Chapter 784: I Never Touched Her

Rainey had nothing to say.

Her eyes darted around as she started to make excuses, then thought better of it.

She wasn't stupid. Anything she said right now would only make things worse with Samuel.

After a moment of silence, she let him finish venting, then shrugged it off. "Done? Can I go now?"

Seeing that nothing was getting through to her, Samuel decided it wasn't worth wasting another word.

He turned and walked away.

Rainey bit down hard on her lip, watching him go.

Heartless bastard.

She muttered under her breath, and as her eyes flickered, an idea took shape.

Samuel was heading back to the hospital room when, just before he pushed the door open, he heard a dull thud behind him.

A wave of dread hit him. He spun around and found Rainey collapsed on the floor.

"Doctor! Doctor!"

Samuel stood there, stunned, with no idea what had just happened.

He rushed into the room in a panic. When the doctor heard that Rainey had fainted in the hallway, he immediately stopped examining Juniper.

That day, the doctor advised Juniper to stay for two more days of observation. Her emotional instability was the biggest concern, as it kept affecting the baby.

As for Rainey, two nurses wheeled her into the emergency room.

About an hour later, Juniper had just finished checking in for the extra two days when that same doctor walked back into the room.

This time, though, he wasn't there for Juniper.

Noticing that Samuel hadn't left Juniper's side, the doctor gestured for him to step out into the hallway.

The two men left the room one after the other, and Juniper picked up on it.

By the hallway window, the doctor lowered his voice and spoke carefully. "Mr. Hall, Ms. Ward has regained consciousness. She's in the room next door, but..."

"But what?"

Samuel assumed Rainey was up to her usual tricks and was probably planning to squeeze money out of him.

The doctor leaned in and said quietly, "During the emergency treatment, we discovered that Ms. Ward is pregnant. The baby is just under seven weeks."

"..."

Samuel was floored. He couldn't find words for a long moment.

After a brief pause, sensing what the doctor might be hinting at, he kept his voice steady. "Why are you telling me she's pregnant? Do you want me to contact her family?"

Deep down, Samuel already had a pretty good idea the baby was his.

But since he had no personal relationship with the doctor, he wasn't about to admit that out loud.

The doctor noticed the discomfort on Samuel's face and shifted gears. "Not exactly. Ms. Ward is awake now. Would you like to go see her?"

Samuel hesitated. If he went, he'd have to face the issue of the child with Rainey. If he didn't, the truth would come out sooner or later.

His bigger worry was Juniper. The last thing he wanted was for news of Rainey's pregnancy to hit her hard.

"Alright, thanks, Doctor. I'll let you get back to it."

Samuel said his goodbyes and made his way to the next room, his stomach in knots.

He knocked softly. A faint, weak voice answered from inside.

Rainey's frail tone was the kind that might stir sympathy in most men. Samuel felt nothing.

Just a deep, bone-tired irritation.

He walked in, glanced at her looking pale and worn, then looked away.

"What do you want?" His voice was blunt.

Rainey had been hoping Samuel might soften up a little. Instead, he was even colder than before.

"What do I want..."

She let out a hollow laugh and sighed. "I didn't expect any of this either. I was just as shocked when the doctor told me I was pregnant."

Samuel was fed up. He wanted to negotiate with Rainey, to keep the pregnancy quiet. At least for now, Juniper couldn't find out.

Ideally, they could come to a calm agreement and end the pregnancy before things went any further.

But he was also afraid that pushing her too hard might set Rainey off, and then everyone would know. So he had to take it one step at a time.

While Samuel was still working through his thoughts, Rainey ran out of patience.

"Samuel, tell me. What am I supposed to do?"

She played the part of a wronged woman, helpless and miserable.

She figured it might at least earn her a little sympathy.

It didn't work out that way. Samuel couldn't find the right words, and he was anxious about Juniper possibly slipping out of the hospital. He blurted out what he actually meant before he could stop himself.

"That's your call. Money's not an issue. If you can get rid of it, that's the better option."

Rainey just stared at him, blindsided. She had put so much effort into setting this up, and this was what she got.

When Samuel returned to Juniper, she was standing at the window.

The due date was less than two months away. Juniper's frame looked thin and slight from behind, and except for the round bump of her belly, she barely looked like a woman close to giving birth.

Samuel paused in the doorway for a few seconds, something unsettled stirring in his chest.

He closed the door and walked over to help her back to bed.

As he got closer, Juniper's calm voice drifted from the window.

"You were gone a while."

Samuel caught himself. He thought back and realized it had been about half an hour.

"I went to check on Rainey. She's awake."

He didn't want to lie to Juniper, and besides, this wasn't something he could keep hidden.

"Oh. That explains it."

There was something unreadable in her voice.

She turned and walked back to the bed without any expression on her face.

Samuel moved quickly to help her, attentive and eager.

Juniper seemed to see it coming. She shifted to the side in a slightly clumsy way, just enough to avoid his hand.

Back on the bed, she sat down, looked at the floor, and said flatly, "You can go. Be with her. Don't stay here for me."

"What?"

Samuel hadn't caught up yet, but he could feel how distant Juniper was becoming.

Juniper knew he was playing dumb. She said it plainly. "Rainey is about to become a mother too. Shouldn't the father be with her?"

The words hit him like a thunderclap.

The blow landed hard, and whatever composure he had left gave way entirely.

"It's not what you think!"

Samuel jumped to defend himself on instinct.

Even now, he couldn't say for certain the baby was his. He wasn't ruling it out, but he wasn't sure either.

Still, in front of Juniper, no matter how slim the chance, he wasn't going to admit to fathering Rainey's child.

"I never touched her. Not once."

He pressed the point, his voice unsteady. "I swear. That night I was completely drunk. I don't remember anything. How could anyone do something like that completely out of it?"

Juniper listened to him scramble for an explanation, and she smiled.

She slowly raised her chin and looked at him, flushed and flustered, then said simply, "Not remembering doesn't mean it didn't happen."

"No, that's not — it's not like that!"

Samuel shook his head hard. He was losing his grip on himself now.