The entire private room fell silent, everyone looked at each other, and the atmosphere turned awkward and subtle. Vincent Hawthorne rarely showed negative emotions in public, at least not in front of this group of friends. He was always the most stable and easygoing one. And with Rhys Lucas as his friend for over a decade, the two had never had a serious argument. But now this situation... Anyone with eyes could see that Vincent was on the brink of fury, the air around him was so heavy it was frightening. His hands, gripping Rhys Lucas’s collar, were bulging with veins, as if he would throw a punch at any moment. It was the first time Rhys Lucas saw Vincent tearing into him, and he couldn’t react fast enough. The glass in his hand slipped, falling onto the couch, the crimson liquid seeping into the leather like blood. Staring at Vincent’s furious face, he too lost his temper. He forcibly broke free from Vincent’s grip, his face flushed with anger. "Vincent, make it clear, I’m trying to help you! Are you really going to turn against me for someone as lowly as Tanya Sinclair?" Rhys Lucas found his own words laughable. Tanya Sinclair’s standing in Vincent Hawthorne’s eyes, the others in the room probably all knew, no matter who you picked, she wouldn’t measure up! Vincent’s sinister gaze locked onto Rhys Lucas’s face, his breathing heavy and loud. "I said, don’t go too far; after all, she’s my wife!" Rhys Lucas laughed at that, "Vincent, have you drunk yourself stupid today? The weight of the title Mrs. Hawthorne on Tanya Sinclair’s head isn’t even heavier than a dog from the Hawthorne Family..." "Shut up!" Vincent’s temple throbbed violently, his rage burning away reason. He suddenly threw a heavy punch at Rhys Lucas’s face. Rhys staggered from the hit. He wasn’t the tolerant type either, seeing red, he swung his fist back at Vincent. "You’re attacking me?!" he fumed, "For that bitch Tanya Sinclair, years of brotherhood, you hit me, Vincent!" The two of them got into a scuffle, creating chaos. Cody Crawford and the others panicked and rushed to pull them apart, each dragging one away. "Get off!" Vincent’s eyes were bloodshot, his breathing rough. Rhys Lucas’s face was red with both rage and exertion, he sneered coldly, "Vincent, what the hell is wrong with you today? Acting all sentimental here?" "Ask anyone here, we all know the truth. Find anyone and ask, in all those years with Tanya Sinclair, who was really cruel to her? Who looked down on her the most? If we didn’t know you didn’t give a damn about her and only used her, do you think we as your brothers wouldn’t respect your wife?" Rhys became angrier as he spoke, shaking off Cody Crawford who held him tight, wiping the blood from his nose, cursing again. Vincent hit hard as hell! Rhys Lucas stepped up to Vincent, looking at his complicated expression, and couldn’t help but sneer mockingly. "Vincent, now you’ve decided to take Tanya Sinclair seriously, coming to accuse me? If you want to settle accounts, the first person you should settle with is yourself!" Vincent Hawthorne’s whole body shook violently. "No matter how much I despise Tanya Sinclair, I’m just an outsider, at most giving her no face. But the one bleeding her dry, exploiting her worth, that’s not me!" Each of Rhys Lucas’s words were piercing, tearing open Vincent’s hypocritical facade, forcing him to confront his true dark side. During those years, the one who hurt Tanya Sinclair most... was always himself. He took advantage of her love, unrestrained, enjoying her devotion. The most absurd thing was, he was well aware of this, just never faced it. Vincent Hawthorne closed his eyes, feeling suddenly drained, even his anger losing its vigor. He said nothing, turned away and stormed out. Cody Crawford worried, "Brother Hawthorne!" He took a couple of steps after Vincent, but was stopped by Rhys Lucas. "What are you going to do? Do you want him to hit you too?" Rhys Lucas touched his split lip, hissing lightly, then emotionlessly picked up the half-empty bottle from the table, downing it to quell the fire burning in his throat. "Let’s switch rooms, brothers, we’re not stopping until we’re blackout drunk tonight!" Rhys Lucas shouted, "None of you leave without being drunk tonight!" He had thought that one day he might fall out with Vincent Hawthorne. But never would it be over someone as lowly as Tanya Sinclair! Cindy Lynn’s gentle smile floated before his eyes. He just couldn’t understand, with a good girl like Cindy waiting by his side, why Vincent was more and more interested in someone like Tanya Sinclair. Rhys Lucas frowned; he thought Vincent had gone mad! Vincent Hawthorne sped all the way back to the villa. All the way, Rhys Lucas’s words spun in his mind like a curse! The more Vincent thought, the angrier he became, hitting the steering wheel, the horn blaring. The driver in front turned back, cussing. "Damn it, what are you honking for, driving a fancy Bentley doesn’t make you special! Can’t you see the red light up ahead!" The driver spouted curses, seeing no response from the car behind, pulled his head back. Vincent had no mind to listen. He was lost in his thoughts, confined in the car filled with his heavy, suppressed breathing. Did he love Tanya Sinclair? This was a question he’d never seriously pondered before. When Rhys Lucas and the others asked, he said he didn’t, his heart not even rippling. To put it bluntly, it was like needing air—indispensable, but often ignored and forgotten. Would you say you love air? Why bother talking about love? During the years Tanya was in a coma, Vincent Hawthorne’s thoughts were simple. By staying devoted to his comatose wife, he could maintain his image. In a few more years, when the time was right, he planned to let her go gracefully by euthanizing her. But Tanya happened to wake up. Consequently, those habits Tanya had left in his life also reawakened with her. If Tanya were obedient, he was actually willing to let her hold the position of Mrs. Hawthorne for life. What more could she be dissatisfied with? Vincent couldn’t understand. She loved him, and he married her, not only giving her the identity of Mrs. Hawthorne but also allowing her to have his child... Considering Tanya’s background, if it weren’t for his soft heart, she probably wouldn’t have ever come close to the threshold of such an elite family like the Hawthorne Family! This update ıs available on 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹⟡𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⟡𝙣𝙚𝙩 So what if he used her talents? Didn’t Tanya benefit in the slightest? Her child could even become the heir of the Hawthorne Family, and he hadn’t planned on having another! The car behind honked impatiently. "Can you drive or not? Are you blind? Can’t you see the green light?" With only a few seconds left on the green light, Vincent pressed the accelerator and shot through the intersection. The car behind couldn’t make it, and the driver yelled insults that reached back eighteen generations. Vincent returned home. When he entered, Aunt Tawny heard the noise and came out of the room. She had rested for a day and returned. First, she was concerned about the two children and worried that if someone else came, they wouldn’t see through Cindy Lynn’s true nature! Plus, the old lady had given her enough compensation, paying her three extra months’ salary as mental distress compensation, so Aunt Tawny returned to work. She maintained a good work attitude. "Mr. Hawthorne, the two kids are in their room. Have you had dinner, or would you like..." "No need." Without even looking at her, Vincent coldly headed upstairs. Aunt Tawny rolled her eyes slightly behind his back. Fine if he didn’t need it; she didn’t care to serve him anyway. Unlike usual, Vincent didn’t go to see the children first upon returning but went into Tanya’s study. Apart from a few of her old notebooks, she hadn’t taken anything with her. Vincent opened Tanya’s computer, needing to input a password. He, as before, entered the date of their first meeting, only to find it wouldn’t unlock. He frowned slightly and tried his own birthday, but that was also incorrect! The third attempt, he entered the date of their marriage, still wrong! After three errors, the computer automatically locked. To try again, he would have to wait twenty-four hours. Vincent felt a bit irritable. As he flopped back, the chair slid back due to the force, colliding with a small bookcase next to it. Vincent’s attention was drawn to it. The small bookcase was stuffed full of handmade books. Vincent got up, walked over, and casually pulled one out. Inside, it was filled with newspaper clippings about him. Vincent roughly flipped through them, seeing clippings from his school days up to when he became the general manager of Zenith Group... over a decade. Tanya had meticulously documented everything. Only then did it dawn on Vincent. He always saw Tanya cutting out pages of his magazine interviews and keeping them separately. At the time, he didn’t understand. She would just smile and say, "So we can look back when we’re old; it’ll be so meaningful." Vincent’s throat tightened slightly. During those years, Tanya truly loved him... more than she loved herself. Aunt Tawny had just laid down, comfortably watching some melodramatic short dramas, when her door was suddenly knocked. Reluctantly, she got up. Opening the door, Vincent stood outside. Aunt Tawny put on a fake worker’s smile: "Mr. Hawthorne, what can I do for you?" Vincent said, "Aunt Tawny, I want to ask you a question." His Adam’s apple shifted as he spoke with difficulty and caution under Aunt Tawny’s confused gaze, "Was I bad to Tanya?" Aunt Tawny was surprised, "Mr. Hawthorne, why would you ask such a silly question!" "..." Seeing Aunt Tawny’s expression of disbelief that he even needed to ask, Vincent’s tight nerves relaxed. He had endured too many criticisms tonight, and finally, someone would speak for him! Just as Vincent was about to express his thanks to Aunt Tawny, he heard her loudly say as if it were obvious, "The way you treated her wasn’t just bad—it was downright atrocious!"