The Billionaire's Legal Wife 의 모든 챕터: 챕터 71 - 챕터 74

“You should sit down for this.”the doctor said quietly, folding the chart against his chest.Ashley stayed standing, her fingers clenched around the back of the chair as if letting go would send her to the floor. “Just tell me. I’ve been through worse than medical jargon.”her voice tried to be steady but failed at the last word.Duke lay on the hospital bed, pale under the fluorescent lights, lashes resting against his cheek. Machines hummed softly around him, their rhythm too calm for the storm in her chest.“It’s autoimmune fatigue syndrome.”the doctor continued, watching her carefully.“Chronic. Progressive if unmanaged. It explains the collapses, the exhaustion, the immune crashes. Stress worsens it.”Ashley’s breath left her in a thin, broken sound. “How long?”she asked.“That depends on treatment and lifestyle. With proper care, patients live full lives. Without it…”he paused.“The body simply gives up.”She looked at Duke then, really looked. The faint shadows under his eyes, the

Ashley sat on the edge of the couch, her fingers wrapped so tightly around her phone that her knuckles had gone pale. The screen was dark now, but Alexandra’s words echoed relentlessly in her head, replaying with cruel precision. Pregnant. Possibly Duke’s. The door clicked open behind her. “Ashley.” Duke’s voice was careful, restrained, like he was afraid one wrong tone might shatter her completely. “You didn’t answer my calls.” She didn’t turn to face him. “I needed quiet,” she said, her voice steady only because she forced it to be. “I needed to think.” Duke closed the door and stepped closer, stopping a few feet away as if an invisible line had been drawn between them. “And?” She let out a breath that trembled despite her effort. “And I keep replaying everything. The dates. The silence. The weeks we weren’t talking. The months you disappeared.” She finally looked at him then, her eyes glossy but sharp. “The timeline fits too well, Duke. You can’t pretend it doesn’t.” “I’m