Chapter 309: New Year’s Eve

"So early?"

Nathan Fawcett nodded. "Yeah."

Anne Sutton sighed. "Oh, well. Never mind then."

She was a little disappointed, but there was nothing to be done. The next second, however, a small head popped up on the screen. "Mommy!"

Anne Sutton’s disappointment was instantly swept away by the little guy.

She looked at Ian, then glared at the mischievous Nathan Fawcett beside him. "Didn’t you say Ian was asleep?"

Nathan Fawcett said, "I was just teasing you. He’s exhausted, but he insisted on waiting for your call. Look at you, so heartless!"

Anne Sutton felt a pang of guilt at Nathan Fawcett’s words, having made Ian wait for so long. "Sorry, my mom just finalized her divorce today, so I brought her back to the Sutton residence. She’s not in a good mood, so I couldn’t focus on anything else."

Ian said, "It’s okay, Mommy. Ian understands. I miss you so much!"

In the blink of an eye, several days had passed since Anne Sutton returned.

Ian could only see her on the phone every day, and he missed her terribly.

Anne Sutton said, "I’ll be back after the Lunar New Year!"

At this, she turned to Nathan Fawcett and said, "I’m thinking of bringing my mom to Veridia with me. I don’t want to leave her here. She isn’t happy here."

Sometimes, a change of place and a change of scenery can change one’s outlook.

Nathan Fawcett said, "Of course you can!"

Anne Sutton looked at him and said, "You know that house I bought? I’ll let her live there. And I’m thinking of moving in with her."

Hearing this, Nathan Fawcett’s expression darkened.

He looked at Anne Sutton without saying a word.

Anne Sutton could tell he was a little unhappy. She smiled and asked, "What’s wrong? Are you upset?"

Nathan Fawcett said, "It’s nothing. Don’t worry about me."

’Things were finally starting to progress between him and Anne Sutton!’

’And now, she was planning to move out of the house.’

’The news was a bit of a shock to him!’

Anne Sutton glanced at Nathan Fawcett but paid him no mind, chatting with Ian for a while longer. Seeing Ian rubbing his eyes with sleepiness, she said to him, "Sweetie, go to sleep now. Mommy will call you again tomorrow when you wake up."

Ian nodded. "Good night, Mommy."

’Look at this silly boy,’ she thought. ’If I didn’t tell him to go to sleep, he would just keep talking with me. He’s so adorable!’

After Ian went to sleep, Anne Sutton finally looked at Nathan Fawcett and realized he hadn’t said a word in a long time.

Anne Sutton said, "I have something to tell you."

Nathan Fawcett said, "Mm."

"What’s with the ’mm’?" Anne Sutton asked. "I’m trying to tell you something. Are you even listening?"

"Go ahead," Nathan Fawcett said. "I’m listening."

He was just in a bad mood.

Anne Sutton looked at him and said, "It’s about Ryan Linden."

"What about Ryan Linden?"

"He came to Westhaven a while ago! And he was asking around for old photos of you. That won’t cause any problems for you, will it?"

"Old photos of me?" Nathan Fawcett said. "Why is he looking for old photos of me?"

"I guess he’s looking for one to see if you match the old photos of Nathan Fawcett. That would prove you’re Nathan Fawcett, not Ethan Linden."

Nathan Fawcett said, "Then he’s probably going to be disappointed. You know what I used to look like."

Other than Anne Sutton, very few people would be able to recognize him.

And...

Even Anne Sutton was full of suspicion when she first saw him again.

Anne Sutton said, "In any case, you should still be careful. But don’t worry too much. If they really figure out your identity one day, and if the Linden Family casts you out, you can come back. Everything that belongs to the Fawcett Family is yours. I’m just looking after it for you for now."

Nathan Fawcett looked at her and said, "Everything the Fawcett Family owns is in your name now. Even if I asked for it back, I couldn’t get it. You don’t have to give it to me."

"..." Anne Sutton said, "But you’re not dead. I feel guilty taking all of this in the first place."

She had wanted to inherit everything from the Fawcett Family because she thought Nathan Fawcett was dead. But now that he was alive, it all belonged to him!

She felt it was wrong to take it.

Nathan Fawcett looked at her and smiled.

Anne Sutton asked, "What are you smiling at?"

Nathan Fawcett said, "I just think... you’re not ambitious enough! How can you just give away something that’s already in your pocket? Look at Charles Prescott and Leo Prescott. They’re fighting for things that don’t even belong to them. Can’t you be more like them?"

Anne Sutton said, "If I were their kind of person, would you still have been willing to give it to me?"

"But people should be selfish and look out for themselves," Nathan Fawcett said. "In this world, if you’re not selfish, you’ll always lose out."

Anne Sutton said, "Then why did you give me so much of the Fawcett Group? Have you been online lately? I saw people on the internet calling you a huge idiot."

Nathan Fawcett asked, "How am I an idiot?"

"They said you gave so many assets to your ex-wife. They’re calling me a manipulative woman who tricked you, and they’re saying I must have some dirt on you."

"..." Nathan Fawcett said, "People on the internet have way too much time on their hands!"

’He’d had such a terrible reputation for so many years,’ Anne Sutton thought, gazing at the man on the screen, ’but after actually getting to know him, I realize he isn’t terrible at all. In fact, he’s even a little foolish.’

Anne Sutton said to Nathan Fawcett, "Are you sleepy? If you are, you should go to bed."

Nathan Fawcett said, "I’m not sleepy. I just miss you a little."

"..." He had said it so suddenly that Anne Sutton didn’t quite know how to respond.

She looked at the man, the corners of her mouth turning up unconsciously. "That doesn’t sound like you."

Nathan Fawcett looked at her and said, "Never mind. I’m hanging up."

He also felt that what he’d said was a bit out of line.

It made him feel like he’d lost face.

’Anne Sutton is probably laughing at me right now!’

He quickly hung up the call.

Anne Sutton didn’t even have time to react.

Anne Sutton lay in bed, thinking about what he had said: ’I just miss you a little.’

She realized she missed him a little, too.

’I really want to see him!’

Suddenly, she felt like she had come back a little too early.

After all, there were still so many days to get through.

...

Anne Sutton didn’t sleep very well that night.

Even though she was in her own home, she kept thinking about the time she spent with Nathan Fawcett.

「Lunar New Year’s Eve arrived quickly.」

Mrs. Sutton rested at home for two days and seemed to be in better spirits.

On New Year’s Eve, she even personally cooked a huge feast.

That evening, the four of them had dinner together.

For the past few years, Anne Sutton had always spent the holidays alone.

Being able to be with her mother and sister already made her very happy.

Because her mother had just been discharged from the hospital and Sharon Sutton was pregnant, they couldn’t drink alcohol, so everyone drank water instead.

They had only been eating for a short while when someone knocked on the door.

David Hayes stood up. "I’ll get the door."

He was the only man in the house now, so he was especially proactive.

Sharon Sutton said, "Who could that be at this hour? It’s not Dad, is it?"

Hearing Sharon Sutton’s words, Anne Sutton subconsciously glanced at her mother. She shot Sharon a glare. ’She really knows how to say the wrong thing at the wrong time!’

Just then, David Hayes led someone inside—

"Mommy!"