In Gwh''s eyes, all his exnations now seemed feeble and weak.


    "That won''t happen. None of that will ever happen."


    Gwh unconsciously touched her stomach, but Hawthorne didn''t notice the gesture.


    "Enough. I don''t want to hear any more of your lies. You two can do whatever you want. My stance remains the same: we''re done after this marriage is officially over." She couldn''t help but nce toward the house. Leonie had already gone after Patti, and she had no idea what her friend might do. She waspletely disappointed in Hawthorne and didn''t want Leonie to get in trouble with her uncle over this. She knew that Leonie''s parents weren''t interested in business and that the whole family depended on Hawthorne.


    Gwh started walking inside, not to confront Patti, but to find Leonie. She had only taken a few steps before Hawthorne grabbed her arm, pulling her back into his embrace. "Come home with me. Don''t go looking for trouble with Patti, at least not right now."


    That one sentence yanked Gwh from her fantasy back to brutal reality, like a bucket of ice water poured over her head in the dead of winter. Her heart turned to ice. She stared at his face in disbelief. "What did you say? You think I was going to cause trouble for Patti?"


    Hawthorne fell silent. The hand gripping Gwh''s arm slowly loosened, but it had been so tight that it left a deep, red imprint of his fingers. Without a second thought, Gwh raised her hand and pped him again, this time on his right cheek, with all her strength. The mark she left was as deep and red as the one on her arm.


    "Hawthorne, I knew you were shameless, but I never imagined you were this shameless. You openly protect your mistress in front of me and then expect me to trust you? Why should I believe a single word you say?"


    Hawthorne was speechless. Just then, Connor stepped forward and pulled Gwh out of Hawthorne''s grasp. Seeing Connor, Hawthorne''s anger found a new target. The two men stood, each refusing to let go of Gwh.


    "Hawthorne, your precious woman is inside. Why are you clinging to my Gwh instead of going after her?" Connor''s every word was a needle prodding Hawthorne''s nerves. With his rival present, he refused to back down. He knew Gwh and Connor were childhood friends; he had investigated their entire history. Connor might have lost some of his memories, but Gwh


    remembered everything clearly. rm bells red in his mind, and a sense of crisis washed over him.


    "Your Gwh? Connor, watch your mouth. We''re all adults here. Gwh and I have a marriage certificate. Don''t stand here spreading rumors and trying to destroy someone''s marriage."


    Connor held onto Gwh''s hand, refusing to let go, and taunted him from the side. "You''re the one destroying your marriage, the one being unfaithful, and yet you have the nerve to use me."


    Gwh nced between the two men, then forcefully pulled her hand free from Hawthorne. “Hawthorne, what is a marriage to you? A piece of paper? I brought the certificate with me. So what? I don''t want it anymore."


    Right in front of Hawthorne,


    Gwh tore the marriage


    certificate to shreds, into pieces so small they could never be put back


    and had


    together. The moment she ripped it stood beside Connor,


    made her choice between the two men. But Hawthorne couldn''t ept it.


    "A certificate can be reced. We have a legal and factual marriage that no one can destroy. Anyone who tries will see me in court.” He directed his words pointedly at Connor, who stood right there. Gwh found it all bitterly ironic.


    "If we''re really going to court, I''m afraid it won''t just be the three of us. Your beloved Patti Yale will have to be there too, won''t she? The baby in her belly is the best evidence. What do you have to say about that?”


    Hawthorne was left utterly speechless. Meanwhile, Leonie had caught up with Patti and blocked her path. “Have you no shame? You know my uncle is married, yet you''re still clinging to him."


    Away from Hawthorne, Patti


    dropped the act. She didn''t give a


    damn about Leonie; she was just his


    niece. What was so special about that? Even his beloved wife was being pushed aside now. Patti looked at Leonie with an amused smile. "Leonie, you''ve got it all wrong It''s not me clinging to your uncle; it''s your uncle who''s clinging to me. Instead of questioning me, you should ask your uncle if he can let me go. But I don''t think he''ll listen to you now, because I''m already carrying a testament to our love."