Ever since Bert had shown Lilian those ssages about Morrison on the plane, she had made it clear: from now on, she didn’t want to hear a single word about him.
She wasn’t interested—whether he tried to find her or not, it didn’t matter.
Nothing. Not a thing.
So Bert didn’t tell her anything.
And every ti Morrison brazenly tried to get information about Lilian from Bert, he was t with unrelenting refusal.
Of course, Bert’s tornt of Morrison went far beyond that.
Since he had Lilian’s phone, he had access to her Weibo account, where every detail of her life with Morrison was recorded—from the first ti Lilian approached Morrison for advice on love, to their breakup, and eventual reconciliation.
Bert wasn’t interested in the early posts, before Lilian truly fell for Morrison. A few of those he glanced at and dismissed.
But once Lilian’s genuine feelings for Morrison appeared, Bert would take screenshots every few days and send them straight to Morrison, striking right at the heart.
Reading her ssages full of love and devotion, Morrison could feel only pain—and regret.
And as for Bert’s thods? Morrison had only one thought: never cross soone like Bert.
After multiple encounters, Morrison felt like he was teetering on the edge of madness. Bert struck exactly where it hurt, over and over, rcilessly, ferociously.
Two months after Lilian went to Arica, Laurent, who had been managing the branch office alone while raising her daughter, discovered she was pregnant.
She cried in frustration.
They had agreed—this year she was on assignnt, not the right ti for a baby. She and Dave were living apart, she was busy running the branch office every day, and a pregnancy would certainly interfere with her work.
Dave had agreed to take precautions.
But plans rarely survive reality.
Perhaps the distance over the past two months had made their encounters unusually passionate. Every ti Dave visited her at the branch office, desire and urgency ran high. Sotis they relied on timing, sotis on other precautions—but despite all efforts, they were "lucky."
When Laurent called Dave, her voice trembled. She had no idea how to face this sudden new life.
When Dave heard she was pregnant, he leapt from his seat, eyes wide with shock and excitent. He opened his mouth to speak, but the emotions were too overwhelming—words failed him.
After a long pause, Laurent finally managed to gasp out,
"I’ll be right there!"
Then she hung up.
For Dave, the arrival of this tiny life was monuntal. It was the perfect way to make up for the regrets he had felt during the early years of their daughter’s life. Excitent bubbling inside him, he packed up imdiately and headed straight for A.T.
On the way, he couldn’t help calling Laurent again, checking if she felt any discomfort, even insisting she not go to work and stay ho until he arrived.
Laurent was exasperated. She brushed him off with a few curt words and hung up.
Yet Dave didn’t get angry. He just smiled and continued driving, completely unbothered.
Laurent, anwhile, was burning with frustration. This tiny life had thrown her ticulously planned year into chaos. If she kept this child, she would inevitably have to cut her workload by half—and anyone who knew her knew she worked faster than a spinning top.
But if she didn’t... Laurent knew Dave would never agree to terminate the pregnancy. He had always regretted missing those early years with their daughter and had been looking forward to making it up with the second child.
Laurent herself didn’t feel regret for the past; back then, giving birth for him had been a choice she had embraced gladly. She had found joy, not hardship, in raising their daughter.
That morning, Laurent had been busy at the office. Her period hadn’t co, so she had bought a pregnancy test before work. After the morning eting, she rushed to the restroom and confird the result. Anger and shock surged through her, and she called Dave imdiately.
He had told her to wait at ho, but she had responsibilities piling up—tasks that couldn’t be abandoned.
Dave sped to A.T., heading straight for her office.
Laurent still had a client eting, but Dave insisted on accompanying her.
She worried about him—driving so far, he must be exhausted—but he refused to rest. "You’re in a delicate state right now. I have to be with you. No risks."
Laurent rolled her eyes. If every pregnant woman had such an entourage, the world would be in chaos.
But seeing him so anxious, she realized she had to keep this child safe. Nothing could go wrong, because if sothing did, Dave would never forgive himself.
On the way to the client eting, Laurent received calls from Tiffany and her own mother, both asking about the pregnancy. Dave, in his excitent, had already inford both families, leaving Laurent feeling slightly embarrassed.
Tiffany said gently,
"You’re here at A.T. alone with Nuan Nuan, working so hard. Should I co and take care of you?"
Laurent was touched but politely declined, "No, it’s fine. I can manage. I’ll ask my boss to reduce my workload later."
She also considered Daniel’s health. If Tiffany left Daniel to co help her, sothing could happen while he had no one by his side. That was unacceptable.
Dave agreed. There was no need for her mother to co. On the drive, he had already made plans: he would personally care for Laurent, and would relocate his work to A.T. as much as possible. Only in cases requiring his presence would he return to Burg Eltz.
Dave hired a nanny and household staff, ensuring that whenever he wasn’t at A.T., Laurent wouldn’t have to handle everything on her own.
He also thought it necessary to talk with Mr. Song about reducing her workload, confident that Mr. Song wasn’t unreasonable.
No one else truly understood what Laurent’s pregnancy ant to Dave. To outsiders, his level of fussing and attention might have seed over the top—but he enjoyed every bit of it.
Eventually, Laurent’s parents couldn’t stand seeing him go to such lengths. They offered to co and help care for Laurent and Nuan Nuan whenever Dave returned to Burg Eltz for work. Retired and free, they were happy to support their only daughter.
And so, Laurent’s pregnancy beca an almost perfect experience. She had her parents by her side, a loving man doting on her, a sweet daughter, and another little life growing inside her. To Laurent, it felt like the most perfect life—enough for a lifeti.
When she gave birth to their second child, a son, it was a perfect complent to their daughter—a girl and a boy, forming the ideal family.
For Laurent, for Dave, for their life in Washington, it was a flawless ending. Two children, complete joy.
When Laurent was pushed out of the delivery room, Dave cried. Gripping her hand, he whispered in her ear over and over, I love you.
What courage it must take for a woman to risk her life to give birth for a man, he thought. Seeing Laurent so weak yet so strong, he silently vowed that from that day forward, Laurent would be the only woman in his heart. He would love her, their daughter, their son, and their ho with all his being.
Lilian returned to Burg Eltz during the Baby shower of Dave and Laurent’s son.
Two months after Lilian had left, Laurent beca pregnant. After a full ten months, she gave birth to their son. One hundred days later, the celebration was held. By that point, it had been over a year since Lilian had left Burg Eltz.
Dave and Laurent had discussed it in advance with her; she didn’t have to attend if she didn’t want to. They understood her concern—Morrison might try to interfere.
For over a year, Morrison had never stopped prying into her life. Normally, with his fickle nature, a few failed pursuits would have made him move on to soone else.
Yet, surprisingly, Morrison never gave up.
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