"Mommy~ Why have I never seen Daddy? Is he dead or something?"
Lyra Whitfield had been married for seven years. Her daughter was already five, yet Ethan Mercer had no idea the child even existed.
She smiled a little, tightened her grip on her phone, and answered the little voice on the other end, "Then just pretend he’s dead."
Lily Ashford said, "Okay then. Anyway, I already have Daddy Huo!"
After the call ended, Lyra stretched lazily.
Seven years into this marriage, she had thought more than once about whether she should find a chance to tell Ethan Mercer that he actually had a five-year-old daughter.
He could skip all the soul-crushing baby years and just level up straight into being a dad, easy mode.
But then she glanced at the date.
There were less than three months left before her marriage to Ethan Mercer expired.
A couple who signed a divorce agreement the moment they got married... they were probably the first, right?
Bang—
The duty room door was suddenly shoved open.
The young nurse rushed in and called out, "Dr. Whitfield, emergency! The patient had sex too aggressively in early pregnancy. It could be a ruptured corpus luteum!"
Lyra instantly locked her screen.
She followed the nurse out at a fast pace, frowning as she muttered, "That’s seriously reckless. How can you mess around like that in early pregnancy? Couldn’t they just hold it in for a while...?"
The nurse pulled back the curtain around the hospital bed. The moment Lyra saw the face on it, her voice cut off on the spot.
She froze for two seconds, then asked carefully, "Serena Holloway?"
No way. It was actually her husband’s... future cousin-in-law?
When Serena saw Lyra, her gaze shifted too, but she said nothing.
By pure instinct, Lyra gave her a quick once-over, checking her condition.
Serena Holloway was Ethan Mercer’s cousin’s fiancée.
But Ethan’s cousin had been locked up five months ago over company account issues and got sentenced to a year and a half.
Serena’s belly was still flat, nothing obvious at all. Even if she was pregnant, it couldn’t have been that far along.
So whose kid was this, with the timeline this off…
Still, Lyra Whitfield wasn’t the nosy type. She pulled on a pair of medical gloves in one smooth motion. "Lie down first. I’ll examine you."
But Serena suddenly sat up, and the second she saw Lyra clearly, her expression turned ugly. "No need. I’m switching hospitals."
The young nurse immediately looked at Lyra, caught in a total bind.
Keeping her tone calm, Lyra said, "If you don’t want anything to go wrong, lie back down now. I’ll do a basic check first."
Serena frowned, clearly hating the way Lyra looked so composed, so above it all.
Lyra didn’t waste words. A doctor couldn’t delay treatment over attitude. She bent slightly, reaching to lift Serena’s clothing for the exam.
Serena let out a cold little laugh and swung her hand at her.
A sharp smack cut through the room.
She did not hold back.
It hurt like hell.
Lyra lowered her eyes and glanced at the back of her hand. It had already gone red.
Before she could even process it—
she heard Serena suddenly soften her voice and call past her, "Ethan…"
That familiar name hit Lyra like a jolt. She forgot the sting in her hand and turned at once.
The man walked in fast but unhurried, his coat draped over one arm, his tall frame carrying that effortless, untouchable air of privilege.
As he strode over, his gaze shifted slightly—
and met Lyra’s.
In that split second, he didn’t even slow down. His gaze slid away, cold and detached.
He walked right past Lyra Whitfield like she was a total stranger and went straight to the hospital bed.