Chapter 796

Chapter 796:

Eric lingered outside the master bedroom, teetering on whether to follow, but ultimately turned on his heel and made for the study instead. No sooner had he settled into his chair than his phone shattered the silence with its insistent ring. It was Linda on the line.

“Hello?” Eric answered, voice steady as stone.

“Eric,” Linda replied, her voice drifting from her car after a long shift at the TV station. “I swung by the archive room earlier and saw you guys had cleared out. Is everything all right between you and Hadley?”

Eric offered no reply, holding his tongue.

Sensing the tension, Linda pressed on. “May I ask—do Hadley and Denver cross paths like that often?”

As in regular rendezvous?

Eric stayed silent, a storm brewing behind his eyes, his anger simmering like a pot about to boil over.

“Eric.” Linda’s voice softened with concern. “Some truths are tough to swallow, but for your sake, I have to say it. Are you certain that was just a one-off meeting? To catch them together purely by chance—doesn’t that seem a bit too convenient?”

She sighed, heavy with unspoken warnings. “I told you from the start—she is not playing straight with you. I begged you not to dive in headfirst…”

Before Linda could finish, Eric interrupted. “Linda, it’s late. You should head home and get some sleep.” He ended the call.

“Eric?” Linda murmured into the dead line, a sly smile tugging at her lips. Had she truly been outdone by Hadley? Not in her book. Both she and Hadley were orphans, cut from the same cloth with no pedigree to lean on, but Linda had once basked in the glow of the powerful Flynn family long before Hadley arrived. If her own happiness had slipped through her fingers, why should Hadley waltz through life unscathed?

g𝒶𝗅𝑛0ν𝖊𝗅𝘀.𝗰𝗈𝗺; 𝒶𝒿𝒾𝓉𝒶𝓷𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝓮 𝑛𝑒𝓍𝓉 𝒸𝓱𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓈

Back in the study, Eric gripped his phone, Linda’s words gnawing at him like a persistent itch. Did Hadley really meet Denver on the regular? He doubted it. Since he and Hadley had intertwined their lives, they were rarely apart—like two peas in a pod. Still, Hadley did have pockets of time to herself.

Doubt gnawed at him, relentless as a beast, and Eric rubbed his temple as if to banish it. Then came a soft rap at the study door.

A faint smirk danced on Eric’s lips—surely it was Hadley, coming to smooth things over. If she apologized and explained her ties with Denver, he would let bygones be bygones.

“Come in,” Eric called, masking his anticipation with a cool, even tone.

The door swung open, and Eric’s face fell like a stone. It wasn’t Hadley—it was the cleaning lady.

“Mr. Flynn,” she began tentatively. She had come on Hadley’s behalf. “Miss Pearson asked me for some ice for her arm. I couldn’t help but notice it’s swollen. Should I call a doctor?”

A swollen arm? Eric’s brow furrowed, worry creeping in. “Thank you. I’ve got it from here.” As he rose, he added, “I’ll toss you a bonus later—same as last time.”

“Thank you, Mr. Flynn,” the cleaner replied, gratitude glowing in her eyes. The last time Hadley had passed out at home, she had been the one to rush her to the hospital, and Eric had slipped her ten grand for her trouble. Now, for merely mentioning Hadley’s swollen arm, another reward was on the way. In her eyes, keeping Hadley safe was clearly a golden ticket.

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