Chapter 297

The hospital room was quiet, with only Ethan keeping watch over Vanessa.

He lounged on the sofa, a cigarette between his fingers, exhaling a slow stream of smoke. His sharp eyes flickered with surprise when Evelyn stepped inside.

"After everything that happened last night, are you injured?" Ethan asked, his voice laced with something unreadable.

Evelyn hesitated.

Was Ethan actually worried about her?

Then it struck her.

When Alexander had carried her out of that abandoned warehouse, she had caught a glimpse of Ethan’s sleek black car parked nearby.

Her pulse quickened.

So, he had been there too?

But Vanessa had already been rescued by then.

Why had Ethan still been at the scene?

The world believed he had rushed there with fifty million dollars to save Vanessa.

But Evelyn knew the truth.

No one understood better than Ethan himself—his real concern had never been for Vanessa.

It had always been for her.

Ethan's unusual behavior sent a chill down Evelyn's spine. Instinctively, she took a step back, desperate to put distance between them.

Her heel caught on the leg of a chair behind her, throwing her off balance.

Ethan's expression darkened instantly. In one swift motion, he lunged forward and seized her wrist.

Just then, the door swung open.

Vanessa was wheeled in, fresh from her ultrasound. The doctor had insisted on a thorough examination—she hadn’t had a single proper prenatal checkup since becoming pregnant.

Eleanor had accompanied her, concerned about the baby’s development.

The sight before them made Eleanor freeze.

Vanessa’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, as if she had finally caught Evelyn red-handed.

"Eleanor! See? I told you! She’s trying to seduce Ethan!"

Pale and fragile after a sleepless night, Vanessa looked like a wilting flower, her condition made worse by the baby’s complications.

Evelyn hadn’t expected Ethan to grab her like this.

The timing couldn’t have been worse.

The stumble had been barely noticeable—she wouldn’t have fallen.

Evelyn jerked her hand free from Ethan’s grip, her voice icy. "Me? Seduce him? Vanessa, what kind of nonsense are you spouting?"

Vanessa’s voice rose shrilly, as if volume alone could make her accusations true. "I saw it with my own eyes! Don’t even try to deny it!"

"Alexander has no idea what kind of woman you really are! Eleanor, you saw it too, didn’t you? It’s Evelyn—she’s shamelessly throwing herself at Ethan!"

Eleanor’s brow furrowed.

Lying on the stretcher, Vanessa might not have had a clear view, but Eleanor had seen everything standing up.

Ethan had been the one to approach Evelyn first. There had been space between them before.

Eleanor had no interest in fueling this drama—it wouldn’t benefit her son.

Besides, she had never liked Vanessa. Pregnancy didn’t grant her any special privileges in Eleanor’s eyes.

"Enough of your ridiculous accusations!" Eleanor snapped. "Just lie still and calm down."

Vanessa's eyes widened in shock as she stared at Eleanor.

Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, her body trembling from the unexpected scolding.

The more Vanessa cried, the more Eleanor's irritation grew.

How could a woman like her ever be worthy of my son?

Ethan wanted a divorce, and now, of all times, Vanessa turns up pregnant.

Vincent had been sent abroad by Alexander, leaving Eleanor with nothing but Audrey and Sophia's relentless taunts.

Especially Sophia.

She never missed an opportunity to remind Eleanor how Vincent, as the eldest son, had failed to secure Titan Capital Group, allowing Alexander—raised outside the family—to push him out so effortlessly.

And Eleanor had no defense.

But a grandson… that could change everything.

If the baby was born, could Vincent use it as leverage to return?

Their family might finally be whole again.

That was why Eleanor was so desperate for this child.

Otherwise, if Ethan wanted a divorce, she would have gladly encouraged it.