Two dayster, Hugo’spany had finalized the perfume product, giving Tina some free time to visit the hospital. Courtney had already returned to school, but Kiki and Mimi were still not discharged, though they had been moved from the ICU to a regr VIP room. Ian sat beside the baby crib, holding two small toys, and couldn’t help but smile at his granddaughters’ joyful faces.
Tina knocked on the door. “Old sir,” she called out.
Ian responded excitedly, “Little girl, you finally came. I thought you had forgotten about me.”
“How could I forget such a lovely old man?” Tina joked.
It was the first time Ian heard someone describe him as ‘cute’, and it felt refreshing. “Ah, you make my heart warm,” he said.
Tina smiled. Just then, Jack and Scarlett entered the room. Ian immediately boasted, “Tina just called me cute, huh! You kids always say I’m strict, but Tina doesn’t think so.”
He then looked at Tina, “May I call you Tina? It feels more personal.”
“Of course,” Tina replied with a smile.
Jack spoke out of frustration, “Dr. Reed, my dad is only this happy when he talks to you. He’s never this cute when talking to me.”
“Naughty boy, go get Tina’s things now, instead of just making jokes,” Ian scolded Jack with a nce.
Scarlett chimed in as she pulled out a red sandalwood box from a cab, its craftsmanship clearly masterful. “Tina, this isn’t anything expensive, just a token of the old man’s gratitude. Please, don’t refuse it.”
Tina opened the box to find a set of jewelry crafted from Hope Blue diamonds, a piece known as ‘Heart of Hope’ that had sold for eighty million dors at an auction the year before. And the craftsmanship of the blue diamond was among the rarest in the world.
This wasn’t expensive?
Even in her own collection room, she only had one such set.
“It’s too valuable, I can’t ept it,” Tina declined. She had rescued Kiki and Mimi because they had been kidnapped along with other babies, not for a reward.
Seeing Tina’s reluctance, Ian personally ced the box in her hands. “You can’t refuse an old man’s gift; it would shorten my life.”
“Please ept it, Tina. Without you, we wouldn’t even know how much suffering Kiki and Mimi would have endured. Words can’t express our gratitude,” Scarlett added.
“Please take it, or my dad will insist on delivering it to your home,” Jack joked as he picked up his twin daughters.
Ian hit him lightly on the leg with his cane, “Who said you could hold my granddaughters? Put them down.”
“Can’t I even hold my daughters? Dad, that’s too harsh,” Jack pleaded helplessly to Tina.
Seeing their insistence, Tina finally epted the gift, then said to Jack, “Mr. Brookes, they say you owe a favor to those whose gifts you ept, so I can’t help you.”
Laughter filled the room, and Tina’s heart gradually settled down. Unknowingly, she hade to think of this hospital room as her sanctuary.
It seemed as if here, she needed to do nothing. When Tina left the hospital, it was alreadyte. Jared was waiting downstairs and approached her as soon as she emerged. A cold breeze swept by, prompting Tina to wrap her coat tighter around herself. She asked him, “Why didn’t you wait in the car?”
“I wanted to see you sooner,” Jared replied, taking Tina’s hand and noticing she was holding a bag. “What’s that?”
Looking at the bag, Tina smiled and said, “Probably an apology gift.”
Secretly collecting her own DNA, she had taken it to her hospital in Clearwater for a paternity test. The results were disappointing. Nevertheless, she prepared a gift of apology, presenting it under the guise of a thank-you gesture.
Tina wasn’t particrly offended; she understood the Brookes family’s desire to find their biological daughter. Perhaps in some ways, she did resemble the daughter they remembered. But she truly wasn’t the child of the Brookes family. Her mother was Natalie Whittaker, not Natalie Brookes. Although her mother was adopted, she never spoke of her birth family. Perhaps they hadn’t treated her mother well, leading to her abandonment.
At the hospital, Ian stared at the paternity test report, his eyes filled with profound regret. Tina felt so familiar, so much like his Alina. Yet, the test results showed no biological connection between them. How could this be?
Jack sat down, taking the report from in front of Ian, “Dad, stop looking at it.” Jack had also hoped greatly for the test. He had a feeling that Tina was his niece. But the results were clear, and they had to ept the truth.
Ian’s tears flowed freely as he thought of his daughter, his heart aching with grief. Yet, he was convinced Tina was rted to Alina. His feelings were too strong to be coincidental.
“Are the Farrells nning a birthday celebration?” Ian asked.
Jack nodded, “Yes, Dad, do you want to attend?”
“Yes, find a way to get the Farrells to invite us.” The Brookes family had significant influence in Clearwater but had never ventured into Ashbury, and their stay had been discreet.
The Farrell family not inviting them to the celebration was expected. But with a little effort, getting an invitation wouldn’t be difficult. “Grandfather is having a birthday party, and this time, we can’t let Jared steal the spotlight again. We must find a way, or there will be no turning back,” Walter said bitterly.
Thinking of the ten billion dors given to Jared and Tina made him cringe. That was ten billion dors, enough to livevishly for a long time!
Alexander gave his son a scornful look, “If you werepetent, Tina wouldn’t have had anything on you. Thankfully, she didn’t tell your grandfather, or our whole family would be ruined. You’re really good for nothing.”Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024.
“Dad, you can’t me me for this. If only Vivienne hadn’t agreed so readily without even bargaining,” Walter pushed all the me onto Vivienne.
Vivienne sat silently to the side, merely observing the tablet in her hands. Walter felt like his punch had hit cotton, unsatisfying.
“You fool, say something!” Walter snatched the tablet from Vivienne and smashed it onto the table.