Chapter 46
Ava shook her head, feeling a bit sad. She herself had grown up without a father's love.
Steven had a child, Sarah, with another woman and brought them both home. From that moment on, she became a child without a father or a home. How could she allow the baby in her belly to end up like her?
Just thinking about it made her feel suffocated.
She knew clearly that having a father like that was worse than having none at all. It would be better to pretend he was dead than to grow up being treated unfairly and with favoritism.
Olivia's words just now made her think of Sarah.
Based on the prenatal checkup report Sarah sent last time, the baby in her belly wasn't even three months along yet. How could they be so reckless with sex? Weren't they afraid something might happen to the baby?
"Olivia, I have a question. What happens if you do that... pretty frequently within the first three months?"
Olivia's face immediately turned serious, her tone scolding,
"You'd better control yourself!"
Ava found it hard to say, "No, it's not me. It's... Sarah."
Olivia understood,
"That depends on the person's physical condition. Medically, it's not recommended - there are definitely risks. Growing a life isn't easy. No parent wants anything to go wrong with their child."
After saying this, she warned Ava again,
"You need to hold off for these three months."
Ava felt extremely embarrassed. She wasn't that desperate - she was already trying to avoid William.
That evening, Ava went to the yoga studio. James had gotten her a premium membership.
Ava switched her classes to prenatal yoga and attended one session. The experience was pretty good. The quiet environment made her feel completely relaxed and at ease, even just sitting there meditating to soft music without doing anything else.
Since signing the divorce agreement with William, her nerves had been too tense. She needed this kind of relaxation.
For the first time, she felt William had done something good.
She knew William well enough - he wouldn't be bored enough to check what classes she was taking at the yoga studio. The secret in her belly wouldn't be discovered by him.
Ava drove straight home after leaving the yoga studio.
William's Bentley was parked in the courtyard.
Thinking of what he said this morning, Ava's mood suddenly became complicated.
She parked the car and sat there with the sunroof open.
The night was ink-black, without a single star visible, just like her marriage with William - not a glimmer of light to be seen.
She sat there for quite a while before getting out, like those men who sit in their cars smoking after work, not wanting to go home.
She was afraid of this house now.
Ava tiptoed through the door. Not seeing William in the living room, she immediately felt relieved.
The study door was slightly ajar, with dim light seeping through the crack. She could faintly hear the sound of typing on a keyboard inside.
As she passed the study, she quickly walked by and returned to the guest bedroom where she'd been sleeping these past few days.
The room had been cleaned, with new bedding.
The bed was so bare it didn't even have a pillow.
She suddenly felt something was wrong. Opening the closet door, sure enough, it was empty too.
Ava clenched her fists, her nails leaving marks on her palms.
Her things had indeed all been moved back to the master bedroom.
On the master bedroom's large bed sat an elegantly wrapped gift box. Without opening it, she could tell from the shape that it contained a handbag.
Giving bags afterward was his usual routine. Sometimes, if he missed a few times, next time he'd buy something relatively more expensive. In any case, he never failed to give her compensation.
Ava went to the walk-in closet to pack the clothes she'd been wearing recently, planning to take them back to the guest room. She gathered a big bundle of clothes in her arms, inside and out, then turned to see William leaning against the wall in comfortable loungewear, staring at her.
His look clearly said he'd caught her red-handed.
"You're not moving out."
His thin lips parted slightly. That short sentence carried a chill that made Ava involuntarily step back. His words weren't a discussion - they were an order.
The atmosphere froze for a few seconds.
"Won't you open the bag I got you and take a look?"
Ava glanced at the closet packed with bags - more styles than a brand-name store. Sometimes she even thought that if William ever went bankrupt, he could sell these bags secondhand and live comfortably for the rest of his life.
"You don't need to buy them anymore. Even if you do, I won't use them. They'll just sit there gathering dust."
William raised an eyebrow. James had told him girls loved designer bags, and he thought all girls would like them - a safe choice.
Turns out she didn't like bags.
"Ava, come here."
Seeing the little woman he'd frightened, his tone softened. As long as she didn't mention those two words - divorce - he could still be nice to her.
Ava asked warily,
"What for?"
What happened this morning absolutely couldn't happen again.
She stood rooted to the spot. William walked over with long strides and pulled her into his arms.
"Ava, sleep with me, like before."
Ava knew the "before" he meant was before Sarah came back.
This room held shadows of their lovemaking everywhere - the bathroom, by the window, the walk-in closet... Back then, he belonged only to her, even if it was just his body.
"William, you don't want Sarah anymore?"
William gently stroked her dark hair falling on her shoulders,
"When did I ever say I wanted her?"
Ava's heart skipped a beat.
The way he looked now, it was like he was explaining things to her. This gave Ava the illusion that he had fallen in love with her.
"I'll give her an explanation. You don't need to worry about this. She won't affect us."
His words made Ava's heart sink.
She didn't know what came over her, but at that moment, Ava thought of the baby in her belly. She wanted to try one more time for this family, to try getting along with him once more, to give the children a complete family.
She knew all too well how much the lack of a father's love could affect children.
She even couldn't help wanting to tell him, "We're having babies, twins, and they're healthy."
Thinking of the one in Sarah's belly, the words reached her lips, but she swallowed them back.
William let her go and stuffed the clothes she'd just taken out back into the closet, piece by piece.
"Ava, don't mention divorce again."
He murmured in her ear again.
Ava's heart was a jumble of emotions. For someone as proud as him to say such things, he must have made quite a decision.
This man was someone she loved too much to let go.
Three years of living together day and night - he had long become part of her life.
When she loved him, her feelings were so intense that later, when she decided to leave, she nearly lost half her life.
Now he was lowering himself to coax her again, making her heart waver.
Sarah - she absolutely couldn't accept her.
"William, you'd better think carefully before saying such things. It makes me think you've fallen in love with me."
William's lips curved slightly, his narrow eyes tinged with mockery,
"Adults shouldn't throw around words like love. We're very compatible, that's what matters. Everything else is secondary."
Ava's heart went cold.
After all that talk, he just wanted sex. Put plainly, he was just lusting after her body.
All those words had nothing to do with love. When it came to being cold and heartless, no one could match him.
"You should just let me go. Sarah is more suitable for you."
William narrowed his eyes, "You really care about her existence?"
For him to ask such a question, he really was clueless.
"Who would want to share their man with another woman?"
She cared deeply.
William was unusually clingy today, like a big dog that had been left at home for too long without walks, holding onto Ava and not letting go.
"Ava, that time was an accident. I drank too much... I'll find a way to handle this."
Ava thought he seemed a bit off today - his words didn't have their usual cutting edge. Instead, he kept patiently explaining, as if trying to coax her.
This was treatment she'd never received in three years.
Right now, Ava felt surrounded by empty promises. Having been burned before, she kept reminding herself this was a trap wrapped in sugar.
Yesterday, he was still having passionate sex with Sarah, and now he could turn around and flirt with her. Was this the same speech Sarah had heard a million times?
At this moment, two thoughts were pulling at Ava's mind - one urging her to try once more for the children's sake, the other telling her to leave this scumbag tonight.
She thought her determination to leave him was solid enough, yet a few words from him made her waver.
"Ava, did you go to yoga class?"
He changed the subject.
Ava nodded without saying more.
"How's that teacher? Pretty professional?"
Ava's mind went blank with a buzzing sound, "You know the yoga teacher?"