Forbidden Passion
Chapter 599 Vanessa Came to Show off

Theodore was totally wrecked. He kissed the top of Phoebe's head and croaked, "I lied. I've never seen anyone else's body. Just yours."

"Great. Now you can check out someone else's. Bet you won't miss my busted body anymore," Phoebe shot back.

Back then, Theodore was all about her looks. Now that there was nothing left to drool over, he should just let her go, right?

Thinking about it, Phoebe felt a weird sense of relief.

She had thrown away her pride, sticking by Theodore like a lost puppy, forgiving him over and over for all the crap he put her through. She knew it was just self-destruction, but she couldn't walk away. Phoebe clung to a tiny hope, thinking Theodore might care a bit. But reality slapped her hard.

When it came down to life or death, he chose Vanessa.

Now, Phoebe didn't have to guess his feelings anymore. She was like a gambler who finally lost it all.

But she wasn't sad; she felt only relief.

Theodore shut his eyes, hiding the deep pain. This was all on him, and he deserved every bit of it.

"Phoebe, I love you. Only you. Please don't push me away, okay?" Theodore begged.

Phoebe stared at the stormy sky outside, her heart cold. "Mr. Reynolds, your love is worthless. Let me go. I have nothing you want anymore." Theodore's fingers clenched and unclenched before he barely calmed down. He couldn't let Phoebe's words mess him up and ruin everything. He couldn't let go because he couldn't stand the thought of never seeing her again.

Theodore was quiet for a few seconds before saying firmly, "No!"

Phoebe's eyelashes fluttered, anger flashing in her eyes. She wished she had smashed Theodore's head instead of the mirror earlier.

Theodore had pushed her to the edge. Why wouldn't he let her go?

But Phoebe knew how stubborn Theodore was. If he said no, no matter how much she fought, nothing would change.

Since Theodore never cared about her feelings, there was no point in talking more.

Theodore gently picked Phoebe up and placed her back on the hospital bed. He signaled to the nurse, who quickly cleaned up the broken mirror pieces in the bathroom.

The nurse finished up and left, leaving just Theodore and Phoebe in the room.

Theodore opened the thermos, scooped out some porridge, and blew on it to cool it down before bringing it to Phoebe's mouth. "Have a bite."

Phoebe reached out and knocked the spoon away, spilling the porridge on Theodore's clothes.

The room went dead silent.

Theodore didn't get mad or care about the porridge on his clothes. He put the bowl on the bedside table, washed the spoon in the bathroom, and then sat back down by the bed, scooping another spoonful of porridge and bringing it to her mouth.

Phoebe turned her head away, refusing to eat.

Theodore's brown eyes were filled with suppressed pain and helplessness. His lips pressed into a straight line. "I know you're hurting. If you don't want me to feed you, can you eat by yourself?" Phoebe stayed still, sitting there like a lifeless puppet.

Theodore's patience hit rock bottom. He grabbed Phoebe's chin, turning her face to him. "You want me to feed you mouth-to-mouth?" he growled.

Phoebe's eyes flickered with shock and disgust. After a beat, she snatched the bowl and spoon from Theodore and started shoveling the porridge down.

Meanwhile, Vanessa's plan to fake insanity had bombed. She knew Theodore wouldn't come running back. She'd lost him for good.

But Vanessa wasn't about to roll over.

Her plan had been airtight, and Theodore had chosen her first, which should've crushed Phoebe.

So why wouldn't Theodore even glance her way?

The hospital room door knocked, and Vanessa's eyes lit up with hope. But when she saw who walked in, disappointment clouded her face.

Madison strolled in with a bouquet. Seeing Vanessa's face, she quipped, "I know I'm not Theodore, and you're bummed, but ouch, showing it that clearly stings." Vanessa forced a smile. "Sorry, didn't mean it like that."

"It's cool. Got some news for you. Phoebe's filed for divorce from Theodore," Madison said, catching the gleam in Vanessa's eyes. "But, bummer, Theodore said no." Vanessa's brief joy turned to rage. "Why'd he refuse?"

"Beats me. He saved you first, so he must still have a thing for you. But since then, he hasn't visited you once. Weird, right?" Madison placed the flowers on the table.

Madison wasn't just Vanessa's lackey. Afterthe Reynolds family found she wasn't a Reynolds, Vanessa had schooled her on how to win over Brandon and Taylor, and it worked like a charm.

Now, even if Grace came back, Madison was still the Reynolds family's darling, more loved than Grace.

Vanessa was stumped. "Maybe he feels guilty for not saving Phoebe first, so he's avoiding me."

Madison plopped down by the bed. "Honestly, Phoebe's way worse off than you. Her back's a mess, she was in the ICU for days, almost died."

Madison's tone was more smug than sympathetic.

Madison had always hated Phoebe for spilling Grace's secrets to Taylor, making things awkward for her. If she hadn't found a way to win their hearts, she'd have been booted from the Reynolds family ages ago. Vanessa's eyes narrowed. "Which room is she in? I wanna see her."

Madison replied, "Vanessa, you're too nice. If it weren't for her, Sophia wouldn't have died of heart failure. If it were me, I'd let her rot. She's just in the way of you and Theodore getting back together." Vanessa put on a sorrowful face. "I don't blame her. We're all victims here. Come on, take me to her."

Madison sighed but wheeled Vanessa to Phoebe's floor.

They got lucky. Theodore had just left, and the nurse was gone. They slipped into Phoebe's room.

Phoebe was sitting on the bed, staring at the gloomy sky.

Hearing the wheelchair, Phoebe's fingers twitched. She slowly turned and locked eyes with Vanessa's smug grin.

Vanessa came to show off to her.