No Strings Attached

Chapter 51

lan had never seen Clara like this before. He held her close, whispering words of comfort. “Clara, take a breath. I’ve got the best people on this, I won’t let him leave you.”

Clara’s sobs were relentless. “lan, my dad wouldn’t just off himself for no reason. Someone must’ve spilled the beans about us. I swear, if I find out who, they’re gonna regret it.”

Her tears flowed, but her eyes blazed with a rare ferocity.

lan’s

gaze fell as his cool fingertips gently brushed away her tears, his voice rough, “Don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this, I promise. No more tears, okay?”

He had never felt like this before–the fear of losing something precious and the desperate struggle to hold on. He knew all too well that if anything happened to Casey, he’d lose his reason to keep Clara close. Right now, one thought consumed him: to hold Clara tight and never let her slip away.

As they embraced, the doctor emerged from the ICU. “The patient’s will to live is weak. You might want to go in, and talk to him. Keep it light. The sooner he comes around, the better for his recovery.”

Clara swiftly wiped her tears. “Got it, I’m on it.”

As lan moved to follow, she blocked him. “My dad can’t handle stress, you’re not coming

in.”

“I’ll be quiet, just there for you.” He’d never pleaded with anyone like this. He didn’t even know why, but he just wanted to be there for her, for Casey to wake up.

Dressed in sterile gowns, they approached Casey’s bedside.

Clara grasped her father’s hand, her hot tears falling onto his skin. “Dad, you promised you’d never leave me. Why are you breaking your word? Don’t you know, without you, I have no home? Nobody in this world would love me. Are you really that cruel? I have been dumped once by mom, now by you. Am I that loathsome?”

Recalling the past, Clara wept softly over her father.

lan stood by, his hand tenderly stroking her hair. He’d lived with Clara for three years but never knew she harbored such fragility–her yearning for family, and her fear of abandonment.

lan had never been more eager to uncover Clara’s past.

His phone rang at that moment. Stepping into the adjacent sterile room, he answered. “Mr. Hayes, I’ve dug it up. That woman is indeed Ms. Clara’s birth mother. She’s kicked out by Mr. Casey seven years ago for her scandalous life. It hit Ms. Clara hard. She was

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cornered in a classroom by the parents of her classmates, her clothes were torn off, and photographs were taken. They accused her of being loose like her mother, and seducing boys. The scandal exploded at school, and Clara was branded a pariah. Afterwards, she fell seriously ill and transferred away. I couldn’t trace her illness or schooling until college resurfaced her records. That time must’ve been hellish, so, Mr. Casey wiped all traces.