?Chapter 2944:


    She no longer had the strength left in her to argue with him. In that moment, she truly did not wish to face him any longer.


    She turned away from him in a sudden, decisive motion.


    “Hadley!”


    Anxious, Eric stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her tightly into his embrace from behind.


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    “Hadley, don’t go,” he pleaded softly.


    Hadley froze, her eyes widening as she stared rigidly into the distance. “Release me. Now.”


    Eric gave no reply. Instead, he nestled his head against her shoulder, his cheek brushing intimately against her neck. His voice came out low and muffled, yet tinged with certainty. “I can tell you still have feelings for me—I know it. Otherwise, you never would have been so anxious and desperate about me just now.”


    “I still have feelings for you?” Hadley curved her lips in a faint smile, her tone unnervingly calm. “You’re overthinking. To me, you’re just family now…”


    “No… that’s not true…” Eric shook his head stubbornly, his grip around her tightening. “You treat me differently than you treat Ernest.”


    Though his tone was soft, it carried unwavering certainty. “You might not recall, but I remember clearly how you looked when Ernest had his ident.”


    That year, Ernest was gravely injured and fell into a deepa—the doctors themselves had dered it hopeless.


    Hadley had been sad back then, yes, but nothing like the way she looked earlier—so emotional, so shaken, so utterly out of control!


    Normallyposed and gentle, she had even gone so far as to use the doctors of not doing their jobs well just now!


    “You like me,” Eric murmured again, repeating himself. “I know it’s true… Hadley.”


    While repeating her name, Eric’s arms slid lower to encircle her waist as he turned her around to face him.


    What on earth was he doing?


    Hadley’s expression stiffened, her pupils contracting as her hands instinctively rose to push against his chest.


    “Don’t deny it, alright?” Eric’s handsome features were blurred in the soft light, unreadable. “Just give me a nod,” he pressed, “and we can be together. You won’t have to suffer Ellis’s torment any longer.”


    “What?”


    Hearing those words, Hadley was utterly stunned. Her eyes flew wide. “You… You…”


    “Why am I saying this, you wonder?” Eric went on calmly. “Or perhaps… have I discovered something?”


    He tilted his head with anguid nod, azy smile tugging at his lips, as if he already held victory in his grasp.


    “That’s right,” he confirmed without hesitation, his tone dripping with self-assuredness. “I already know everything.”


    He didn’t even try to conceal it. “Colleen told me.”


    Hadley’s mouth fell open, her shock rendering her speechless.


    So that was the truth! She had only just confided in Colleen not long ago, sharing secrets she had never told anyone else.


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