When Love Is a Lie (Whitney and Damian)

Yvette returned to the ward with the form in hand. "All done, let's go "

She swallowed the rest of her words when she realized the room was empty. "Where did she go?" Yvette glanced around, her eyes scanning the space.

She checked every corner, even the nurse's station, but there was no sign of Whitney. No one seemed to know where she had gone.

Just as Yvette was about to call, her phone buzzed with a message from Whitney. "Yvette, I had to leave early. I have something to take care of." Yvette replied, "What happened?"

However, there was no reply.

What could have happened that she couldn't even leave a proper explanation?

Yvette felt uneasy. After a moment of thought, she decided to call Noel.

...noveldrama

A black sedan drove down the road, with Whitney and Madelyn sitting quietly in the backseat of the car.

Ryan Green, the driver, focused on the road as silence filled the car. The atmosphere felt heavy, almost stifling.

"Did you tell Noel I came to see you?" Madelyn's voice broke the quiet, her gaze calm but unreadable.

Whitney, holding her phone, turned slightly. "No. I just told a friend I had to leave early."

She had expected this. After all, Noel was the one who had saved her again, and he'd almost gotten hurt. Madelyn was bound to be upset.

More than anything, she worried Madelyn might suspect something between her and Noel.

With the fall of the Reid family, the arranged marriage came to an end. Madelyn would make sure to warn her not to get any ideas. Even without Lilian, there would still be Gillian and Jillian, but it could never be her. Whitney braced herself for whatever Madelyn was about to say. If she saw it coming, maybe it wouldn't hurt as much.

Madelyn glanced at her. "You're more self-aware than I thought."

Before long, the car stopped in front of a grand manor. Stepping outside, Whitney glanced at the imposing structure and guessed it was the Howard residence.

She reached for her luggage, but Ryan had already taken it from the trunk. "I'll take care of it," he said.

"No, thank you. I'll handle it," Whitney replied quickly, extending her hand.

"Let Ryan carry it for you. You shouldn't be lifting heavy things right now," Madelyn said, motioning for her to follow inside.

Whitney froze. Of all the reasons Madelyn could've had for calling her over, pregnancy hadn't crossed her mind. Noel hadn't told her Madelyn already knew. Noticing Whitney still standing there, Madelyn turned. "What are you waiting for?"

Whitney snapped out of it and followed.

Inside, Ada Wilson, the housekeeper, brought over a steaming bowl of soup.

"Drink it while it's hot," Madelyn said.

Whitney accepted the bowl and saw it was filled with chicken soup and other nourishing ingredients.

Just as she was about to drink the soup, a voice rang out from the doorway. "Whit, put that down!"

She looked up and saw Noel stride in, his expression dark and his eyes filled with urgency. He grabbed the

it firmly on the coffee table.

Om her hands and se

"Noel, what's the meaning of this?" Madelyn's expression hardened.

"You know exactly what it is," Noel said coldly. "I know what you're up to."

He took Whitney's hand and added, "The only woman I'm marrying is her. You should just let this go."

When Yvette called earlier, Noel had been in a meeting. As soon as he heard Whitney was gone, he figured it out-Madelyn had taken her.

After the fall of the Reid family, he

had made it clear to Madelyn that he

would never agree to an arranged marriage. He would marry only Whitney, and she was already carrying his child.

Madelyn had always schemed when it came to his marriage, willing to do whatever it took for the family. He regretted trusting her this much. He hadn't expected her to go so far as to hurt her grandchild.

Luckily, he'd arrived just in time.

Madelyn's gaze remained cold as she asked, "Are you cutting ties with the family over this?"

"If I have to, yes," Noel said without hesitation, his tone firm.

Whitney tugged his sleeve gently, shaking her head. She didn't want to cause a rift between him and his parents.

Beckham returned just then. Seeing the three of them in the living room, he asked in surprise, "What's going on here? Why is everyone just standing around?" Noel turned to Beckham and said, "Dad, Whitney's pregnant. I'm going to marry her. What do you think?"

For a moment, Beckham stood still, processing the words. "You... you're having a child?" he asked, a mix of shock and joy in his voice.

Whitney flushed, her face turning red with embarrassment. Hardly anyone in the Howard family knew about her and Noel, yet now he had said it so openly. Beckham suddenly burst into laughter. "Your grandfather told me not to meddle in your marriage. He said you already had someone in mind. So, it's Whitney?"