Chapter 39
When Theodore saw the sadness in her eyes, he felt a pang in his heart and hurriedly stopped her. "Phoebe. Let Jack take you back to the office."
Phoebe could no longer maintain her calmness. She stubbornly turned her head to the side and coldly shook her head. "No need; I drove here myself."
The more she acted like this, the more worried Theodore became. He decisively reached out his hand. "Give me the car keys. Let Jack drive you to the office."
Phoebe looked up at Theodore, catching a glimpse of Vanessa standing nearby out of the corner of her eye. She pressed her lips together. "I can drive myself. I don't need anyone to take me."
"Phoebe, be good!" Theodore's brows furrowed, and he then instructed Jack, "Take Mrs. Reynolds back to the office, got it?"
When Theodore spoke to Phoebe, he managed to keep his cool, but when he turned to Jack, his anger was barely contained; his stare could practically burn a hole through someone.
Jack was so scared he broke out in a cold sweat and quickly said, "Yes."
Theodore didn't say anything more. He took one last deep look at Phoebe before supporting Vanessa and leaving.
Vanessa glanced at Phoebe, a satisfied smile playing on her lips.
Phoebe bit her lip and angrily turned to go upstairs.
Jack quickly followed Phoebe. Once they were in the elevator, Jack looked at Phoebe's cold profile and hurriedly tried to explain for Theodore. "Mrs. Reynolds, please don't be angry. Miss Fitzroy's mother used to be Mr. Reynolds' mentor. She got sick, and he had to go see her out of duty and feelings."
Phoebe laughed, "Do you all think I'm such a narrow-minded person?"
Phoebe wasn't angry that Theodore came to see Sophia; she was angry that he didn't explain it to her. If he had just told her that Sophia was sick and in critical condition, would she have stopped him from coming?
Theodore made it seem like he was sneaking around, which was just uncomfortable.
Jack looked troubled and, afraid of making her even angrier, finally shut his mouth.
Phoebe chuckled self-consciously, thinking back to the warm hug from this morning. Theodore was only so gentle with her out of guilt. In the end, Vanessa was the one he truly cared for.
"Theodore, Ms. Ziegler seems to have misunderstood. Should I go explain to her?" Vanessa looked up.
Theodore's brows frowned, but he still said in a deep voice, "No need; Phoebe isn't that petty."
Theodore thought that Phoebe wouldn't misinterpret things because she didn't have feelings for him. If she ever did get jealous and misunderstand, he would secretly be pleased.
Vanessa bit her lip, feeling both jealous and uneasy.
She could tell that the vibe between Theodore and Phoebe was off. It wasn't like a married couple, but it wasn't like they were total strangers either. It was this weird in-between state, not too close, not too distant, making it tricky to read.
If Theodore had feelings for Phoebe, he always prioritized Vanessa.
If he had no feelings for Phoebe, he seemed to always care about her.
"Theodore, don't underestimate women. The more we pretend not to care, the more we might actually care inside." Vanessa remarked, seemingly referring to Phoebe but also reflecting on her own feelings.
Back then, Vanessa had broken up with Theodore and headed to Nyxonia to make him realize how much she meant to him, hoping he would chase after her to Nyxonia.
Theodore glanced at her, puzzled. "Really?"
"Yes, we often say one thing and mean another. Even if we love someone deeply, we pretend to be carefree and indifferent, just to get some attention and affection." Vanessa's stunning face showed a hint of delicate shyness.
Theodore lowered his eyes, pondering Phoebe's reaction just now. But he couldn't remember much jealousy on her face. Phoebe was like that—stubborn and strong-willed, never showing any jealousy, which sometimes made Theodore angry just looking at her.
Thinking it over, Theodore felt his head ache and couldn't help but complain, "Why can't you just be straightforward?"
Vanessa sighed. After all these years, she thought time would change Theodore, but it seemed he was still the same as before.
Since that was the case, she needed to adjust her strategy.
"Theodore," Vanessa thought for a few seconds and was about to say something to Theodore when the door to the operating room suddenly opened, and several doctors surrounded an older doctor in surgical attire as they came out.
Vanessa had to stop talking and hurriedly went up to them, with James, who had been waiting nearby, quickly following to the doctor's side.
The three of them surrounded the older doctor, each looking at him with serious expressions.
The older doctor gave an awkward smile and said, "Luckily, she made it in time. The surgery was a success. Just keep her chill from now on. Once she's out of ICU, we can move her to a regular room for recovery. "
"Thanks, doctor, thanks a lot." James felt a wave of relief wash over him, tears welling up in his eyes.
Vanessa also breathed a sigh of relief, almost fainting on the spot.
Theodore, quick on his feet, grabbed her arm and supported her, gently comforting, "It's okay now, it's okay. Sophia is fine. Don't worry; take care of yourself."
Vanessa took the opportunity to fall into his arms, crying tears of joy, "Thank goodness, my mom is okay. Theodore, I'm so scared, thank you."
Theodore patted her shoulder, and a few light coughs came from the side. Vanessa turned to see James looking at her sternly.
She bit her lip, stepped out of Theodore's embrace, and went over to hold James's arm. "Dad, let's go see Mom."
After taking a few steps, Vanessa turned back to look at Theodore.
Theodore smiled and said, "I'll go talk to the attending doctor to understand Sophia's condition. You go ahead."
Only then did Vanessa follow James. Sophia was still under the effects of anesthesia and unconscious. It wasn't visiting hours yet, so Vanessa and James could only look through the window.
With no outsiders around, James looked at Vanessa seriously and said, "Vanessa, you're grown now, and I don't want to meddle too much in your life, but I just hope you think things through carefully and always stay on the right side of things."
Vanessa's face turned pale. "Dad."
"When you broke up with Theodore back then, we advised you, but you insisted on going your own way. It's a done deal now. Why keep stirring the pot? Your mom's hospitalized because of you. You hell-bent on pushing her to the edge?" James said, heartbroken.
From childhood to adulthood, Vanessa had always been the pride of Sophia and James. But they never expected that sending her abroad for a few years would lead her to wrecking other people's marriages.
Vanessa had broken up with Theodore because she felt he didn't love her enough. Despite being together for so many years, they had only held hands, and that was initiated by her.
Moreover, Theodore had gone to a prestigious school for two years, and they rarely saw each other. When they did, Theodore was cold and indifferent for her.
In a moment of impulse, Vanessa wanted to force Theodore to compromise with her, so she go to Nyxonia deliberately.
But after she went to Nyxonia, not only did Theodore not chase after her, he inexplicably ended up sleeping with Phoebe, got her pregnant, and Phoebe became Theodore's wife because of the pregnancy.
Whenever Vanessa thought about Theodore being seduced by Phoebe, she couldn't help but get angry.
"Dad, I know what I'm doing. I won't give up my happiness to anyone else," Vanessa suddenly clenched her fists and said firmly.
James angrily said, "Then why didn't you break with Theodore earlier? No matter how good Theodore is, he's a married man now!"
Vanessa's eyes reddened instantly. "Dad, are you going to push me too? What did I do wrong? I just want to win back my lover. What's wrong with that?"
"Your lover?" James was so angry he paced back and forth, then turned to glare at her. "Your lover is someone else's husband. Vanessa, are all the men in the world dead? Why are you clinging to Theodore? If you go after him now, you're just a homewrecker!"
