Resent, Reject, Regret

Chapter 4 Miss McKinney Is Awake

of heroism. After waking up, however, he had become Charlene McKinney’s fiance. Deirdre had re-entered his life as a Charlene impersonator. Now that the genuine thing had finally woken up, it was time to retire. …… Deirdre fell asleep on a wet pillow, but her phone jerked her awake after a while. The pain caused by his forceful activity had not fully subsided, so she shrank into a fetal position before grabbing her phone. Her lit-up screen revealed Brendan’s name. The sight of it drained all her sleepiness away. There could only be one reason he would call her this early in the morning, but still, it was sooner than she had expected. Charlene had just woken up. Was he really so excited to divorce Deirdre—to cast her aside and remove every trace of her from his life? Another call from the same man shook Deirdre out of her stupor. Too terrified to ignore it, she answered it and set it close to her ear. Brendan’s impatient snarl blared from the other side of the line. “I want you here right now!” “I’m not feeling well,” Deirdre replied softly. She had seen blood last night, and even now, she could feel jolts of pain assaulting her senses. “Can you let me rest a little bit? I’ll file the divorce papers afterward, okay?” Brendan went strangely quiet for a moment. “Just come back. There’s nothing to be afraid of. I’m not asking you to file for divorce now and I’m not interested in hurting your kid.” It was the first time Deirdre had ever seen him make concessions. It shocked her, but more importantly, it stirred something deep inside her. Brendan never lied. If he promised he would not hurt her kid, then he would not. But that still left one question unanswered: Why the urgency to bring her back? Could it be? Could he have realized that—even though Charlene was awake—he harbored some feelings for Deirdre after all? That she, at the very least, deserved a heart-to-heart? The thought sparked a wildfire in her mind. She knew the possibility was slimmer than a straw, and yet she found herself moved. She quickly covered herself with an overcoat, got out of the house, and hailed a taxi. The journey gave her imagination ample time to run wild. What was going to happen next? She wondered and wondered until she stepped inside the mansion. The living room was more packed than Deirdre had expected. As soon as Brendan saw her, his furrowed brows relaxed. “She’s here. Collect her blood.” ‘Collect her blood?’ Deirdre did not have any time to react. Someone leaped from the couch and closed their fingers around her arm. “What are you doing?!” Deirdre cried out and tried to wriggle her way out of that grip. Brendan narrowed his eyes in impatience. “Charlene’s unconscious, you mewling pest. Someone has to donate blood, and that someone is you. You’re going up there right now, so stop wasting precious time and save Lena’s life!”  Deirdre could not believe her ears. “You… You told me to come… because you wanted me to donate blood?!” “Why else could I have asked you to come?” Brendan sneered. “Because I give a sh*t about you? Because I want you to come back and rest?” Deirdre’s face paled. Her hopes—her wishes and imagination—had been fanciful fantasies all along. “I’m pregnant, Brendan! Can’t you just get emergency blood bags from the hospital or something? It’s more reasonable than asking a pregnant woman to give blood!” she