L handed Kieran the ss of water. "The wound is deep and needs time to heal. The doctor said you''ll need to stay in the hospital for a few days."


    She exined the situation. "Let Mr. Mason handle anything urgent at thepany for now."


    "What did the police say about James?" Kieran''s voice wasn''t as hoarse after drinking the ss.


    L met his gaze. "There''s evidence that he murdered my parents. On top of that, he''s been charged with intentional harm and other crimes. He''s been sentenced to death."


    Kieran nodded, not asking further questions.


    When Cole returned, he saw L quietly peeling an apple. She carefully sliced it into pieces and ced them in a container.


    Kieran was sitting on the hospital bed, his face still pale, carrying a sickly beauty that softened his usual imposing demeanor.


    His gaze never left L.


    "Eat quickly, or it''ll go bad," she said, her voice breaking his train of thought.


    He snapped back to reality, picked up the small fork, and ate a few pieces.


    "We..."


    "I..."


    They spoke at the same time.


    "You first," they said again in unison.


    Cole quietly slipped out of the room.


    Standing outside the door, he could faintly hear the voicesing from inside.


    This time, L spoke first. "You go ahead."


    Kieran asked, "Can we not divorce?"


    He was usually decisive andmanding. But his tone softened at the question.


    L looked at him, thinking she must be imagining the pleading in his voice.


    Outside, Cole let out a soft sigh. What a twist of fate.


    L hadn''t expected him to bring that up.


    She had assumed he would try to persuade her not to resent the


    Morgan family, that their failure


    save her parents was one of


    Jasmine''s regrets.  fo


    Over the years, Jasmine had done her best to make amends, treating L as her child. Even Bryce had been uncharacteristically kind to her.


    And then there were Nicole, Amelie, and Frances, who had been nothing but kind to her.


    Given the Morgan family''s power, they could have ignored her entirely. If they had, she might never have lived to see the truth revealed today.


    Although she hadn''t been out muchtely, she was aware of the turmoil within Morgan Group. One misstep and thepany coulde crashing down.


    But putting all that aside, as for her and Kieran...


    She paused. "Do you want to keep me around because you feel guilty and want to make it up to me?"


    Kieran looked her in the eye. "No."


    L didn''t understand. After a moment of silence, she asked, "So, you don''t want to marry Ruby?"


    She noticed a strange mix of surprise, confusion, and disbelief in Kieran''s eyes. His expression mirrored his emotions.


    "Why would I want to marry Ruby?" he asked.


    L was equally puzzled. "Don''t you like her?"


    Kieran was silent for a moment. "What gave you that idea?"


    The leader of Morgan Group was perplexed. Where had things gone wrong?


    L was also confused. Setting aside Kieran''s attitude toward Ruby, there was the conversation she overheard during that event.


    She pursed her lips. "That day, I


    heard you talking. Ruby said sheet


    wanted


    Pto marry someone shedoves


    and didn''t want to have a political marriage with your brother


    Kieran looked at her. What she said was true. Ruby had indeed made that statement.


    He didn''t need to attend the event but wanted to see her. Knowing she would bring Noah along only added to hisplicated feelings.


    At the back of the venue, Ruby had stopped him to have that conversation.


    "You agreed to let her marry the person she loves. Doesn''t that mean you were nning to marry her?" L asked her tone growing more baffled as she noticed his calm expression.


    Kieran didn''t know how to react to her words. "She doesn''t like Bryce and doesn''t


    want to marry him. And she likes Noah, not me."