Chapter 563
Vivian Bennett curled up in the corner of the bed.
Her slender frame seemed to sink into the soft mattress.
Her small face was pale as paper, tears silently tracing paths that soaked the pillowcase.
Her eyes, usually so bright, were now veiled in a mist, as if ready to overflow at any moment.
The door opened softly.
Liam Sullivan stood in the doorway, his gaze falling upon her.
The moment their eyes met, his heart clenched violently.
It felt as if an invisible hand had seized it.
Vivian scrambled to sit up.
She raised a hand to wipe the tear stains from her face, her lips trembling slightly.
"Liam?"
Her voice was soft, muffled by a heavy nasal tone.
Yet it was like a ray of light, cutting through the gloom in Liam's heart.
He took a deep breath and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed.
"Done crying?" he asked quietly, his voice still deep and gentle. "If you're done, get up and eat."
Liam was never one for sweet talk.
Faced with her willfulness, her bad temper, his only response was tolerance.
Unconditional tolerance.
Just like now.
Even with that paternity test report hanging over their heads like a ticking bomb, he didn't want to mention a single word of it in front of her.
Even if she really was Albert Sullivan's daughter.
Even if she carried the Sullivan blood.
So what?
From the moment he decided she was the one, he never thought of letting go.
Ethics, morality, the fear of gossip.
He didn't care about any of it.
He only wanted her.
He only wanted to grow old with her.
Vivian sniffled.
Looking at the man's handsome profile, a sharp pain pierced her heart.
He probably didn't know yet, right?
That thought nearly suffocated her.
She suddenly reached out and wrapped her arms tightly around Liam.
Burying her face in his chest, her voice choked and broken.
"Liam... we... we should separate for a while, okay?"
As the words fell.
She clearly felt the man's body stiffen.
His breathing suddenly became heavy.
She tried to pull her hands back, but he abruptly tightened his embrace.
His hold was so strong it felt like he wanted to crush her into his very bones.
"Why separate?" Liam's voice was low and commanding. "Because you're Albert Sullivan's daughter?"
Vivian shuddered all over.
She lifted her head, her eyes wide as she stared at him.
Her dark pupils were filled with disbelief.
"You... you know?"
Liam didn't answer.
As usual, he scooped her up into his arms and carried her towards the bathroom.
"Wash up first, then eat," he said calmly. "Then we'll talk."
He set her down gently.
Vivian looked at him, the tears she had just managed to stop welling up again.
She sniffled, her voice thick with crying.
"Liam, I don't want to wash up, I don't want to eat... I don't know what to do..."
By the end, she finally broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.
Liam's heart ached as he wiped away her tears.
Seeing her in such pain hurt him even more.
"Silly," he said softly. "You have to eat. Don't think about anything right now. Just eat obediently and get some good sleep."
But Vivian grew even more agitated.
"Albert Sullivan can't be my father!" she cried out hoarsely. "He could never be!"
Liam held her tightly.
"That's right, he's not," he soothed. "I don't think he is either. Vivian, don't get so worked up..."
Remembering Albert Sullivan's sordid past.
The filth, the shame.
Vivian couldn't accept it.
How could a man like that be her biological father?
But that paternity test was like a cold blade, slicing through all illusions.
Cruelly telling her it was true.
Undeniably true.
Only when Vivian's emotions gradually calmed did Liam release her.
Her eyes were red and swollen, tear tracks still fresh on her small face.
Like a flower drenched by rain, pitiful and fragile.
Liam's heart tightened again.
As if scalded by something.
No matter how much he urged, Vivian had no appetite.
Finally, under his half-coaxing, half-forcing, she reluctantly drank a bowl of porridge.
She lifted her eyes, her voice faint.
"I want to go back to my own apartment for a while."
Liam gazed at her.
She looked like a flower ravaged by a storm, delicate and wilted.
"If you want to go back, wait until tomorrow," he said gently. "In your current state, how can you go back?"
Vivian nodded helplessly.
Everything was a mess.
A chaotic, unbelievable mess.
Countless questions swirled wildly in her mind.
Her head throbbed with pain.
"Okay," she whispered. "I'll stay here tonight."