No Strings Attached

"Why the heck do you need books on pregnancy?" lan felt as if his heart had come to a screeching halt at that moment, his grip on Della's hand tightening with an intensity that bordered on desperation. A surge of realization was hammering at the forefront of his mind.

He yanked Clara towards him, his eyes burning with an urgent intensity. "Clara, are you keeping something from me? Why do you need those books? Are you pregnant?"

His barrage of questions pelted her like machine-gun fire, leaving Clara reeling. She stepped back, irritation flaring in her voice, "lan, have you lost your mind? How could I possibly be pregnant?"

"Then why the pregnancy books?!" lan scrutinized every flicker of emotion on Clara's face, terrified of missing any vital clue.

Just then, Clara's phone erupted into a jarring ringtone. She swiftly tapped to answer. Chase's deep, raspy voice came through. "Clara, whose kid is Sasha carrying?"

Clara's brow furrowed slightly. "Dr. Chase, let's not start wildfires. Our company is just catching a break. Idle gossip won't do us any good."

pregnancy test, and yesterday, she was at the doctor's getting

was locked on her, unblinking. With a bitten lip, she managed to say, "Dr. Chase, we should

lan's searching eyes. "So these items

gaze and remained

disappointment.

Clara's heartstrings. She lowered her eyes and accepted the items from Christy, offering a strained smile. "It's not that heavy.

hospital, Sasha sneezed several times, muttering under

the director called her over. "Sasha, come here. We're shooting the hospital

feet and jogged over.

briefed her, and

station, cursing up a storm and grabbing a chair to hurl it. Several nurses fled in terror, but Sasha stood her ground. As she moved to confront the man, a powerful shove sent her hurtling backward toward a medical cart bristling with glass bottles and sharp instruments. sᴇaʀᴄh