The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 39

When Vivienne and Dorian left the Hawthorn family, it was already 10 o'clock at night. They were about to head back to Tranquil Estates when Isolde came running over.

"Vivienne, we're going to grab a bite, wanna join us?" Isolde asked, holding Vivienne's hand, her voice incredibly soft. After the drama that went down at the Hawthorn family, the guests barely got a bite to eat.

Just as Vivienne was about to decline, Thomas wheeled Percival over to her.

Percival spoke up, "Come on, join us. Isolde really likes you. If you don't come, she'll have trouble sleeping tonight."

Then, he turned to Dorian and Cordelia, "Mr. Dorian and Miss Cordelia, you guys should join us too, might as well take this chance to formally meet!"

"Nah," Dorian declined, "You young folks go ahead and have fun. We're gonna call it a night, Thaddeus has school tomorrow and he needs to rest early.

Dorian then turned to Vivienne and said, "Vivienne, get home early after you eat, a young lady shouldn't be out all night. If it gets too late, give your old man a call, I'll come pick you up!"

He then shot Percival a warning look, as if to say: You better not dare mess with my daughter, or I'll give you hell!

Percival's mouth twitched. He hadn't messed with her when she was at her most vulnerable, let alone now when she was fully sober!

Vivienne, who had initially planned to decline, said, "...Don't worry!"

They've made the decision for her, what room was there for her to refuse?

Once they got in the car, they started deciding where to eat.

Four adults, one kid, five different tastes.

Percival wanted French cuisine.

Leopold wanted Italian.

Thomas craved barbecue.

Vivienne desired Brazilian food.

Isolde wanted burgers.

Unable to reach a consensus, they decided to head downtown and make a random pick.

So, they drove to the city center, found a parking lot, and got out of the car.

Havenwood at 10 PM was bustling with life.

There were dedicated night market stalls in the city center, and all the major stores were open, with customers coming and going.

Thomas was pushing Percival.

Isolde rarely went out shopping, and even when she did, she would quickly return home. She hadn't leisurely strolled around the streets like today, so when she saw the hustle and bustle, she could no longer contain her excitement, dragging Vivienne into a children's clothing store one moment and a shoe store the next!

Although these were just average small shops, not big brands, shopping for clothes is in a woman's nature, and little girls are no exception.

Before, Isolde never had the chance to pick out her own pretty clothes. Now that she saw there were clothing stores, she even forgot about eating and just kept shopping for clothes.

By the time they found a place to eat, she had already bought dozens of outfits.

"Wow! Cake!" Isolde had just handed her newly bought clothes to Leopold when she saw a bustling cake shop. So, she immediately dragged Vivienne excitedly, "Vivienne, there are cakes, let's go buy some to eat! I haven't had any in a long time."

Vivienne, who was getting a bit bored from shopping for too long, also became excited when she heard about the cakes, "Cakes? Where?"

She had been walking with her head down, not noticing what stores were on the street.

She hadn't enjoyed the deliciousness of cakes for a long time!

Back when she was on the mountain, Matthew would often buy some for her, but after coming down from the mountain, she became busy and could buy them anytime she wanted, so Matthew stopped buying them for her.

However, it seemed she was busy every day, and whenever she wanted to eat cakes, it was often late at night, and the cake shops were already closed.

"Over there!" Isolde pointed to a cake shop not far away, "Vivienne, let's hurry, I saw that there are only two strawberry cakes left, they'll be gone if we're late."

Vivienne's eyes lit up instantly, she picked up Isolde and dashed towards the cake shop!

Her speed was so fast that Percival, Leopold, and Thomas were all stunned!

They couldn't figure out what had just happened.

Was it a gust of wind that had just blown by? But there was clearly no wind!

Next, they saw Vivienne, with Isolde, grabbed the two cakes on display in the glass cabinet like a bandit, pay, and then leave!

Her actions were incredibly smooth!

A customer who was about to pick up a strawberry cake was left with their hand hanging in the air, stunned!

By the time Vivienne and Isolde were enjoying their cakes with spoons, Percival and the others had just reacted to what happened.

Isolde took a bite of the cake, her face full of joy, "Vivienne, you like strawberry cakes, too. I should've bought more when I came with my brother. It's a pity there were only two strawberry cakes, and they're so small, they're not satisfying at all!"

Even though the cake was small, it tasted really good.

"Yes." Vivienne, having gotten to eat cake, was in a good mood and had a charming smile on her face, "I like it a lot."

She loved strawberry cakes, almost every new style, Matthew would buy for her.

She had eaten at least a hundred different styles of strawberry cakes, but none of them were as good as that special taste in her memory.

She once had a strawberry cake made by someone, that taste was something she would never forget.

But that person's figure in her memory was becoming very blurry.

So blurry that she could hardly remember that person's face.

Percival and the others just watched them eat their cakes in silence.

Seeing how much they were enjoying their cakes, Leopold couldn't help but ask, "Is the cake really that good?"

It looked pretty ordinary, nothing special!

And cakes are made from cream and sugar, eating them would make you gain weight.

Don't all girls fear gaining weight? How come they're eating so happily?

Vivienne was in a good mood, so her tone was cheerful when she replied, "Wanna try some?"

The shop assistant gave her two extra spoons, since she was in a good mood, she could share some with them!

Leopold took a look at the cake, "Nah, you go ahead and enjoy it."

After all, there's only so much. If he eats it, there won't be much left.

Percival didn't say anything, just stared at Vivienne, his eyes deep and thoughtful. After a long while, he finally spoke slowly, "You really like strawberry cake, huh?"

"Yeah!" Vivienne grinned ear to ear, absolutely over the moon.

Percival looked thoughtful, his gaze on her full of meaning.

She and that kid, they shared the same taste.

Was it a coincidence?

Percival shot Vivienne a sideways glance, "I'll buy your cakes from now on. Anytime there's a new one, I'll get it for you."

"Great!" Vivienne chirped happily, "I love strawberry cake."

She paused, "Of course, I also like other flavors."

But her first choice would always be strawberry cake.

"Alright." Percival replied with a smile.