Regretting the Wife He Threw Away novel Chapter 60

Briony listened to Irwin’s sharp words, feeling nothing but numbness inside.

Maybe it was for the best. She wasn’t Irwin’s mother, after all. Maybe it was time to let things go back to how they should be.

She would step out of Stewart and Irwin’s lives for good, and let everything return to its proper course.

Without another glance back, Briony turned and walked straight for the door.

“Briony—”

A sudden fit of coughing cut through the silence.

Stewart’s face changed instantly. “Irwin?”

Irwin was gasping for breath, clutching his chest as he began to collapse.

“Irwin!” Stewart scooped him into his arms, turning desperately to Briony. “He’s having an asthma attack!”

Briony’s hand froze on the doorknob.

“Mom… cough… Mom…” Even as Stewart held him, Irwin’s pale face was contorted in pain. Despite everything, he instinctively reached out a trembling hand toward Briony, pleading, “Mom, I can’t breathe… cough…”

Briony’s grip on the doorknob tightened.

She squeezed her eyes shut, telling herself not to give in. Stewart was here—he’d make sure Irwin was alright…

“Where’s Irwin’s inhaler?!”

Briony faltered, then spun around.

Stewart was standing there, clutching the breathless boy, his eyes pleading with her.

Irwin’s pale face had lost all its earlier defiance. Now, he just looked scared and helpless.

Something twisted painfully in Briony’s chest. Releasing the door, she rushed upstairs toward the child’s room.

Stewart hurried after her, Irwin limp in his arms.

In the bedroom, Briony yanked open the top drawer by the bed and grabbed the medication.

After Irwin used his inhaler, his breathing gradually steadied. Nestled in Briony’s arms, he soon drifted off to sleep.

She gently laid him on the bed and pulled the covers up around him.

Throughout it all, Briony didn’t say a word, nor did she look at Stewart once.

Stewart stood silently nearby, watching as she cared for Irwin with quiet tenderness, something soft flickering in his deep-set eyes.

At last, Briony brushed a hand over Irwin’s pale cheek, then turned to leave.

“Briony.”

Stewart called after her.

Stella arrived to find Briony trudging down the avenue, almost swallowed by the storm.

She was dressed much too lightly, snow clinging to her hair and shoulders.

Slamming the car to a halt, Stella flung open the driver’s door and hurried over, berating her as she brushed the snow off Briony’s coat. “What, did you lose your mind? Couldn’t you wait inside for me in this blizzard?”

Briony’s voice was nearly lost in the wind. “I couldn’t stay there a second longer.”

“You’ve lasted over five years—what’s another few minutes going to kill you?”

Briony’s lashes, frosted with snow, fluttered. She managed a faint, hollow laugh. “It won’t kill me. But it makes me sick…”

Stella paused, suddenly realizing something was wrong. The harsh words died in her throat, and she just sighed, bundling Briony into the car.

Once inside, she grabbed a blanket from the back seat and wrapped Briony’s shivering body.

“Seriously, what are you trying to prove? If Stewart wants to be an ass, that’s his problem. But now you’re just punishing yourself! You’re pregnant, Briony. For God’s sake—”

“Stella.”

Stella stopped, looking at Briony’s bloodless face, her frustration turning her voice sharp. “What is it now?”

“Help me schedule the procedure.”

Stella hesitated, lips pressed tight. She had so much she wanted to say, but in the end, all she managed was: “Alright.”