Chapter 20

Ryan approached the mother and daughter, standing before them. Yet, Silvia decided to look away and ignore the man entirely.

Having been ignored, Ryan had no choice but to turn to Autumn instead, bending down as he asked, "I heard you were sick. How are you feeling now?"

The little one hid behind her mother shyly when she heard him expressing concern towards her. She nodded gently, replying, "I feel better now. I took my medicine every day."

"Good," Ryan continued. "Didn't I promise to take you to Disneyland a while ago? Papa has some free time now, so how about we take a little vacation for a few days?"

Autumn's eyes instantly lit up like the beautiful night sky, just like how her mother once used to smile, turning into adorable little crescents.

For a moment, Ryan was slightly dazed as he continued staring into those eyes.

Yet, the little girl's initial excitement was soon replaced with doubt. "You're not lying to me, are you Papa?"

He had never played with her throughout her entire life, so it was only natural for her to be suspicious of him.

On the other hand, Silvia couldn't remain silent any longer. She sounded displeased as she interrupted their conversation. "When did you promise to take her to Disneyland?"

He had hardly ever spent time with her, despite their daughter already being three years old. Sometimes, they would go to the playground together, only for him to leave the moment he received a call from work.

At first, Silvia truly did believe that he was a busy man. Now that she thought about it, he was most likely deliberately trying to find an excuse to leave them as he didn't really want to accompany them.

She thought to herself, 'We're getting a divorce soon, and here he is, trying to take Autumn to Disneyland?'

'Even if he wants to salvage his image in his daughter's heart, he doesn't have to go to such extremes, right?'

Knowing that he had no experience with children, she realized she would have to follow them on the trip for her daughter's sake. However, she didn't want to see this man at all, let alone travel with him.

Facing her aggressive questioning, Ryan huffed, "I had no choice. You didn't come home that night, and she just wouldn't stop crying. I had to calm her down somehow."

Silvia was speechless for a moment. Although her daughter was well-behaved, she was still a child at the end of the day. She knew just how torturous a child's tantrum could be, so she had nothing against Ryan using Disneyland as a means of comfort.

However, she managed to come up with a great reason to reject his offer. "She just recovered from gastroenteritis, so she shouldn't travel around so hastily. It's best if you cancel the trip."

"Mama! Mama!"

The moment Silvia replied, the little girl next to her whined in protest, puffing up her cheeks in dissatisfaction. Yet Silvia responded with mere silence.

"It's no rush, we can wait for her to recover fully."

For some reason, Ryan was still amiable despite her refusal to join. Silvia felt like he was intentionally trying to anger her.

Refusing to pay any more attention to him, Silvia decided it was high time she left. "Is there anything else you'd like to say? If not, do excuse us. We have to get groceries."

"Hmph!"

The little one huffed out loud as she realized her trip to Disneyland was about to be canceled, taking her anger out on the flowers nearby. With her arms crossed, she glared at the grass beneath her feet, pouting her lips as well.

Silvia was furious seeing her child like this, her expression darkened. "Autumn!"

Considering Autumn had just recovered from her sickness, Silvia normally would’ve given in to her if this was any other matter. However, the trip to Disneyland was something she simply resented, as she would have to interact with Ryan if she went.

'I'd rather she throw a tantrum over anything else but this!'

'We're going to get a divorce anyway! What is he thinking? Does he really think it's appropriate for us to take Autumn to Disneyland now, of all times?'

A certain someone seemed to be shameless enough to play the good guy this time round. As Ryan carried Autumn into his arms, he managed to successfully calm her down with just one sentence.

Silvia was even more enraged, even though the little girl stopped throwing a fit.

That was because of the sentence he used to console the little one. He said, "She doesn't have a say in this."

Silvia was so angry that she was starting to laugh. 'Yeah! I really don't, do I?'

He had always acted as if he was better than everyone else and never respected her once, even when she was his wife. He viewed her as a mere accessory; especially since she never tried expressing her opinions to him during their entire marriage.

'Apart from Ophelia, I guess the only other person who had a say in his life is none other than Mariah Sommers!'

Not wishing to continue this any longer, she turned to look at her daughter, who was still in his arms. Her tone sounded extremely chilling. "Autumn, Aunt Rosa’s coming home soon. She has an early shift today, remember? We have to get groceries and cook dinner soon, so do you really want to stay here?"

Before the little girl could respond, Ryan spoke up for her instead. "Why are you lashing out on her?"

This made Silvia even more enraged, yelling back at him. "When have I ever lashed out on her? Did you see me doing that?"

The man raised an eyebrow and questioned. "Why do you look so stern? What's with your expression?"

Moreover, it was obvious from her tone that she was threatening Autumn to leave with her.

Silvia scoffed. "I thought the renowned Mr. Pierce could read body language well, especially when you had been in the business field for so long. Alas, how disappointing."

Hearing this, Ryan's expression turned cold, realizing that she was indirectly insulting him.

His complaint regarding her temper made her insult his ability to read the room, indicating that she wasn't furious with her daughter at all. In fact, she was merely angry because of him, and him alone.

'This woman… Her sharp tongue’s getting on my nerves!'

Ryan felt that she had completely changed ever since she announced their divorce that night.

Back then, he would consider her as a capable wife. Now, in his point of view, she was close to becoming a madwoman.

Holding their daughter tightly, Ryan gritted his teeth. "Mom misses her, so I'm taking Autumn to have dinner with her tonight."

Ryan wasn't quite lying, since Ophelia did ask him to bring Autumn to have dinner together some time.

Silvia was actually quite close with Ophelia, and she knew how much the latter loved Autumn. It was only natural she would miss the little one after having been separated for a few days.

Silvia actually got along with the Pierce family well; with the sole exception of Ryan.

In fact, it wasn't that she had a bad relationship with Ryan. Rather, their relationship was utterly bland. Neither of them could experience the joy of marriage with how peacefully they interacted with each other, let alone the blessings that stem from love.

Some would say that marriage was supposed to feel this way, that it was similar to the calm and gentle flow of a river. However, they had to admit that there wasn't even a flow in their marriage; it was simply stagnant water.

Hearing Ophelia's wishes to see Autumn, Silvia didn't protest any further. Her mother-in-law did genuinely love her daughter with her whole heart, and they were especially close with each other.

When Autumn was born, Ophelia was the one who helped Silvia when she was extremely flustered, considering that she was a first-time parent after all.

Besides that, Ophelia must be feeling extremely unhappy about her divorce despite her calm front.

'Maybe seeing Autumn could cheer her up.'

Hence, Silvia decided to put her negative emotions aside, and advised her daughter one last time before they left.