Patti knew there was no future for her and Hawthorne, but she refused to be humiliated by his family, especially not in front of Gwh and Leonie. Back when the Yale family was at its peak, she was a true heiress. When had she ever been subjected to such scorn? The line of men in Greenvale who wanted to date her could have stretched across the city. She wouldn''t have even given Hawthorne a second nce back then. But now, how the mighty had fallen. A queen reduced to a


    Leonie didn''t believe a word of it. She nced at Patti''s stomach, which seemed to have a slight curve, but she still couldn''t ept that her uncle, of all people, would do something like this.


    Patti, knowing she was indeed pregnant, just smiled faintly. “If you don''t believe me, why don''t youe upstairs with me and see for yourself?"


    Suspicious, Leonie followed Patti to the second floor.


    Patti thenid out her recent prenatal reports one by one for Leonie to see. "I wouldn''t lie to you. Your uncle cares deeply about me and this baby. He''s been so good to us. Hees with me to every prenatal check-up. If you don''t believe me, ask your aunt. We''ve even run into her at the hospital a few times. What I can''t believe is how immature your aunt is. Now that she''s married into the Everhart family, shouldn''t she just be a proper Mrs. Everhart? What wife doesn''t turn a blind eye to her husband''s affairs? I''m with Hawthorne, and I don''t care about his money or a title. What he loves about me is that I''m willing to give him everything without asking for anything in return. Since you and your aunt are such good friends, why don''t you go and tell her to learn a thing or two from me?"


    Leonie stared at the reports, her anger boiling over. She swung her hand and pped Patti so hard that she stumbled and fell onto the bed. "You''re lying! My uncle is not that kind of person! You must have used some trick to bewitch him. This baby isn''t even his, is it? You slept with some other man and are pinning it on my uncle! My uncle is a man of honor and responsibility. If I were you, I''d take a good look in the mirror. You''re not his type at all. Don''t think no one knows what you were up to, at home and abroad. Everyone knows you''re the town bike. You''d sleep with any man who was even remotely good-looking. I heard your father got into trouble overseas, didn''t he? You probably couldn''t find a rich fool to bail you out because all the men who slept with you ran off, so you came back here to seduce my uncle."Leonie wanted to strangle the woman. And her uncle! Was he really so blind that he couldn''t see through her schemes?


    Every word Leonie said was a dagger to Patti''s heart. She finally snapped. Leonie was right. Back home, she had a reputation for being wild; everyone in their circle knew Patti had a weakness for handsome men and had slept with many of them. After going abroad, she became even more promiscuous. It was only after her father was imprisoned that she started sleeping with powerful men, desperately trying to get him out. When she returned to Greenvale, no one wanted anything to do with her. That''s when she thought of Hawthorne, who had always been infatuated with her, assuming he would still treat her like a princess.


    Leonie''s words had wounded her deeply. Patti''s carefully constructedposure shattered. She red at Leonie. "When did I ever seduce your uncle? He came to me on his own. He gave me this apartment willingly. He was good to me willingly. He offered to be the father of my child on his own. Everything was his choice, so who are you to judge me? Is your aunt so wronged? If your precious aunt were really so perfect, your uncle wouldn''t havee looking for me, would he? Instead of lecturing me here, you should go back and give your aunt some advice. Yes, I seduce men, but at least I seed. Unlike her, who can''t even keep her own husband and has to run around catching him in the act. How pathetic."


    Patti grew more agitated as she spoke, and Leonie grew angrier with every word. She couldn''t stop herself from raising her hand to p Patti again, but as her hand flew through the air, it was caught firmly by Hawthorne.