The Unwavering Heart That Broke (Nathalie and Lance) novel Chapter 198

"Felice is my sister-in-law. For Jackson’s sake, I’ll look out for her. But Nathalie is my wife. I won't let anyone hurt her." Lance spoke quietly, but the force in his words was unmistakable. He didn’t even bother to glance at Daniel again.

He turned his focus to Nathalie lying on the hospital bed. The doctors had nearly finished tending to the wounds on her back. The cuts were cleaned and bandaged, but she still needed some anti-inflammatory meds.

Once her bed was moved into a private room, Lance called over his bodyguards. "Nobody goes in unless it's me."

"Yes, sir," the guards answered.

Daniel tried to go in but the guards blocked his way. His face turned a darker shade of angry. He was Nathalie’s father. Shouldn’t Lance show him some respect? The way Lance acted, it was like he didn’t care at all. Daniel scoffed and stalked off. Who did Lance think he was? Being treated like this was outrageous.

The night dragged on, the lights in the hospital flickering low. The room was quiet, almost too still.

Nathalie woke up with a sharp ache running down her back, the pain pulling her out of a restless sleep. She lay on her side, an IV needle stuck into the back of her hand. Lance sat at her bedside, watching.

When he saw she was awake, he asked, "Are you thirsty?"

She blinked up at him, her eyes dull and shadowed. Her voice was barely there. "You can stop me once, but not the second time. If you refuse to divorce me, I won’t let her off so easily."

Lance's eyebrows gathered. "Nathalie, is it really worth hurting yourself for someone else?"

"I'm doing this for me," her voice was calm, almost disturbingly so. "If I have to go to jail to get a divorce from you, then fine. I’ll do it."

Lance took a slow, heavy breath. His jaw tensed, frustration clearly written on his face.

Nathalie just stared off, her brows drawn tight with pain. The hurt on her back was nothing compared to what she felt inside. Something in her heart had finally broken for good.

She started to wonder if she should just get a DNA test with Daniel and Camilla. She really didn’t get it. How could they hurt her like this over an adopted daughter? Maybe she was never their real daughter at all.

Nathalie closed her eyes and just tried to bear the pain in silence.

He gently eased her back onto her side, so she wouldn’t hurt her back any more. "I’ll make sure the person who hurt you apologizes," he added.

Nathalie gave a tired, bitter smile with her eyes still closed.

As if that would ever happen. Daniel only did what he did for his adopted daughter. He’d never see himself as wrong.

"Can you get my phone?" she asked quietly.

"I already told someone to bring it," Lance said. He hesitated for a second, then asked, "What are you planning to do?"

She didn’t answer, just closed her eyes and ignored him.

The room settled back into silence until a soft knocking broke through the quiet.