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."

I saw her buying a pregnancy test, and yesterday, she was at

With a bitten lip, she managed to say, "Dr. Chase, we should tread carefully with unproven claims when it comes to people

lan's searching

gaze and remained

suddenly released, his expression tinged with disappointment. "I

She lowered her eyes and accepted the items from Christy, offering a strained smile. "It's not that heavy. I can manage." The tumultuous misunderstanding concluded

in the hospital, Sasha sneezed several times, muttering under her

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

sprang to her feet and jogged

briefed her, and

the man, a powerful shove sent her hurtling backward toward a medical cart bristling with