Chapter 14
A sharp slap echoed through the living room, and fingerprints immediately appeared on Emily's face.
She was stunned. Having been pampered by the whole family since childhood, forget about being hit—she'd never even heard a harsh word. And this slap came from Howard, the most respected person in the family, the one who had always been so kind. He had actually hit her.
She stared wide-eyed at Howard in disbelief, even forgetting to cry.
"This slap is to remind you that people from the Morgan family shouldn't be so ill-mannered, and you definitely shouldn't meddle in your brother's love life. It's time to fix that bossy attitude of yours, or you'll pay for it sooner or later."
Emily's lips trembled. She felt terribly wronged but didn't dare cry. Her face burned with pain.
Howard was truly angry this time.
At that moment, her hatred for Ava deepened. It was all that bitch's fault that she got slapped. She would get back at her for today's humiliation sooner or later.
Afraid Howard might strike again, Isabella quickly pulled Emily over.
"Please don't be angry. I'll take Emily upstairs to take her medicine. The fever has made her delirious—that's why she said those nonsensical things. I'll teach her a lesson later."
Howard snorted.
"Spoiling a child is like killing them. Go ahead and spoil her. Once she's out of the Morgan family, someone else will teach her for you."
Isabella didn't dare respond. No one in this house dared to defy Howard.
After disciplining Emily, Howard called out to Ava, "Ava, come here."
His tone was completely different now, his eyes full of affection.
Ava followed him into the study.
"Ava, I apologize to you on Emily's behalf. I'm not asking you to forgive her, but for my sake, please don't take it out on William, okay?"
Ava felt guilty. She couldn't deny that when Howard came downstairs earlier, she had been putting on a bit of a show. Howard genuinely cared for her, yet she was using his trust to fight against Emily.
"Grandpa, I won't."
She replied in a low voice, her head down.
"You two had a fight, didn't you?"
Ava froze, wondering what William had told Howard.
"That boy called me early this morning, asking me to bring you back, saying he was worried you'd be bored alone at the villa. I knew right away he'd done something wrong and was using me to help him make up with his wife. Useless!"
Ava stayed quiet. Worried that Howard would be concerned, she lied.
"Grandpa, really, we're fine."
"Good. Have a great-grandchild for me soon, so I'll have something to tell your grandmother when I die."
Ava kept her head down, not knowing how to respond. Normally, she would say something nice to humor Howard. She touched her belly, feeling troubled, not knowing how to tell Howard about the divorce later.
Ava stayed at the Morgan Mansion for a few days. Every day, she just accompanied Howard in his exercises and watered the flowers. After that incident, Emily didn't dare openly bother her, probably also because she'd had a fever for several days and didn't have the energy.
She sent William several messages but got no response. She called him, wanting to ask when he'd be back—they still needed to schedule getting the divorce certificate. But James answered.
"Mrs. Ava Morgan, Mr. Morgan is in a meeting. If it's not urgent, please wait until he's done."
On the other end, James hung up and returned the phone to William, looking miserable.
"Mr. Morgan, when are we going back?"
James now had a fiancée, too. His boss had called him out of bed with a single sentence, not even giving him time to pack, and dragged him on this business trip to Silverlight City. He felt wronged but didn't dare say it.
William leaned back into the sofa, scrolling through his phone, his expression dark and unclear.
James's sharp eyes caught that it was the Facebook chat with Ava.
They'd just acquired a medium-sized company. It really didn't require William's personal involvement—the Morgan Group had plenty of capable employees who could handle such matters.
William had changed his mind and insisted on coming himself, yet now he didn't dare answer Ava's calls. James guessed the two had fought.
"Mr. Morgan, Mrs. Ava Morgan seems pretty anxious for you to go back."
He tried flattering him, though of course he himself was more anxious—his fiancée was calling a dozen times a day.
William snorted coldly. "Of course she's anxious."
Anxious for him to come back and get divorced.
James hadn't realized his flattery had backfired, and he had completely misunderstood.
"Should I buy some Silverlight City specialties to bring back for Mrs. Ava Morgan?"
William lit a cigarette and took two deep drags.
"Call the Morgan Mansion and ask how she's been these past few days. You should know how to ask."
He gave James a look.
James had worked for him for over five years and knew his boss's moods inside out. One look was enough to understand. He made an OK gesture.
"Mr. Morgan, don't worry. I won't let Mrs. Ava Morgan know."
He was a bit puzzled—his boss clearly wanted to know what Ava had been doing these past few days, but instead of asking himself, he was having James secretly inquire indirectly.
William was gone for half a month. Ava called countless times, and it was always James who answered, always saying, "Mr. Morgan is in a meeting." She wondered what kind of major project required William to spend half a month away handling it.
Before she knew it, it was time for her prenatal checkup.
Ava didn't dare go to the previous hospital—the Morgan family had connections there, and she couldn't risk it. Then she remembered that Lucas's cousin, Olivia Johnson, was a doctor at a private hospital in the suburbs, and she happened to work in obstetrics and gynecology.
Olivia was the same age as Ava. They'd met a few times at Lucas's house and hit it off well, though Olivia was usually too busy with work to meet up.
Ava had nothing else to do anyway, so she drove to the hospital to find her.
The hospital was in a remote location and, being private, charged several times more than public hospitals. Not many pregnant women came here to have babies, so appointments were relatively easy to get. Olivia set up her file directly.
Olivia personally conducted her prenatal checkup.
"Other pregnant women have their husbands come with them for checkups, but you're sneaking here behind your man's back."
Ava lay on the examination bed, listening to the thump-thump-thump heartbeat from the fetal heart monitor, unable to help feeling excited herself.
She took out her phone and recorded the sound. At that moment, she really wanted to share it with William, to tell him, "Look, our baby is so healthy, the heartbeat is so strong."
Then, thinking of the ultrasound Sarah had sent, her heart went cold again. He wouldn't want to hear it.
This baby would only be an obstacle to him marrying the woman he loved. It wouldn't receive his fatherly love.
"Olivia, how's my baby's position? Is the placenta still low?"
Olivia put away the equipment and quickly scribbled a few notes on the form.
"Don't worry, it's moved up. Everything's normal. Just stay happy, and your baby will be happy too."
She gently patted Ava's belly.
"Right, baby boy?"
Ava couldn't help but smile. "How do you know it's a boy? It might be a girl."
Olivia joked, "Haven't you heard the saying? If you hate him, give him a son, so when he's sixty, the son can pound the table at him, throw cups, demand a house, a car, and..."
At this point, Olivia couldn't continue. William had everything—would he really be afraid of his son asking for a house?
"Seriously, though, you really don't plan to tell him?"
At that moment, William received a call from Emerald City.
"Mr. Morgan, Mrs. Ava Morgan drove to an obstetrics hospital far from the city center."