Chapter 7
Chapter 7:
Colton lifted his wrist and checked his watch. Four full hours remained before the flight was scheduled to depart, so there was no need to rush.
“Turn around and head back to Crestwood,” he said without warning.
Caught off guard, the driver stiffened briefly, then quickly adjusted the steering wheel and turned at the next intersection.
Once the car pulled up in front of the villa, Colton shoved the door open and stepped out without hesitation. The household staff straightened at once and greeted him with respect. Without offering a response, he walked past them and went straight to Kristine’s room.
He opened the door and found the space empty. Unease surged through him immediately.
“Where did Kristine go?” He seized a nearby servant and demanded an answer.
Shaking badly, the servant replied, “Miss Green hasn’t returned for several days now. I truly don’t know where she went p>
What was going on? Claire had said that Kristine was still staying at the villa.
Had Kristine already moved out?
A sharp jolt struck his chest. He rushed inside and pulled the closet doors open. Relief quietly slipped out of him when he saw the closet packed with clothing. At least her clothes remained. That alone suggested she had not moved.
He was about to walk away when a sudden thought stopped him in his tracks, and he turned back. Kristine never used the clothes stored on this side. All her personal belongings were placed in the closet to the right.
𝘉𝘦 pа𝘳𝗍 𝘰𝘧 𝗼𝘶𝗋 сom𝗺𝘂𝘯𝗶𝘁у 𝗼𝗻
His hand lifted toward that door just as his phone began to ring. Brent’s name flashed across the screen.
“What happened?” Colton answered without hesitation.
Concern filled Brent’s voice. “Colton, Elyse’s vital signs are weakening. The kidney transplant needs to be arranged immediately, but we still haven’t located a suitable donor p>
Tension crept in as Colton pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose. “I’ll reach out to the hospital director and push him to speed up the search p>
Brent tried to continue, but the call had already ended.
Colton cast one last look at the closet, then turned and left the room, dialing the hospital director as he walked away.
Inside the hospital room, Brent lowered his phone and turned toward Elyse with clear regret. “I’m sorry, Elyse. He ended the call before I could even ask him to come here p>
From the bed, Elyse slowly shook her head, her voice barely steady. “That’s fine. Colton has a lot on his plate. I understand p>
Brent paused, then said quietly, “You really are far too thoughtful p>
A strained smile appeared on Elyse’s lips, yet the look in her eyes remained distant and cold.
It must be Kristine holding Colton back.
She would eliminate that hindrance one day.
As the clock struck eight in the evening, Kristine arrived downstairs right on schedule and immediately noticed Asher waiting at the entrance of Helcrest Hotel. Seated in his wheelchair, he still managed to stand out — his presence carried a quiet authority that drew the eye of every passerby.
With people glancing their way, Kristine approached and spoke gently. “Should we head upstairs now p>
A slight smile curved Asher’s lips. “No. Since you’ll be my wife, you should get used to standing calmly under other people’s scrutiny p>
A faint crease appeared between Kristine’s brows. “Are we really expected to just stand here p>
“This isn’t about standing around,” Asher corrected in a calm tone. “You’re meant to look at me fondly — the same way I’m looking at you right now p>
As he spoke, his attention settled fully on Kristine. Warmth filled his eyes, steady and gentle, carrying a softness that suggested layers of unspoken feeling.
For a brief moment, Kristine did not know how to respond. Despite herself, she began to wonder if losing the use of his legs had affected him in other ways — she could not understand why he would insist on such a display in front of strangers. Still, she humored him until after ten o’clock, and only then did Asher seem satisfied enough to speak again.
“That’s enough. You can head back inside p>
He was smiling, but something dark flickered briefly in his gaze. The change vanished almost immediately — so quickly that Kristine questioned whether she had seen it at all.
“In that case, I’ll go upstairs,” she replied, turning and walking back into the hotel.
Once Kristine was completely out of sight, Asher finally pulled out his phone. A message from his assistant filled the screen, sent only a minute earlier. “Colton has already landed. His stomach condition worsened, and he’s been admitted to the hospital p>
So everything he had arranged for tonight had turned out to be pointless. His original plan had been for Colton to witness the closeness between Kristine and him. Watching that reaction would have been far more amusing.
He harbored no personal hostility toward Colton. After working alongside him for some time, he had reached a clear conclusion: Colton possessed an unsettling level of strength. Sharp intellect, stubborn endurance, and exceptional business instincts all worked in his favor. But when it came to emotions, he was surprisingly oblivious.
Because of that weakness, Asher found himself intrigued. Was it true that Colton felt nothing for Kristine, as people claimed? Or did he love her deeply while remaining unaware of it himself?
At two o’clock in the morning, Kristine suddenly sat up in bed.
Sleep had dragged her into a nightmare. Inside that dream, Colton’s usually imposing frame was bent inward, and he stared at her with eyes filled with pain and distance as he spoke. “Kristine… my stomach hurts p>
Awakening in the darkness, she placed her hand over her own abdomen.
There was no pain at all. What she felt instead was hunger.
Without warning, a strong craving for spicy snacks took hold of her. A certain shop in Peudon immediately came to mind — one she knew did that kind of food particularly well. After checking the address on her map app, she headed downstairs right away. She no longer needed to worry about Colton criticizing her weight or go on a diet for his approval.
The moment she stepped into the lobby and spotted Colton approaching, however, her heart lurched sharply.
One hand rested against his stomach, and although sickness had drained the color from his face, the familiar chill and pride in his eyes remained unchanged. Without so much as glancing in his direction, Kristine walked straight past him.
Right as they crossed paths, Colton reached out and seized her wrist.
Her skin was fragile. The pressure he applied quickly left a red mark across the back of her hand. Pain flashed across her face.
“Let go!” The edge in her voice was unmistakable.
Shock flickered through Colton’s eyes. Even during their worst arguments, Kristine had always spoken calmly and evenly. That sharpness was something he had never encountered from her before.
Regaining his composure, Colton scoffed. “You’ve gotten quite daring, Kristine,” he said coldly. “You actually kept me blocked for this long p>
Before, she had never let more than three days pass before unblocking him. This time, almost five entire days had gone by. It was hard for him to believe.
“Hand over your phone,” he demanded.
Kristine lifted her gaze toward him, caught for a moment by that natural sense of entitlement he carried, then curved her lips into a faint smile. “Colton, when I blocked you this time, I never intended to unblock you again. Let go of me. I have things I need to do p>
Watching her struggle only fueled his irritation. “If your life doesn’t revolve around me, then tell me what else you actually do,” he said, his impatience growing. “You showed up here because you heard I was hospitalized and rushed over to bring me medicine, didn’t you? I’ll admit it — bringing Elyse back without telling you first was my mistake p>
Pride had always defined him, yet for the first time, he forced himself to lower it. His words came out stiff. “But you also need to know when enough is enough p>
Her eyes lingered on him for a moment before laughter escaped her lips — laughter that kept coming until tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. “So in your mind,” she said between breaths, “the only reason I’d show up here is because of you p>
Nearly a full week had passed since she left Gridron, and he had not noticed her absence even once.
The laughter continued to echo through her. When it finally faded, nothing remained except a dull emptiness that settled deep within her. Those seven years she had given him had truly amounted to nothing at all.