Lost Me, Gained Regret (Jane and Bryant Ferguson) novel Chapter 73

Time seemed to stretch into eternity before the ER nurse emerged, calling out a name.

“Margaret Ferguson, is Margaret Ferguson's husband here?”

Bryant stepped forward with urgency, “Doctor! I’m here.”

His words, so brief, felt like a dagger through my heart, bleeding me out, making it hard to breathe.

And there I was, after a day filled with anxious waiting and tough decisions, feeling like a complete fool.

It was as if I was standing there, dressed in a clown's outfit.

The divorce papers weren't even finalized.

And here was my husband, openly recognized as someone else’s.

From a distance, I heard his anxious voice, “How is she? Is it serious?”

“Lost a lot of blood, what do you think? But luckily, you got her here in time. She’s stable now.”

The nurse, perhaps sensing his worry, added, “The baby’s fine too.”

Baby? Margaret was pregnant? They were having a child?

I forgot how to breathe for a moment, staring blankly at Bryant.

He finally relaxed, his face less strained as he said, “That’s a relief.”

Maybe it was my glaring stare, or perhaps he finally noticed me, but as he turned to look in my direction, I quickly retreated into the stairwell.

Leaning against the wall, the scene replayed in my mind.

I laughed uncontrollably, the kind of laugh that's on the verge of tears, tasting the bitterness in my tears.

How foolish of me.

“Jane, he’s having a child with someone else.”

“You probably thought, because of his grandfather's pressure, he had to move in, and you allowed yourself to hope again.”

“You’re so starved for love.”

As these thoughts rushed through me, maybe I wanted to crush that hope once and for all. I reached for my phone to message him, but coincidentally, he called.

His voice was calm, “Hey, Jane, are you home?”

“I’ll be there.” This time, he didn’t dodge the question, giving a definite answer.

I looked up at the ceiling, letting the tears fall, “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

One last time.

When I left the hospital, the night had fully settled in.

After several showers, the chilly wind felt like it was cutting to the bone.

Wearing only a light knit dress, I felt numb, perhaps because something inside me was colder than the air outside.

“Ah—” Someone bumped into me head-on before quickly running into the hospital.

I gasped, stumbling backward, slipping on something, and bracing for a fall when someone caught me steadily.

For a split second, I wished it was Bryant.

But looking up, it was both a letdown and a surprise, “Mark, what are you doing here?”

It was Mark, whom I hadn’t seen in a while.