The Cold Heir's Contract Wife

002

The hospital corridor remained busy despite the late hour. The sound of nurses' footsteps echoed in response to one another, occasionally blending with the squeak of patient gurney wheels passing at the end of the hall.

Harper sat silently on the waiting chair, supporting Jesslyn’s body as she slept in her lap. The little girl curled up quietly while clutching her tattered teddy bear tightly. Occasionally, her small body shifted restlessly, as if even in sleep, she had not truly found a sense of security.

Harper gently stroked her niece's hair, then slowly raised her face upon realizing someone was sitting in the chair opposite her.

Darian.

The man was still wearing the same clothes from when they met on the street earlier. His black suit still looked neat, yet lines of exhaustion were now clearly etched on his face.

"Where will you go after this?" Darian asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

Harper shook her head weakly. "I don't know yet."

Darian fell silent for a few seconds. "You don't have a place to stay?"

Harper offered a thin, bitter smile. "I just lost my home a few hours ago."

That answer made Darian fall silent once more.

Harper watched the man before her for a moment before saying softly, "You ask a lot of questions for someone who just brought us to the hospital in the middle of the night without any explanation."

"I just wanted to confirm something."

"With a DNA test?"

Darian shifted his gaze to Jesslyn, who was still fast asleep. "Yes."

Harper let out a short sigh. "Normally, people don't stop a woman and a child on the side of the road and then bring them to the hospital in the middle of the night."

Strangely, the corners of Darian’s lips moved faintly, forming a thin, almost invisible smile. "Now that I think about it, that action does sound bad."

"That’s because it was bad."

For the first time, the atmosphere between them felt a bit lighter. However, the moment did not last long. Darian’s gaze locked onto Jesslyn again. Her small face still looked pale, the remnants of the tears she had shed tonight completely drained.

"I have been searching for her mother for quite a long time," Darian said in a low voice.

Harper turned her head instantly, staring at him sharply. "Brianna?"

Darian gave a small nod. "I was too late in knowing everything."

His tone remained flat and calm, but Harper could catch something implied behind those words. Profound regret.

Harper had just wanted to ask further, but the footsteps of a nurse passing near them made the atmosphere return to silence.

A few minutes passed, and Darian stood up. "Let's go."

Harper furrowed her brows. "Where to?"

"My house."

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"Do you have another option?"

That rhetorical question instantly silenced Harper. Darian glanced at Jesslyn, who was still sleeping soundly in Harper’s lap. "The child needs to rest."

Harper stared at her niece's face for quite a while, weighing the situation, before finally giving in. "Tomorrow, after the test results come out, I will leave."

Darian did not offer an immediate definitive answer. "If that is your decision later, I will not hold you back."

For some reason, that straightforward answer made it even harder for Harper to read the thoughts of the man before her.

The black sedan drove calmly through the city streets, which were beginning to grow quiet. Throughout the journey, Harper continued to hold Jesslyn, occasionally watching Darian secretly through the rearview mirror. The man had been mostly silent since they left the hospital. However, the silence he brought felt different—not awkward, but simply too difficult to predict.

The sturdy, large iron gate opened slowly as the car entered the grounds of Darian’s private mansion. Harper reflexively straightened her sitting position. The Collins family home was already categorized as large, but this place gave a different impression.

Too quiet.

Even after several security cars entered with them, the mansion's courtyard still felt empty. Upon getting out of the car, Harper realized one thing. There was no sound of a television, no faint chatter of servants, not even a melody of music. A mansion this grand felt like an empty building that wasn't truly lived in.

"Come in."

Darian’s voice broke Harper’s trance. She immediately walked, following behind the man while still carrying Jesslyn.

The mansion’s interior was dominated by dark colors with warm, deliberately dim lighting. Everything was arranged so neatly, giving off an almost cold impression. Harper’s gaze flickered to a large wall near the stairs. Empty. Not a single family photo was displayed there.

"Your rooms have been prepared."

Harper turned her head when an elderly maid approached them with a respectful attitude.

"Sir," the maid greeted.

"Show them to the guest room," Darian ordered briefly.

"Very well."

Harper followed the maid’s footsteps toward the upper floor. As soon as the guest room door was opened, Harper’s steps halted at the threshold. The room was extraordinarily spacious, even larger than the small apartment she had rented during college.

Jesslyn stirred slowly as Harper laid her down carefully on the soft bed. The little girl’s eyelids opened slightly.

"Harper..." she called out raspy.

"I'm here," Harper whispered reassuringly.

"Where are we?"

"A safe place."

Jesslyn remained silent for a few seconds before tightening her hold on her teddy bear. "Harper won't leave, right?"

That innocent question instantly made Harper’s chest feel tight. She gently held Jesslyn’s small fingers. "I promise I will never leave you."

Hearing that, Jesslyn finally closed her eyes again. However, her small fingers kept a tight grip on Harper’s hand, as if afraid of losing the only person she trusted in this world.

Harper bowed her head in silence, gently stroking the back of her niece's hand. Without her realizing it, someone was standing in front of the door which had not been closed completely.

Darian.

The man watched Jesslyn for quite a while before his gaze shifted completely to Harper. His facial expression remained as calm as usual, but for the first time that night, there was a flash of wavering emotion in his eyes.

Marcus was already waiting inside the study when Darian walked in. Several document folders had been neatly arranged on the large teak desk.

"Are there any preliminary results?" Darian asked immediately.

Marcus nodded. "I have investigated the Collins family background, Sir."

Darian took his seat in his desk chair without making a sound.

"They truly intended to send Miss Jesslyn to an orphanage tonight," Marcus continued. "And Miss Harper was the only person who vehemently opposed that decision."

A suffocating silence filled the room for a few moments. Marcus then opened one of the folders he was holding.

"We also managed to check the room occupied by Miss Jesslyn at the Collins residence." He paused for a moment, weighing his master’s reaction before continuing, "Most of the child's belongings are old items, Sir."

Darian did not move at all, but his jaw slowly tightened.

"Even almost all of the child's clothes are secondhand. The teddy bear she always carries was also bought privately by Miss Harper with her own money."

The room was once again enveloped in silence. Darian lit a cigarette with slow movements, then walked toward the large glass window facing directly outside. The city lights glowed faintly in the distance.

"The Collins family called the child a bringer of bad luck," Marcus added very carefully. "Because their financial condition and company began to deteriorate exactly since her birth."

Darian let out a short, small laugh. However, the laugh did not sound like someone who was feeling entertained at all.

"If only they knew," Darian muttered softly, barely a whisper.

Cigarette smoke drifted slowly from between his lips, blurring his view of the windowpane.

"The one who will bring bad luck to the Collins family starting tonight... is me."