Transmigrated: I Became My Nemesis's Woman novel Chapter 169

Chapter 169: You don’t have to carry the guilt anymore

The drive back to the mansion was unusually quiet.

Leo had fallen asleep with his head resting on Ivy’s lap, completely unaware of the tension lingering in the car. Xander sat beside them in silence, his gaze fixed on the passing lights outside the window.

Earlier, Ivy had explained everything that had happened at the hospital—how she had helped a woman who collapsed at the flower shop and stayed until she regained consciousness.

She had assumed that telling him the truth would put his mind at ease.

Instead, his silence only made her more anxious.

Does he not believe me? She wondered.

Trying to push the thought aside, she looked down at the sleeping boy and gently brushed a strand of hair away from his forehead.

Before long, the car rolled to a stop in front of the mansion.

"I’ll take him," Xander said quietly, reaching over to lift Leo into his arms.

Ivy nodded and carefully transferred the sleeping child to him.

Together, they stepped inside.

Xander headed upstairs to tuck Leo into bed, while Ivy made her way to her own room, still troubled by the silence between them.

She had told him everything.

She had nothing to hide.

Yet his reaction continued to weigh on her mind.

Just as she reached the middle of the room, the door behind her clicked open.

She turned to find Xander standing in the doorway.

The moment he stepped inside and closed the door, Ivy walked straight toward him.

"Why aren’t you saying anything?" she asked, stopping only inches away.

She searched his face, unable to hide her concern.

"Do you... not believe me?"

The question slipped out before she could stop it.

She hadn’t expected his silence to bother her this much, but somehow it did.

Xander looked at her for a long moment, surprised by the worry in her eyes.

Only then did he realize what she had been thinking.

The tension in his expression softened.

Without saying a word, he reached for her hands, gently intertwining his fingers with hers. Then he lowered his forehead until it rested lightly against her shoulder.

"I wasn’t doubting you," he murmured.

His voice was quiet, almost strained.

"I was afraid something had happened to you."

The confession caught Ivy completely off guard.

Before she could respond, Xander slipped his arms around her and pulled her into a firm embrace.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

"I thought..." he began, only for the words to fade away.

He couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

The mere possibility of losing her stirred memories he had spent years trying to bury.

After his parents died, Xander had convinced himself that he no longer knew how to feel deeply for anyone. He believed that part of him had disappeared with them.

But Ivy—and Leo—had quietly proved him wrong.

Somewhere along the way, they had become the people he wanted to protect above all else.

And the thought of losing them awakened the same fear and helplessness he had experienced as a child.

Ivy stood motionless, absorbing every word.

When the realization finally settled in, her own expression softened.

Slowly, she wrapped her arms around him and returned the embrace.

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