Chapter 260 A Family of Four

Chapter 260 A Family of Four

Two people were hugging and talking softly. Emily had been saved by a local fishing family.

That day, after she fell from the cliff into the sea, the current swept her to a shallow beach several kilometers away.

The Crawford family found her while out fishing, pulled her out of the water, and took her to the hospital.

She survived, but her injuries were bad and she had pregnancy complications. The doctor said she had to stay in bed and rest, and she needed to keep resting before the baby was born. She couldn't be on her feet all the time, so she had to stay with them for now.

Emily knew she couldn't rush, so she focused on getting better while trying to reach people outside.

She stayed with them for seven months.

After hearing everything, Alex looked guilty. "It's all my fault I didn't find you sooner."

Emily touched his face. "It's not your fault."

Alex held her hand and rubbed his face against it.

He had someone check the Crawford family, then went to the fishing village himself with his men.

The Crawfords were so scared when they saw the group of men that they couldn't speak clearly.

Alex stood in the yard and said to them kindly, "You saved my wife and daughter. I'll remember this. Here's some money to thank you."

He took a check from his pocket and handed it over.

The old man from the Crawford family looked at the amount and his eyes went wide. "This is too much. We can't take it."

Alex pushed it into his hand. "Take it."

"I also brought some gifts you'll find useful."

At his order, his men started unloading things until the small yard was packed full.

After thanking them, he left with his men.

Once they left the village, Alex booked the best postpartum center near the hospital and settled Emily and the baby there.

Emily was still weak. The doctor said she needed more rest before leaving the hospital.

Alex handed the company work to Michael and stayed with her the whole time.

Emily was leaning on the bed drinking soup when she saw him changing the baby's diaper. She laughed.

"When did you learn to change diapers?"

"Just now," Alex said without looking up. His hands moved like he'd done it for years. "I didn't help much with Eleanor. I don't want to miss this time."

Emily went quiet for a moment. "How's Eleanor?"

"She misses you," Alex said, wrapping the baby and putting her in the crib. "She's been quiet lately and wakes up crying at night. When you're better and we go back, she'll be fine once she sees you."

Emily nodded, her eyes turning red again.

The day before they left the hospital, the nurse brought the baby for feeding.

Emily took the baby and looked at the small ID bracelet on her wrist. She froze.

The bracelet said "male."

But she'd had a daughter.

"It's wrong," she said, her voice shaking. "This isn't my baby."

Alex jumped up and rushed out to the nurses' station.

The nurses were scared by his face and quickly pulled up the footage from that day.

It showed another woman had given birth the same day as Emily, and she had a boy.

When both families registered, the bracelets got switched.

The nurses checked the other woman's info and found her family had left the day before, less than twenty-four hours ago.

Alex made some calls and got their address.

When he and his men got there, the family was at the station waiting for a bus with the baby.

His men switched the babies back.

Alex looked down at the tiny baby girl who was really his. She was sleeping with her eyes closed, not knowing what had happened.

When he brought her back to the center, Emily took the baby and held her tight, tears falling.

After leaving the hospital, Alex took Emily and the baby back to the capital.

The moment Eleanor saw her mom, she ran over and clung to her like a little monkey, crying hard.

Emily held her older daughter with the baby in her arms, tears running down her face too.

Linda stood watching and wiped her eyes.

After that, Linda changed toward Emily completely.

She stopped nitpicking and interfering. Instead, she helped take care of the two girls so Emily wouldn't get tired.

Eleanor's condition got better every day.

With her mom around, she became cheerful again, started talking, and stopped having nightmares.

One night, after Emily put the girls to bed and went back to her room, she saw a blue velvet box on the nightstand.

She opened it. Inside was a ring.

It was made from a pigeon blood ruby set in platinum, the color deep and bright.

Alex walked over from behind, picked up the ring, and knelt on one knee.

"This is the ruby you saw before. I kept it to make into a ring for you," he said, his voice tight. "Emmie, after everything, I don't want anything else. I just want you safe by my side."

"Marry me."

Emily looked at him for a long time, then took the ring.

She looked at it in her hand for a while, then smiled a little.

"I'll take the ring," she said. "But Alex, I won't marry you."

Alex froze.

Emily crouched down so they were face to face and put the ring back in his hand.

"Living like this is fine," she said softly. "With mom and dad here, Eleanor getting better, the baby healthy, the four of us together—I think this is enough."

"If you want, just stay with me. I don't need a marriage certificate."

Alex looked at her and stayed quiet for a while.

Then he pulled her into his arms, rested his chin on her head, and said in a muffled voice, "Okay. No marriage then. But keep the ring. It's yours."

Emily smiled and put the ring on her ring finger.

It fit perfectly.

That night, the four of them sat on the sofa watching TV.

Eleanor sat on Alex's shoulders, pulling his ears and laughing.

Emily held the baby beside them, smiling at the two of them.

The night outside was quiet, and the warm light in the room cast their long shadows on the wall.

Alex looked at Emily, their eyes met, and they both smiled.

They didn't need to speak. They knew what the other was thinking.

All the hard times, the separations, the things that almost tore them apart—those were over.

From now on, every day would be a good day.