FreeNovelChapter 197 Help Me Keep Up The Act
“Dr. Ginger’s suggestion,” Deirdre replied flatly. She let the coat hang on her shoulders. “He said a
shut–in lifestyle wouldn’t help my recovery either, so he told me to go outside and immerse myself in
the elements for a bit.”
1 don’t think your sorry excuse of an outdoor getup was part of the suggestion, was it? How will you
see Ophelia if you catch a cold?”
There was a plop as her gardening shears fell to the ground. Deirdre looked at Brendan in disbelief, her
tool forgotten, her lifeless eyes quivering in their sockets. “What did you say?”
Her voice was trembling.
1 said…” Brendan repeated himself with emphatic enunciation. “Ophelia is ready to return. She’ll be
with us in ten days.
This meant more than the world to her. Her eyes reddened instantly, and she clawed at Brendan’s
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtcollar- despite already suppressing most of her violent excitement–and blabbered, “D–Don’t you dare
do this to me. Brendan! Don’t! Don’t g–give me hope…”
Brendan fixed a strangely unyielding stare on her. “I have no reason to lie.”
She felt euphoria. Pure, unadulterated, and blinding–like a supernova lighting Deirdre up from within.
She was so alive. So enraptured.
Suddenly, Brendan found himself wishing that his lie would last forever.
“She wasn’t ready to step outside because she was undergoing treatment in the institution, but now,
her condition is stable enough. She no longer regresses to being a child.”
“Really?” Deirdre was grinning in relief. She rubbed her cheeks, and a shadow of anxiety took over her
face. “No, wait! But what about my face? She’s gonna go into shock if she sees me!”
“I’ve told her about it already. She thought it was a burning accident, and ultimately, she didn’t care.”
“Thank God! Oh, thank God…” Deirdre muttered to herself under her breath. Her voice gradually
turned into a soft murmur. “I can’t let her worry again. I shouldn’t make her worry at all! I need to show
her that I’m living the best life I could ever have. She needs to think I’m happy… because it’s the only
way to make her happy.”
Brendan silently watched her murmur to herself. His eyes were grim, as the illusions Deirdre told
herself to create and maintain weighed down on his chest. For some reason, he felt agony just hearing
about them.
“You fret too much. She doesn’t know what’s happened to you at all,” he replied. “As far as she knows,
you’re still Mrs. Brighthall. What’s there to be worried about?”
“You’re right.” Deirdre breathed, lowering her head as her fingers unthinkingly caressed her damaged
cheeks. She raised her head, as though she had resurfaced from an unfathomable thought, and smiled
faintly. The fact that she knows about none of the things that have happened is a godsend. She’s sick,
Brendan. I can’t let her undergo the pain of knowing what went down while she was being treated. She
will be so… devastated…”
“Are you done licking your wounds?” Brendan suddenly snapped, frowning. “Who cares if your face is a
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmlittle scarred? I don’t give a damn! And neither does she–because that’s just what mothers are like!”
Deirdre looked up at his face, but he could not read those lifeless eyes or see her thoughts in them.
Then, just as abruptly, she hung her head.
“Can you… do me a favor?” she asked softly, changing the subject.
Brendan saw her smile withering away and–unexpectedly–reached out to graze her lips. Confused,
Deirdre raised her head as he finally registered his own action.
Still, he did not take his hand away. Instead, he remarked coldly, “Can you not act all woe–is–me when
you’re asking for help? It really ruins the mood. At least try to smile more often! Ophelia is coming to
see you. Isn’t that a cause for celebration?”
The man’s tone might be icy, but his fingers were warm. Deidre forced the corners of her lips to curve
upward, but her effort produced something quite grotesque. “I was hoping… you could help me keep
up the act while she’s with us. Is that… feasible?” she asked as she stared at him with unseeing eyes.
“She’s very sensitive, you see. It’s probably because she has gone through a lot. She might sense the
truth behind our relationship if we don’t try.”
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