Chapter 5 Turning Against Each Other

"Eleanor!" Harold was so angry that the veins on his temples were bulging.

Compared to his furious expression, Eleanor's face remained calm. She didn't plan to tell Harold about her stomach condition flaring up.

He probably didn't care about these things anyway.

After all, ever since Lavinia came back, the two of them had been inseparable. Even when they went to the concert, Harold and Jessica had hidden it from Eleanor.

Thinking about what Jessica had said at the kindergarten, Eleanor could still feel that suffocating pain in her chest.

Harold's eyes were dark and menacing, his tone sharp and bitter: "What, is your relationship so shady that you don't even dare to talk about it?"

Eleanor responded coldly: "Just an ordinary friend."

Thinking about their thoroughly rotten marriage, she didn't want to drag innocent people into it. Besides, Terrence had saved her, and she would even need to work under him from now on.

Harold let out a cold laugh. How could he possibly believe that!

Lavinia stepped forward and gently tugged at Harold's sleeve. "Harold, don't be angry. Maybe it's really as Eleanor says, just ordinary friends. After all, that gentleman was kind enough to bring Eleanor home so late at night, it should be nothing..."

On the surface, these words seemed to explain for Eleanor, but actually implied that Eleanor might be having an affair.

Harold's expression grew even colder.

A flash of triumph crossed Lavinia's eyes. She looked up at Eleanor and said softly, "Eleanor, don't overthink it. Harold doesn't mean anything by it. He's just worried about your safety. Men outside the family are different after all—who knows what they're thinking."

Lavinia was subtly putting down Terrence.

"Shut up!" Eleanor snapped, interrupting her, anger rippling in her cool eyes.

Lavinia's body trembled, her expression full of grievance.

Harold's sharp gaze cut toward Eleanor. "Why are you yelling at Lavinia?"

"Who told her to butt in?" Eleanor's face was full of mockery.

Harold released Eleanor's hand and used his body to shield Lavinia behind him, glaring coldly at Eleanor and barking: "Apologize to Lavinia right now!"

"In your dreams." Eleanor's lips curved as she spat out those brief words.

Clearly it was Lavinia deliberately stirring things up, but Harold couldn't see through it.

Or rather, he simply didn't want to see through it. He was willing to be trapped in Lavinia's gentle embrace, because in his eyes and heart, Lavinia was just better than Eleanor!

Eleanor clenched her fists, infinite desolation rising in her heart.

"Harold, don't fight with Eleanor because of me. I'll feel terrible." Lavinia coaxed him softly, then turned her head and added fuel to the fire: "Since Eleanor won't accept my kindness and insists on protecting that man, I just won't say anything bad about him."

Hearing this, Harold's eyes practically shot flames.

Eleanor was about to lose her temper. "You—"

A curse word was right on the tip of her tongue.

Jessica, who had been silent all along, suddenly rushed forward.

"Bad mommy, I hate you!" Jessica's little face was full of anger. "Why do you always target Lavinia? Lavinia even spoke up for you in front of daddy. How can you be so bad?"

"I hate bad mommy, I hate you!"

"Why don't you just disappear? I don't want to be the daughter of a bad mommy like you!" After Jessica finished yelling, she angrily reached out and pushed Eleanor.

Caught off guard, Eleanor stumbled back several steps, her feet slipped, and she fell heavily to the ground.

Eleanor looked up.

Three people stood before her—her husband Harold, her daughter Jessica. Both figures, one large and one small, showed disgust and anger in their eyes. Both were protectively shielding Lavinia behind them!

As if she were some kind of enemy.

Her palm was scraped by the gravel on the ground, but Eleanor didn't feel the pain, because her heart had already gone numb from the pain.

Jessica is the daughter I carried for ten months and gave birth to, yet she's attacking me because of Lavinia.

How ridiculous!

Seeing Eleanor fall, panic flashed in Jessica's eyes. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something.

But thinking about what Eleanor had done.

Jessica turned her head away, no longer looking at her, even muttering quietly.

"Serves you right."

Eleanor heard it, and her heart turned cold.

It wasn't even winter, but at this moment, she felt as if she were in an ice cellar, her heart completely frozen.

Lavinia pulled Jessica over, crouched down in front of her, and said gently: "Jessica, you can't talk to Eleanor like that."

"She's not my mommy. She's too bad. I don't want such a bad mommy as my mother!" Jessica retorted. "Lavinia, you're always so gentle and kind. You should be my mommy. Will you be my mommy?"

Jessica threw herself into Lavinia's arms, hugging her tightly.

"Jessica." Harold's voice deepened slightly.

Lavinia quickly spoke up to protect her: "Harold, don't blame Jessica. She's just being straightforward."

After speaking, she glanced at Eleanor's pale face and silently mouthed something to Eleanor.

'You lost'!

Eleanor caught what she was saying and looked expressionlessly at Jessica, who was nestled in Lavinia's arms making faces at her.

"Since you hate me so much..."

She had just started speaking when Harold interrupted her.

"Jessica didn't mean it. Why do you have to make such a big deal of it?" Harold frowned. Jessica's words were indeed a bit harsh, but it was Eleanor who was wrong in the first place.

Hearing this, Eleanor suddenly laughed.

Didn't mean it?

Was he deceiving himself, or did he take her for a complete fool?

Right.

It was because she had once humbled herself to the lowest point in front of them that Harold and Jessica treated her with such disregard, not even seeing her as human!

Eleanor's stomach began to ache with fine, sharp pains, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

She forced down the pain, gritting her teeth as she climbed up from the ground.

Seeing her get up, Harold felt inexplicably relieved.

Harold pressed his thin lips together, his tone accusatory: "Actually, you have yourself to blame. You're a married woman—when socializing with the opposite sex outside, you should be careful about boundaries. Don't do anything that damages the Hernandez family's reputation."

"Mr. Hernandez, you should save those words for yourself." Eleanor sneered as she threw the words back at him.

Who's really more shameless here?

He's lovey-dovey with Lavinia every day—what right does he have to criticize his wife's normal social relationships?

How can he be so shameless?

"Eleanor!" Harold ground his teeth.

But Eleanor didn't want to get tangled up with them anymore. She was tired, her heart completely broken. She directly said those words: "Harold, let's get divorced."

Since there's no place for me in this family, since Harold and Jessica only have Lavinia in their hearts, I'll voluntarily step aside.

Hearing this, Harold's pupils contracted and his voice suddenly shot up.

"What did you say?"

Meeting his shocked and angry eyes, Eleanor looked at him as if he were a stranger, repeating word by word: "I said divorce!"

Hearing Eleanor's clear repetition, Harold's expression froze.

How dare she bring up divorce?

Before he could say anything more, Jessica suddenly cheered.

"Yay! Bad mommy finally won't be my mommy anymore! That's great!" Jessica looked delighted, quickly pulling at Harold's hand and eagerly urging: "Daddy, say yes, hurry up and divorce bad mommy!"