Chapter 57 Don't Annoy Me

Yvonne stealthily walked over and hid among the bushes next to the pavilion.

"Mr. Harper, my request is simple. I want my daughter to become a part of your family." Sophia's voice was gentle, yet firm. "Charles is avoiding me now, so I had to come find you."

From Yvonne's perspective, Sophia was around thirty-five years old, with a beautiful appearance that carried a determination.

Sophia was also a well-known actress in the American film industry, but she had suddenly disappeared a few years ago.

Now it seemed that she must have secretly given birth to Charles's child back then.

"It's no use finding me." Elijah's voice was chilling. "He doesn't want to take responsibility, so he's hiding. Even if you find him, do you think he will give your daughter the status she deserves?"

"The paternity test has already been done. My daughter is Charles's child! She should bear the name ‘Harper’!" Sophia was full of persistence. "The Harper blood flows through her veins. She should have access to all the resources of the Harper family."

"Fine." Elijah's face turned cold. "I'll give you Charles's address, he is in Norway. You can convey all your demands to him."

"Charles doesn't want to acknowledge my daughter at all. In his eyes, she is an illegitimate child who can't be acknowledged publicly." Sophia's aura gradually softened. "That's why I am begging you."

"Begging me? Do you think it will be effective?" Elijah's laugh was extremely disdainful.

"I’ll beg as much as I can... you will eventually have a change of heart." Sophia's determined eyes were filled with sorrow.

"Sorry, I won't have a change of heart for something like this." Elijah looked at her with disgust and lit a cigarette. "I can give you money, enough for you and your daughter to live worry-free for a lifetime. Don't even think about anything else."

"I don't want money, I just want my daughter to have the rightful surname she deserves." Sophia managed to shed a few tears. "If you recognize her, I’ll disappear and never bother you again."

"Is a surname enough for you to abandon your own daughter? You're insane!" Elijah angrily retorted, "Sophia, please disappear from my sight immediately."

"Mr. Harper, I know that only you can get through to Charles. If you don't agree to help me, I will bother you again." Sophia left.

Yvonne quietly turned around, preparing to return.

"Have you heard enough?" Elijah suddenly shouted in Yvonne's direction.

Yvonne realized she was discovered. She quickly smiled to conceal her embarrassment and said, "I just happened to be passing by, I didn't-"

Elijah walked out of the pavilion and started heading back to the house with Yvonne.

The food was laid out in the sunroom on the second floor.. Elijah called a waiter to heat up the dishes and ordered a dozen cans of beer.

After spending a whole day in the water, Yvonne had little appetite. She opened a can of beer and started drinking.

Elijah's good mood was disrupted by Sophia, and he ended up drinking three cans of beer in a row.

"We both have unfortunate family situations." Yvonne tried to strike up a conversation and clinked her beer can against his.

Absorbing Yvonne's words, he replied with self-mockery, "To use women as a distraction from a worthless father, I suppose you haven't seen such a person before, have you?"

Charles was a charming man.

The mother and child who jumped from the 28th floor not long ago hadn't even had their bodies fully cold when Sophia showed up with her daughter, causing trouble again.

Charles was now hiding, leaving Elijah to deal with this mess - it was truly unfair!

"When I was young, he rarely came home. Shirley and I sometimes wouldn't see him for a month. Every time I heard news about him, it was either on TV or in the newspapers, linked to some scandal with another woman..." Elijah's voice was tainted with intoxication.

Yvonne reached out and took the beer from his hand. "Stop drinking. Let's talk if you're troubled. After all, no matter how terrible your father is, he's still your biological father, and I..." She couldn't continue. She lifted her head and emptied the rest of the beer in one gulp.

"How is your dad? Has he been discharged from the ICU?" Elijah asked.

She shook her head. "We still have to wait a few more days to know if he has passed the critical period."

Elijah picked up another can of beer and opened it, gazing up at the falling snowflakes.

Snowflakes fell gently from the quiet night sky, and the transparent sunroom separated them from the outside world.

The two of them would occasionally raise their glasses for a drink, and sometimes exchange smiles.

In that brief moment, Yvonne felt that Elijah had become easier to get along with.

After a few cans of beer, Yvonne was slightly tipsy and became talkative. "I may not be George's biological daughter."

Elijah froze for a moment and chuckled self-mockingly. "So what if you're not biologically related? In the end, you still have to rely on yourself."

"I don't even know who my biological parents are, I feel so pitiful." Yvonne's voice choked, "These past few days, I've been thinking, should I continue helping George if his illness is an endless pit..."

Elijah didn't reply, but he listened to Yvonne attentively.

This was the first time they openly discussed their respective families.

When they returned to the bedroom, Yvonne almost stumbled due to dizziness.

At first, Elijah supported her, but eventually he ended up embracing her, carrying her in his arms into the bedroom.

This time, there were no sweet words, but they naturally reached an intimate peak.

Yvonne woke up and found Elijah still lying by her side.

They shared the same bed, and their legs were intertwined, with an indescribable affection and tenderness.

"If Joseph sees us like this, he won't like it." Yvonne had just turned her body when Elijah pulled her back.

"Just let it be! That child already considers you as his mother." Elijah's words didn't console Yvonne, but rather made her nervous.

"Being an aunt or a friend is fine, but not a mother! I can't bear the thought of becoming a stepmother to a six-year-old for the rest of my life!"

Yvonne clearly didn't want to be a stepmother. Elijah perceived her disdain and let go of her with a cold face.

"There are plenty of women who want to be Joseph's stepmother. Even if you line up now, you won't make the cut."

"Your words put my mind at ease." Yvonne laughed carelessly, getting dressed and leaving the bed.

Little did she know, Elijah's face had darkened.

Yvonne and Joseph had breakfast together, while Elijah stayed hidden in the bedroom.

In the morning, Forest Manor had many activities. Yvonne took Joseph on a sightseeing train ride and bought many small trinkets.

Just as Yvonne and Joseph changed into their swimsuits and got into the water, Elijah received a phone call and suggested they pack their bags and return to the city immediately.

Joseph hadn't finished playing yet, so he started throwing a tantrum, but Yvonne calmed him down after a while. In the end, he obediently got into the car with them.

On the way back, Elijah was constantly on the phone. Except for one call from Sophia, all the others were work-related.

Elijah drove to Bird Hills first. Joseph wasn't satisfied with the playtime, so he got off the car with a frowned brow and pouting lips.

Perhaps it was because of the words spoken that morning, but when Elijah returned to his law firm, he didn't even say goodbye to Yvonne.

Auntie noticed something and quickly smiled, making excuses for Elijah. "Elijah has a lot of work-related stress, and it's understandable that his emotions are unstable. Yvonne, please don't mind."

Yvonne stayed at Bird Hills for a while before driving her own car back to Sunshine Community.

After taking a hot bath and applying body lotion, she suddenly remembered that she and Elijah hadn't taken any precautions during this period.

The past few days were supposedly safe, but she wasn’t sure about the time she spent at Forest Manor!

There were too many things going wrong, but it was best to think positively.

Hannah called to invite her to watch a movie, and she readily agreed.

She was choosing her outfit when Elijah called. "A friend from Seattle is visiting, and I just made a reservation at Spring Diner. Hurry up and come over, it's settled."

Why should she go over there?

Yvonne instantly became annoyed, but she still spoke calmly, "I'm sorry, I made plans to watch a movie with my friend, I don't have time."

"The movie can be rescheduled, Yvonne." Elijah was forceful.

"I'm not going!" Yvonne ruthlessly refuted him.

Elijah didn't make any concessions either and said in a deep voice, "Yvonne, don't be mad at me."

After careful consideration, Yvonne still went to the movies with Hannah.

Elijah called twice, but she didn't answer.

They started to enter a cold war.

They existed in each other's contact list but refrained from contacting or communicating with each other.

On Wednesday morning, Yvonne received a notification from the hospital saying that George had woken up and had been transferred to a regular ward.

She rushed to the hospital, and found George looking thinner and appearing older.

George was disappointed when he saw her.

But since he was told that she had paid for his medical expenses, George took the initiative to greet her. "You came?"

"I came." Yvonne had been restless these past few days due to that matter, so she directly closed the curtain separating her and George.

"There's something you must tell me truthfully--"

George sat up on the bed, furrowing his brows. "Don't expect Mary to pay for the medical expenses. We are no longer husband and wife."

Yvonne coldly snarled, "You already made a public statement cutting off our father-daughter relationship, so I shouldn't have anything to do with your affairs. I've paid a total of 160,000 dollars for your medical expenses. When do you plan to repay me?"

"I'm so broke right now that I can't even come up with a thousand dollars! I raised you and paid for your university education, and now you think it's not worth it to cover my medical expenses?" George was becoming breathless with anger.

Yvonne didn't continue arguing with him. "I want to know where my biological parents are."

"Just because I'm broke, you're not willing to acknowledge me as your real father?" George's face turned dark, and his eyes avoided hers. "Your mother left you and went abroad. Was it easy for me to raise you all by myself?"

"Don't make up stories!" Yvonne knew that if she didn't reveal the shocking truth, George would continue to put on a tough front.

"A few days ago, when you were unconscious, I arranged for a paternity test at the hospital. Turns out we're not biologically related," Yvonne said while paying attention to his expression.

His demeanor didn't change significantly. He was eerily calm. "Show me the paternity test results. Let me see who's lying!"

Yvonne didn't expect him to be so stubborn. She said coldly, "The paternity test results show it clearly, and I firmly believe in them. Since there's no blood relation, I won't pay a single cent for your future treatments."

"You are an ungrateful daughter!" George grabbed the water cup from the bedside table and threw it forcefully to the ground.

Yvonne continued to inquire, "Who is my real biological father? Did my mother really leave me to go abroad?"

"You just don't want to pay my medical expenses. Don't use the paternity test to evade me!" George shouted in frustration.