Chapter 233: Only Recognizes Her
Jaden had fallen asleep.
So as not to disturb his rest, everyone left the hospital room.
Mr. and Mrs. Garland followed the doctor to his office to discuss the follow-up treatment plan. Outside the room, Jaden’s older brother and Stella Yarrow sat on a bench, the man comforting the crying woman.
Alaric Blackwood stared through the glass pane on the door, watching the sleeping Jaden for a while. He hadn’t said a word from beginning to end. He had arrived in silence, and now he left in silence.
When he returned to Sophie Shaw’s room, he found the attending physician there, taking her temperature and checking her condition.
After confirming she was stable, the doctor announced that the surgery would be performed in an hour.
He stayed with Sophie Shaw until they wheeled her into the operating room.
The man waited outside, his eyes fixed on the glowing "In Surgery" sign, his heart churning with anxiety.
During the operation, nurses occasionally hurried out, grabbing a few bags of blood before returning to the operating room...
Fortunately, the surgery went relatively smoothly, and they managed to stop Sophie’s bleeding in time.
After Sophie Shaw was moved back to her room, Alaric Blackwood remained by her bedside, waiting until the anesthesia wore off and she woke up.
"The surgery went well."
He gently stroked Sophie’s head, his voice soft. "How are you feeling? Should I call a doctor?"
With red-rimmed eyes, Sophie shook her head, her hand subconsciously stroking her lower abdomen.
"Will this affect my ability to get pregnant in the future?"
"It won’t."
’As long as the leukemia is brought under control and cured, nothing will be affected.’
"I have some good news. Jaden was rescued."
Sophie murmured an acknowledgment, her voice weak. "Is he okay?"
"He’s injured and has amnesia."
The most dramatic part was that Jaden had cheated during his engagement and was determined to break it off with Nina Halloway. But now, his memory was stuck two years in the past, right at the time of their engagement.
’He hadn’t even figured out how to tell Nina Halloway about this.’
’He really couldn’t worry about anyone else; his eyes were only for Sophie.’
Listening to him speak, Sophie drowsily drifted off to sleep again. When she next awoke, it was already noon.
Lawson brought lunch—light and nutritious.
Alaric Blackwood sat by the bed and ate a little with her, then suddenly brought up work. "By the way, Miss Austin has successfully started her position at Heart of the Ocean."
Sophie paused, then exclaimed, "I forgot to call the office!"
"I’ve already contacted Assistant Sutton and the department heads for you."
"When?"
"Last night, after you fell asleep."
Sophie bit her lip and said gratefully, "Thank you."
"Why are you thanking me? If you really want to thank me, give me a kiss."
Lawson was still in the room, so Sophie felt a bit embarrassed. She whispered, "I’ll owe you one."
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
There was a knock on the door.
Alaric Blackwood turned his head and saw Mrs. Garland standing at the doorway.
The woman waved him over, indicating she had something to say. He put down his chopsticks, told Sophie to eat up, and then got up and walked out of the room.
Mrs. Garland looked awkward. "Alaric, you heard what the doctor said about Jaden’s condition. He doesn’t remember Stella, he thinks Nina is his fiancée. I tried calling Nina, but no one answered. Do you think you could contact her and ask her to come to the hospital when she has time? To accompany Jaden for his follow-up treatment, as his fiancée."
Hearing this, Alaric Blackwood’s brows furrowed. "Mrs. Garland, isn’t that inappropriate?"
"I know what Jaden did before was wrong, that he let Nina down. But the situation is special now. He won’t let Stella near him, he only recognizes Nina. His father and I are at our wits’ end."
"The priority right now is to follow the doctor’s advice and make sure he gets proper treatment. Whether my sister is here or not doesn’t really matter."
"How could it not matter? Ever since Jaden woke up, he’s been constantly asking why Nina hasn’t come to see him."
"..."
Alaric Blackwood felt a headache coming on.
"Alaric, please help Jaden. If he can’t get his memory back and continues to believe he’s with Nina, I actually hope they get back together. After all, our families have always been so close. As for Stella, I’ll compensate her."
This was the decision Mrs. Garland had made after weighing her options.
Although she liked Stella Yarrow, Stella’s family background was ultimately no match for Nina Halloway’s. And now that Jaden only recognized Nina, she saw no better way forward. Stella would just have to be wronged.
"Jaden and Nina have known each other since they were children, they know each other inside and out. The elders of both our families have always hoped they would end up together. I couldn’t reach your parents today, so I can only trouble you to contact Nina."
Alaric Blackwood sighed in resignation and pulled out his phone to call Nina Halloway.
At that moment, Nina Halloway was still asleep.
In the bedroom, on the messy king-sized bed, she was sleeping soundly in Ethan Austin’s arms.
The phone’s incessant buzzing finally woke the sleeping pair.
Nina Halloway rubbed her drowsy eyes. Instead of checking her phone right away, she stared at Ethan Austin, her cheeks flushing red as she remembered last night.
"Good morning."
Ethan’s face was even redder than hers. "Good morning."
"Last night..."
"Was intense."
Their minds were filled with the indescribable, passionate scenes from the night before. Neither of them paid any attention to the buzzing phone.
Alaric Blackwood tried calling Nina Halloway’s phone several times, but when no one answered, he gave up.
Meanwhile, Nina Halloway lay shyly on top of Ethan, tracing circles on his firm chest with her fingertip. "Ethan."
"Hm?"
"I don’t think... we used any protection. Can you go downstairs and buy me the pill?"
"Don’t take it."
Nina Halloway was taken aback. "What do you mean, don’t take it? What if..."
"That pill is bad for your health. If you get pregnant, I’ll take responsibility."
For a moment, Nina Halloway was touched. But after she calmed down and thought it over, she still insisted that Ethan go buy the pill.
She didn’t want to get pregnant, and she wasn’t mentally prepared to be a mother.
She pushed at Ethan’s shoulders, but the man didn’t budge, as immovable as a mountain, his gaze burning as he looked at her.
Growing a little flustered under his stare, she tried to get up to go wash up in the bathroom, but he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back.
He held her from behind, pressing her down onto the bed...
The man’s kisses trailed down her fair nape, dense and close, all the way to the small of her back, to the rose tattoo there.
After another round of passion.
Nina coaxed Ethan into taking a shower, and then he hurried downstairs to buy the morning-after pill.
She lay on the bed, too languid to move.
Remembering that her phone had been vibrating repeatedly since early morning, she stretched out her arm, grabbed it, and glanced at the screen.
There were several missed calls from Alaric Blackwood, as well as calls from Mrs. Garland and Officer Young.
She called Alaric Blackwood’s number back first.
"Jaden is at the hospital..."
When Ethan Austin returned with the pill from the pharmacy outside the residential complex, he walked in to find Nina Halloway sitting on the living room sofa with a somber expression.
The woman had already showered and changed into a loose sweater and pants, her hand clutching her phone tightly.
He poured a glass of warm water and walked over. Nina Halloway took the pill, read the instructions, took one out, and swallowed it with the water.
"Ethan, I need to go to the hospital. They found Jaden."
Ethan froze for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. I’ll drive you in a bit. It’s already past one. I’ll make you something to eat first, then we can go."