♡Astrid♡By the time Joan's baby shower came knocking, I was able to walk on my own. Not as fast, but I definitely wasn't wincing when I stood on my feet anymore.I stared at the mirror, careful not to hurt myself with the curling iron. The bedroom door opened, and Adrian walked in. I met his eyes through the mirror. He cocked his head to the side."Not done?" he asked, approaching me, and I pressed my lips together."Obviously," I muttered, and he hummed, holding my gaze through the mirror. Our relationship was still kind of strained, but it was better.Stakes were cleared. We had one common enemy now, and well, even if things didn’t work out between us, we could put our differences aside and achieve our goal. He was dressed in a blue suit, leaving the top two buttons of his white shirt open, giving a glimpse of his tan skin.Not gonna lie. Blue suited him, and it was a huge contrast from the normal black he wore.He’d brushed his hair to the side, and his eyes looked a lighter sha
♡Astrid♡He was gone by the time I woke up. I had no idea where he'd gone, considering the fact he hadn't woken me or even given me a heads-up if he was going to leave early.I sat up on the bed, pushing my hair out of my face.Oh well, it was gonna be tough moving around without someone to help, but it'd be fine. I would be fine. I had to be.I swung my good leg down the bed before carefully trying to move the other one too. I needed to pee and would just very well take myself to the bathroom.I sat on the edge of the bed with both my legs on the floor. I drew a deep breath before rising to my feet.Pain shot through me and I winced, trying to move toward the bathroom. Hell, it didn't hurt this much when I limped to the entrance yesterday.Or—don’t tell me I worsened the condition myself.I was already halfway through the room when the door opened and Adrian walked in. His eyes narrowed at me."What are you doing?" he asked, walking toward me. He didn’t hesitate in scooping me up int
♤Adrian♤I handed her a glass of water and watched as she took a sip. She tilted the glass slightly and glanced at me.“Thank you,” she murmured. I shook my head and walked to the other side of the bed, sitting down.“It’s nothing,” I replied quietly. She looked at me over her shoulder before turning away. Silence settled between us, not uncomfortable, but certainly not easy. Something unspoken lingered in the air.She stared at the glass in her hands, perched lightly on the bed.“About Derrick,” she began.“He’s been taken care of,” I interrupted, eyes fixed on the ceiling.She set the glass on the nightstand and turned to face me, folding her legs beneath her.“The police? Will he be tried?” she asked. I met her gaze. Curiosity—and something harder to define—swirled in her blue eyes. My lips lifted slightly, though nothing was amusing.“For now? No. He’s got a score to settle with me first. Once that’s done, the authorities can have him,” I said.A small smile tugged at her lips be
♡Astrid♡The doctor discharged me once I regained consciousness two days later after they were sure I wouldn’t relapse. I had no idea what had happened to Derrick. I couldn’t ask Adrian either. To be honest, I didn’t want to know.But somewhere deep inside me, I knew Adrian had gotten to him. While he had been nice to me during my stay at the hospital, I was grateful he didn’t bring up Derrick.“Careful, there,” he muttered, grabbing my arm to steady me when I almost tripped as I limped inside, having turned down his offers to carry me in.“I’m fine,” I mumbled, and he nodded, giving me a flat look.“Obviously.” But he didn’t let go of my arm. He carried the small luggage he’d brought to the hospital in one hand. I stared at the staircase, wondering how the hell I was going to get to my room and run the little errands for myself. Oh boy, this was going to be tough.I took a step forward, and Adrian held me back. I glanced at him, but he just raised a brow.“What are you doing?” he
♤Adrian♤I glanced in the rearview mirror, turning into a side street as I put Axel on call. He picked up almost immediately.“Send some men to the hospital to protect my wife. A couple of cars are tailing me, and I’ve got a bad feeling she’s not safe,” I said, my grip tightening on the steering wheel. I sped up, eyes flicking between the road and the mirror as one of the black vans attempted to overtake me.I quickly swerved into its lane, narrowly avoiding a collision.“Goddamn it,” I muttered under my breath.“Yes, sir. Do you need backup?” Axel’s voice carried a note of urgency.“Go get my fucking wife,” I snapped before ending the call. These bastards timed this too perfectly.I didn’t know why they were following me, but something felt off—seriously off. And knowing Astrid was alone at the hospital made it worse. Her breakfast still sat on the back seat, untouched. I’d planned to deliver it, but then I noticed the cars tailing me.I slammed on the brakes, then refocused. I kne
♡Astrid♡“What are you doing here?” I asked, and he smirked.“Oh, look who’s in a hospital bed now,” he said with a grin.I blinked at him. Wait…“Did you have something to do with my accident?” My voice tightened.He pursed his lips, dragging out the chair and sitting down next to my bedside. My eyes darted to the door again. Seriously, Adrian?“Well, you figured that out pretty fast,” he said with a slow tilt of his head.“Don’t get too comfortable,” I said, trying to sound calm. “My man will be through that door any second—and it won’t be pretty.”He laughed and leaned back in his chair, completely at ease.It rubbed me the wrong way. He was too… carefree. Too relaxed.“That’s if he returns in one piece,” he said flatly.My brows drew together. Something in his tone made me perk up. “What did you do to him?” I asked through gritted teeth.He shrugged. “Nothing much. Just had some men ram into his car. He’s probably dead by now.”A cold shiver ran down my spine. He was joking, right
♡Astrid♡I woke up with a start as the door bang open. I held my breath...waiting.Adrian rushed in, eyes darting around. His expression was wild and for the first time since we started this sham, I could see full blown panic in his eyes and fuck me, if that didn't make me start panicking.What the fuck was going on?His eyes settled on me. They roamed me so quick before he covered the steps to my bedside. I tried sitting up so I could look at him properly. "Are you okay?" He asked and I gave a short nod, a little confused myself. He tipped his head back and drew a deep breath."Oh Goodness," he whispered, before perching on the seat taking my hand in his. I stared at him, confused now more than ever.Okay? What the hell was happening?"Are 'you' okay?" I asked and he nodded, brown eyes meeting mine. The panic was still there but it was under control now.He licked his lips."Overheard nurse saying the patient in room 527 was having a seizure. Was it a false alarm?" He asked quietly
♤Adrian♤ We stayed up for a long while doing nothing. While Astrid tried to rest, I busied myself with some work on my phone. It wasn’t like I was going to get any sleep anyway. Astrid shifted slightly on the bed and cleared her throat. "Aren't you going home? It's getting late," she asked, and I shook my head without raising my eyes from the screen. "No," I said. My voice came out a little dry. "Why? It won't be comfortable to sleep in here. The bed is small, and the chair would be—" "Are you trying to get rid of me, Blythe?" I asked, finally looking up from my phone to meet her eyes. She raised a brow. "I'm just stating facts," she shot back, and I sighed. "I'll manage. Just go to sleep," I muttered, shutting off my phone and staring at nothing in particular. My gaze fell on the only chair in the room. That would be my bed tonight. I didn’t mind. I’d slept in worse. She sighed again and tried to sit up as much as she could. "I haven’t gotten the chance to ask... The drive
♤Adrian ♤ I stepped out of the room after a couple of hours to get food for Astrid, who had fallen asleep. My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I slowed down before reaching for it. I stared down at the caller ID for a second, debating whether to pick up or let it go to voicemail like I usually did. But no—if Gary was calling me, it could only mean one thing. He had something to say. He hadn't reached out to me since we ran into each other at the restaurant. Even though I was slightly suspicious of his silence, I didn’t have enough proof to confront him. I picked up and brought the phone to my ear. There was a brief silence. "Adrian," he finally said, and I frowned. "Why are you calling?" I asked, and he chuckled. "I'm surprised you picked up. Saved me the trouble of coming to you directly," he said, and I pressed my lips together. "The Dela-Rosas are coming to town with their daughter, Allison," he said, and I narrowed my eyes. "And you're telling me this because?" I asked, alr