CHAPTER 24: CHAPTER 24: BLAKE SINCLAIR STEADIES HER

After leaving the hospital, Holly Crowe decisively blocked Zion Pence and Mia Chapelle’s contacts, as well as everyone from the Pence family, and exited all the company work groups.

When she got home, her emotions belatedly rebounded, her head flushing, dizziness causing her to sweat uncontrollably. Her brain was extremely oxygen-deprived, as if she had lost mobility, her whole body numbed.

Holly made a bowl of small wontons, swallowed two pills, and lay directly on the bed.

In a state between dreams and waking, her consciousness hovered between clarity and confusion.

She was awakened by the thunderstorm once again.

Lightning split the night sky, the white light peeking through the curtains, illuminating the room in a ghastly white.

She hadn’t closed the window before sleeping, and the storm wind had formed a puddle on the floor with the rain.

It was three in the morning.

With her temples throbbing, Holly got out of bed to close the window and mop the floor.

Just as she lay back down, a sharp cramp cut through her lower abdomen. She curled up and rushed to the bathroom, looking down to see the dark red spreading on her pajama pants.

The medication prescribed by the doctor worked too quickly.

The wind and rain brought with it the pain of dysmenorrhea.

On this rainy June night, she was shivering with cold.

Even with a hot water bottle pressed to her belly, she couldn’t shake the chill in her bones.

Holly thought back to her university days, she never had these problems.

It was the five years of staying up late and entertaining with Zion Pence, coupled with emotional exhaustion, that gradually caused this ailment.

The most painful memory was while dining at the Pence family.

She was in such pain her face was pale, and she couldn’t hold the chopsticks steadily. At that time, Florence Ford merely glanced at her and said lightly, "Holly, having a baby would cure this illness."

Baby...

In her haze, Holly slipped into another dream.

She was dressed in a pure white wedding gown, her belly heavily swollen.

The guests were all smiles, but onstage, Mia Chapelle was hooking arms with Zion Pence, exchanging rings.

Suddenly, a gut-wrenching pain tore through her abdomen, blood flowed down her leg, staining the ground bright red...

She wanted to scream but couldn’t make a sound.

She wanted to escape but couldn’t move an inch.

Suddenly, the sound of a phone ringing reached her ears.

Holly jolted awake.

The sky was already bright, the sun shining high.

Holly slightly shifted to grab her phone, a stabbing pain shot through her lower abdomen, like being pricked by needles.

It was a call from Celia Stiles, saying something came up at home, and she needed Holly to go to the store in the morning to meet a customer who was picking up goods.

Holly took the chance to ask about Blake Sinclair’s watch.

Celia knew right away.

The day after Shirley Sinclair tried the ceramics, Celia found the watch in the apron pocket. She had checked the price online and didn’t dare ask in her WeChat Moments, so she left it in the store drawer, thinking she’d wait for the owner to come forward.

After hanging up, Holly leaned against the bed to gather herself, and after washing up, she headed to the Lunar Lotus Studio.

Following Celia’s directions, she found the watch—a Patek Philippe, with a black dial encircled by diamonds. She took it and snapped a photo, sending it to Blake Sinclair.

[President Sinclair, your watch has been found. Do you need me to find someone to deliver it to you?]

Thinking it over, she deleted the latter part, changing it to [Do you need me to deliver it to you?]

Such an expensive watch, if anything were to happen along the way, she wouldn’t be able to repay it even if she sold herself.

Moments later, her phone beeped with a message.

Blake Sinclair replied, [Thank you. I have a meeting now, will be there to pick it up in twenty minutes.]

Along with a photo attached.

In the spacious conference room, the long oval table was lined with people in suits, several sat with mouths agape, looking stunned at the camera.

Holly: "....."

Someone like Blake Sinclair, checking his phone during a meeting?

...

Sinclair Group.

Conference room.

Cole Tanner sneaked a glance at his boss for the third time.

Just then, Dr. Garrison from the lab and Vice President Roth from the finance department had been fiercely arguing about an outsourced experiment, red-faced.

The atmosphere was tense, when a crisp message alert suddenly sounded.

"Who doesn’t silence their phone during meetings? How can such a basic mistake still happen?" Dr. Garrison asked, slapping the table and fuming.

Amidst the dead silence, Blake Sinclair calmly picked up his phone, "Sorry, it’s mine."

Everyone stared in disbelief.

In their eyes, the always meticulous boss was first seen chuckling at his screen, then raising his phone to snap a picture of the meeting.

Dr. Garrison’s anger was caught in his throat, Vice President Roth stood silent with his mouth open, forgetting to retort.

As the tension hung thick, Blake Sinclair set down his phone, unfazed, "The experiment can be outsourced, but the timeline must not be delayed."

With that one sentence, the meeting returned to its main agenda.

The conference gradually got back on track.

But twenty minutes later, they saw their President Sinclair suddenly rise: "Continue the meeting, Cole Tanner, follow up."

With that, he strode out of the conference room.

Leaving everyone exchanging glances.

Cole Tanner watched the boss’s departing back, silently shaking his head, feeling he had a vague idea of his whereabouts.

.....

Inside Lunar Lotus Studio, Holly Crowe was curled on the couch hugging her legs, tightly pressing her hand against her stomach, trying to alleviate the pain this way.

The painkillers she took before leaving were quick to take effect and just as quick to leave, the pain blurring her vision.

Unlocking her phone, she saw the delivery status was under 200 meters away, as she had placed an order for pain medicine and brown sugar when the pain was unbearable earlier.

Holly forced herself up, dragging her unsteady steps towards the door.

The ceramic bell jingled crisply.

"Thank you, just give it to me..." she reached out, but her words abruptly stopped.

In her view was not a deliveryman wearing a yellow vest, but a pair of shiny black leather shoes, leading up to neatly pressed black suit pants, and Blake Sinclair’s amber eyes.

"President...?"

Blake Sinclair’s gaze landed on her pale lips, his brow furrowing slightly, "You..."

"3521, Ms. Crowe, your medicine!"

The delivery boy’s voice came from behind Blake Sinclair.

Blake turned at the sound, his broad shoulders completely blocking the light from the door.

Holly weakly looked up, "President Sinclair, could you please let..."

Before she could finish, Blake had already taken the bulging yellow paper bag.

Once inside, Holly leaned on the counter and took the bag from him.

"Are you unwell?" Blake’s voice deepened.

Holly shook her head, tearing open the paper bag.

The packaging rustled as she opened it, a sanitary pad slipped and fell, landing on the floor between them.

The air froze for a few seconds.

Holly recalled this was something she had added to the order earlier just to reach the delivery minimum.

She was about to bend down when a well-defined hand picked it up first.

Blake Sinclair maintained his usual demeanor, picking it up and handing it over.

Holly took it, "Thank you."

The ceramic bell at the door chimed again.

A young couple entered hand in hand.

The girl clung to her boyfriend’s arm and said, "Boss Stiles, we’re here to pick up the tea set we ordered two months ago."

Her eyes flickered between the two, blinking in confusion, "Has the boss changed?"

"Boss Stiles has something to attend to at home today."

Holly quickly stuffed the medicine into the counter drawer, mustering the strength to step forward, "Ms. King, correct? You ordered two sets of The Drunken Orchid. They’re already packaged. Please wait a moment, I’ll get them for you."

With just those few words, cold sweat had soaked her back.

When she reached the warehouse door, her vision suddenly went black, her legs turned weak and she was about to collapse when a pair of strong arms caught her by the elbows.

"Be careful."

Blake Sinclair’s voice was close by her ear, his warm breath brushing her ear.