Vicky understood Lincolnâs message clearly. Her movements were confined to this room, and if he
suspected she tried to
escape, she would end up tightly bound.
It did not take long before someone knocked on the roomâs door, and Miranda entered with a tray of
food.
âMister Hart, this is the meal you requested for Ms. Shaw,â she said.
Lincoln took the tray. âYes, you can go now,â he replied, his eyes briefly glancing at Vicky.
Vicky made no attempts to shout or question Miranda, and she did not lose her temper either. After all,
doing any of that
would not change anything.
Lincoln approached Vicky with the tray. âYou must be hungry after going a day without food,â he
remarked, lifting the
utensils as if he intended to feed her.
Vicky instinctively avoided his hand. âI can manage on my own.â
Lincoln did not push further and handed her the tray.
The food was plentiful and clearly well-prepared.
Vicky did not have much of an appetite, but under Lincolnâs watchful eye, she picked up her spoon and
slowly finished the
meal.
There were leftovers, but it was not much.
Lincoln raised an eyebrow with a sly smile. âWhy are you so cooperative? Arenât you afraid I might put
something in the
food to harm your child?â
Vicky set down her spoon and replied calmly, âIâm not afraid of that at all.â
âIs that so?â Lincoln seemed somewhat surprised. âYou seem to have a lot of trust in me, huh?â
âIf you wanted to harm the child, you couldâve done so when I was unconscious. Besides, if this child
were gone by the
time Tyler found me, youâd lose a significant bargaining chip. It wouldnât be worth it,â Vicky said.
Lincoln feigned helplessness. âSometimes, itâs not necessarily a good thing when a woman is too
smart.â
Vicky remained silent.
Lincoln appeared to be in a good mood and engaged in a casual conversation with her in a low,
seductive tone. âI heard
about what happened at the wedding. After that incident, you mustâve given up on him. Vicky, if he
never finds you, will
you be willing to be with me? You can trust me; I will treat this child as my own.â
Vicky chuckled coldly. âAnd if I said Iâm not interested, would you respect my choice?â
Lincoln chuckled softly. âI know it might be hard for you to accept me right away, but thereâs plenty of
time in the future. Iâm
more than willing to start as friends and pursue you. Just like howâ¦Tyler is treating you now, or even
better.â
Since Vicky became pregnant, Tyler had indeed been exceptionally attentive. It was partly because of
the child and partly
because he had always been determined to win Vicky over.
Tylerâs thinking was simple: time was on their side. It did not matter if it took a month, two months, a
year, or even ten
years; he had the patience to win over her slowly.
They already had a child together, so he no longer needed to rush or use extreme methods. In any
case, Vicky was his.
As long as that remained true, he did not mind investing more effort and time in pursuing her, and he
would not be
impatient again.
Lincolnâs words did not stir any emotions in Vicky, as she knew his talk of being together and treating
her child as his own
was all a facade. He merely wanted to keep her with him to use her as leverage against Tyler. Making
her have this child
was just a way to control her and coerce her into doing his bidding.
Lincoln was an ambitious man who would not settle for mediocrity.
Indeed, he was quite the cunning strategist.