Chapter 2

When I awoke, I saw the hospital's white walls, and Jasper Adams sat by my bed, his expression dark and unreadable.

My hand slowly moved to my abdomen. It was flat. There had once been a small life there, but now it was gone.

"Elle..." Jasper Adams held me, his voice deep. "We'll have another baby."

I broke into tears. "Jasper, the baby was killed by that intern! I want justice! I want her to pay!"

"Elle, calm down. I've already fired her," Jasper Adams tried to reassure me. "You won't see her again."

I stopped crying, staring into his eyes as if seeing him for the first time. "She insulted me, attacked me, and killed our baby. Is just firing her enough?"

Jasper Adams avoided my gaze, picking up a slice of apple and offering it to me. I turned my head away, refusing to eat. "Jasper, tell me, why let her go?"

After an awkward silence, Jasper Adams finally spoke, "She..."

"Because she's Jasper Adams' sister."

My mother-in-law entered, draped in a silk shawl, and looked down at me with arrogance.

Jasper Adams' father had passed away early, and his mother had raised him alone, developing a strong-willed personality. The first time I met his family, she bombarded me with questions and finally sat on the sofa, ready to lay down the law.

I was also raised by doting parents, so I couldn't endure such humiliation. I turned and left, breaking up with Jasper Adams.

That was a tough period. I sulked in my dorm room for a few days, then resumed classes and part-time jobs. Jasper Adams waited outside the dorm. Every time I stepped out, he'd follow me at a distance, even getting questioned by the guards a few times.

"Just go," I said. "I date to marry. I don't want to live in fear under your mom's watch."

Later, I heard he had a big fight with his mother, saying he'd stay single for life if he couldn't marry me.

"My friends all say that Eloise Taylor must be blind to fancy me! If you don't let me marry her, I'll never find someone as good!"

Under Jasper Adams' persistence, his mother finally relented but insisted on living with us.

Jasper Adams told me everything and promised that although his mother would live with us, she wouldn't interfere with our lives.

I still had feelings for him, and seeing him stand up to his mother for me, I agreed to his proposal.

After marriage, my mother-in-law started pressuring me to have children. I said I'd wait a few years until my career was stable.

"How long is that?" she pressed. "A woman's prime years for childbirth are few, and besides, Jasp's company can easily support five of you. Why earn a meager salary at a kindergarten? Instead of raising other people's kids, why not have one, no, two of Jasp's!"

I frowned, ready to argue, but Jasper Adams interjected, "Mom, I'm busy with a big project right now. We can have kids later."

When Jasper Adams said the same thing, his mom didn't push. Instead, she told him to take care of himself and not overwork. Jasper Adams chatted about other things, and her attention shifted.

At the time, I was pleased, thinking I hadn't misjudged and had found a man worth spending my life with.

I forgot that hearts can change and old flames can be hard to forget.