Chapter 267: Ian’s Photo Album
Anne Sutton’s heart softened. She decided to stay until he fell asleep. "You should sleep. I’ll go to sleep after you do."
Nathan Fawcett looked at her and said, "Come up here. Didn’t you say you were tired?"
Anne Sutton refused, standing her ground. "I don’t want to sleep in the same bed as you."
"I’m this sick, what could I possibly do to you?" Nathan Fawcett said, looking at her and shifting to the side. "Come on up."
His bed was huge.
Anne Sutton looked at him and shook her head. "No."
Seeing how stubborn she was, Nathan Fawcett was a little disappointed. "You really don’t trust me at all anymore."
"You deserve it."
"..." Nathan Fawcett looked at Anne Sutton and said, "I misunderstood things in the past. I apologize."
"When you say ’the past,’ what are you talking about?" Anne Sutton was a bit surprised, not knowing what he was referring to.
Nathan Fawcett said, "Ian’s situation. I didn’t understand your circumstances and just took him away. It must have been very hard for you all these years."
Nathan Fawcett had always been suspicious, critical, and sarcastic toward her.
Even back in Westhaven, when he had been polite to her, he had never truly forgiven her.
Hearing him say this now, Anne Sutton was a bit dazed, even wondering if she had misheard him.
She looked at Nathan Fawcett and said, "Why the sudden apology? Didn’t you say I was a bad woman?"
Nathan Fawcett said, "I’ve met with Charles Prescott."
"..." Anne Sutton looked at him. "What did he say to you?"
’Charles Prescott would never admit to what he did in the past.’
"He didn’t know Ian was our child," Nathan Fawcett said. "Which shows that you never told him."
"And what’s that supposed to prove?" Anne Sutton said with a self-deprecating laugh.
Nathan Fawcett said, "It proves you don’t like Charles Prescott, and that you two aren’t together! Even when you had the choice, you didn’t choose him."
’This was actually good news for Nathan Fawcett!’
He used to worry about her getting together with Charles Prescott, but he hadn’t wanted to force her hand.
"..." Anne Sutton said, "That’s just because I despise him, that’s all. It doesn’t mean anything. Don’t think that just because I don’t like him, I’ll suddenly like you. He’s a scumbag, and so are you!"
Being equated with Charles Prescott left Nathan Fawcett feeling a bit helpless.
He said, "I know I went too far before. I understand why you’re angry."
"Good that you understand," Anne Sutton said. "Just don’t think I’m the one being unreasonable to you."
Nathan Fawcett looked at her and asked, "Do you want to see some old photos of Ian?"
Hearing this, Anne Sutton froze for a moment.
Nathan Fawcett gazed at her. "Open the drawer next to you."
Anne Sutton stared at him, hesitating.
Nathan Fawcett said firmly, "Go on."
Anne Sutton reached out, opened it, and saw a large photo album inside.
The cover showed Ian and Nathan Fawcett.
Ian was so small back then, with fair, tender skin...
Before Anne Sutton could open it, Nathan Fawcett had already taken the album.
Anne Sutton looked at him. Nathan Fawcett said, "Take off your shoes and get on the bed, and then I’ll let you see."
"Have you no shame?" ’How could any man be so shameless!’
Nathan Fawcett said, "Well, do you want to see them or not?"
Anne Sutton wanted to ignore him, but when she thought of Ian, she couldn’t resist.
She threw her slippers on the floor and got onto the bed.
She sat down beside him.
Nathan Fawcett leaned against the headboard, flipping through the album from the first page. "This is what he looked like right after he was born in the hospital. When I got there, the hospital was already preparing to operate on you, but the baby could still be delivered. So, I took him. He was premature, so he was smaller than most babies when he was born. He almost didn’t make it."
Nathan Fawcett’s voice was deep and low.
His words made Anne Sutton’s tears fall instantly.
All these years, she had often thought back to that moment, to how useless she had been, letting them take her child away.
Nathan Fawcett turned another page and continued, "This is him in the incubator, getting ready to be discharged. He was actually there in the hospital while you were recovering for those few days. I thought about whether I should tell you, but I felt his presence would disrupt your life. I thought you wanted to be with Charles Prescott!"
"And this one. Look, this is him on his first birthday. He looks much better by this point, don’t you think? I really think he’s a gift from heaven. He’s so wonderful. Because of him, I felt it was okay even if you were with Charles Prescott. I’m so grateful to you for giving me this child."
Sitting beside Nathan Fawcett, Anne Sutton watched as the photos blurred before her eyes, and tears pattered down.
She bit her lip. Nathan Fawcett looked at her, reached out, and pulled her head to him. In a gentle voice, he said, "Why are you crying? I just wanted to share some moments from our son’s childhood. He’s had a good life all these years."
He used to be filled with hatred, believing that Anne Sutton didn’t love her own son, and so he had wanted nothing more to do with her.
Only after learning the truth did he realize that, compared to Anne Sutton, he and Ian were much happier.
At least he had his child, and Ian had him. But Anne Sutton... she had nothing.
Anne Sutton said, "After your father passed away, they wanted to get rid of Ian. I refused, so I went back home. I thought I’d be safer in my own house, but my father listened to Charles Prescott and decided the child shouldn’t be kept. He said that if the baby was gone, Charles Prescott would marry me, and I would have a better life. I begged them. I told them I didn’t want anything, I just wanted my child... but no one listened to me! All these years, I thought Ian was gone! I kept thinking about how he was our child. I even felt like I had let you down... I never, ever imagined he was still alive! And that he’s been living so well."
’When it came to Nathan Fawcett, she felt both love and hate!’
’She hated him for hiding the truth from her, hated him for leaving her with so much pain.’
’But she was also grateful that he had saved Ian and given him such a good life!’
He had shown up just in time.
Nathan Fawcett watched as Anne Sutton finished speaking, biting her lip and desperately trying to hold back her sobs. He pulled her into his arms, reached up, and wiped away her tears. "Anne, I was wrong. It was my fault. It will never happen again. I’m here now... I won’t let anyone bully you again. As for Charles Prescott... I’ll make him atone for his sins."
Even though Nathan Fawcett said this, Anne Sutton’s tears continued to fall.
Her sense of grievance wasn’t just from this one moment; it was the culmination of all the injustices she had suffered over the years.
No one had ever believed her!
Even Nathan Fawcett had treated her like a villain because of it.
And now, as he sat here comforting her, she felt more wronged than ever.
Seeing her like this, Nathan Fawcett held her close, letting her rest her head on his shoulder.
He listened to the sound of her sobs and gently patted her shoulder.
Anne Sutton cried beside him for a long time.
After a while, when Nathan Fawcett saw that she had cried her fill and calmed down, he said, "Let’s not look anymore. We’ll stop looking at the photos. Let’s sleep."
With that, he held her and lay down...