Chapter 63 A Kept Pet
Mary couldn’t stop them, so she could only shout, "Sage, don't you dare!"
Sage snorted coldly. "Mr. Sharpe took a liking to me and asked me to move in. From now on, I am the mistress of this villa. So, please address me as Miss from now on.”
Mary turned to look at Iris and gently squeezed her icy hand, hoping she would say something.
But Iris pulled her hand away and gave Mary an indifferent smile.
"Mary, thank you for taking care of me all this time. You’re the person I like best in this house. But you know I’ve never liked living here. Things are fine the way they are now. I’m leaving.”
“Iris, wait a minute…”
Mary grabbed Iris' arm and hurriedly pulled out her phone to call Donovan.
She knew deep down that Sage’s audacity likely stemmed from Donovan’s orders.
Still, Mary couldn’t bring herself to believe it.
Mr. Sharpe clearly cared about Iris. He’d rushed back from abroad the moment he heard she’d gone missing, and he’d saved her. How could he abandon her like this?
"Mr. Sharpe," Mary asked cautiously when the call connected, "was it you who let Sage move in?"
Iris' footsteps on the stairs paused slightly.
She couldn't help but glance at Mary out of the corner of her eye.
After hanging up, Mary remained silent for a long time, and Iris' previously calm heart sank a little.
It didn't really matter, though.
She never wanted to be locked up by Donovan and treated like a pet.
It was just like the past eighteen years—first abandoned by her father to her mother, then passed from one neighbor to another by her mother.
She’d finally grown up and was able to live on her own when Donovan handed her over for no reason.
Now, even Donovan was abandoning her.
But so what? She’d long since grown accustomed to this life of constant upheaval.
To her, anywhere could be home.
Iris hesitated no longer and walked out of the living room without looking back.
She was free.
Accompanied by her bodyguard, Iris arrived at Oak Grove Apartments, a penthouse duplex near the university campus.
“Miss Hawthorne, we have arranged a two-week medical leave for you. Take good care of yourself. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading back now.”
"Okay, thank you."
The bodyguard set down her suitcase and turned to leave, leaving Iris standing alone in the doorway.
The four-bedroom apartment before her was spacious, with minimalist décor featuring clean lines and a subdued color palette.
Though far less luxurious than Donovan’s oceanfront villa, it was still far too spacious for Iris.
She stood outside the door for quite a while, hesitating.
In the living room, a woman in a black uniform rose from the sofa. After sizing up Iris, she offered a professional smile.
She walked toward Iris and nodded in greeting.
“Hello, Miss Hawthorne.”
"Hello."
Iris didn’t recognize the woman, but responded politely nonetheless.
The woman introduced herself. “I’m Andrea Knight. I’m an associate at the law firm. This property transfer agreement for the four-bedroom home requires your review and signature.”
A property transfer agreement?
Iris instinctively glanced at the coffee table in the living room, where she saw a document.
Had Donovan given her the house outright?
But she already owed him too much. She didn’t want any further entanglement with him, so she shook her head at Andrea.
"Andrea, please tell Donovan that I don't need this house and that I won't be signing."
Andrea seemed a bit puzzled.
She helped Iris lift her suitcase and gestured for her to come inside.
"I’m sorry, but I don’t know the man you mentioned. This house is being transferred to you by a man named Jasper. Are you sure you want to refuse to sign?”
Dad?
Iris hurried inside, picked up the contract, and read it carefully. It clearly stated Jasper.
It's really Dad, not Donovan!
Does that mean that Donovan and Dad's partnership has ended? That would explain why he suddenly asked her to move out.
Wonderful!
Dad has come to pick me up!
Iris clutched the contract and couldn’t help but smile.
"Andrea, I won't refuse. I can sign it right now. It was just a misunderstanding. Jasper is my dad."
Dad?
Andrea froze for a moment.
The man who signed the papers at the law firm yesterday looked tall, handsome, and young.
She had assumed he was Iris' brother. But she never expected that he was actually her father.
Andrea quickly picked up the contract from the table and double-checked the personal information: Jasper, age 42.
Seeing that Andrea was holding onto the contract without handing it over, Iris asked softly, "Andrea, what's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. I’m sorry. Please wait a moment. I suddenly remembered there are a few details in this contract that need to be verified.”
After saying that, Andrea grabbed her phone and the contract and hurried out to the balcony to call Attorney Morgan.
Morgan cut her off impatiently before she could finish, saying, "Have you never seen a man who looks young? The contract is the final authority! I told you to get Miss Hawthorne’s signature, not to go digging into her family tree. Don’t meddle!”
"Okay..."
Andrea hung up, walked slowly back into the living room, and handed Iris the pen and contract.
"Miss Hawthorne, the information is all correct. Please sign here.”
After a brief pause, she added softly, "Your father is very handsome."
Jasper had indeed been handsome in his youth; otherwise, Mom wouldn't have loved him so much.
Iris looked at Andrea and replied earnestly, "Thank you, Andrea, but I actually wouldn't have wanted my dad to be too handsome. It’s better if he’s just average.”
They really are father and daughter, Andrea thought, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.
"Don't say that. It's precisely because your father was handsome that he has such a lovely daughter like you."
Andrea had a way with words. Just a few simple sentences warmed Iris' heart.
After signing the contract, Iris invited Andrea to stay for breakfast.
Then, looking at the empty fridge, she awkwardly showed her guest the door.
Iris realized she was out of money.
She didn’t have her dad’s phone number, and all the family’s bank cards were in her mom’s possession.
So Iris picked up her phone and called her mother.
There was chaotic background on Margaret’s end.
“Mom, is there any money left on the family cards?”
It took several seconds before Margaret replied, sounding somewhat impatient. “Money? There’s no money left at home! I need to pay medical bills and rehabilitation costs. Haven’t you been spending Mr. Sharpe’s money these past few months?”
Iris interrupted Margaret with a hint of resentment.
"Donovan has nothing to do with our family anyway. His partnership with Dad is over, and I won’t be using his money anymore."
No wonder the bodyguards who’d been following her were withdrawn early yesterday morning.
Margaret breathed a sigh of relief.
“Iris, did your dad come to pick you up?”
Iris replied reluctantly,
“Dad didn’t come, and he didn’t pick me up. But he bought me an apartment right near my school. Mom, are you going to move in?”
"I..."
Margaret stopped mid-sentence. She looked up at the busy nurses around her, put down her cards, said goodbye to her friends in the ward who had been playing with her, and hurried back to her own room.
There was a bill in the drawer of her nightstand. She took it out and examined it carefully once more.
The payment covered only one month.
Margaret sighed.
It had been good that Donovan had let them go, but now that she was sick, what would she do once this month was over if Jasper didn’t show up and she couldn’t get in touch with him?
There was hardly any money left in her account.
Jasper hadn’t given her any living expenses for over a year in an effort to help her kick her gambling habit.
Now, the house had even been transferred directly into Iris' name.
He hadn't even called her!