Chapter 450 – The Broken-Hearted She and The Icy He Novel Online Free

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He couldn’t believe the woman he had pushed away was truly her.

After another shove from Lily, he finally allowed himself to believe. This wasn’t a ghost. She was real. She was alive.

And in that moment, the confusing dawn held a fragile hope for something more.

A surge of overwhelming joy and relief washed over him, so intense that it nearly took his breath away. Without hesitation, he leapt off the bed and wrapped his arms around her, clutching her tightly as if afraid she might vanish again.

“Lily, you’re really alive… I was terrified…” His voice cracked with emotion.

Lily’s cheeks puffed out in stubborn anger, but beneath her fury, she caught the trembling in his voice and felt the warmth of his tears falling softly onto her skin. Her heart twisted painfully, and all the bitterness she’d been holding onto began to dissolve. She couldn’t bring herself to push him away.

Instead, she let out a sharp complaint, her tone edged with indignation. “You were awful to me. You threw me out and told me to ‘get out’… And last night, I saw you at the hospital. You were with another woman-a young, pretty pregnant woman-for her prenatal checkup. James, what’s going on? You kicked me out, and yet you’re escorting someone else who’s pregnant?”

The memory of how he had coldly shoved her off the bed hit James like a punch to the gut, flooding him with guilt and fear. He gently eased her back down onto the mattress and quickly scanned her body for injuries.

A breath of relief escaped him when he saw no fresh wounds or bleeding. But his heart sank when he noticed the dark bruises mottling her pale skin. He wanted to curse himself for being so blind.

If she had been able to reach out to him at any point during the past two weeks, she surely would have. The only reason she hadn’t was because she must have been seriously hurt in the fall, unconscious for a long, agonizing time.

She had suffered so much, and the moment she regained consciousness, she had come straight back to him-only to be met with his drunken cruelty and violence throughout the night. How could he have been so heartless?

And to make matters worse, after taking advantage of her and leaving her utterly drained, he had thrown her off the bed without a second thought.

The more he reflected on his actions, the heavier the weight in his chest grew. His body trembled as he pulled her close again. “Just now… I thought you were someone else. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have been so rough. I never should have thrown you like that. Are you hurt? Are you okay?”

“Don’t change the subject!” Lily snapped, her anger flaring. She struggled to break free from his embrace, but he held her firmly.

“Who did you think was in your bed?” she demanded. “And you still haven’t explained why you were with another pregnant woman! James, if you’re cheating on me, I’m done. I won’t ever speak to you again!”

Despite her fierce words, which echoed like a dagger in his heart, James clung tighter, panic rising inside him like a tidal wave. The thought of losing her again, of sinking back into that endless despair-searching through a vast ocean and finding nothing-was unbearable.

His voice was hoarse, trembling with raw emotion. “There’s no one else, Lily. I thought… I thought you were never coming back. Last night felt like a nightmare. When I woke up and there was no one in my arms, I thought I’d been drunk and… done something with someone else. But I swear, I don’t want anyone else. I only want you. I’m not cheating.”

He took a shaky breath before continuing. “Yesterday, an old woman ran a red light. The woman you saw me with was on an electric scooter and had to stop suddenly to avoid her. She ended up hitting my car. She said she was pregnant and was terrified something had happened to her baby. When you… when you fell, you were pregnant too. I couldn’t bear the thought of her baby being hurt, so I didn’t hand her off to an assistant-I took her to the hospital myself. Thankfully, her baby is fine.”

Lily had already sensed that James wouldn’t have fallen for someone else-much less gotten another woman pregnant-in such a short time. His explanation washed over her like a soothing balm, easing the knot of suspicion in her chest.

She understood now. Because she had been pregnant when she fell, he couldn’t help but feel a fierce, protective compassion for another expectant mother in distress.

Her gaze drifted downward, landing once more on the stark, jagged scar on his left wrist.

Her eyes stung with unshed tears. “James, you tried to kill yourself, didn’t you? How could you be so reckless? Did you ever stop to think about what would happen if I came back and you were gone? How do you think that would make me feel?”

Anger bubbled up inside her again, sharper this time. When Mergan had told her, she had been terrified that even if she managed to escape, he might not still be alive.

Looking at the scar and his gaunt, haunted face, she felt torn between deep sorrow and fierce rage.

She shoved him away with more force than she intended. “If you ever do something that stupid again, I’m done with you. Completely done!”

“I’m sorry, Lily.” James’s arms tightened around her once more, refusing to let her go.

He would never forget the look in her eyes when she fell. He knew she had wanted him to live. He had never wanted to disappoint her.

But after witnessing the shark take her body away, despair had crushed his will to keep going. The man everyone thought was strong had simply run out of the strength to survive.

All he ever wanted was to find her. He would have torn the entire world apart if it meant locating her, no matter the cost.

That’s why he had come back to their home, sent Ashton away without a second thought, and then, without hesitation, pressed a knife against his own wrist.

If Ashton hadn’t turned back halfway, he probably wouldn’t be alive right now.

Lily’s anger hadn’t faded; it still burned fiercely within her. But beneath that anger was a deeper, more intense fear-fear of what might have happened.

He was the one who had harmed himself, who had been reckless with his own life. So why was he the one apologizing to her?

Her glare was sharp and filled with fury as she warned, “Don’t you dare apologize to me! Just remember this-if you ever do something that stupid again, not only will I ignore you, but the babies growing inside me will ignore you too!”

James said nothing in reply.

If the day ever comes when she leaves before I do, he thought silently, I will follow her without hesitation.

Lily was about to scold him once more, but then she heard his voice-a low, hoarse whisper thick with raw emotion. “Lily… I missed you so much… more than you can imagine…”

He buried his face in the curve of her neck, his embrace desperate, pleading, and trembling with fear. Her heart immediately softened, and the anger that had flared melted away.

She had missed him just as desperately.

Without thinking, she pressed her face against his chest, her voice barely above a whisper. “James, I was so scared. When they threw me off that cliff, I thought I was going to die. I was terrified I’d never see you again. Mergan saved me… but when I woke up, he told me you were… gone. I was so afraid you were dead. I was terrified I’d come back only to find your grave.”

“Lily…” His voice cracked with pain.

Hearing the fear in her words made James’s heart ache with a tender, painful longing. The deep, aching need to hold her close filled him to the core.

He leaned down and pressed a fervent, reverent kiss to her lips. “I was scared too…”

He didn’t say what he was afraid of, but Lily understood perfectly.

He had feared she had been lost to that endless ocean, that the shark had taken her from him.

Lily was utterly exhausted, her body weak and drained, but the overwhelming need to be near him made her wrap her arms tightly around his neck, returning his kiss with equal intensity.

She was so profoundly grateful that they were both still alive-grateful that his twenty-sixth birthday hadn’t become the anniversary of his death, a permanent scar on their lives.

Not just his twenty-sixth birthday, but every birthday after that-his thirtieth, fortieth, even his ninetieth. She wanted to be by his side for all of them.

She wanted to be with him for all time.

At first, James had only meant to kiss her gently, a soft touch to soothe the panic and longing that churned inside him.

But the moment their lips met, he realized a simple kiss wouldn’t be enough to calm the storm raging in his heart.

His kiss deepened, growing more urgent and fierce.

His strong hands moved to her back, lifting her as if she weighed nothing at all.

She dazzled him, blinding him, scattering every coherent thought from his mind. His throat tightened, and he lost himself completely, kissing her with wild abandon.

Lily noticed something new-his skill had improved.

His kiss shifted effortlessly from a tender, caressing breeze to a fierce, crashing wave, leaving her breathless and trembling.

Just as she felt herself melting entirely into him, her stomach suddenly growled loudly, breaking the moment.

James heard the strange noise too and immediately pulled back, concern flashing in his eyes.

He placed a gentle hand on her still-flat belly as if it were the most precious treasure in the world. “Is your stomach upset?”

Lily’s cheeks flushed a deep crimson.

Seriously? Her stomach growling like a wild animal in the middle of their kiss? How utterly embarrassing!

Seeing her blush and stay silent, James’s mind flashed back to his reckless behavior the night before, and his worry only deepened.

“I’m taking you to the hospital.”

“We don’t need to go to the hospital!” Lily protested, feeling so embarrassed she wished she could disappear.

What would she even say to the doctor? That her stomach was making weird noises and she needed a check-up? The thought alone was mortifying.

She saw him move as if to pick her up, so she buried her face in his shoulder, her voice muffled but fierce. “I didn’t eat dinner last night! I’m starving!”

James wasn’t stupid.

But his concern for her-and for the pregnancy-overrode all else. When he heard the noise, his first thought was that something was wrong.

Hearing that she was simply hungry, he carefully set her back down on the bed, then, flustered and a little awkward, he hurried out of the room. “I’ll make breakfast.”

Watching him stumble out in such a clumsy, endearing way, Lily couldn’t help but smile, her eyes curving with warmth.

It felt so good to be home.

Though she still felt weak and drained, after everything they had been through, all she wanted was to be near him.

She pulled herself together and followed him downstairs.

By the time she reached the kitchen, James had already composed himself.

He stood there in simple, comfortable loungewear, a brown apron tied around his neck, looking surprisingly domestic and at ease.

It was a quiet, tender moment-one that spoke volumes about their shared survival and the fragile hope they clung to.