Love's Bitter Edge (Eva and Leonard)
Chapter 456

Chapter 456 Live Well

Leonard shrugged indifferently. "You know me well enough by now. And isn't this a win-win situation? I know how much you value your career."

He said it all so matter-of-factly that I didn't even know how to respond. But I knew the project in Manovia couldn't remain stalled-it would hurt all the companies involved.

"I'll speak to them. My studio staff won't be involved in the project. Harmon Group's design team can take over. Leonard, if I die, please leave these people alone. Don't make things harder for them."

I lay weakly on the bed, my eyes barely able to stay open. Lately, even doing nothing left me exhausted.

Leonard stared at me for a long moment, then turned toward the door. With his hand on the doorknob, he looked back at me. "Eva, if you die, I won't leave them alone. So, stay alive for me."

He slammed the door behind him, and I couldn't help but smile. I understood his message-he'd let them be if I stayed alive.

Days passed, and the Manovia project finally launched. Everything seemed to be back on track while I counted the days as they drifted by.

It felt like things would just keep dragging on like this until Astrid burst into my hospital ward, teary-eyed.

"Eva, you leave us for a few months, and look what's happened to you!" She sniffled. "Why don't you come back to Manovia with me? Who cares about them? Your life is what matters!" She was sniffling so much that her nose was dripping, so I wiped it with a tissue while trying not to laugh.

"Come on, Astrid. Give me a break. Should I go back and force myself to eat your terrible food? Heaven doesn't want me dead, but that's just asking for it."

"Then let's bring my brother too, and we'll all go back!" she insisted.

Hearing Jack's name, I looked down, shaking my head. "Your brother's busy."

He really was. Sometimes, days would go by without even a single message from him. I never reached out to him either. If he stayed busy enough to forget about me, that might be a good thing. Astrid sighed, leaning against me.

"Eva, Jack's really going through a rough patch. Things aren't great with our grandmother's side of the family; he's got a lot to sort out. You know the McLennan family-it's complicated. But he asked me to come back and stay with you, so don't worry. I'm the McLennon family's eldest daughter; no one's going to mess with my sister-in-law!"

I pushed her off and looked at her seriously. "Astrid, do you really want me as your sister-in-law?"

"Why not? Can't you tell that my brother likes you?" Astrid said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "He's been so nice to you. You can't just repay him with kindness."

"But I also can't repay him with betrayal." I shook my head. "Astrid, you know my situation. I could die any time, and I'm not in the condition to have surgery. Are you trying to give your brother a wife or just waiting for me to die so that he'll be so heartbroken and you can take over his assets?"

Astrid pouted, clearly not agreeing with my reasoning. But she couldn't argue either. Everything I said was true.

"Anyway, as long as he likes you, that's enough," she muttered.

inental health."

"He only likes me now because he can't have me. What about later? Would you want him staring at this face and this dying body? Think about his physical and

I ruffled her hair, smiling as she began to get flustered.

"And besides, you've said it yourself-the McLennan family isn't ordinary. You and your brother might agree, but what about your family? Your elders?"