I Forgot I Ever Loved You (Zoe and Hayden) novel Chapter 249

"Of course I remember..." Nadia's tone suddenly grew cautious, trailing off. "Why do you ask?"

Zoe's voice was steady. "I want a divorce from Hayden."

"..."

Zoe waited, but the silence stretched on. "Nadia?"

"Zoe, couples should try to work things out, not split up. Honestly, your prenuptial agreement was signed five years ago. I don't remember it that well either. It's getting late, and I need to sleep. You should rest too. So tired..."

"..."

Zoe couldn't shake the feeling that everyone was hiding something from her.

It was one thing for Hayden to keep his mouth shut, but why was Nadia so tight-lipped about it?

It was as if telling her the truth would pose some massive threat to her.

She thought she'd be tossing and turning all night, but the little bean growing inside her was thriving, and she fell dead asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

Around midnight, a sudden thunderstorm rolled in.

Lightning tore through the darkness, illuminating Blackwood Manor as if it were broad daylight. The deafening thunder startled the servants awake.

Hayden was working on his laptop late into the night. At the sound of the thunder, his brow furrowed deeply.

Without hesitation, he set his laptop aside and went to check on Zoe.

He pushed her bedroom door open. It was pitch black inside.

Another flash of lightning struck, followed by an explosive clap of thunder that sounded like a bomb going off.

Given the manor's location near the sprawling mountains, the storm was incredibly loud. Yet, Hayden realized Zoe hadn't reacted at all.

A spike of panic hit him. He rushed to the bed.

The woman's eyes were tightly shut, her face cast in a sickly, pale hue from the dim light.

Blood roared in Hayden's ears. With trembling fingers, he reached out to check the breathing beneath her nose.

It was perfectly steady. She was fine.

He pulled her unlocked phone out from under the blankets.

The blue light had reflected onto her face, making him think for a terrifying second that she was dead.

How could she sleep so deeply?

He felt a surge of irritation and patted her cheek, trying to wake her up.

That split second of terror had nearly given him a heart attack.

He wanted to shake her awake.

In this kind of hellish weather, even the dogs were restless. Yet she was sleeping soundly, completely undisturbed.

Was it because of Garrett? Hah. She was resting easy while leaving his heart in complete turmoil.

Hayden glanced at her phone screen. A video of an incredibly cute newborn baby was looping.

Some influencer's daily vlog about their infant.

A flash of bitter resentment crossed Hayden's cold features. He tossed the phone aside.

She must have had a great time chatting with Garrett. They probably had the kid's name picked out already.

After being nudged multiple times, Zoe still showed no signs of waking up.

Hayden had no choice but to drop it.

Zoe slept straight through until morning. When she opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, something felt off.

She had a dream last night about a monster staring at her.

She had tried to see the monster's face clearly, but it was always blurred.

Waking up, it felt absurd. The harder she tried to recall it, the more the memory slipped away.

It was just a dream. Zoe couldn't be bothered to dwell on it.

She planned to drop Lily off at school, completely surprised to find Hayden hadn't left for the office yet.

Hayden cast a cold side-glance at her but said nothing.

Zoe ignored him entirely. She didn't want anything to do with him.

The married couple got into their respective cars, and Zoe left first with Lily.

Hayden watched Zoe through his half-rolled-down window.

"..."

Now this was something Colin could speak confidently about.

His face lit up with enthusiasm.

"It would absolutely be you, Mr. Thorne."

With one hand on the steering wheel, he began listing her devotions like precious treasures.

"Over the years, she has called my phone to check on you five thousand, eight hundred and sixty-four times. She tracked you and Ms. Winters twenty-three times a month. In five years, she attempted suicide four times. Slitting her wrists, taking pills, hanging herself, and the most recent one—jumping off a building. Oh, and about her hospital visits. I heard Mrs. Gable mention privately that she went to get an abortion. If you count them up, there have been about five..."

"Colin, what did you just say about abortions?"

Hayden's pupils violently contracted. Zoe had an abortion?

Five times?

When did this happen?

Realizing he had slipped up, Colin quickly clamped his mouth shut.

It was the first time Hayden was hearing of this. Beyond the sheer shock, something deep within his soul began to tremble violently.

"Explain exactly what you just said."

Colin didn't dare hold back now.

Just to prolong his own life, he spilled everything Zoe had gone through over the years.

"You had Mrs. Gable give her birth control pills, but accidents happen. She lost five babies."

Hayden's silence morphed into a suffocating rage.

He knew he made her take birth control. But she had secretly swapped them for vitamins once, tricking him into thinking she was pregnant when she wasn't.

Hayden leaned back slightly into his seat, the momentary storm in his eyes slowly icing over.

"How much did my wife pay you to spin this story?"

He wasn't stupid. He knew Colin was always biased toward Zoe.

Abort her own child?