The Hawthorne Gardens. Tanya Sinclair didn’t do as usual when she arrived at the Hawthorne Family, first going to pay respects to Mother Hawthorne and others. Instead, she directly bypassed the main house and went to Old Lady Hawthorne’s separate garden. As soon as she entered, she saw Old Lady Hawthorne sitting on the chaise longue in the front hall, toying with sandalwood Buddha beads in her hands. Aunt Flora stood by her side, gently fanning her. And Vincent Hawthorne was quietly sitting beside Old Lady Hawthorne, peeling freshly picked lotus seeds with his eyes lowered. His beautiful, slender fingers deftly peeled the lotus seed shell, revealing a tender white lotus seed, then removing the bitter heart hidden inside, placing it on a small dish beside him. "Tanya said that although the lotus heart is bitter, it’s a treasure in medicine. Besides suppressing fire, it can also relieve anxiety and insomnia," Vincent’s voice was clear and light, carried by the evening breeze into the ears without missing a word. Tanya Sinclair paused slightly and walked over. "Grandma." She called out. Old Lady Hawthorne and Vincent both looked over. Tanya Sinclair didn’t glance at Vincent, only smiling as she walked towards Old Lady Hawthorne. Vincent’s gaze momentarily froze, sliding down to her slender neck, where the collarbone was also delicate and beautiful, but bare. Vincent frowned slightly. She was so delighted to receive the diamond necklace he gave her, yet she didn’t wear it to show off? Vincent inexplicably recalled a year when he accompanied her to an arcade. Using a claw machine, he caught a small toy, and she was so happy she hung it on her bag, carrying it everywhere, loving it immensely... A broken toy made her happy for half a month, yet now with a diamond necklace, she’s still showing him that cold, indifferent face! Vincent felt a bit impatient, tossing the lotus seed he had just peeled into his mouth. As he bit down, apart from the sweetness, he tasted the bitterness of the lotus heart. He doesn’t like bitterness, and his initially furrowed brow tightened even more. "Tanya’s here, come, sit down!" Old Lady Hawthorne beamed, reaching out to pull Tanya Sinclair to sit beside her. Without a hint of emotion, Vincent quietly allocated some of the peeled lotus seeds onto a small porcelain dish and pushed it towards Tanya Sinclair. Tanya Sinclair pretended not to see. But Old Lady Hawthorne saw clearly, her eyes full of teasing. Not bad, not bad, her grandson had finally figured it out! It wasn’t for nothing that she had been teaching him for so long just now! "Oh dear, it’s a bit chilly." Old Lady Hawthorne exaggeratedly shivered, gesturing to Aunt Flora, "Flora, accompany me to find a piece of clothing in the room." Latest content published on novel(ꜰ)ire.net "Grandma, let me accompany you." Tanya Sinclair was about to get up but was held down by Old Lady Hawthorne. "You just sit; Grandma will be right back." Tanya Sinclair: "..." Of course, she knew Old Lady Hawthorne’s little scheme — it was merely to intentionally create an opportunity for her and Vincent to be alone. But probably, Old Lady Hawthorne’s plan would go to waste. After Old Lady Hawthorne and Aunt Flora left, only she and Vincent remained in the pavilion. Vincent wasn’t much of a talker, and truthfully, neither was Tanya Sinclair. But during those years when they were alone, it was always Tanya who racked her brains to find topics. Vincent had long gotten used to it, so he absentmindedly fiddled with his phone, paying peripheral attention to Tanya, waiting for her to speak first. After all, he had just given her a diamond necklace worth nearly seven million that afternoon; he had shown enough sincerity! Unexpectedly, not only did Tanya not take the initiative to converse with him, but she also fiddled with her phone, treating him as if he were air! Tanya Sinclair was replying to a message from Daisy Bell. After leaving Zane Shaw’s law office, she immediately informed Daisy that Zane had accepted her commission. But back then, Daisy was probably filming and didn’t reply until just now. Daisy Bell: [Ahhhh, great! My darling Tanya is finally breaking free from that dog of a man!] Followed by a string of fireworks. Tanya Sinclair couldn’t help but smile lightly. Vincent couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tanya was definitely chatting with someone, and she was smiling so brightly, right in front of him! A spark of restlessness flared even more fiercely in Vincent’s chest. "Who are you chatting with, laughing so happily?" he asked calmly, with a trace of jealousy he didn’t even notice in his tone, "Let me see." Before his mind could make a judgment, his hand was already reaching out, trying to take Tanya Sinclair’s phone. Tanya Sinclair frowned and slapped away the hand reaching in front of her. It wasn’t the playful kind of banter but a very crisp slap on the back of his hand. Marks of redness instantly appeared on the back of his hand. "Tanya!" Vincent’s usually gentle and handsome face was tinged with anger. Furious, he laughed and spoke without thinking, "What, talking to some lover you can’t let your lawful husband see?" Tanya finally gave him a glance, a clear, cold look, her voice even colder. "Vincent, not everyone is as vile as you." "..." Vincent was momentarily silenced, and his anger intensified, "What did you say? You’re calling me vile?!" Tanya calmly said, "You want to see my phone, right? Sure, I can let you see it with a clear conscience, but do you dare to let me see yours? I have ways to recover deleted chat records too." The phone Vincent had intended to hand over paused distinctly at Tanya’s last words. Tanya smiled, her eyes long past disappointment, leaving only deep irony. See, no matter how noble a man speaks, he knows best what he’s done. The person who’s wronged you knows best how much you’ve been wronged. Vincent took a light breath, composing his emotions. "Tanya, do you think this is fun?" He leaned back, resting on the rattan chair, his peach blossom eyes gazing deeply at her with a mixture of truth and falsehood. "I know you don’t like Cindy Lynn, that’s fine. From next week on, you don’t have to go to the company anymore. Anyway, your collaboration with Westgard Pharmaceuticals is over. Why not stay home and take care of Joy and Caden, spending more time building a bond with them." Vincent said considerately, "I promise you, Cindy Lynn won’t appear in front of you again!" In Vincent’s view, today’s collaboration with Westgard Pharmaceuticals must have been won by Cindy Lynn! After all, Tanya couldn’t even produce the core data. He had already decided to let Tanya stay home to manage the household and educate the children. As long as she could stay loyal and dedicated to him and the kids, then her position as Mrs. Hawthorne, he was willing to let her have it firmly! But Tanya didn’t show the joy he had expected. She simply crossed her arms, looking at him indifferently, as if viewing a clown. "Did you forget that it was me who helped you rise to the position of General Manager and become the youngest director of Zenith Group?" "..." Vincent’s hand resting on the table slowly clenched. Indeed, he had secured this position thanks to Tanya, but it’s the thing he hated most being mentioned over the years! "Don’t forget, it was you, Tanya, who begged to marry me and help me." Vincent retorted sarcastically. "Of course, I remember." Tanya raised her hand to tuck a stray hair blown by the wind behind her ear, her expression calm and strong. She said, "Vincent, I can afford to lose. The mistakes I made blindly in the past, I’ll pay for them myself." These two seemingly light sentences were like a silent heavy hammer dropping on Vincent’s heart, causing him to feel dizzy and panicked. "..." He suddenly realized something, his face slightly pale, and he stood up uncontrollably, grabbing Tanya’s wrist with his chest heaving violently. "Tanya, clarify what you mean!" Vincent asked with tightly drawn tension in his voice, domineering yet feeling inwardly weak, "What do you mean by saying you can afford to lose?!" Tanya looked directly into the man’s trembling pupils, finding it utterly ironic. During the years she loved Vincent, she seemingly never saw him lose control over his emotions for her. Now, when she’s stopped loving, instead she sees it. "Vincent." She calmly told him, "I did love you for many years; now, I truly don’t love you anymore."