Torn Between Love and Hate

220

Chapter 220 The Pleasure of Revenge

Ashton didn’t have time to say another word, as Deborah took Alyssa and left immediately.

Rebecca hurried to the doctor’s office, impatiently. Seeing Deborah and Alyssa passing by outside, she

knew they had already finished talking with Ashton.

Rebecca immediately went out to stop them, asking them to go in and confirm with the doctor.

Deborah didn’t say much and went into the office.

She expressed her attitude towards Alyssa, but refused to sign the consent for donation at the moment.

Rebecca felt uneasy and gently advised her, “It’s okay for you to sign something with Alyssa now, it’s

just a way to show your intentions.

If in the future, Alyssa’s tests show that she’s not suitable for donation, we definitely won’t put you and

Ashton in a difficult position.”

Deborah’s tone cooled down a bit, “Ms. Moxley, I keep my word.”

Rebecca felt helpless, knowing that any further persuasion would only annoy her.

Deborah, accompanied by Alyssa, left the office and returned to her own hospital room.

As she stepped out into the hallway, she happened to bump into Jeff, who was hurriedly making his

way toward Ashton’s hospital room.

Jeff had probably already called Ashton and found out about some things.

Upon meeting Deborah and Alyssa, he sincerely expressed his gratitude, “Ms. Shepherd, on behalf of

Mr. Mullen, I’d like to extend our thanks to you once again.”

Deborah’s attitude toward Ashton was cold, but it was different with Jeff.

Back when Ashton tormented her and Alyssa, Jeff was the only one who never kicked them while they

were down and

never hurt them.

Even when she was first schemed against and ended up in Ashton’s bed for the first time.

The next day, Ashton was furious. The media and the public were gathered outside, and he angrily

criticized Deborah for having no shame and no sense of decency.

At that time, only Jeff spoke to Ashton, saying, “Mr. Mullen, things might not be so simple. Ms.

Shepherd, she’s young, still in school, and doesn’t have that kind of courage.”

At that time, Deborah was nineteen years old and still attending university.

Lydia became obsessed with gambling and took Helen’s mother’s money, which led her to end up in

Ashton’s bed, ultimately ruining her future prospects.

The school couldn’t quite grasp Ashton’s intentions and assumed that he must be dissatisfied with

Deborah. So, they used the excuse of Deborah’s chaotic personal life and lack of self-discipline to fire

her.

Her academic pursuits were gone, and she was met with an overwhelming barrage of insults and

accusations,

Devon, fearing that he might offend the Mullen family, hurriedly drove her out of Bauer Manor to make

his stance

clear.

She felt completely desperate, lost and bewildered in an unfamiliar world.

It wasn’t until she was found to be pregnant that she couldn’t have an abortion due to her anemic

condition.

At that time, she loved Ashton. Even though she knew he hated her, she still went to find him.

And so, he married her.

It was all wrong, completely wrong, right from the very beginning.

If it weren’t for Jeff, she and Alyssa would have been tormented to death by now.

Just the numerous incidents caused by Helen alone were enough for her and Alyssa to die many times

over.

Deborah looked at Jeff in front of her and said, “It should be Alyssa and I who should have thanked you

properly a long time ago.”

At the beginning, it was all thanks to you. I still remember, you gave Alyssa her first piano, along with

those toys and dolls. Back then, probably only you remembered that she was just a child of a few years

old.

A strange look flickered in Jeff’s eyes, as if he wanted to explain something, but after some thought, he

decided against it. Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

What’s the point of explaining those things now, given the time that has passed?

There’s no longer any meaning to it, and nothing can be changed either.

Moreover, Ashton has already explained….

Jeff hesitated slightly, but quickly put away his unusual emotions.

“Ms. Shepherd, you’re too kind. Those things happened a long time ago.”

There were some things that Ashton didn’t allow him to say, and Deborah probably hadn’t thought

about them in

detail either.

After all, Jeff was just a butler for the Mullen family. If he were to secretly buy so many things for

Alyssa, there was no way Ashton wouldn’t notice.

At that time, Ashton was simply unwilling to admit that he had been manipulated by Deborah, forced to

marry her, and pressured into having a daughter.

Despite everything, he couldn’t help but have feelings for his own daughter and wanted to be kind to

the child.

He had once truly loved Alyssa as if she were his own daughter.

So later on, after being deceived by Helen and believing that Alyssa wasn’t his child, he became

extremely furious.

Not only was Deborah infuriating him by playing him like a fool, but he was also angry at himself for

being so stupi d, secretly cherishing, a child who wasn’t even his own daughter.

He was filled with hatred and longed to vent his frustrations..

He broke the piano he had given to Alyssa, ignored her serious illness, and sought the thrill of revenge.

It wasn’t until later that some things started to go too far, reaching a point where they became

uncontrollable and there was no turning back.

Jeff tried to speak up again, “Ms. Shepherd, actually Mr. Mullen also…”

Deborah could guess what he wanted to say. Jeff had been her benefactor, and she didn’t want to

contradict him or argue with him.

So she interrupted him, “Jeff, Alyssa and I have something to take care of, so we’ll be leaving now.”

In the end, Jeff held back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

He nodded, “Alright, Ms. Shepherd, please take good care of yourself too.”

Deborah expressed her gratitude and left with Alyssa.

When she returned to the ward, Joseph was already sitting on the sofa inside, facing the floor-to-ceiling

window, making a phone call.

“Alright, I’ll probably come over on the sixteenth day of New Year, and I’ll bring Deborah with me. In the

meantime, keep an eye on things there. If anything tricky comes up, just give me a call.”

Hearing footsteps behind him, he turned around and saw Deborah and Alyssa entering.

Joseph spoke up again, “Alright, let’s leave it at that for now.”

After hanging up the phone, he stood up and walked towards Deborah, explaining, “That was Morton.

He asked when I’m going to Oceanview City, as most of the company employees will be back to work

on the eighth day of New Year.” Deborah nodded, “If there’s something going on at the company, we

can head over there earlier.”

Joseph went over to the coffee table and opened the takeout boxes, inviting her and Alyssa to come

and eat.

He spoke up, “I want to take a few more days off, and it’s a perfect time for you to accompany Alyssa

and have a good time together.”

Alyssa had never been too close with him. Whenever they talked, she just buried her head and ate.

Joseph habitually served Deborah some vegetables and soup, then suddenly remembered Alyssa

sitting nearby.

He immediately reached out to grab the small bowl. “Alyssa, have some soup too.”

Alyssa was quite reserved when facing him. “No need, thank you, Mr. Black. It’s quite late now, so I’ll

just have a little something with my mom.”

Joseph reached out his hand, but then pulled it back. He had just been chatting casually with Deborah,

but now he suddenly didn’t know what to say.

He felt a bit awkward and took a moment to find the right words “Oh, right, there’s only one sleeper

couch in this ward. It’s a bit cramped, so I talked to the director. We can stay in the lounge next door

later.”

Alyssa finished the food in her bowl and immediately stood up upon hearing this, “Mom, Mr. Black, I’m

full. I’ll go to the lounge next door then, I’m a bit sleepy and will head to bed first.”

After she finished speaking, she took her own phone and walked outside.