He Didn’t Kidnap Me. Not Exactly novel Chapter 184

Chapter 184

(Daisy’s POV)

The silence Mabel left behind seemed to linger in the room long after the door had closed behind her.

Nobody spoke.

Not Aria. Not Archer. Not even the nurses.

The atmosphere felt strange, as though everyone was still trying to process what had just happened, and honestly, I couldn’t blame them because I was doing exactly the same thing.

I sat motionless against the hospital bed, staring at the doorway for several seconds before my gaze slowly drifted back toward Adrian.

Nothing about him appeared different.

His pasture was relaxed.

His expression was calm.

There wasn’t the slightest indication that he had just dismantled an entire relationship- or whatever complex thing had existed between him and Mabel, and then effectively thrown her out of the room.

If anything, he looked casually unaffected. Meanwhile, my brain felt like it had been tossed into a blender.

The image of him defending me kept replaying in my head whether I wanted it to or not. Every word. Every warning. Every look he’d given Mabel.

Most of all, the certainty.

There hadn’t been hesitation in his voice. No uncertainty. No room for negotiation.

He had defended me as though it had been the most natural thing in the world. The realization only made my confusion worse.

Eventually, perhaps sensing that I was staring, DeLucaturned his head and looked directly at me and the instant our eyes met, I froze.

Which was ridiculous.

I’d looked at this man thousands of times.

I’d argued with him.

Yelled at him.

Laughed with him.

Yet somehow this particular eye contact felt more dangerous than all of those moments combined.

Neither of us looked away so the silence stretched. Then, before I could lose my nerve, I spoke. Thank you.”

The words came out softer than intended. His expression didn’t change.

“For defending me,” I clarified.

Something flickered briefly across his face before disappearing.

“You don’t need to thank me for that.”

I swallowed.

“Maybe not.”

My fingers tightened slightly around the blanket.

“But you also broke up with her so I don’t know what else to say.”

The statement hung between us.

For the first time since I’d met Adrian DeLuca, he looked mildly uncomfortable.

The expression was not enough for anyone else to notice. But I noticed.

His jaw shifted slightly and his shoulders straightened. The change was small, yet somehow unmistakable.

“I didn’t break up with her.”

My brows furrowed.

“I was never in a relationship with her.”

The response arrived calmly in a matter-of-factly way. As though he were correcting a simple misunderstanding.

“I told you before. I let her believe whatever she wanted to believe… and I should have ended that a long time ago.”

He paused briefly before continuing.

“That mistake created problems for you.”

Something about the way he said it made my chest tighten. Not because of the words themselves.

Because of the guilt I heard behind them.

DeLuca didn’t sound defensive. He sounded regretful and the realization felt strange enough on its own.

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