Charles Prescott said, "Aren't you a little too eager to become the family matriarch? My uncle hasn't even agreed to marry you yet. You took care of him for one night, and you already think you're his wife?"
Hearing Charles Prescott's words, Anne Sutton shot him a look before turning to Nathan Fawcett. "Darling, do you hear him? The way he's talking to me... he's showing you no respect at all."
"..." Nathan Fawcett watched the two of them clash, dragging him into their squabble.
He realized Anne Sutton was just using him to make Charles Prescott jealous, and he had no desire to play along.
Seeing that Nathan Fawcett was ignoring Anne Sutton, leaving her to perform a one-woman show, Charles Prescott sat to the side and a smirk played on his lips.
'If she wants to make a fool of herself, then he'd just let her.'
'He was curious to see what good being with Nathan Fawcett would do her anyway.'
'After all, Nathan Fawcett never paid women much mind.'
'He, at least, had some feelings for Anne Sutton. But Nathan Fawcett? What could he possibly see in her?'
'How ridiculous!'
Anne Sutton spoke to Nathan Fawcett, but when she received no response, it became a bit awkward.
She looked at the man, her smile so strained it was starting to feel stiff.
'She'd thought he wouldn't just leave her hanging, would he?'
'But now she knew—he had no intention of getting involved at all!'
Anne Sutton glanced at him and finally let go of his arm.
Charles Prescott, sitting to the side, now looked even more openly mocking.
Charles Prescott knew her well, and he knew his uncle well, so in his eyes, she was nothing but a laughable, pathetic joke.
He even spoke up, pretending to smooth things over for her. "My uncle's health isn't good right now. He needs to stay home and recuperate, so let's put this marriage business on hold for a while. There's no rush, right?"
Anne Sutton realized Charles Prescott was deliberately kicking her while she was down.
'To think she'd spent so many years with a man like this... she must have been blind.'
'Why did she ever find him handsome?'
'How ridiculous!'
Nathan Fawcett, who had been sitting quietly and watching the scene unfold, finally spoke. "Have the lawyers come tomorrow. I want to get the formalities over with."
When he spoke, Anne Sutton froze for a second. She stared at Nathan Fawcett, stunned that this man, who had been as silent as a statue, had actually spoken!
Hearing Nathan Fawcett's words, Master Fawcett asked in disbelief, "You mean... you're going to marry Anne?"
Nathan Fawcett said, "We'll skip the wedding. Let's just get the certificate. In any case, there was an engagement agreement with the Sutton Family. Also... Charles, you can help handle things on the Sutton Family's end. Make sure my father-in-law isn't treated poorly."
The moment he said "father-in-law," Charles Prescott's face darkened.
'He'd originally planned to teach the Sutton Family a lesson over this whole affair with Anne Sutton. But now that Nathan Fawcett had spoken, not only could he not make a move against them, he had to make sure their affairs were handled properly.'
'Otherwise...'
'Nathan Fawcett would hold him accountable.'
'And Sean Sutton, who was supposed to be his father-in-law, had now become...'
'His uncle's father-in-law.'
'Ha...'
Charles Prescott said, "Don't worry, Uncle. You focus on getting well. I'll take care of everything else."
After speaking, he glanced at Sylvia Warren and said, "My girlfriend isn't feeling well. I'm going to take her upstairs to rest."
With that, he led Sylvia Warren upstairs.
...
In truth, Charles Prescott had many women, but aside from Anne Sutton, this was the first one he had ever brought home.
He felt he was already doing her a great honor.
'After all, of all his women, only she had been given an official title, yet she was so ungrateful, making such a mess of things.'
Sylvia Warren followed behind Charles Prescott. Seeing his grim, silent expression, she broke the silence. "Mr. Prescott, isn't that Ms. Sutton your fiancée? Why is she with your uncle?"
'How humiliating!'
'How could Charles Prescott stand for that?'
'And more importantly...'
'How could Charles Prescott's uncle accept it?'
'The lives of the rich are too messy! She couldn't make sense of it.'
Charles Prescott looked at Sylvia Warren. She was a budding starlet, not yet famous, but she was certainly pretty—fair-skinned and beautiful, with a delicate and endearing look.
Charles Prescott raised a hand and gently stroked her long, silken hair. In a low voice, he said, "She's just being childish, throwing a tantrum to get my attention."
"So she's trying to get you to placate her?" Sylvia Warren asked in surprise.
"Exactly," Charles Prescott said.
'Wasn't she just trying to cause trouble for him?'
'Too bad for her, he wasn't falling for it.'
Sylvia Warren said, "She's so immature, embarrassing you like that. You can't just forgive her easily!"
Charles Prescott said, "See? Vera's the good one."
Sylvia Warren said, "Don't worry! I'll never be childish like her."
"Good."
Walking beside Charles Prescott, Sylvia Warren thought of Anne Sutton's audacious behavior, and a smirk played on her lips.
...
Getting the marriage certificate was a simple affair.
The next afternoon, Anne Sutton was at home preparing dinner for Nathan Fawcett when the butler came in.
He looked at Anne Sutton and said, "Ms. Sutton, could you come here a moment?"
Anne Sutton came out of the kitchen and followed the butler into the living room. She saw Nathan Fawcett sitting there, with what looked like government officials and a lawyer seated nearby.
Because of his poor health, it was inconvenient for him to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau, so they had brought the officials directly to the house.
The butler said, "Please go sit next to Mr. Fawcett. You need to take a photo first."
Anne Sutton then realized it was for the marriage certificate photo.
She walked over to Nathan Fawcett's side. "Should I go change my clothes?"
Nathan Fawcett glanced at her. "There's no need."
Seeing that he was also dressed casually, Anne Sutton had no choice but to sit down.
After being Charles Prescott's fiancée for so many years, she was now marrying his uncle. The speed at which she was getting legally married to Nathan Fawcett stunned even her.
Besides registering the marriage, she also signed a marriage agreement with Nathan Fawcett.
The agreement was simple: if she bore an heir for Nathan Fawcett, his personal assets would be divided between her and the child.
The child would even become the heir to the Fawcett Family.
Anne Sutton was more than happy with this arrangement.
'Because if she had a child, the Fawcett Family would have an heir. Wouldn't that derail Charles Prescott's future plans?'
'Wasn't the reason Charles Prescott was so smug today because he saw that Nathan Fawcett was dying and thought all the Fawcett Family's assets were already in the bag for him?'
After signing the agreement, Anne Sutton looked up and saw Nathan Fawcett sitting on the sofa. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be fighting back the pain in his body.
Seeing his discomfort, the officials and the lawyer quickly left.
Anne Sutton stood up, intending to leave, but after a glance at Nathan Fawcett, she picked up a nearby blanket and draped it over him.
Though her movements were gentle, he still opened his eyes as the blanket settled on him, his gaze wary.
Anne Sutton said, "I just... wanted to cover you with a blanket."
He glanced at her, then reached out to adjust the blanket. "You can go," he said.