Chapter 7
In truth, Silvana was a bit flustered, too. But she maintained her composure. After hearing the full story, Jeromy–who seemed familiar with Julianne–frowned, his expression turning serious. “I suggest you consider settling this,” he advised cautiously. “Mrs. Maxwell isn’t someone to be trifled with.”
Silvana picked up on his implication immediately–she should avoid provoking Julianne. If things escalated, the fallout would not be in her favor.
She took a sip of water, biting her lip. “If this does go to court, do I really have no chance of winning?”
“I wouldn’t say no chance,” Jeromy replied carefully. “But given the time, energy, and resources required, it may not be worth the fight. Besides, with Mr. Maxwell’s influence…” He didn’t continue, and he didn’t have to. Silvana understood perfectly.
Her unease grew. She didn’t want to back down, but even more, she didn’t want the studio–which she and Felicia had built together–to suffer because of her personal struggles.
“I see. Thank you, Mr. Cline,” she said.
Just then, another wave of nausea swept over her, sudden and intense.
“Excuse me. I need to use the restroom.”
Jeromy nodded.
She hurried into the restroom and started retching violently. After a while, she straightened up and saw her pallor in the mirror. She turned on the tap and splashed cold water onto her face, finally managing to calm
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down a bit. Bracing her hand against the wall, she stepped out of the restroom, only to bump into someone.
“I’m sorry…” she instinctively apologized.
But as she looked up. Kendrick’s stunningly handsome face came into view, leaving her completely dumbfounded. What was he doing here?
Just her luck.
Kendrick was dressed in a dark gray suit that accentuated his sharp silhouette, slender figure, broad shoulders, and lean waist. He looked down at Silvana, his gaze utterly calm yet sharp and cold, as if he were staring at a complete stranger, even though she was his ex–wife from whom he had just divorced.
An awkward silence hung in the air for a few seconds.
Silvana was in a daze–they met again so soon? This was their first meeting since the divorce, and he was still as stunningly handsome and refined as ever.
Suddenly, her stomach churned again. Her face turned pale, and she rushed back into the restroom, worried she might retch at any second.
Kendrick, still standing in place, frowned at her retreating figure.
Standing in front of the mirror, Silvana stared at her ghastly pale reflection. If she went out now like this, she’d definitely scare someone into screaming. Besides, what if Kendrick was still out there?
She deliberately dawdled for several minutes before walking out again. Kendrick was nowhere to be seen in the hallway, to her huge relief.
She made her way back to the table. Noticing her awful expression, Jeromy asked with concern, “Would you like me to take you to the hospital? You look unwell.”
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She shook her head. “I’m fine. I just haven’t rested well these days.”
Jeromy leaned closer. “Are you running a fever?”
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“No.” Noticing the diminishing space between them, she instinctively leaned away. “Mr. Cline, thanks for your time tonight. I need to go back to the studio now. If anything comes up, I’ll contact you again.”
Jeromy gave a slightly awkward smile. “OK.”
With her bag in hand, Silvana stood up. Looking up, she saw Kendrick, who wasn’t far away. He was smoking while looking in her direction. Though his gaze and expression were calm, his eyes fixed on her were as sharp as a knife.
Then, without a backward glance, he walked away.
Silvana averted her gaze. Not dwelling on the underlying meaning behind Kendrick’s expression, she walked out of the restaurant, followed by Jeromy.
She intended to hail a cab, but Jeromy kindly insisted on giving her a lift, and she reluctantly agreed.
As she sat in the car, the familiar wave of nausea hit her again. She covered her mouth with her hand and struggled to fight it back.
“Ms. Mendoza, are you alright?”
She swallowed and took a deep breath. “Yes, I’m fine.”
“Are you feeling sick?” Jeromy asked.
“My stomach is a bit upset,” she said, though not sounding sure.
A subtle feeling of uneasiness gnawed at her. What if she really was pregnant? What should she do? Should she keep the baby? Or have an
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abortion? She was torn.
Jeromy suggested, “Maybe I should take you to the hospital.‘
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She shook her head again. “That really isn’t necessary. I’ll be fine once I get some medicine.” She had decided she would go, but alone. If anyone were to find out, it would cause unnecessary trouble.
She had Jeromy drop her off near the studio. After he drove away, she went to the nearest pharmacy and bought a box of pregnancy tests. Back at the studio, she headed straight to the restroom. Several minutes later, she stared at the test stick in her hand, waiting for the result.
Five minutes had passed. She tossed the used pregnancy test into the bin, overwhelmed by panic.
Just then, her phone abruptly rang, which was almost deafening in the quiet studio, startling her so much that she shivered. She picked it up to see Kendrick’s name flashing on the screen.
Why was he calling her now?
She didn’t feel like answering.
To her relief, it stopped after a few rings, and he didn’t call back.
She then called Dianna, her voice slightly trembling as she said, “Anna, I- I think I’m pregnant. What should I do?”
Dianna was stunned into silence for a moment. “For real?” she finally said. “You can’t be that unlucky, can you?”
“I just took a test. It’s positive,” Silvana replied, her voice still trembling.
