Chapter 327 Sawyer's Escape
After dinner, Jerry and I cruised over to the hospital. I packed some grub for Madison, but she was MIA.
Claire was already out cold, so no stress there for now. With everything going on, it all hinged on whether Larry could pull through.
Jerry took me straight to the ICU.
I spotted Madison standing there and strolled up to her, saying, "Mom."
Madison looked at me. I was worried she might be bummed, but her face was chill and blank.
Without pressing further, I simply guided her to take a seat. "Grab a bite."
Madison asked, "Did Jerry spill the beans?"
I nodded.
Madison cursed, "Larry's a hot mess. If he had just listened to Claire a bit, we wouldn't be in this mess."
She snorted, "I want him to wake up and see Skylar with another dude, and the adopted daughter he doted on now back with her real dad. He deserves it."
I glanced at Jerry. "Did you tell my mom all this?"
Jerry raised an eyebrow slightly and said, "She wanted the scoop, so I gave it to her straight."
I chuckled, "If someone didn't know any better, they'd think she was your mom."
Jerry raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, she's gonna be my mom soon."
Then he patted my head. "Alright, don't hang around here. Go home with Madison. I'll hit you up as soon as there's any news."
I realized there was no point in sticking around, so I bounced with Madison.
After dropping us off, Jerry headed to the company. He had just taken the reins, and any slip-up could be a huge hit for the Hammer Group and give others a chance to pounce.
The next day, Madison had a photoshoot, and I was home solo working on design drafts.
Around noon, Elissa rolled up with some takeout. "Did Jerry send you?"
"Not entirely, I missed you too," Elissa said.
I chuckled and grabbed the insulated bag from her. "You're a sweetheart."
After setting the food on the table, we plopped down on the carpet to eat.
Elissa started dishing about the latest at the company.
Then she noticed my design drafts and raised an eyebrow. "Why aren't you designing the dresses now?"
"I'm on it." I took the sip of juice, uttering, "I'm worried that later in the pregnancy, I won't have the energy, so I want to knock out all my custom orders now."
Being a designer might seem freeing, but it actually sucked up a lot of energy and effort.
Elissa poked my forehead. "Are you dense? That's not what I meant."
"Then what..." I paused, then it hit me she was talking about my wedding dress. I laughed, "No rush for that."
There are so many loose ends, who knew when the wedding would be.
Elissa sighed, "That's the main priority. The wedding planner can handle all the other stuff like a pro. That just leaves your dress. Or don't you want to rock a wedding dress you designed yourself?"
"Of course I do," I answered immediately. "No need to rush. Once this busy period is over, I'll probably start showing, and a wedding would be more of a hassle. It might be better to just get hitched now and plan the wedding after the baby is born."
"You're good at planning." Elissa raised an eyebrow, agreeing with my plan but still worried. "Getting married and having a baby a proper wedding, won't you feel like you're missing out?"
I thought for a sec and answered seriously, "If it were with someone else, yeah, but with him, no way."
'Cause I knew Jerry would never let me feel shortchanged, even more than I would.
Elissa was stunned, then laughed, "You're totally love-struck. But Jerry's worth it."
She topped off my juice and reminded me, "But you should start designing the dress. It's a big deal and needs some serious thought."
"Alright, I'll listen to you," I pretended to agree.
Unexpectedly, Elissa, with her fiery personality, pulled me to discuss the dress design right after lunch.
She was more anxious than I was, afraid I'd regret it later.
That evening, Madison called to say she had a film festival to attend and couldn't visit me.
I said, "It's cool, Mom. Elissa's here, and you can focus on your work. Ellen's cooking at home, and Jerry's got people around me, so I'm never alone."
Madison was relieved and hung up.
After Elissa and I showered, I got a call from Jerry before we could hit the sack.
"Hope, you asleep?"
"Not yet."
My heart tightened for no reason, and I asked instinctively, "What's up? Did something happen?"
"Don't worry," Jerry reassured me. "Claire woke up and wants to see you. If you're not asleep, wanna come over?"
"Yes!" I was over the moon.
Jerry must've known I'd say that. "Steven's on his way to pick you up. Change and come downstairs."
He couldn't help but remind me, "Take your time, don't rush, okay?"
I smiled. "Got it."
When we got to the hospital, Steven didn't take us to Claire's room but straight to the ICU.
Claire was outside the room, peeking in through the glass.
"Claire?" I walked over and called softly.
Claire turned and smiled at me. "Hope."
Even though Jerry had told me, my eyes still welled up. "Claire..."
As Claire held my hand, she pointed to Larry lying in the hospital bed and asked, "Even though he messed up, I almost hurt you because of him. Will you blame me?"
I shook my head quickly. "Don't say that. I get it. You were sick; you didn't mean to hurt me."
Claire patted my hand. "You're the best."
Seeing nothing was wrong, Elissa didn't come over and sat nearby waiting.
Steven also sat down but kept his eyes on his phone, dealing with something.
I looked around but didn't see Jerry, so I asked, "Where's Jerry?"
Steven answered honestly, "Jerry went to catch Sawyer."
"Why didn't you go with him?" I remembered that Jerry and Steven rarely acted separately, especially for big stuff.
Steven pointed at his phone. "I got other things to handle here. Jerry's got capable people with him; don't worry."
I realized Jerry had left him at the hospital on purpose. He was worried about me.
At the suburban dock, it was pitch black at this hour, with only the sound of waves hitting the shore.
Until a row of black SUVs rolled up, their headlights lighting up the coast, making it hard to keep your eyes open.
Sawyer saw Jerry, tall and long-legged, get out of the first car and cursed.
Jerry didn't mind, smirking and casually raising his hand. Several bodyguards got out of the cars behind, dragging Skylar and Kimberly forward.
Leaning against the SUV, Jerry said lazily, "So, you planning to ditch your wife and daughter?"
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