Chapter 18 A Lifetime of Out
Trandes splashed onto Jordan’s face, rolling down her cheeks. But she still debt mae in inch
“paddy! Daddy?” Bella’s desperate men echoed through the troo
She sterk jondan with everything the had. But the inere sem hes tumbling backward onto the bed, nearly rolling off the edge Bella wiped be tears with her chubby letle hand. Then, the spotted a pink child’s wanch on the bedside table.
She grabbed the watch, pressed a button, and a cheetal nurseryrhyme played from the speaker.
“Mom, Man, please pick up. Please. “She clurched the watch tightly, her tear–lilledeges shimmering with hope.
the song played on loop several times belece the call automatically disconnected. Sena still didn’t answet.
Bella glanced at jondon’s tightly shut eyes, bear creeping into her heart. She pressed another button, hes small hand trembling so hard the nearly missed
The moment the call connected, she burst into loud sobs. “Connor!”
Faraway holding a wine glass at the Kinslet residence, Maring blankly out of the window when the call came in
He had already made up hn mind that he wouldn’t interfere in Joodin’s life.
It was content with the way things were now, then the
need for him to stir up trouble.
weilings couldn’t be forent, and their was an even more complicated love.
“Listen, I’m his boss. Il you want to go, then fr on your own,” Ezra rejected Cormor flatly.
He had just reiched to stay awing from Jordan Showing up at his doorstep now would be downright humiliating
“I’m out et town!” Concounded both anxious and frustrated Xena wasn’t picking up, and he had no other choice but to call his Errador help.
Send your assistant!
“They’re all with me.”
Then Illarrange for someone from the company to go.” Ezra pulled out another phone as he spoke and scrolled through his contris.
The you really trust them? With their so–called efficiency, by the time they get to Jordan’s place, register at the hospital, and wait in line, Jordan will be running a fever so high he the
And what about Della? She not their kid, so they’ll be too focused on jordan sowach her. What if she wanders off she’s home alone right now, and it’s dangerous
“You should take the family doctor and check on o dan yourself.”
For once, Connor threw caution to the wind and outright ordered Ears around.
Ezza frowned not at Connor’s tone bot at his urgency. He had said the company staff couldn’t be trusted because Bella wasn’t their biological child. But did that mean fella was big?
“I’m begging you, okay?””
Fara had no idea just how heartbreaking bela’s cries were over the phone Even Connor’s heart ached for her. She was barely over han grap old.
Though reluctant, Ezra still went. He was worried about ordan and Bella But mon than that, he feared the possibility that Bella might actually have some connection to com
If something happened to them and he didn’t step in, he’d carry the guilt for the rest of halde.
The door was locked from the inside when he ached. Bell couldn’t open it, and her mutted son seeped through the door, rightening the grip on his heart.
The lockmith would take at least 15 minuta to get ther.
Adding in the time it had already raken him ra arrive, nearly an hour would’ve passed since Bella had called for hely.
In licking the door down!” Ezra shouted..
He listened her tiny footsteps hurried away from the entrance. The moment they faded, he raised his leg and kicked.
The house had a widity door with a sturdy lock, but that didn’t stop him fromtrating the entire door frame apart.
Delacouched by her bedroom doorway, trembling from the loud cash. Through the dust and debris, a call, imposing
The moment shu nuw who it was, the bolted toward him.
“My Kinder!”
Erasped her up, paying no kind to the tears and snot she wiped all over his rain. He strode forward
Bella printed toward the bedroom with her toy dinge. Without wasting another second, Fara apa the family doctor rushed inside.
The matten he Law Jordan lying motionless on the messy bed, bet face Bashed with lever, a pang of something sharp twisted in Ezra’s chest.
He had in taking is distance. Tei here he was, unable to ignore the right of Jordan in auch state.
ün ductos worked on singingdan’s been down, Eavá Book a numenical
Kiper admindatering an antipyretic Injection, Jordan finally began to stic
Her head thobbed as she slowly opened her eye,
hingelp one dop at a time.
Was phe in a hospital! When had brought her here?
The thought jolied her fully awake. She pushed ları veril
up,
lly ratching the co
Just then, Ezra walked in with an ice pack in hand. His expresalon iemained completely uneadable, his voler as cool as ever.
“You’re awake.
He picked up the melted in pack she had knocked and handed her afreshme
jordan took it, still dazed, suppling to make sense of the situation
“Where’s Tea?” He chest tightened with worry when she couldn’t see her daughter.
“She nied here) tradeep on the couch,” Ezra said, glancing at the IV. Only half a bottle was left.
Jordan eshaled in telit
Jordan nodded “Just a mild lever, nothing serious. She already took her medicine.”
This time of year, when summer tramitioned into antin, the temperature difference between morning and night was drastic, So colds and fevers were common.
The family doctor had said the same thing earlier, so Erawan’t particularly worried
“Thank you, Mr. Kinder,” Jordán felt a litle embarrassed. Having the mighty Chimerake rate of her seemed a bit too much.
La cepted her gratitude.
“You should be thanking Coon and Cool was the one who told me to come,” he added, explaining why he was even here in the first place.
Dalla called Mr.Connor? How does she even have his member?
Hime did she, as Bella’s parent, not know that her daughter’s smartwatch had Connor’s number saved is it?
Ezra nodded, twirling a thermometer between his fingers as he sat. “They spend a lot of time together. It’s only natural for Connor to have saved his number for her.
“You should give her mine too. Nest time something happens, she can call me ”
Aries all people like them often had their phones on silent or turned off. Another emergency contact meant an extra cushion of reassurance.
matantly flushed red. What had she done to deserve this? How could the possibly ask the CEO himself to help look after her child?
“Noiseed, Mr. Kinsler. I wouldn’t want to trouble you”
Ezra didn’t press the issue. Instead, he glanced at the thermometer, flicked it a few times, and handed it jordan muttered a quiet thank you before backing it under her arm. past then, an embarrassing growl echoed through the room.
Joodin race. Her stomach had betrayed her.
Flashing with embarrassment, the let out an awkward laugh
“You didn’t eat lanch?” Enra asked. He had noticed earlier that the sink only held a single unwashed cartoon bol.
“I wasn’t hungry at noon. Once this I finishes, Clear later “Jordan glaced at the stand
These were no additional tr bags hanging, and the doctor had already left. This was likely the last one
“If you cook after it’s dovan, then it’ll be at least two hours before you get to eat,” Ezra saidas he stood up. I wolce remained cool, deliberately keeping a polite distance,
har do you want Nood?” he asked, rolling up his server.
