Chapter 6
Both of their faces were filled with worry and urgency for Melody.
They didn’t care about Gabriella’s condition as blood was being drawn from her. Conversely, they kept urging the nurse to take more.
Already weak and injured, Gabriella finally couldn’t take it anymore and passed out.
When she came to, Alex and Lucas were surprisingly by her bedside. Seeing her awake, their usually cold gazes held a trace of something more complicated.
After a long pause, Alex was the first to speak.
“I had no idea you were anemic. Why didn’t you say anything?”
Gabriella let out a bitter smile.
They had dragged her in to give blood without even giving her a chance to explain.
And even if she had…
“If I had told you, would you have let me refuse?”
Silence fell over the room. Alex didn’t answer, but the truth was obvious–no, they wouldn’t have.
Just like when they forced her to donate her blood earlier. Her wounds hadn’t even healed yet, and the doctor had warned them she wasn’t in any condition to give blood. How had they responded then?
“It was my fault this time. Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you,” Alex said, his usually detached voice finally carrying a hint of guilt and no longer as curt as before. Gabriella closed her eyes and replied hoarsely, “What I wanted most… I already have.”
Alex coughed lightly, his expression shifting awkwardly at her words.
She was puzzled by his reaction, then suddenly understood.
In his mind, she was still the same woman who loved him unconditionally, the one willing to do anything just for a sliver of his attention.
He thought that the thing she wanted most had to be him and their marriage.
But only Gabriella knew the truth.
What she wanted was freedom.
Alex seemed about to say something when a nurse entered.
“Mr. Palmer, Ms. Palmer is awake,”
At that, Lucas shot to his feet and said impatiently, “Dad, let’s go! She’s fine, so why are we still here? She looks perfectly healthy. She probably just fainted on purpose to get sympathy. Aunt Mel hates pain, and she lost so much blood. She must really need us right now!”
Tugging on Alex’s sleeve, Lucas kepturging him to leave.
With no other choice, Alex finally stood up. But as he reached the doorway, he suddenly paused and glanced back at Gabriella, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness.
“I’ll come check on you later.”
Then, he turned and left.
But that “later” never came.
While Gabriella was resting on the bed, her phone suddenly chimed with a new message. She opened it and saw photos from Melody.
In the first picture, Alex was holding a bowl of soup and gently feeding her with remarkable tenderness. In the second, Lucas sat at the foot of her bed while sweetly massaging her legs. “You saw what happened at the party. Alex still has me in his heart, and even your son likes me. You’re nothing but a nanny to them. Do yourself a favor, and step aside.” The provocation was obvious, but Gabriella felt nothing.
After a while, she typed a short reply.
“Don’t worry. Soon.”
Soon, she would give them all to her.
“What do
you mean?”
The reply came quickly, but no matter how many messages Melody sent after that, Gabriella never responded.
A few days later, Gabriella had fully recovered. The day she was discharged, Alex came to pick her up.
Melody was being discharged at the same time.
After handling the paperwork, they stepped outside and headed to the car. Coincidentally, another couple walked out of the hospital, heading toward the car parked right beside theirs. The man put their bags in the backseat and then dramatically pulled open the passenger door. He bowed exaggeratedly as he announced, “Your royal chariot awaits, my love!”
The woman playfully smacked his aim, but her face was filled with unmistakable joy.
Who wouldn’t want such blatant, unreserved affection?
Alex heard the exchange, and his hand opening the passenger door froze for a split second
Giggling, Melody stepped forward and slipped her hand into his other. She glanced at the open door with a natural familiarity and asked, “Alex, did you open the door for me?”
