Independence

Evelyn’s temper instantly flared. She tossed the towel from her forehead and asked, “Are you here to see me or rile me up? If that thing in her belly wasn’t from the Johnson family, do you really think I’d even look

at her?”

Tina scoffed. “Well, you got what you deserved. It’s clear as day that she’s got ulterior motives, merely trying to climb up the ladder using her pregnancy. You’re the only one who took her for some innocent flower.”

From the beginning. Tina had never thought much of Ingrid. Now Evelyn was finally catching on–that took her long enough.

Having heard that his mother was in the hospital, Hansel rushed over from the office. Before he even entered the room, he could hear their argument.

“What’s all the noise about?” he asked, frowning..

The moment Evelyn saw Hansel, she straightened up and stopped moaning, immediately launching into her complaint. “You got here just in time. Your girlfriend is absolutely out of control!

went to pick her up from her class out of the goodness of my heart. Not only did she give me the wrong schedule, but she also talked back to me in public!

“She completely embarrassed me in front of everyone! You know I have vertigo, and she got me so worked up that my condition flared up right then and there!”

Tina let out a derisive laugh. “Mom, don’t put it like that. Ingrid is the one Hansel had painstakingly chosen, after all. You keep nitpicking and complaining, but if they make up, who knows how they’ll talk

Dout!

behind your back.”

She spoke in a mocking tone, paying no mind to the growing darkness on Hansel’s face.

Whose fault was it for not sticking it out with Miranda? Hansel had let Miranda go for Ingrid, and it had cost Tina her chance to study under Christine.

Tina just couldn’t get over it!

Hansel stayed silent, though his expression grew increasingly grim. He ignored both his mother’s complaints and his sister’s jabs. Instead, he went to the doctor’s office to confirm that Evelyn was indeed fine before leaving the hospital with a cold expression,

Back at the mansion, as soon as he pushed open the door, a warm and soft body threw itself into his arms.

-who else could it be but Ingrid?Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

She was dressed in a silk slip dress, and the black fabric accentuated her fair skin. The plunging V–neck exposed a wide expanse of her collarbone, and all Hansel had to do was lower his head slightly to catch

glimpse of the faint but enticing cleavage.

“Hans, you’re ba- Ingrid’s sweet voice had barely started coming out when Hansel shoved her away roughly. He brushed off his sleeve as if something filthy had touched him with an icy expression.

“Hans-

Hansel slapped her across the face. Ingrid’s ears rang as she clutched her cheek in disbelief.

ho gave you the guts to talk back to my mom?”

Tears immediately welled up in Ingrid’s eyes. “It was just a little jab. Did she go and complain to you? “Why can’t you listen to my side first? I’m also a person with my own thoughts and desires. I just didn’t want to go to those classes. What’s wrong with that?”

Hansel sneered. “Wasn’t all of this what you begged for?

That one line shattered the last bit of Ingrid’s dignity.

He’d told her to get rid of the baby, take the money and leave. But she refused and went straight to Evelyn instead.

“So, what are you complaining about now? You enjoy my mom’s protection, but you still managed to land her in the hospital. Do you know what that makes you?

Hansel’s voice was cold and cutting as he spat, “A hypocrite and a bitch.”

“I… I didn’t do anything wrong. Why are you saying the same things as your mother? I only did it because I love you so much. I just wanted to have our child and stay by your side,” Ingrid, cried; tears streamed down her face as she continued to profess her love.

But Hansel was completely unmoved. “You’re talking to me about love? Do you know why I keep you around? If it weren’t for my mom, you wouldn’t even have the right to stand here.”