The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 38

Arabella felt a chill run down her spine under Vivienne's piercing gaze.

Vivienne was downright terrifying!

She instinctively took a step back.

Everyone else in the room was equally unnerved by the commanding presence Vivienne exuded.

"Is she really just a country girl?" they all wondered.

Vivienne had an aura around her that even the most well-bred socialites couldn't match.

The room fell into an eerie silence. Dorian broke the silence, asking Vivienne, "Is there really no other way?"

"There is. Wait till the drug wears off!" Vivienne's tone softened when she addressed Dorian.

Upon hearing this, Dorian simply nodded, not uttering another word. "If you can't fix this, then let's just head home. We won't be coming here anymore unless absolutely necessary," he said. His words were a direct challenge to Beatrice.

She immediately shot back, "Dorian! What are you implying? Are you cutting ties with me?"

"If you can't stand Vivienne, I won't bring her here to be humiliated. She's my daughter. If you can't love her, then I'll love her for you!"

With that, Dorian took Vivienne and left.

Beatrice was seething with anger. "You bastard! I call the shots in this household! As the child of the Hawthorn family, Vivienne should follow my commands!"

Vivienne stopped in her tracks, turning back to face her. "My life is mine to control!"

Beatrice was rendered speechless, unable to spout her usual insults in the presence of so many people.

Ignoring Beatrice, Vivienne turned to Percival. "Mr. Ellington! There's only one condition for our engagement. Give the intended gifts to Dorian. The Hawthorn family didn't raise me. They have no right to accept the engagement gifts."

Percival simply chuckled, "Alright!"

Beatrice, Arabella, and everyone else in the room were taken aback.

Beatrice was the first to recover, raising her voice, "Wait, engagement? You agreed to get engaged?"

Vivienne smirked, "Yes, I did. I agreed days ago. We're getting engaged in ten days. Surprised?" Beatrice felt as if she'd been struck by lightning. Her mind went blank!

The engagement that Percival had mentioned postponing was actually scheduled for ten days later!

She felt like a complete fool thinking Percival had fallen for Arabella!

Had she known this, she wouldn't have wasted so much effort. Now, she was left with her pride shattered!

Damn Vivienne! This must be her doing!

"Vivienne! Our grandmother is your elder. She calls the shots in this household. The engagement gifts should naturally be given to her. Why would they go to our father?" Arabella finally found her voice, her hands clenched in fists, feeling utterly humiliated by Vivienne.

Vivienne had agreed to the engagement all along, but never said a word, making them all look like fools!

And now, she won't even allow the Hawthorn family to accept the gifts?

That's unacceptable!

Beatrice quickly agreed, "That's completely unethical!"

Vivienne scoffed, "Well, that's just how I am!"

With that, she turned and left, not even sparing them a glance.

She was able to walk away with such determination, all thanks to her dear son, Dorian.

The drama finally came to an end, and the guests left one after the other.

Despite Beatrice's pleas for discretion, the scandalous event was made public.

By that evening, the Hawthorn family was the talk of the town.

Even the video of Joseph having sex with the maid after being drugged was anonymously uploaded online, with some digital blurring of course.

"High society drama runs deeper than the Mariana Trench. A grandmother drugging her granddaughter? That's a storyline even soap operas wouldn't dare use."

"God knows what Beatrice was thinking. The real Hawthorn child is way more beautiful than the fake one. Did she go blind?"

"I'm most impressed by the real Hawthorn daughter's ability to keep her cool and replace an antidote after being drugged. And Mr. Ellington, despite his disability, didn't take advantage of her. Any other man would've lost control."

"Totally! I'm totally won over by the real Hawthorn daughter and Mr. Ellington."

Meanwhile, some 'concerned netizens' exposed Joseph's private life.

"Shocking! Joseph and the nanny have a love child who's already six years old!"

"Joseph bought the nanny a house. I've always seen him coming and going. I thought he'd bought it for himself. Turns out, it was for his mistress."

"He's not just with a mistress, but a nanny! Is Joseph blind? His wife is way prettier than that nanny. Why would he ditch her for a nanny? I'll never understand the world of the wealthy!"

After the news broke online, the Hawthorn family was thrown into complete chaos.

Octavia woke up in the hospital to see the online posts. She was livid, so angry that she could hardly breathe.

She smashed her phone and stormed off to confront Joseph, "You bastard! Betraying me is one thing, but you even have a bastard child! I'll kill you!"

In the hospital, while taking care of Octavia, Felicity quickly stopped her, "Don't jump to conclusions based on what you read online. We don't know if it's true or not. Don't rush to blame Joseph. Let's replace out the truth first, it's never too late to teach him a lesson."

"What's there to replace out!" Octavia couldn't help but burst into tears, "They've already posted the pictures online. The woman in Joseph's arms is that home wrecker! They were having an affair right under my nose, and I was completely clueless, like a fool!"

Octavia felt like slapping herself!

She and Joseph were college sweethearts. They were in love for five years before they got married, and their relationship has always been solid.

After their marriage, she tried her best to be a good wife, handling every little thing around the house.

Yet, she would often argue with Joseph over Beatrice.

But, no matter what, she never doubted Joseph's feelings for her!

She thought that Joseph would never betray her, but the pile of evidence in front of her slapped her in the face.

"The media loves to stir up drama. And even if he did cheat on you, we need solid proof." Felicity gently consoled, "You should rest now. I'll let your dad handle the investigation. If Joseph really did betray you, I'll make sure to get justice for you."

Octavia thought for a while and said, "Let my dad have a DNA test done on that bastard's illegitimate child."

"Alright."