Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem novel Chapter 1624

Winona didn't explain, just said fiercely, “Have you contacted Beatrix or not? Is she coming today?! If she's not, I'm leaving!”

Keaton quickly replied, “She is, she is! She messaged me back and said she'll be here, but it’ll be later. Probably this afternoon.”

Winona frowned. “Why the afternoon?”

Keaton answered honestly, “I'm not sure. My guess is she’s not in Jindale City right now and has to travel back.”

Winona was not pleased. “Then why didn’t you say so before?” If she had known Beatrix wasn’t coming until the afternoon, she wouldn’t have wasted her morning at the hospital! It was already awkward enough being alone with him.

Keaton looked aggrieved. “You didn’t ask…”

Winona glared at him. “…”

Before she could think of a comeback, he started retching again, leaning over the side of the bed and dry-heaving.

Winona initially didn't want to get involved, but seeing how violently he was gagging, she softened a little. She got up, walked over, and started patting his back. “You should prepare yourself. Beatrix might really be pregnant with your child. This definitely looks like morning sickness.”

Keaton caught his breath. “You've never been pregnant, what would you know about morning sickness?!”

Winona shot back immediately, “I have too!”

Keaton froze. “!” He had been about to gag again, but her words shocked him out of it. He looked at her in disbelief. “When were you pregnant?”

“For a movie,” Winona said. “I played a pregnant woman.”

Keaton rolled his eyes. “…”

Winona frowned and slapped his back with surprising force. “Ow… Ugh…” He started gagging again, even more intensely this time.

Seeing this, Winona felt a little bad and offered an explanation. “Sorry about that. I forgot you were pregnant.”

He retorted between heaves, “I’m not pregnant! I’m a man!”

“Right, right, I know. You’re a man. A man with morning sickness!”

“I…”

“Just focus on throwing up!” Winona ordered fiercely.

Keaton said, “That depends on the friend. If it was just some casual acquaintance, then yeah, we’d have to talk about it. But for a real friend like you, there's nothing to talk about.”

A real friend… Winona looked at him, genuinely moved by his words. She regretted her impulsive actions that night all over again. If it hadn’t happened, they really could have become good friends.

After a few moments of silence, Winona said, “That jade was too precious. I can’t afford to replace it, so let me at least pay you back for the custom dress.”

Keaton frowned. “So you don’t want to be my friend anymore?”

“That’s not it.”

“Then why insist on paying me for the dress?”

“...It was too expensive.”

“Friends I truly care about are worth more than any object. What’s wrong with giving a good friend a gift? Besides, you got dragged through the mud online because of me first. I was just trying to make things right.”

Winona was at a loss for words. “…”

Keaton asked her directly, “Is it that you never saw me as a friend, or is this because of what happened that night?”