That evening, Grace left work half an hour early, stopping by the market to pick up fresh ingredients. Then, she rushed home. If Ethan’s arrival was on schedule, she had more than enough time to prepare a small meal. She worked alone in the kitchen, moving swiftly. Just as she was finishing, with only twenty minutes left before the scheduled time, the doorbell rang. Assuming it was Ethan, she quickly…

Before she could finish speaking, she saw Carmen standing outside… Her mood instantly soured, and her expression turned cold. Carmen shoved the door open without hesitation, the aroma of freshly cooked food immediately hitting her.

“Grace, you still have the heart to cook here?” Carmen snapped. “Do you even know that Alice and Liam have been craving your food? Alice is sick, and they’re asking for your cooking. Get your things. You’re coming home with me.”

Grace didn’t bother responding. She simply raised a hand to shut the door. Carmen, already in a foul mood, shoved it open with force. “You bought this place with Alice’s money, didn’t you?” she sneered.

She stormed into the dining area without hesitation. “Alice is home now, and all she wants is a meal from you. Yet here you are, indifferent. You’re heartless!”

Seeing the beautifully plated dishes arranged on the table, Carmen’s fury spiked. Without a second thought, she grabbed the edge of the tablecloth and yanked. In an instant, the dishes toppled over. Food splattered across the floor, and plates shattered. Even the tablecloth landed in a crumpled mess on the ground. “Alice and Liam haven’t had a single late meal, but you’re here, wasting food!” Carmen spat.

Grace stood still for several seconds, her chest rising and falling. Without a word, she pulled out her phone and called the building manager. The security office hesitated. “Ms. Lambert, we didn’t intentionally let her in. She said she was your mother, and just a few days ago, she bought a villa for her other daughter. One of our staff didn’t recognize her, so we let her through.”

“I don’t know her. Right now, she’s trespassing and causing a disturbance. Please remove her immediately,” Grace said coolly.

Carmen never thought she’d see the day when security threw her out. Standing outside the complex, she stomped her foot in frustration, shaking with rage. This was the second time she had come looking for Grace in such a short period. Her patience had run dry. If Alice didn’t love Grace’s cooking, she wouldn’t have bothered.

Inside her house, Grace had crouched down to pick up the shattered porcelain. Just then, she heard the sound of a wheelchair approaching. Ethan was at the entrance, dressed in a crisp, freshly tailored suit…

Grace had thought she was already numb to humiliation. But why did Ethan always show up at the worst possible moments? Her fingers tightened around the broken pieces of the dish. Her voice was hoarse when she finally said, “Mr. Henderson, I’m sorry. Maybe it’s best if you wait outside tonight.”

The memory loss that had caused her to forget everything about the Lambert family still ached. She bent down, collecting the shattered porcelain. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her fingers, and blood trickled from a fresh cut. The wheelchair rolled closer. Then, Ethan caught her hand.

“I’ll have Tim clean this up,” he said. The look on Tim’s face when Ethan said that made her want to laugh. She tried to pull her hand away and continue picking up the pieces.

Tim immediately knelt beside her. “Ms. Lambert, just sit down. I’ll…” His sentence trailed off. She sat down. When she looked down, she saw a sizable stain of crimson on her leg.

Chapter 22

Then, he reached over to touch her hand. “Does it hurt a lot?” he asked again. Her hand trembled slightly before she finally forced herself to reply, “A little.”

The aroma of freshly cooked food had faded. Tim had quietly cracked open the window before slipping away, leaving only the two of them in the room. He had done so discreetly; in her cabinets. Fihan stood and headed to the kitchen. Moments later, she heard the sound of water boiling. He returned with a hot water bottle, having somehow found one; he tested the temperature, and then handed it to her.

Grace hesitated for a moment until he said, “Hold it against your stomach.” Before she could thank him, a fresh wave of pain hit her. Her face turned pale, and even her fingers trembled. Ethan rummaged through the first-aid kit and pulled out a pill bottle. He popped out an ibuprofen, but by now, Grace was in too much pain to focus.

She slumped against the couch, her body damp with sweat. She was too miserable to care about embarrassment. The pain was unbearable. Ethan grabbed a glass of warm water and sat beside her. He tilted her chin up with one hand while pressing the pill lightly against her lips with the other. Grace instinctively tried to spit it out, but before she could, she tilted her head back slightly and brought the glass to her lips.

Maybe his tone was too firm, but Grace swallowed without any hesitation.