When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

###Chapter 44: Find a White Moonlight of Her Own

Sharon Winters was startled by Aiden Xavier’s imposing presence, instinctively hiding behind Hazel Hawthorne. He looked strangely familiar, but right now, she was more worried about Raina Lowell’s condition, her hand clutching tightly to the corner of Hazel’s clothes.

Hazel Hawthorne glanced back and gave Sharon a reassuring smile before turning to face Aiden, who had rushed over. "Raina Lowell suddenly came here to cause trouble. I accidentally pushed her."

"Is that all?" Aiden didn’t believe Hazel. His suspicious gaze made Hazel let out a small, involuntary laugh despite the tense atmosphere.

"If you don’t believe me, then anything I say is pointless. You can just wait for Raina to wake up and ask her what happened." Hazel remained composed, her gaze frank. ’I didn’t do anything wrong. Besides, Raina was the one who started it.’

’Even if someone had to take the blame, the most I did was act in self-defense. And as for Sharon, I didn’t see her lift a finger.’

Hazel could tell from Aiden’s expression that he didn’t believe her, so she fell silent. She glanced at him coolly, meeting his gaze for a brief moment before nonchalantly looking away.

Aiden thought for a moment before asking, "Why did Raina come to bother you?"

"Why else would she come looking for me, if not because of you? It was the usual—asking when I’m going to divorce you, asking why I agreed to a divorce but haven’t gone through with it yet," Hazel said bluntly, not caring that Sharon was listening.

Hearing this, Sharon was completely stunned. She stood there dumbfounded, her eyes glued to Hazel.

’Hazel isn’t single? She’s married?’

Sharon glanced at Aiden Xavier a few more times, and then it hit her who he was. Her jaw dropped in utter astonishment.

’Hazel’s husband is Aiden Xavier!’

Now, Sharon didn’t dare to say a single word. Hazel, however, continued to stare at Aiden with a serene expression.

The light above the emergency room finally went out.

A doctor came out, and upon seeing Aiden Xavier, walked right over to him to give him an update on Raina Lowell’s condition.

Hazel and Sharon stood off to the side, feeling completely irrelevant. Sharon gently tugged on Hazel’s sleeve. "What’s the deal with that woman and Aiden Xavier?"

Sharon’s voice wasn’t loud, but the hallway was exceptionally quiet. The doctor had just finished speaking, and her words hung in the even deeper silence that followed.

At her words, Aiden turned to look at Hazel, as if waiting to see how she would respond. Sharon, still intimidated by Aiden’s gaze, immediately clamped her mouth shut and ducked behind Hazel again.

"They’re friends," Hazel said without even glancing at Aiden. She added coolly, "Childhood friends."

Raina Lowell was moved to a private room. When Hazel and Sharon arrived, Aiden was already sitting by the bed, his eyes fixed on Raina’s pale face. He didn’t even turn his head at the sound of their footsteps.

Hazel was long used to this kind of situation.

"It’s a good thing Raina is okay. If anything serious had happened... Hazel, what do you think I would have done?"

Hazel replied without hesitation, "Would any of this have happened if Raina hadn’t shown up at my door looking for a fight? Every event has a cause. If you really want to get to the root of it, it’s because you weren’t clear with her, which is why she came looking for me."

Hazel spoke in a calm, measured tone. Her voice and demeanor made it perfectly clear: she felt Raina’s being in a hospital bed had very little to do with her.

Sharon tugged Hazel’s hand. Despite Aiden’s intimidating presence, she couldn’t stop herself from speaking up for her friend. "It was Ms. Lowell who made the first move. Hazel was only defending herself, and she didn’t do anything extreme."

Hazel looked at Sharon. Hearing her voice, Aiden finally turned to look at this girl whom he had barely noticed until now.

"This is your friend?"

"Yes. If you have an issue, take it up with me. It has nothing to do with Sharon." Hazel knew Aiden didn’t believe her and saw no point in arguing. Even if he believed she was the cause of Raina’s heart condition flaring up, she had no intention of defending herself.

So she turned to Sharon and said, "Sharon, don’t bother explaining. Aiden has already made up his mind. No matter what we say, he’ll decide it’s my fault." With that, she was ready to leave.

Hazel took Sharon’s hand and gave Aiden a long, steady look. "We aren’t needed here. I’m sure Raina won’t want to see me when she wakes up, so we’ll be going. If there’s a problem, you can come to me directly."

Without giving Aiden a chance to reply, Hazel led Sharon straight out of the hospital.

Outside the hospital, Sharon hurried to keep up with Hazel, who was walking briskly. Hazel didn’t want to spend another minute there. ’Aiden is such a blockhead. He actually didn’t believe me.’ 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

’Does he really think I would attack Raina first?’

’Why would I do that? I know perfectly well how unique and special Raina is to Aiden. Attacking her would be a dead giveaway, practically an admission of guilt.’

Hazel was seething. She walked for a long while before realizing Sharon hadn’t kept up. She slowed her pace until her friend finally caught up to her.

"Hazel, unless I was seeing things... that was Aiden Xavier, right?"

Hazel nodded. "You weren’t seeing things."

"Oh my god! So you’re the one who married Aiden Xavier! And I called him a total player right to your face." Sharon patted her chest, then looked at Hazel’s sour expression. "But that woman who showed up at your place to pick a fight... is she really Aiden’s childhood friend?"

"Yes, childhood friends," Hazel repeated. She thought of the distrust in Aiden’s eyes earlier and let out a sneer. "She’s the precious treasure he’s afraid will break if he doesn’t hold her in the palm of his hand."

Sharon was so shocked she covered her mouth. "You mean she’s his legendary ’white moonlight’?"

Hazel scoffed. ’More than just his "white moonlight." If Fiona Forrest would accept Raina, Aiden probably would have divorced me long ago. In fact, he might never have married me at all.’

Sharon looked at Hazel, her heart aching for her. "If Aiden has a ’white moonlight,’ why did he marry you? Just to hurt you? Marrying you while he has someone else in his heart... He’s a real scumbag."

Sharon had never liked Aiden, and after seeing this, she despised him even more. "Hazel, why don’t you just divorce him?"

"Divorce isn’t that simple." ’Inwardly, she couldn’t wait to get away from him. But if Aiden refused to sign the papers, what could she do?’

Sharon didn’t get it. "Hazel, maybe you should go find a ’white moonlight’ of your own."

"..." Hazel suddenly looked at Sharon. ’That’s not a bad idea. If Aiden is allowed to have his "white moonlight," why can’t I have one, too?’

Seeing Hazel’s approving expression, Sharon immediately panicked. She whispered in her ear, "I was just kidding." After a pause, she added, "But if you do go looking for one, don’t you dare say it was my idea. I’m scared Aiden Xavier will come after me."

Hazel patted Sharon’s shoulder. "Don’t worry. Right now, I just want to focus on building my own future. Men... they’re a species best avoided."

*****