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

###Chapter 79: He’s Keeping His Options Open

Catherine Grant sat to the side, looking sullen. With her arms crossed, she said unhappily, "You two are just wasting each other’s time. Why don’t you just get a divorce?"

"Zachary Hawthorne would never agree to a divorce. He’s unwilling," Nina Wainwright said calmly.

Catherine Grant sighed heavily. "He’s so domineering and awful. Everything has to be his way... Even with things as they are, he still refuses to let you go. But you have to keep trying. After all, you’re already three months pregnant."

"I know." Nina was worried now, too.

’If Zachary was unwilling, there was nothing she could do.’

"And your third wedding anniversary is coming up. Did you know?" Catherine continued.

There was actually something she wanted to tell Nina today, but Catherine was worried the information she’d received might be false. Telling her now could lead to embarrassment or even pain later on.

Nina was taken aback.

’For their first and second anniversaries, she had been the one to bring them up.’

’Luna Sterling hadn’t been back then, so Zachary had celebrated with her. This time, however, she wasn’t sure he would.’

’She’d almost forgotten about it herself.’

"So what are you planning to do, Nina?" Catherine asked her.

Nina lowered her gaze, pondering for a moment before saying, "I should probably ask him."

"All right." Catherine didn’t want to say more. It was a matter between a husband and wife, and she felt it wasn’t her place to meddle.

"Tomorrow after work, you have to come with me to the clinic for a prenatal checkup," she continued.

Nina turned to look at her, a smile on her lips. "Okay, I’ll listen to you."

"Has Dr. Pemberton been in touch with you recently?" Catherine went on.

"No, he hasn’t contacted me since he went back. I should be the one to check in on him," Nina said softly.

’She had been so busy job hunting that she had almost forgotten to ask how he was doing.’

"He told me to take good care of you. He said that if you’re very busy, you shouldn’t feel rushed to contact him, that he’d understand." As she spoke, Catherine sighed again. "I think Adrian Pemberton is truly a better match for you than Zachary Hawthorne. He understands everything about you."

"But I’m carrying Zachary’s child," Nina said, a smile on her lips. "And in the future, I just want to raise my child well, work hard, and create the best possible life for them."

’What had her marriage brought her? At this point, Nina had no idea.’ 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Catherine reached out and gently touched her abdomen. "I can’t wait for the little one to be born. After your checkup tomorrow, I’m going to personally design a protective charm for them."

"Please don’t go to the expense... I still haven’t paid you back for what I owe you," Nina protested.

"What you owe me is one thing. Me getting a gift for the baby is another. Don’t confuse the two, or I’ll get upset," Catherine said with a look of mock exasperation.

"Okay, fine. We’ll do it your way," Nina said.

After arriving at Avelon Residence and seeing Catherine’s car off, Nina went inside the house.

Avelon Residence was perfectly quiet.

Hearing a sound at the entrance, a maid hurried out. When she saw it was Nina, she immediately came forward. "Ma’am, you’re back. Have you had dinner?"

"I haven’t. Just prepare a meal for one," Nina said, heading upstairs.

’The job wasn’t physically tiring, but there was a lot to memorize. After she ate, she still had to review her mixology book.’

The maid watched her head upstairs and went to inform the kitchen. As she turned to leave, she couldn’t help but mutter, "I wonder if Ma’am and Sir are having problems?"

’They’d hardly ever eaten together.’

Back in her room, Nina showered, then sat down with her mixology book and a notebook.

After she’d been busy for a while, a maid came up and knocked on the door.

Nina answered, "I’ll be out in a minute."

"It’s not that, ma’am. A Miss Sterling is downstairs. She says she’s here to see you," the maid said loudly from outside the door.

Nina felt a flicker of confusion. ’Isn’t Zachary with her? And wasn’t she in the hospital?’

When she got downstairs, she saw Luna Sterling. She didn’t look like anything was wrong; she was still dressed in glamorous, vibrant clothes.

The moment she saw Nina, she said, "Thank goodness you’re home. I was afraid I might have missed you."

Nina came down the stairs in a silk pajama set, her long hair cascading down, her skin pale and delicate. She looked like the lady of this castle, looking down on her with such natural ease.

"How are you feeling? Are you well enough to be out of the hospital?" Nina asked in a calm tone, stopping in front of her.

"I’m all right. It’s no big deal to be out for a bit," Luna Sterling said, casually walking over to the sofa and sitting down.

Nina didn’t seem to mind, simply moving to a separate armchair. "What did you come to see me about?"

"I heard from Caleb Ford that your and Zach’s wedding anniversary is in three days. Three years is a really special milestone. I think you should prepare for it properly," Luna Sterling suggested, looking her in the eye with an earnest expression.

Nina leaned back into the armchair, her expression impassive. "And why should I prepare for it?"

"Actually... Zach really cares about you. I asked Silas Sinclair, and he said that Zach has been really down lately because you keep ignoring him. I truly don’t want things to be like this between you two. Being kidnapped the other day when I went to answer that call really had nothing to do with you. I’ve explained that to him, but for some reason, he just insists on blaming you," Luna Sterling said with a look of self-reproach.

"It’s all in the past. If I had been with you, it wouldn’t have happened," Nina said with a completely natural expression.

"It’s a good thing you weren’t with me. Those kidnappers targeted me because they knew about my relationship with Zach. Since no one knows you have a relationship with him, you’re actually safer," Luna immediately replied.

Nina felt a pang of unease.

’It was true. After three years of marriage, no one on the outside knew she was Zachary Hawthorne’s wife. Zachary never talked about his connection to her, either.’

"Those kidnappers knew Zach and I have been close since we were children, that we grew up together, which is why they targeted me. I’m just glad they didn’t target you instead. If anything had happened to you, Zach would have surely been angry with me." Luna Sterling wore an innocent smile, as if her words were truly spoken out of concern for Nina.

Nina didn’t say anything.

When Luna Sterling saw no change in her expression, she quickly added, "I’m not trying to show off. I just feel like he’s kept you well hidden. Sometimes, I’m even a little envious of you."

Nina’s lips twisted into a smile. "And if it were you? If you married him, would you be willing to let him keep you hidden and never go public with your marriage?"

’Would anyone really be envious of that?’

’It’s not as if marriage is something that can’t see the light of day.’

’Zachary wasn’t hiding her. He was afraid that if their marriage came to light, it would make his ex-girlfriend uncomfortable.’

’That way, even if they got back together later, there wouldn’t be any messy rumors.’

’Zachary was just keeping his options open.’

’After all, he never even wanted her to get pregnant. If he had wanted her to have his child, then maybe she could have believed what Luna was saying.’