Chapter 2 This Is Your Real Goal, Isn’t It?

• Summer watched and listened, but her body was so stiff that she couldn’t move. In contrast, her heart was surprisingly empty—she held no expectations for this relationship to begin with.
• In the brightly lit hall, Edward casually sat on the bronze genuine leather sofa. Despite his nonchalance, he exuded a domineering and powerful presence that couldn’t be hidden. It made it hard for anybody to ignore him even if they wanted to.
• Pausing slightly, she did not glance at the man but straightened her back and lowered her eyes instead. She turned to the gray-haired yet amiable-looking old lady sitting on the sofa in the middle and respectfully said, “Grandma, I’m sorry for coming down late.”
• “Summer, come and sit here with me. Are you feeling better? Look at yourself; you’re an adult now. Why can’t you take better care of yourself? Why didn’t you take the day off and come back to rest when you were having a 40°C fever?!” Rosie Carter immediately asked Summer to sit beside her as soon as she saw the girl. She loved this young girl from the bottom of her heart. She glanced at her grandson as that thought crossed her mind. He was simply sitting nearby and watching them passively. Thus, she sighed helplessly in her heart.
• “I asked you to come back for two things. You can go wherever you want and do whatever you want once you complete them.” She held Summer’s hand while directing her gaze at Edward, who was sitting on the other end of the sofa.
• Edward was as stony-faced as usual even when facing his grandmother, saying in a gloomy voice, “I will stay if I’m a match.” In other words, he was not going to stay for even a second longer if he was not a donor match.
• “No.” Her expression became cold in response, and she spoke in a tone that allowed for no dissension.
• “Grandma, you ignored my wishes three years ago and insisted that I marry this woman. I acceded to your demands and married her, but at the same time, I told you that we will be a married couple in name only! Aside from that, we are strangers to each other! Yet, you keep trying to make me spend the rest of my life with this woman. Well, that is completely impossible because I will never touch her again!” More than that, I will never allow a scheming woman like her to bear my child! I fell for her tricks once, but I will never let myself be tricked by her again! While speaking, he swept a resentful glare at Summer.
• Summer’s body stiffened abruptly when she felt the man’s gaze on her. No! No! How can this be?! If he is not a donor match, then we must have another child! That’s the only way for Charles to survive! He must sleep with me!
• Charles Barnett was the son Summer and Edward had given birth to after spending one night together three years ago. He was Summer’s pride and joy; she loved him with all her heart. Unfortunately, the Gods did not deal the innocent and lovely child a good hand in life. From the time of his birth, he had been afflicted with liver disease. As such, he was constantly in pain. Despite that, he was a considerate child—he would console her instead every time he was in pain so that she would not worry about him.
• Although his name had always been on the liver transplant list, they received no updates about it despite how long they had been waiting. Just recently, he celebrated his third birthday when his condition deteriorated rapidly. The doctors announced that his condition would only get worse with time if they couldn’t find a suitable liver donor in time. If things were to continue as it was, it wouldn’t make a difference anymore even if they suddenly found a liver donor down the road. Therefore, she could only rely on Edward now!
• Sensing her panic, Rosie gently patted her hand as if to say: ‘Relax; I’m here for you.’
• “Edward, for the past four generations, our family has only had one son to continue the family lineage. Three years ago, you brought that woman with you away from Starcliff City the day after your wedding. Since then, you’ve turned away from both Summer and Charles. Does it not hurt your guilty conscience at all?! Charles is your son!” Rosie couldn’t stop her voice from getting louder and louder as she spoke.
• As a result, Sebastian, who was standing by the side, hurriedly leaned close to her ear and whispered, “Old Madam Barnett, the doctor has asked that you refrain from getting angry.”
• Similarly, Summer became worried and quickly tried to appease her anger. “Grandma, please don’t get angry. You need to watch your health.”
• In response, she waved them away dismissively, indicating that they didn’t need to worry so much. “It’s not as if you don’t know how serious Charles’ illness is.”
• When Summer heard those words, her heart ached even more painfully. I don’t know what I did in my past life that caused my baby to suffer so much in this life. If possible, I wish all that pain happened to me instead.
• “Edward, one month. It took you one whole month to come back. How can you be so cold-hearted? Remember this; even if you refuse to admit it, Charles is your son—not anybody else’s. Summer has been working herself to the bone because of Charles’ illness—so much so that she didn’t even have any time to rest and collapsed out of exhaustion. As a father, where were you all this time?!”
• “Grandma, I was very busy. Starcliff City.” Edward frowned deeply. His suffocatingly handsome face looked like it was covered in a layer of frost, exuding a coldness that seeped into one’s soul. His thin knife-like lips were tightly pressed together into a hard line, making one shudder in fear. I have never been scolded so fiercely by my grandmother before. Everything that happened today is all caused by this pretentious woman!
• “Busy? Were you busy accompanying that woman as she made plans to travel the world?” Rosie’s voice became several shades colder than before. Similarly, her gaze became sharper too. Up until now, she had been waiting for her grandson to ask about Charles’ condition of his own volition. However, it seemed like he honestly did not care for Charles or Summer at all. While thinking that, she couldn’t help feeling even more sorry for Summer.
• “The first thing you need to do is go to the hospital and check if you can be a match for Charles.”
• Upon hearing that, Edward lifted an eyebrow but did not express any objections.
• “The second thing you need to do is have another child with Summer,” she said with a stern expression. Scowling fiercely, she did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point.
• When he heard those words, his expression immediately darkened. He narrowed his black eyes and pursed his lips before yelling, “You want me to sleep with that woman again!? That’s impossible!”
• “I’m the one to decide whether it’s possible or not. Edward, you only need to give birth to a healthy child. After that, you can go wherever you want with whomever you want to. I won’t say another word about it.”
• “Grandma, I only need him to save Charlie,” Summer begged. She held Rosie’s hand tightly as tears filled her eyes. Charles is my everything. I can do anything for his sake. I can’t live without him!
• “Summer, I have my own considerations. We will know once we get the blood test done at the hospital tomorrow. In the worst-case scenario, you must have another child with Edward.” The Barnett Family must have a healthy successor to the family lineage!
• “Grandma—” Edward was just about to speak when Rosie interrupted him in displeasure. “I’m tired. I’m going to rest. You should rest earlier since you just came back today. Don’t forget; you will need to undergo all sorts of medical tests at the hospital tomorrow.”
• After saying that, Rosie got up and headed to her bedroom upstairs. With that, only Edward and Summer were left in the living room. Then, Edward narrowed his deep and slanted eyes slightly as he stared at Summer with an indifferent gaze that had darkened considerably. “This was your real goal, wasn't it?”