Your First Love is Pregnant? I'm Done Being Mrs. Hawthorne!

###Chapter 60: You Look Indecent

Nina Wainwright averted her gaze. "I’m sorry, Zachary," she said in a low voice. "I was wrong. I won’t answer her calls anymore."

"Is that a sincere apology?" Zachary shot back. "You’re just being defiant. You still hate her and don’t want to do what I told you to, right?"

Nina remained silent. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

She felt so utterly suffocated sometimes. This pressure had no release valve; she could only bottle it up.

But bottling it up made it hard to breathe.

’I don’t even know what to do to make things better. I want a divorce, but Zachary refuses, and his torment is relentless...’

"Then what is the right thing for me to do?" Nina asked softly.

Zachary took a deep breath, his voice turning icy. "Nina, this is your only warning. Make this mistake again, and don’t blame me for what happens."

Nina instinctively looked up at him.

"Let me be perfectly clear with you. Luna is different. I promised her I would never let anyone hurt her—and that includes you!" Zachary’s voice was frigid. With that, he came down the stairs and stood before Nina.

For the first time, Nina realized just how terrifying he could be for another woman’s sake. He was like a mountain bearing down, about to crush her.

"And what if she hurts me?" Nina shot back.

"She would never do something like that. I know her. Don’t judge her by your own standards." With that, he turned and walked away.

The blood in Nina’s veins ran cold.

’I thought that by asking for a divorce first, it meant I no longer cared. But my heart still aches. The pain is still there.’

In that moment, her desire for a divorce had never been stronger.

After that, Zachary didn’t come home for a week.

Nina, for her part, felt a sense of relief.

She spent the week dancing alone at home—just small, gentle movements, of course, more like a warm-up.

Today, she was dancing in the living room, dressed in a Suzhou-embroidered cheongsam.

She didn’t notice Zachary had returned. With a folding fan in hand, she followed the dance on television, her movements graceful, like a butterfly poised for flight.

Zachary didn’t disturb her.

Beside him, Silas Sinclair also watched in silence.

As Nina turned, she folded her fan and saw Zachary. She immediately stopped dancing.

"Have you eaten?" she asked, her tone gentle as she placed the fan on the coffee table.

"You really like to dance?" Zachary walked toward her, his earlier anger having subsided.

Nina lowered her gaze. "It’s alright. I don’t love it. I was just bored and needed something to do."

Zachary moved closer, cupping her face and forcing her to look at him. "I haven’t eaten. Why don’t you join me? You can wear what you have on."

The Suzhou-embroidered cheongsam came with a small shawl that gave her an air of nobility.

It was a gift from Zachary, something he’d brought back from a business trip. Nina had worn it once, but he had been busy and hadn’t seen her in it. Afterward, she rarely wore it, tucking it away like a precious treasure.

"Okay," Nina agreed meekly.

Their relationship had already been cracking, but the recent incident with Luna had widened the fissures into a chasm.

Zachary could feel it.

His week-long absence had been because he was wrestling with this very issue.

Zachary understood clearly that his marriage to Nina was in trouble. All the things that made her feel awkward and upset were precisely the things he’d never paid mind to, things he considered trivial.

But he couldn’t change Nina’s suspicious nature.

He’d spent the week trying to figure out a solution but had come up with nothing.

Nina got into the car with him and rested her chin on her hand, gazing at the passing scenery.

In the past three years, she had rarely left the house. Even when she did, it was always in a rush, her mind preoccupied. She had never taken the time to really look at the neighborhood. This time, however, she watched the changing scenery with intent.

"Nina, Luna is doing fine now. Just don’t say things like that to her again. She comes from a prominent family, after all. She can’t just let an insult like that slide; it’s a matter of face," Zachary said calmly, taking Nina’s hand.

Nina just hummed in response, saying nothing more.

"I wasn’t blaming you before," Zachary said, bringing her hand to his lips and gently kissing her pink-tinged fingertips.

Nina felt the warmth of his lips on her fingers, but inside, she felt nothing at all.

"When are we getting to the restaurant?" Nina asked.

Zachary placed her hand over his heart. "Soon," he said gently. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes," Nina replied softly.

When they arrived at the restaurant, Nina realized it wasn’t just the two of them. Luna Sterling, Caleb Ford, and Talia Talbot were there as well.

’So, this past week, they’d all gotten back on the same side.’

Nina instantly lost her appetite, but she managed to keep her composure.

When Luna saw the Suzhou-embroidered cheongsam Nina was wearing, a strange glint flashed in her eyes before she quickly masked it with a smile. "Nina, order whatever you like, it’s my treat. These two are here to apologize to you... I hope you won’t hold what happened at the resort against them."

"Oh, okay," she replied, feigning confusion.

Caleb Ford raised his glass to her. "I’m sorry," he said, then downed the contents.

Talia also took a deep breath and raised her glass. "You don’t have to, but I’m drinking mine. We went too far last time. I apologize."

Nina picked up an empty cup and poured herself some tea. "I’m on medication, so I can’t drink. Sorry."

Zachary rested a hand on Nina’s shoulder. "Luna," he said gently, "if you’re free, you should invite her out more. She gets so bored at home."

"Of course," Luna readily agreed.

Nina smiled at her. "Then I’ll be troubling you."

Luna looked at the way Nina’s eyes crinkled when she smiled, then back at the Suzhou-embroidered cheongsam, and a wave of displeasure washed over her.

’Zachary had been unreachable for a week—even his calls went straight to Silas. Did he spend that whole week placating Nina? Did he even buy her this dress, made by a master artisan?’

Pictures of this dress had appeared online a long time ago.

But after that one appearance, it vanished from the public eye.

Luna loved this style of classic clothing. She had inquired about it multiple times, but the master artisan had been secretive. She even asked Zachary for help later, but he’d been noncommittal.

’I had assumed the master artisan was just unyielding and unwilling to sell. Zachary dislikes hassle, so I figured he just gave up...’

’I never expected he would buy it for Nina, just to appease her.’

’No wonder she looks so smug.’

Nina, however, had just seen her opening.

This was an opportunity Zachary himself had handed her. If she didn’t seize it now, she might not get another.

Luna was clearly unhappy throughout the meal. Zachary sensed it, just as he sensed the different, unspoken thoughts of everyone at the table.

’And it was Luna who had insisted on this dinner. He knew it wouldn’t end well, but he couldn’t bring himself to refuse her. Now that she sees the outcome for herself, maybe she won’t insist on these gatherings anymore.’

Partway through the meal, Nina excused herself to go to the restroom.

Talia immediately followed her.

The moment they were in the women’s restroom, Talia slammed her hand against the stall door Nina was trying to close.

She looked Nina up and down with a smirk. "A Suzhou-embroidered cheongsam. On you, it makes you look like a whore from some Republic-era brothel."

’Of course. Nina knew her apology hadn’t been sincere.’