Chapter 6 - Emma's Choice
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Back at the Blackwood estate, the guest wing was quiet except for the rustling sound of packing paper.
Emma folded a simple beige cardigan and placed it carefully into her modest, worn leather suitcase on the bed.
She had arrived at this grand estate seven months ago carrying only two bags and a heart full of determination to help a broken man.
Now, she was leaving with those same two bags, but her heart felt heavier than lead inside her chest.
Every corner of the mansion carried a memory of Adrian's quiet voice, his stubborn pride, and his rare, breathtaking smiles.
She remembered sitting beside his bed for hours, reading classic novels aloud until his restless breathing finally settled into peaceful sleep.
She remembered wiping the sweat from his brow during brutal therapy sessions, whispering encouragement when he pretended he couldn't feel his toes.
All of it had been an act, a brilliantly orchestrated performance designed to outsmart his ruthless corporate enemies.
Tears spilled over her eyelashes and dropped onto the folded fabric in her hands, but she angrily wiped them away with the back of her sleeve.
"Packing your bags without saying goodbye is quite rude, Emma," a low, familiar voice spoke from the open doorway.
Emma turned around sharply to find Adrian leaning against the polished doorframe, watching her with intense, unguarded eyes.
He had taken off his suit jacket and rolled his white dress sleeves up to his forearms, looking completely relaxed and terrifyingly handsome.
"I am an employee, Mr. Blackwood, and my duties here are complete," Emma said coldly, keeping her eyes fixed on her suitcase.
"I already informed your head housekeeper that I am resigning my position effective immediately."
Adrian pushed himself off the doorframe and took slow, measured steps into the room until he stood right beside her bed.
"Stop calling me Mr. Blackwood," he said softly, his voice carrying a raw edge of vulnerability she had never heard before.
"That was who you were when you hired me to nurse you back to health," she replied, refusing to look directly at him.
"You were never just a nurse to me, Emma, and you know that as well as I do."
"Then why did you lie to me every single day for three months?" she demanded, finally turning to face him with fiery eyes.
"Do you have any idea how much it hurt to watch you pretend to be helpless while I broke my back trying to save you?"
Adrian reached out and gently caught her trembling hands in his own, holding them firmly despite her initial attempt to pull away.
"Because the men who cut the brakes on my car were watching this house day and night, Emma."
His grip was warm and steady, and his gray eyes held an overwhelming depth of remorse that caught her off guard.
"If Julian had known I was walking, he would have killed me, and if he saw how much you meant to me, he would have killed you first."
Emma looked at their joined hands, her anger battling against the undeniable truth lingering in his desperate explanation.
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"I couldn't risk your life, Emma," Adrian whispered, bringing her small hands up until they rested against his beating heart.
"I would rather have you hate me for keeping secrets than have you bleed because of my corporate war."
