CHAPTER 8: CHAPTER 8: THROWING HERSELF INTO HIS ARMS, EMBRACING HIM

Chloe Preston heard his voice, and a glimmer of tears welled in her eyes, finally replaced by a flicker of joy.

As long as he’s okay.

She steadied herself with a hand on her waist, her face still pale. She opened her mouth to speak, but in the next instant, her strength gave out and she collapsed.

「An hour later...」

Chloe Preston lay on a hospital bed. Her eyelids fluttered open, and she slowly regained consciousness.

"Oh, you’re awake!" a nurse said, walking into the room.

Chloe sat up and rubbed her temples. "What happened to me?" she asked, her head still swimming.

"You fainted from low blood sugar," the nurse replied gently. "It’s nothing serious."

Chloe nodded, but a moment later, she remembered something. "That man... is he...?" she asked, her voice choked with anxiety.

The nurse chuckled softly. "Are you asking about your boyfriend? Don’t worry, he’s just unconscious for now. He’ll wake up."

Hearing the word "boyfriend," Chloe’s ears turned faintly red. "He’s not my boyfriend..."

"Oh, then he must be your husband!"

"That’s... not it, either."

The nurse paused before smiling again. "Your fiancé, then!"

Chloe just shook her head.

Seeing this, the nurse’s brow furrowed. "None of those? Then why were you so worried about him out there?"

Chloe didn’t answer. Instead, she slipped out of bed. "Can I go see him?"

"Of course. I’ll take you."

Chloe followed the nurse out the door and down the hall to the man’s room. When they arrived, Chloe opened the door, stepped inside, and sat down on the chair beside the bed.

The man on the bed was just as she remembered—his face ashen, his eyes tightly closed. He looked completely drained of life, making him seem frail. She reached out and gently tucked the covers around him.

Chloe stared at him for a long time, a tingling sensation in her nose as tears welled up, blurring her vision.

This liar! He told me he was just going to buy something and that I should wait for him to come back so we could continue, but instead he ends up unconscious. He did it on purpose, finding new ways to make me wait for him. I really thought I was over him after four years apart. I thought I didn’t care about him at all anymore. But the moment he gets hurt, I can’t stop myself from worrying and being scared. I can’t let him go at all. He must have cast some kind of spell on me, making me unable to forget him even after all this time.

As her thoughts churned, her eyelashes grew damp. She leaned over, resting her head on the edge of the bed, and gradually fell asleep.

When she next awoke, the sky outside was dark. Chloe opened her eyes, her mind hazy for a moment. Lowering her gaze, she found herself not in the chair, but on the bed, tucked under the covers and snuggled into a man’s warm embrace.

Startled, she tried to sit up.

Suddenly, a large, bony hand clamped around her soft waist, pulling her back against him.

"Awake?" a deep, strong voice rumbled from above her.

Chloe’s entire body trembled.

She looked up, her gaze meeting the deep, black eyes of Donovan Xavier. A faint smile touched his lips. "Sleep yourself silly?"

Without a second thought, Chloe threw herself into his arms and clung to him with all her might.

"You’re finally awake!" she cried.

Donovan hissed in pain. "Ouch... that hurts."

Chloe immediately let go. "S-Sorry," she stammered, full of regret. She had been so excited that she’d completely forgotten he’d just had surgery.

She started firing off questions. "How are you feeling now? Are you dizzy? Does anything hurt? Are you hungry? Thirsty? I... I’ll go get the doctor!"

She threw the covers back, about to get out of bed, but the man pulled her back down.

"I’m fine," Donovan said.

His simple words made Chloe’s eyes redden.

Noticing her reaction, Donovan reached out and stroked her head. "I never thought getting hurt would make you care about me so much."

Chloe fought back her tears. "I don’t care about you at all..."

Was this just ’getting hurt’? He had literally clawed his way back from death’s door.

The corners of Donovan’s lips curled up. "Miss Quinn is quite skilled at saying the opposite of what she means," he teased. "I heard from the nurse that while I was in the operating room, you said I was the most important person in your life. Is that true?"

Chloe avoided his gaze, pressing her lips together in silence.

Donovan watched her lovely face for a long moment before his voice grew soft and deep. "...Thank you."

"Hm? For what?" Chloe asked, confused, looking up at him.

"For these past four years," he said. "Thank you for not forgetting me, and for still caring so much. Chloe Preston, that makes me very happy."

"I don’t care about you one bit!" Chloe’s eyelashes trembled as she held up ten fingers in front of his face, her voice stubborn. "I was just afraid you’d die and there’d be no one to pay me back! Don’t you forget, you still owe me a ten-figure sum!"

"Oh," Donovan said with a low chuckle. "I understand, you little money-grubber. I won’t forget. Never mind a ten-figure sum—if you want it, anything I have is yours."

He noticed the lingering redness around her eyes, a clear sign she had been crying. His heart suddenly softened. "Were you very scared when I got hurt?"

Chloe leaned against his side. Looking at his pale face, she didn’t deny it this time and just gave a soft "Mm."

"You lied to me," she murmured. "You said you were going to buy something. How did you end up getting hurt?"

Donovan’s eyes gleamed with mischief. "You still remember that, huh? Seems like you really wanted to ’continue’ with me deep down."

Chloe glared at him, half-tempted to hit him. "You’re talking nonsense! I did not!"

A faint smile played on Donovan’s lips as he leaned close to her ear. "We’ll just put it on hold for now. I’ll buy them next time, and then we can make up for it... together."

As he spoke, he lowered his head to kiss her.

"N-No, don’t," Chloe protested. "You just had surgery. This isn’t a good idea."

"A little kiss won’t hurt," he whispered. "Don’t refuse me. I know you want this too."

He leaned closer.

Chloe tried to pull away. "Be serious!"

Donovan met her gaze, a dangerous glint in his dark eyes. "You of all people should know that I’m not a very serious person. Especially not with you."

Chloe’s face grew warm. He leaned in again, his presence overwhelmingly aggressive, and she instinctively shrank back.

"Chloe Preston," he growled, his mood suddenly shifting. "Are you playing hard to get?"

With a flash of temper, he caught her chin with one hand, tilted her head up, and crushed his lips against hers. The kiss was fierce and domineering.

His lips were cool yet soft, and utterly irresistible. Chloe’s eyelids fluttered. Her hands clenched the soft bedding as she went rigid, her heart suddenly pounding in her chest. It was all too easy for him to throw her heart into chaos.

A few moments later, just as their kiss deepened into a passionate exchange, the doorknob turned with a soft CLICK.

"Donovan!"