Chapter 183: I Can Walk on My Own

Seeing her reaction, Mr. Ford had a pretty good idea of the truth. He suspected she really was Mr. Sullivan’s granddaughter.

But when he thought of her mother, he frowned.

He had looked into her background before, so he knew about her ordeals with the Vance family over the years. ’So, the terrible falling out between her mother and Mr. Sullivan... was it really all for a man like Holly Vance?’

’A man who cheated on his wife while she was pregnant, who couldn’t wait to move another woman in before his wife was even cold in her grave, and who mistreated the daughter she left behind. Was it really worth it for a man like that?’

Holly Vance hadn’t come to cause a scene by the time he was discharged from the hospital, so he didn’t yet know that Amanda wasn’t Holly Vance’s biological daughter.

Even if he had known, Holly Vance had built his fortune on Vivian Sullivan’s dowry, only to turn around and mistreat her daughter. The man was still a piece of work.

He just never expected Amanda to have this kind of connection to Mr. Sullivan.

The housekeeper heard the commotion and hurried over to clean up. Mrs. Ford immediately grabbed Amanda’s hand to check it. Seeing that it wasn’t red, she quickly asked, "How are you, Megan? You didn’t get burned, did you?"

Samuel Ford also watched her with concern.

The shock was too much for Amanda. It took her a long moment to come to her senses. She shook her head. "I’m fine."

The water had been warm, not hot enough to burn.

’But for some reason, there was a chill in her heart.’

She finally understood why her mother’s eyes would fill with such sorrow whenever she looked at the Jade Pendant.

’Her family had turned their backs on her, a sign of their disappointment, a sign that they would never forgive her.’

’Her guilt could only be buried deep in her heart, with no one to confess to and no way to ever reach them.’

’She had abandoned her family first, only to be completely abandoned by them in return.’

’Even if it was because she was young, reckless, and naive, she had ultimately paid the price for her choice.’

Amanda blinked. After a long pause, she said in a strained voice, "Thank you, Mr. Ford. I apologize for the intrusion today."

With that, she stood and bowed to Mr. Ford. Her lips were pale, a sight that made Mrs. Ford’s heart ache for her. She took her hand and said, "Megan, stay for dinner before you go."

Amanda forced the corners of her lips into a faint curve and shook her head. "Thank you, Mrs. Ford, but I have something else to do, so I’ll be going now."

"But..." Mrs. Ford turned to Samuel Ford, expecting him to say something to make her stay. She looked so heartbroken; how could they let her leave in this state?

But to her surprise, Samuel simply stood up, picked up his jacket from the side and draped it over his arm, and said calmly, "I’ll drive Dr. Vance."

Mrs. Ford pressed a hand to her forehead. ’She wanted him to ask Amanda to stay, not offer to drive her away! He sounded so heartless.’

She shot him look after look, but he acted as if he hadn’t seen a thing, accompanying Amanda toward the door. Watching him go, she felt he deserved to be single for the rest of his life.

’This son of hers was truly a lost cause.’

Outside, Samuel sat in the driver’s seat of Amanda’s car while she took the passenger seat. She didn’t say anything, simply closing her eyes and leaning back against the headrest, exhaustion etched between her brows.

After a glance at her, Samuel started the car without a word and drove her home.

When the car came to a stop, Amanda slowly opened her eyes. She turned to look at him, just now remembering something else. "...How are you going to get home, President Ford?"

He had driven her here in her own car.

"I’ll just get a cab," Samuel said casually, not seeming to mind. His fingers tapped lightly on the steering wheel as he glanced at her and asked, "Feeling any better?"

Amanda paused, realizing he understood why she had been so insistent on leaving earlier.

’After hearing all that, she had been in emotional turmoil and just wanted to be alone for a while. He must have noticed, which is why he offered to drive her home.’

She turned to look at the man beside her, her gaze meeting his. After a moment, Amanda let out a soft chuckle. "Everyone says President Ford is like an aloof flower on a high mountain, but I think you’re clearly a thoughtful and warmhearted man."

’His perceptiveness and attention to detail always subtly saved her from a lot of awkward situations.’

’It wasn’t the first time.’

Hearing the words "warmhearted man," Samuel froze for a second, as if he’d never expected anyone to use that term to describe him. Gazing at her smile, he slowly shook his head. "Only for you."

’He was only warmhearted for her, so only she would think of him that way.’

’His warmth was for her and her alone.’

Amanda met his intense gaze, and her fingertips twitched. After a moment, she was the first to look away. "Thank you for driving me home today, President Ford."

"Of course."

Seeing that she didn’t respond to his earlier comment, Samuel didn’t press the issue. He unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car. "I’ll be on my way, then."

"Okay." Amanda watched him as he turned to leave, then suddenly called out, "President Ford, are you hungry?"

Samuel stopped and looked back at her. "I am."

"Then let me treat you to dinner."

’Amanda felt that after inconveniencing Mr. Ford and making Samuel go to the trouble of driving her all the way back, it wouldn’t be right to just let him leave like this.’

His gaze locked on her, but Samuel shook his head, declining. "I still have something to do today. I’ll take a rain check, you can treat me some other time."

"Okay." A slow smile spread across Amanda’s lips. She understood he could tell she was in a bad mood and didn’t want her to have to force a happy face.

As she watched him leave, Amanda still felt she hadn’t been wrong about him earlier.

’But he had said... his warmth was only for her.’

A smile slowly bloomed in her eyes, and some of the gloom that had settled in her heart began to dissipate.

「Upstairs」

Jean Vance finally got a message back from Felix Ford. He said he had been downstairs with his grandparents and had left his phone in his room, so he hadn’t heard it go off.

"Mom was just here."

At the Ford residence, Felix cupped his hand over the phone’s microphone and whispered.

Jean’s heart clenched. "Did you run into her?"

"Nope." Felix was lying on his bed, one leg crossed over the other, swinging his foot as he spoke with a hint of pride. "I was upstairs when Mom arrived. I was just about to go out, but then I saw her and slammed the door shut. Good thing I was quick, otherwise she would have spotted me."

Hearing this, Jean breathed a sigh of relief. He bit his lip and asked, "Did you hear what they were talking about?"

He knew his mom had gone to ask about the Jade Pendant today, and that its owner was very likely related to her.

Felix’s voice was tinged with regret. "I was too scared Mom would find me, so I hid in my room the whole time. The house is really well soundproofed; I didn’t hear anything."

"Besides, they were downstairs, and it’s not like they were shouting. I wouldn’t have been able to hear everything even if my door was open."

Jean had already expected this. He wasn’t greedy; the fact that Felix hadn’t been discovered was the best possible outcome. "It’s fine. I’ll just ask Mom when she gets back."

"Yeah." Felix rolled over onto his stomach and pouted. "It must be so nice," he said, a note of envy in his voice. "You get to see Mom whenever you want. I wish I could be with Mom, too."

Jean’s heart stirred. He remembered what his mom had told him yesterday. After a moment of hesitation, he decided not to hide it from Felix. He explained the situation and shared his own concerns.

Felix was ecstatic at first to hear that Amanda wanted him, but he calmed down as he listened to Jean’s analysis. It was true; if Mom wanted custody of him, she would definitely have to go up against his dad and grandparents.

Most importantly, he also felt the odds of her winning weren’t great.

Plus, he was worried that when his dad and Mom finally met, what if Mom took her anger out on him? If she hated his dad, she might hate him too, and that would be a total raw deal for him.

’No way. He had to think of a way to keep them from having a head-on clash.’

"I’ve got it!" His eyes suddenly lit up, and he said gleefully, "I’ll just run away from home! I’ll tell Dad I’m cutting all ties with him, and then our family of three can just leave, run far, far away where Dad can’t find us. That’ll work, right?"

’He really was a little genius!’