Chapter 155: Her Weakness

Sitting in the car, Amanda Vance gave the man beside her an amused look. "It seems I always run into you in situations like this."

He always showed up so suddenly, just when she thought there was a creep behind her.

At the mention of this, Samuel Ford felt a bit resigned himself. It wasn’t just her who noticed; he’d had the same feeling.

"My fault, I suppose. I’m always walking behind you, so I must look suspicious."

Amanda Vance burst out laughing. She never expected him to crack a joke.

She glanced in the rearview mirror. The person who was always hiding behind the pillar wasn’t there today.

Her eyes shifted. Amanda Vance raised an eyebrow and looked at Samuel Ford. "The person following me... is he one of your men, President Ford?"

"Not stalking. Just keeping Holly Vance and Sarah Sullivan’s family away, so they don’t come and bother you."

’So that’s what it was,’ she thought. ’No wonder I haven’t seen them these past few days. I was starting to wonder, since that’s completely out of character for them.’

Suddenly, she remembered something else. "So, the people who’ve been getting thrown out of the hospital lately... that was them?"

She’d heard one of the nurses mention it. It was always the same two people, and they looked different each time. They were making a complete spectacle of themselves, like something out of a comedy.

Samuel Ford neither nodded nor shook his head. "I wouldn’t know about that. Rocco was handling it. Whether he escorted them out or threw them out, I’m not sure."

’Tsk. So it was them, no doubt about it.’

Amanda Vance looked at him, amused. "You really had no idea, President Ford?"

Samuel Ford fell silent.

Amanda Vance’s smile widened. ’Is he feeling guilty?’

’He’s... strangely amusing.’

Amanda felt the urge to tease him a little more, but she managed to restrain that mischievous impulse.

She glanced at the man. "Aren’t you getting out, President Ford? I’m heading home."

But the man, who had been sitting bolt upright just a moment ago, suddenly closed his eyes and leaned back against the headrest. Looking exhausted, he pressed his temples and said, "I just landed a project. I’m too tired to drive."

"Oh, really? Well, congratulations on the project, President Ford. But did you forget that you’re rich and have a driver?"

’As if he ever needs to drive himself.’

Samuel Ford opened his eyes. He stopped massaging his temples. They were perfectly clear, without a trace of fatigue.

He looked at her and said frankly, "Alright, I’ll be honest. I just missed you, Dr. Vance, so I came to see you."

He’d wanted to see her, to share this good news with her.

The entire company had been working on this project for months. He had been just as busy, and he naturally cared a great deal about it.

He was thrilled to have landed the project, and for the first time, he wanted to share that joy with someone.

It wasn’t just about being happy; it was about having someone he wanted to share that happiness with.

His usually cold eyes warmed with a fervent glow, taking on a hint of boyish delight.

Amanda found it hard to resist. She turned her head, looking away as the smile faded from her face. "President Ford, I’ve made myself very clear. Nothing can happen between us."

But Samuel Ford didn’t seem hurt. On the contrary, he looked almost happy, and his voice softened. "I know. I won’t pressure you, Dr. Vance. It’s enough if you just think of me as a friend."

He paused, his voice dropping lower. "Can we be friends?"

His eyes drooped, and he looked so pitiful that, for a strange moment, he overlapped in her mind with the child back home. By the time Amanda came to her senses, she saw a small smile playing on the man’s usually impassive face.

The memory returned. She had just said yes.

She didn’t know what had possessed her.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Amanda couldn’t help but wonder if he’d done it on purpose.

’There’s no way he’s that pitiful. He had to be faking it.’

With that thought, she couldn’t help but glance at him again.

Samuel Ford’s expression had already returned to normal. Noticing her gaze, he asked in a puzzled tone, "Is something wrong, Dr. Vance?"

Amanda slowly shook her head. ’I must be overthinking things,’ she thought.

She didn’t notice the fleeting smile that flashed in his eyes the instant she turned away.

’It was a cheap trick, but I have to admit, it worked.’

’So that’s her weakness. She responds to a soft touch, not brute force, hmm?’

’I just thought of how Colt looks, so I gave it a try. I didn’t expect it to actually work.’

’It seems I’ve figured out how to approach her.’

He coughed lightly into his fist, using the motion to hide the smile tugging at his lips.

Naturally, Samuel Ford wasn’t going to go home with her. Now that he’d given her the house, it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to show up there.

The car stopped at the gate to her residential community. Another car was already parked there—Samuel Ford’s.

’So he calculated that I wouldn’t kick him out?’

Looking at the man’s nonchalant expression, Amanda gritted her teeth. She had the unsettling feeling that he could see right through her.

’This was not a good sign.’

As if sensing her stare, Samuel Ford looked over nonchalantly. "Is there anything else, Dr. Vance?"

Amanda gave a humorless laugh. "Nothing."

With that, she rolled up the window.

’Did she figure it out?’

Samuel Ford touched the corner of his mouth, slightly surprised.

"Sir?" Rocco stuck his head out of the car and looked at him quizzically. "What’s wrong with your mouth? Is it bothering you?"

’Why else would he be touching his mouth for no reason?’

"No." Samuel Ford dropped his hand, his usual cold, aloof expression returning. He got into the car and said simply, "Let’s go."

Even though his voice was as cool as ever, Rocco sensed something was different. He snuck a peek in the rearview mirror. Sure enough, the man looked to be in a very good mood.

"Do we still have people at the hospital?" Samuel asked in a low voice, sensing Rocco’s gaze and composing himself.

Rocco snapped back to attention and nodded quickly. "Yes, sir! Don’t you worry, the guys are on it. We’ll make sure they never get a chance to get near Dr. Vance."

As for Holly Vance and Sarah Sullivan’s attempts at disguise, Rocco scoffed. If his men could be fooled by such a cheap trick, they’d have been dead and buried long ago.

Samuel Ford trusted their skills, so he just nodded and asked no further questions.

「At the hospital.」

Sarah Sullivan saw Holly Vance off, then stared toward the Traditional Chinese Medicine department, her eyes full of scorn.

She had just been probing him. And while Holly Vance was reluctant to say anything, his reaction had confirmed one thing for her: Amanda Vance wasn’t his biological daughter. She was a bastard, the product of Amanda’s mother fooling around with some unknown man.

The thought filled her with vindictive pleasure.

’So what if she was the eldest daughter of the Sullivan family?’ she sneered internally. ’She was still shameless. No better than me.’

Just then, a man in black walked over. Her mind went blank, and her body reacted on instinct. She turned to run, but an arm grabbed her. She shrieked, "Let go of me! I wasn’t even looking for Amanda Vance!"

"But you were thinking about it," the man in black said, unceremoniously hauling her outside. The familiar scene—being thrown out—made Sarah Sullivan see red.

’Where did Amanda Vance find these lunatics?’ she fumed. ’A bunch of psychos!’

"AHH—" Seeing that she was about to be thrown to the ground again, she yelled frantically, "I’m pregnant! I have a baby in my belly! If anything happens to my child, I swear I’ll kill you!"

At her words, the man in black stopped. She had just breathed a sigh of relief when, a moment later, she saw a fist—big and hard. Just looking at it, she could imagine how much it would hurt. She was so terrified she couldn’t utter a word.

Seeing her reaction, the man in black sneered. "If you’re scared, then get lost. Stop stirring up trouble, and try to earn some good karma for the child in your belly for a change."

’Hmph. Shameless piece of trash,’ he thought. ’As if they have the right to bully someone as kind as Dr. Vance.’

Sarah Sullivan was seething, panting heavily. She shot them a venomous glare, but when one of the men raised his hand, she jumped in fright and bolted.

She fled blindly, finally stopping in a random spot to lean against a wall, gasping for breath.

’Thank goodness they didn’t follow me,’ she thought.

Just as she was thinking that, a hand suddenly tapped her on the shoulder. She froze, then turned her head and stared.

"Who are you?"

The man smiled. "Do you want to know Amanda Vance’s weakness?"