Forcing down the lump in her throat, Vivian peered at Finnick mockingly. “You forced me to give up my child last time, and now you have the audacity to ask me why I chose to divorce you? Do you realize how ridiculous you sound, Mr. Norton?” laughed Vivian dryly.
So it really is because of the child. Deep down in his heart, Finnick had expected this answer. The words that Noah had said five years ago rang in his ears once more. I also found out that Mrs. Norton realized that there’s a high possibility that the baby she’s carrying is not yours. She chose to leave you and go to A Nation with Benedict because she didn’t know how to face you.
“But Vivian,” Finnick started. “Did I not tell you I would accept the child, and it matters not whether he or she is mine?”
“Accept?” Vivian laughed in disbelief, anger arose in her chest once more. “Finnick Norton, even up till now, you’re still spinning lies. Please, knock on the door of your own heart and ask yourself, do you truly accept this child?”
Awkwardness flashed across Finnick’s face. At that time, he had blurted out that promise to prevent Vivian from going through with the divorce, not out of genuineness. Did she find out she was not pregnant with my child and left out of fear that I would force her to undergo an abortion?
Finnick felt the cracks in his heart deepened. At the end of the day, it was all his fault. He had not taken care of her, nor protected her. If I had done better, would she have stayed instead? if I were a better husband, maybe we wouldn’t miss out on the past five years.
“Where’s the child now? Did you bring the child with you here?” Finnick inquired. He or she should be five now, right? Finnick felt a thud in his heart. I don’t even know the gender of the child…
Hearing Finnick asking about the child, Vivian hesitated, not knowing how she should answer. Finnick had always thought the child isn’t his… But who knows if he’ll notice anything amiss if he sees my precious baby…
No! I can’t afford this risk! I am not losing my child!
“I had a miscarriage,” lied Vivian with her head lowered, staring at the ground. Her stomach clenched in fear, afraid that Finnick could see through her deception.
She was terrified that this psychopath in front of her would harm her innocent child, just like what he did those years ago. Or, to be more exact, she hoped her child would never have to deal with a father like Finnick.
“What?” Finnick was shaken to the core. Never in his wildest imagination would he have expected that the child did not survive after all.
Seeing Vivian with her head held low in silence, Finnick mistook her feelings for grief. She loved the child so much, even to the point of divorcing me. With the child gone, she must be devastated…
“I’m sorry Vivian… Don’t be too upset, perhaps the heavens did not want to give up an angel,” comforted Finnick softly. At the same time, he thought to himself, Don’t worry, my love. We will have a child of our own in the future.
That’s right, Finnick Norton had made up his mind. He would do everything in his power to woo and marry Vivian Morrison, once again calling her Mrs. Norton—and be his to love—to cherish and to hold. He would give her the wedding he had owed her the last time, have her put on a wedding gown, and walk down the aisle towards himself!
Five years ago, because of a slip-up he made, Evelyn became crippled, forcing her to live out her best years in a wheelchair. Out of guilt, Finnick forced himself to give up on Vivian, deciding to take care of Evelyn and be by her side till she healed from her trauma.
As the years ticked by, however, he realized it was impossible for him to let go of Vivian, not even temporarily. Ever since she left, away from his reach, she never seemed to be out of his sight. Her shadow haunted him every corner he turned. He saw her at the table during meals; he saw her at work; he saw her even in the dead of night, smiling warmly at him in his dreams.
But every time he wanted to pull her into his embrace, it would serve as a cruel reminder of what had happened, and all he was seeing was a ghost of the past. Before long, Finnick felt himself on the brink of insanity.
Originally, he had intended to wait till Evelyn could accept the fact that she was disabled and could live on her own. Once she could, he would fly to A Nation right away to look for Vivian, explaining the reasons he had agreed to the divorce.
He did not expect Evelyn to depend on him more and more. At times when he was so consumed by work and couldn’t accompany her, Evelyn would bombard his phone with text messages and missed calls. She would even order the servants on a search for him to bring him back home.
Worse still, for the past two years, Evelyn had been calling herself Mrs. Norton, wife of the President of Finnor Group—abusing that title and interrupting his staff’s work. Even his secretary had been replaced twice by her.
