?Chapter 623:


    After securing her shoulder with a firm yet careful bandage, the doctor offered a reassuring nod and gently instructed them on follow-up care. “It’s nothing serious. Just avoid any strenuous activity for the next week and maintain a bnced diet.”


    With that, the medical team finalized their prescriptions, carefully…


    Exining the dosage and timing before dering her fit for discharge, the doctor wrapped up the conversation. While Eric’s subordinate handled the paperwork, Eric focused entirely on Hadley, carrying her out of the hospital and straight to the car.


    She kept her eyes shut the entire time. The weight of the misunderstanding pressed heavily on her, making it impossible to look at him.


    She had been so certain—so prepared for an inevitable conclusion. The baby, she had thought, would be the end of their entanglement.


    A clean break.


    Even though she had chosen to return to him for Elissa’s sake, this situation now felt entirely different—far moreplicated, far more uncertain.


    Now, without the pregnancy, their connection remained open-ended.


    Unresolved.


    And she wasn’t ready for that—not physically, not mentally.


    Eric, however, mistook her silence for awkwardness. Reaching out, he brushed his fingers gently against her cheek, his touch warm and grounding.


    “Hadley, do you know something?” His voice was softer than she expected, almost… pleased. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this…”


    Happy?


    Hadley’s eyes fluttered open, confusion flickering in them.


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    Happy?


    For a moment, she wondered if she had misheard. What could he possibly be happy about?


    Yet as she met his gaze, she saw it—joy, pure and unguarded, lighting up his features. He wasn’t lying.


    But why?


    Eric reached for a stray lock of her hair, tucking it gently behind her ear before his fingers lingered, tracing down to her jaw. His expression was unreadable, yet undeniably warm.


    “Even if the pregnancy wasn’t real,” he murmured, his voiceced with something deep, something almost tender. “Your intention was.”


    He held her gaze, unwavering. “You wanted to have my child, didn’t you?”


    Hadley parted her lips as if to speak, but no words came.


    Of course, he didn’t need her to say it aloud. The truth was already there, in and undeniable.


    Without hesitation, Eric leaned in, wrapping her in his arms. “Hadley,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”


    Pregnancy wasn’t just a fleeting decision; it was a monumental journey, a sacrifice.


    The toll on a woman’s body was immense—not just the strain of carrying a child for months, but the risks, theplications, the sheer ordeal of childbirth.


    And even after that, there were thesting changes, the struggles with recovery, postpartum depression, and everything else that came with it.


    His lips brushed against her ear as he murmured, “I can’t even begin to imagine the weight of what you were prepared to endure—for me, for us.”


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