Chapter 97
For a moment, I was left slightly confused.
Seeing that I was waiting for a response, Ashton smirked and teased, “Give me a kiss, and I’ll tell you!”
“Nonsense!” I ignored his playful comment. Since I had already reviewed the document thoroughly, there shouldn’t be any problems. It was probably just his usual skepticism.
He set the document down and took the ones I had planned to sign from my hand. “I’ll take a look at these and sign them if everything is fine. You go and rest,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Ashton’s office was enormous, and it even had a lounge fully equipped with facilities. I frowned. “I’m not tired,” I replied, but he didn’t listen. He simply guided me into the lounge and turned on the air conditioning. “Lie down and rest,” he insisted, taking my phone from me.
“Ashton!” I protested. “How am I supposed to sleep? I woke up late this morning, so I’m not tired.”
He gave me a look that was part teasing, part concerned. “Do you want me to stay with you?”
I was speechless at his suggestion. Frustrated, I climbed into the bed and pulled the blanket over my head. “I’m going to sleep. You can go out now.”
I vaguely heard his laughter as he left, and once the room fell silent, I thought he had finally gone. But as I lay there, staring at the ceiling, my thoughts began to swirl. Did Ashton’s behavior change because of guilt? Could a loveless marriage really last a lifetime?
I couldn’t sleep with so many questions running through my mind. I decided to find my phone, but then I remembered Ashton had placed it outside. Getting out of bed, I went to retrieve it and noticed someone standing behind the balcony curtains. I grabbed my phone and turned to leave when I overheard Ashton talking on the phone.
“Is she alright?” he asked, his voice low and serious. I couldn’t hear the response on the other end, but he followed up with, “Alright, bring her for a checkup and have her wounds bandaged properly. After that, send her back to Pear Garden.”
It was about Rebecca.
I froze. How could I have forgotten? Rebecca was injured too. Even though he didn’t mention her directly, it was clear she was the one he cared about most.
As for me? It was obvious. He didn’t love me. He felt responsible for me, nothing more.
Ashton hadn’t expected me to overhear his conversation. His expression shifted from calm to slightly tense as his gaze landed on me. “Why aren’t you resting?” he asked, his tone now stern.
I raised my phone as if to justify my actions. “I came to get this.”
“You’re supposed to be sleeping. There’s no reason to hold onto your phone,” he replied.
I shrugged. “Alright.” I returned to the lounge, feeling a little out of place.
Luckily, pregnant women tend to feel lethargic, and I soon drifted off to sleep. It wasn’t until the afternoon that I woke up, feeling a dull headache from oversleeping. The sound of voices arguing outside made me groggily get out of bed.
I opened the door to find Ashton and Joe in the middle of a heated argument. As soon as they saw me, they fell silent. Ashton threw a pile of documents at Joe and said coldly, “Stop causing trouble for yourself. I hope you don’t make the same mistakes again.”
Joe, clearly irritated, picked up the papers and glared at me before leaving without saying another word.
I was baffled. Had I interrupted something? Was it a bad time for me to show up?
“What are you daydreaming about?” Ashton asked, his posture relaxed as he leaned against his chair. He stretched out his hand toward me. “Come here.”
I walked over and sat on his lap, feeling a bit out of sorts. “I slept too much. I don’t feel well.”
He tucked a few loose strands of hair behind my ear and pressed his face against my neck. “It’s alright. We’ll go for a walk later. What do you feel like eating?”
“I’m not hungry,” I replied, glancing at the clock on the wall. It was already three o’clock in the afternoon. No wonder I was feeling off after sleeping for so long.
He handed me a glass of warm water. “Dr. Ludwick invited us for dinner tonight. Do you want to go?”
I was stunned. I took a sip of water and placed the glass back on the table. “Did you say yes?”
Ashton lowered his eyes and nodded. “Yes, I want to take you out for a nice meal.”
That was a good excuse.
But as the president, he didn’t need to rely on someone else to foot the bill when taking his pregnant wife out for a nice dinner.
“You decide,” I said, standing up and smoothing out the wrinkles in my clothes. “I need to go back to the office.”
I had barely done anything at the office all day, aside from sleeping.
As I was about to leave, Ashton’s phone rang. He nodded and said, “Go ahead. I’ll come pick you up later.”
Back at the office, I was greeted by Stacey, who didn’t seem her usual self. She forced a smile as she saw me. “Ms. Stovall!”
“What’s wrong?” I asked, noticing there were no documents on her desk. “No documents for me to review today?”
Stacey lowered her head, her expression dim. “AC Credit’s documents were sent back by Mr. Fuller. He wants them redone.”
“The audit for Quinn Corporation needs to be redone?”
“Yes,” she replied with a nod.
I raised an eyebrow. “It was Ashton’s decision?”
She nodded again. “Yes.”
It all clicked. No wonder Joe had been so angry at Ashton earlier.