Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie)

Chapter 716

My heart jumped into my throat the second I saw him.

Sure, Hayden had told me not to freak out, but yeah-easier said than done..

"Doctor, how is he?" I stepped forward, my voice wobbling..

"His injuries are severe. There's a blood clot pressing on his brain nerves, and he's currently in a coma."

The doctor's words were so perfectly measured that I couldn't tell if Hayden was actually this hurt or if this guy was just auditioning for Best Supporting Actor in Hayden's plan.

Cole and Wayne both frowned, but Cole went full drama mode. "A coma? Are you serious? The guy got roughed up, not hit by a truck!"

The doctor didn't flinch. "I already explained-there's a blood clot."

Cole was about to argue more, but Wayne cut him off, all smooth and calculating. "I'll bring in another specialist to examine him. If anything happens, I need answers."

That comment? Definitely for me. Classic Wayne, using "concern" as a power move to figure out if Hayden's injuries were fake.

The doctor nodded, clearly annoyed but keeping it professional.

chess match. Ignoring both of them, I followed the nurse to the ward. Of course, Cole trailed

"you're not seriously confusing Xander for your...

spun around, glaring. "And

getting him tangled up with DracoLux? That was

free to love whoever you want," Cole said with this exaggerated casualness, clearly

time we hit the hospital room door, I stopped

can

the room. "I just want a

like Wayne-dying to figure out if Hayden was

Not a single one of them was even

+25 BONUS

Chapter 716

so I'd roll with it. With an exaggerated wave,

Cole smirked. "Together?"

into the room, and I followed. Hayden lay there, so still it made my stomach churn. His head was wrapped in gauze, and a drainage tube extended from his scalp, the fluid inside an unsettling, blood-red

to Houston. Back then, I'd figured out his injuries had been part of an act. But even now, knowing this might just be another performance, my chest tightened, and I couldn't even glance at

a curse. He

yanking him back before he could pull more stunts. "He's lying there like that, and you're calling it an act? Why