جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 80

Antiseptic air threatened to choke her, but Eva barely noticed."I was never pregnant," Eva spoke, her voice cracking with her declaration. "How can you say I had a miscarriage when I didn't even know I was carrying a child?Dr. Clarkson hedged, a flicker of concern across her professional mask. Her hands folded together, leaning slightly forward. "Mrs Darlington, I know it sounds impossible, but this is a medication specifically for after a miscarriage or abortion. It's possible that…”She trailed off, clearly trying to proceed with caution.Eva's hands clenched against the chair edges. "Possible that what?”“It might be that you were pregnant when you fell down the stairs, and never knew. Your family could keep it away from you out of hand in that the psychological shock was beyond what one could handle. And they were trying to keep you from the emotional damage."The words hit her like a kick in the diaphragm, and suddenly, Eva's breath caught in her throat as her heart started rac

“Well Richard, this is a toast to vision, perseverance, and may I say brilliance," Henry Darlington exclaimed triumphantly, raising his glass. The private lounge from the exclusive business club was a place of elegance and secrecy: dark oak panels and low light, a place where multi-million dollar deals were closed over a handshake and a drink."To sealing the deal," returned Richard Wadsley as he clinked his glass against Henry's while the tone was proudly taken by the man who had been a part of pulling that masterstroke. "Edward Langston isn't easily pleased, but you sure do seem to have done just that, Henry."Henry swirled the amber liquid in his glass, watching almost as if it seemed to play with the light-a tangible expression of their success. "I did it because I had the right guys behind me, and should you not have pulled through, Richard, we would not be sitting here in celebration today.”Richard chuckled, jerking his head back: "You are being modest. It wasn't just me; it wa

"You got everything?" Shawn asked, parking the car in front of Wadsley Jewels building. In his voice, there seemed a mix of concern and determination, which she had grown accustomed to in the past few days."Yeah, Shawn. Everything." Eva blew out a heavy sigh and unsnapped her seatbelt. Eva leaned for the door handle, but Shawn leaned over, intercepting her motion."And your medications? Did you pack them?" he pressed on, furrowing his brows."They're in my bag," she said patiently."Good. Don't forget them, no matter what. And for lunch, Ava you have to eat lunch, not just coffee. You've hardly eaten anything lately."She turned to him, her lips twitching as she suppressed a smile. "I promise, I'll eat.""And don't overwork yourself. Take breaks, sit down, hydrate-"Shawn," Eva cut in, firmness riding over the affection in her tone. "I'll be fine."He had ignored that and went on, "If you feel tired, leave early. I can come pick you up. Just call me, okay? And—She silenced him with

"Eva," Ryan's voice came tight with worry over the phone. "What happened? Why didn't you say anything. Was someone there with you?” “Ryan, I'm sorry, my dad answered the call. I was caught off guard, and I couldn't do anything.”“Shit.” There was silence for a while before Ryan spoke again. “So he knows everything now?” Eva leaned back in her chair, placing fingers to her temple as if the pressure might beat the headache brewing inside. "No, he doesn't know everything," she returned wearily. "But it was close. Too close."Ryan exhaled sharply. "What did he find out?”She hedged, the glance of her father flashing before her eyes, the weight of the words: "Enough to know you've been avoiding everybody but me. He's furious, Ryan. He demanded answers, and since I couldn't give any, he stormed out. I don't think he'll let this go."A thick silence hung in the air after she spoke, right until Ryan finally broke the silence. "Thanks for not saying anything about my job or scholarship. I k

"Well, only Eva and I knew of it," Eva said in an extremely low tone. Eva finally looked away from Shawn and started giving her napkin in her hands quite a lot of attention-folding, unfolding, folding again, and again-the repetitions not doing much to help calm her nerves."I have no idea how the school and workplace found out."Shawn hunched over, arms over the edge of the table as his piercing glare seemed incredulous, searching. "You are trying to tell me there's nobody else who would have known? Nobody whatsoever?"Eva shook her head vigorous, her fingers in a tight clench upon the napkin. "Nobody. Ryan was really careful, and so were we, and there is just no way.”“Then someone must have found out somehow," Shawn said, unbending. “Did you or your sister tell anyone about it, maybe a close friend in school by mistake. Or maybe Ryan himself told a friend who did this to ruin him on purpose.” “I don't know, Shawn. We all vowed not to say anything about it. So I don't know if any of