In the hospital room, Jonathan finally woke up.
Marina was peeling an apple at his bedside when she noticed Jonathan’s eyes sweep around the room, as if searching for someone.
Just then, Marigold hurried back in. The moment she saw Jonathan awake, she showered him with concern, piling on the praise for Marina at the same time.
“You have no idea how much Marina did for you! She carried you–literally carried you–down eight flights of stairs when you passed out, followed the ambulance all the way to the hospital, and stayed up all night at your side. If it weren’t for her, I can’t even imagine what would’ve happened to you…”
“Marigold, please, that’s enough. I really didn’t do that much,” Marina protested shyly, lowering her head.
Jonathan’s gaze met Marina’s, deep and unreadable, like the ocean.
“Thank you,” he said quietly.
Marina immediately reached for his hand, gripping it tightly. “It’s the least I could
do.”
‘Jonathan was discharged after only two days in the hospital.
Stomach trouble was nothing new for him–it hardly warranted all the fuss, especially with pressing matters waiting for him at the office.
But by now, the entire company was buzzing with the same story-
Marina had carried the unconscious Jonathan down eight flights of stairs and saved his life. She was being hailed as his savior.
People even started whispering that the two of them were fated for each other.
Niamh, having heard these rumors on repeat, eventually grew numb to them.
At first, she’d debated whether she ought to set the record straight.
But after a while, she realized there was no point. Even if she spoke up, who would actually believe her? In everyone else’s eyes, she and Jonathan had no real
connection–why on earth would she have been the one to carry him down all
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Those stairs?
As for Jonathan himself…
Niamh had made her peace with it.
If he wanted to believe Marina had saved him, so be it. It was the perfect excuse for her to finally ask for a divorce.
Right before clocking out, Niamh took out the divorce papers she’d prepared the night before and walked over to Jonathan’s office, knocking on the door.
“Mr. Thomas, please sign this.”
She handed him the divorce agreement, as calmly as if she were delivering a routine company file.
Jonathan didn’t even look up. He skipped over her document and signed something
else instead.
“We don’t discuss personal matters at work,” he said coolly, leaving Niamh speechless.
With no other choice, she took the divorce papers back just as Marina entered, bringing Jonathan his medication. Niamh slipped out.
That evening, Julian came to pick her up after work. The car had barely started when she got a WhatsApp message from Jonathan, telling her to come back to Jade Peak House to continue the “personal matter” she’d tried to bring up earlier.
⚫The divorce.
Niamh really didn’t want to go.
But the thought that she and Jonathan might actually finalize their separation gave her the courage to ask Julian to drive her over.
Julian insisted on walking her to the door. “I’ll wait right here. If he gives you any trouble, I’ll come in and set him straight.”
His fists were clenched, ready for a fight; the sight almost made Niamh laugh.
This was between her and Jonathan–she didn’t want to drag Julian into it.
But no matter how she tried to reason with him, Julian refused to leave.
So Niamh took out her old house key and let herself inside.
She’d once returned this key, only for Jonathan’s grandfather to quietly slip it back
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14-15
Chapter wa
to.her again.
Inside, she heard the sound of running water.
When it stopped, Jonathan emerged from the bathroom, a towel slung low around his hips.
Niamh quickly looked away, thrusting the divorce papers toward him.
Jonathan reached out–not for the documents, but for her wrist.
He pulled her abruptly into his arms, his voice low and rough against her ear.
“Why are you so desperate to leave me? You love me that much, don’t you?”
“Who says I love you?” Niamh tried to pull away.
“If you didn’t love me, would you have carried me down eight flights of stairs?”
רוף
