His Regret Arrived Three Days Late novel Chapter 59

In the two days they had been apart, he hadn't stopped thinking about her for a single moment. With a trembling hand, he lit a cigarette, hoping to calm his racing heart, but by the time it burned down to the filter, the restless fire inside him had only grown stronger.

He licked his dry lips, stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray, and grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair. Buttoning it as he walked, he strode out of the Beryl Group building with long, purposeful strides.

***

Back at Scent Haven, Annika called Hank. “Hank, the candles are burning down. Could you bring up two more?”

Hank hesitated for a moment. “I’ll have Beth bring them.”

“Ah!”

A sharp scream from Annika, followed by a loud crash, blasted through the phone.

Hank’s blood ran cold, his grip on the phone so tight his knuckles turned white. He yelled her name several times, but there was no response. Glancing down, he saw the call had ended.

Knowing she was pregnant, Hank couldn’t just stand by. He bolted up the stairs in a few leaps.

He knocked for a while, but when no one answered, he slammed his body against the door, forcing it open. In the dim candlelight, he saw Annika sitting calmly at the dining table, perfectly fine. The tension drained from his body, and he took a moment to steady his breathing.

He was about to back out of the room when she called his name. “Hank.”

Annika rose slowly and walked towards him. Her slender fingers reached for the collar of his shirt, but he recoiled instantly. Seeing him lower his gaze in a gesture of deference, she smiled. “Hank, you have feelings for me, don’t you?”

A woman’s intuition told her that Hank was in love with her. The sensitive question instantly raised the temperature in the room.

Hank’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, but his expression remained impassive. “Mrs. Beryl, please have some self-respect.”

Annika let out a small laugh, a bewitching charm radiating from her as her eyes danced. She reached out with soft, boneless fingers and tilted his chin up. The smile in her eyes froze as she caught the flash of headlights sweeping across the window. Conrad was back.

Perfect.

Hank wasn't oblivious; he had seen the fleeting light on the glass as well. He pushed Annika’s hand away and was about to leave the room when he shoved her a little too hard in his haste. Annika stumbled backward unexpectedly and fell.

She let out a cry of pain. Hank had been determined to leave, but he couldn't bring himself to just walk away.

He glanced back and saw her on the floor, struggling to get up, her hand pressed tightly against her forehead. The faint scent of blood hung in the air. He stepped back and helped her to her feet. She had hit her head on the corner of the table. A few trickles of blood seeped from a cut on her pale forehead, a dark bruise already forming beside it. It looked incredibly painful.