Her own son refused everyone except Maeve's husband, and her husband was at their beck and call.

Saying something like that right to Maeve's face was nothing short of a blatant boast.-

Maeve saw right through it, a cold smirk playing on her beautiful features.

"You say you shouldn't bother him, yet you never seem to hesitate when it suits you."

Zoe's face stiffened. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes, and her voice trembled with a choked sob.

"Maeve, I... I... Since Felix passed away, I've been a pregnant widow trying to raise a child on my own. I couldn't think of any better option than coming to Frederick. If you really don't want to see me, I'll take Charlie and leave right now."

Tears streamed down Zoe's face. Wiping her eyes, she reached out to pull Charlie away from Frederick, speaking with a heavy, nasal voice.

"Frederick, let me have Charlie."

Frederick scooped Charlie up with one arm, while his other hand caught Zoe's wrist, pulling her protectively behind him. He spoke in a gentle tone.

"Zoe, this isn't your fault."

He then turned to look at Maeve, his eyes turning bone-chillingly cold.

"Maeve, Zoe just felt bad that I had to come take care of Charlie while you were sick. She came all the way here specifically to apologize to you. Being this aggressive... where is your grace? Can you be reasonable for once?"

Pierced by his glare, Maeve felt her blood turn to ice. She tensed her body and fired back.

"She stole my husband, and you expect me to apologize? To greet her with a smile?"

At this point, her body was pulled taut like a bowstring. By the final sentence, she was practically screaming.

"I am his wife, yes, but I am not some patron saint obligated to grant her every wish and cater to her every whim!"

"Maeve, that's enough!" Frederick's pupils contracted sharply as he roared at her.

"Are you blind to the fact that there's a child in the room? Can you watch your tone?"

Maeve flinched violently at his shout. Once the raw anger passed, a crushing wave of grievance flooded her heart. Her chest felt so tight she could barely breathe, rising and falling rapidly.

"You two can act however you want, but I'm not allowed to call it out?"

"You—" Frederick started to speak again, but Zoe quickly grabbed his hand.

"Frederick, please don't fight with Maeve because of me."

Zoe looked at Maeve, tears falling freely now as she waved her hands in a panicked explanation.

"Maeve, Maeve, you've misunderstood. Frederick only helps me because he pities me. There's nothing going on between us, please don't overthink this."

As she cried, Charlie began to cry too.

The sound of their sobbing filled the hospital room, making the atmosphere increasingly suffocating.

Frederick held Charlie, gently coaxing Zoe as he guided them toward the door.

At the threshold, he suddenly stopped and turned back to look at Maeve, his eyes filled with undeniable disappointment.

"Maeve, I always thought you were a kind person. But I never imagined that, as a woman, you could make things so difficult for Zoe. Maybe I've been too fenient with you all these years and spoiled you. If you don't fix your temper, I really..."

He didn't finish the thought. With a heavy sigh, he tightened his hold on Charlie, wrapped an arm around Zoe, and walked away.

Maeve stared at their retreating backs, her fingers gripping the edge of the bed so tightly her knuckles ached as she desperately tried to breathe.

"Ma'am," Martha said cautiously from the side.

"Are you okay?"

Maeve forced her lips into a pale, hollow smile.

"You saw it all, didn't you, Martha? He's this biased toward her. What's the point of telling him anything anymore?"

Martha looked at her with pity. She opened her mouth, hesitated for a long time, and finally found the words to comfort her.

"Ma'am, to marry you, Mr. Fairchild stood stubbornly in the freezing rain outside the family estate for three. days and nights. He definitely loves ou. Taking care of Zoe is just out of pity. Please don't let her drive a wedge between you two." -

Hearing this, Maeve's expression drifted into a momentary daze.

Back then, in order to marry a girl from an ordinary background like: her, Frederick hadn't just stood in the rain; he had personally drafted an ironclad prenup and signed it right in front of her parents.

It stated that if he ever betrayed her, he would walk away with absolutely nothing.

She never thought the day would come when she'd actually have to use that agreement.

But now...