately.'
'But Anne Sutton was different.'
'She actually dared to kiss him!'
'And the most ridiculous part was, he wasn't all that repulsed.'
"Thank you for the compliment, Uncle."
'Looking at the man before her, Anne Sutton felt like she was using up a lifetime's worth of courage.'
'She had no idea if he would fly into a rage.'
'But to get his attention, she couldn't afford to worry about her dignity.'
'She had thought it through. She was already here, so if he got angry, it would be Charles Prescott's fault anyway.'
'Who told him to pick on her sister, Sharon, of all people?'
Anne Sutton concealed her nervousness and stood up. "The butler mentioned you haven't had dinner yet. Let me serve you!"
She was about to leave when she felt a sudden, tight grip on her wrist.
She turned her head and saw the man's iron-like arm had seized her.
For a supposedly sickly man, he seemed incredibly strong.
Nathan Fawcett reached out and yanked her back, forcing her to stumble into his lap.
He gripped her chin. "Charles Prescott never touched you, and he never taught you how to kiss either?"
"..."
'Kissing?'
Anne Sutton froze for a second. The next moment, the man's lips were on hers, sealing her mouth in a kiss so deep it felt like he was trying to suck the very air from her lungs.
Even though she had made the first move, his sudden aggression still startled Anne Sutton.
She stared at Nathan Fawcett. "You..."
Seeing her reaction, Nathan Fawcett raised an eyebrow. "What, can't handle this much? Weren't you the one who served yourself up on a platter?"
"..." His words instantly deflated her bravado.
'Before, if a man she barely knew had kissed her like that, she probably would have lost her mind.'
'But now, her mind was filled with the image of Charles Prescott leaving with his precious little thing in his arms.'
'And the words of all those people at the hospital who had laughed at her expense.'
She looked at Nathan Fawcett. 'Hadn't she already made up her mind on the way here?'
'She wasn't just here for a kiss—she was here to have this man's child!'
When she didn't protest further, Nathan Fawcett realized she was serious.
He asked, curious, "You're Charles Prescott's fiancée. What could possibly possess you to come to me? I'm a dying man. You know that, don't you?"
"I know." Anne Sutton lowered her head, her hands clenched tightly into fists.
"And you still came?" Nathan Fawcett said. "You'd rather not be the future Mrs. Prescott? What are you after? Do you want to be a widow?"
Anne Sutton no longer tried to hide it. "The Sutton Family is in a bad situation right now. Being with you, Mr. Fawcett, can help my family."
"Charles Prescott could help you with that." Although Nathan Fawcett was the true heir to the Fawcett family, helping the Suttons was something Charles could also accomplish.
"Charles Prescott has never treated me like his fiancée. He has another woman, and now she's having his child."
Nathan Fawcett said, "And for that, you'd rather come to me?"
Anne Sutton replied, "Nothing would humiliate him more than me having his uncle's child."
As she said this, her eyes were icy cold.
'He's with someone else, and he still tried to push her sister into this pit of fire.'
'That being the case, why should she spare his pride?'
'Charles Prescott, you were cruel to me first, so don't blame me for disgracing you!'
Nathan Fawcett sat in his chair, watching Anne Sutton without saying a word.
'Well now. He was being used as a tool.'
'And yet, this was something she could have easily hidden, but she'd just come right out and said it.'
Nathan Fawcett looked at the woman before him. She was so blatant about her motives, treating him as nothing more than a tool, and yet... he wasn't that angry.
...
The sky had already darkened by the time Charles Prescott returned.
He got out of the car and asked the butler, "Has Sharon arrived?"