Chapter 804: Wife, I Really Thought I Was Going to Leave You...

Chapter 804: Chapter 804: Wife, I Really Thought I Was Going to Leave You...

"Annabelle..."

Leona Grant looked at her hesitantly. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he asked with a hint of uncertainty, "Honey, when did you get back? Why the sudden return?"

"Just now," Annabelle Linton replied. She reached out to check the temperature on his forehead and pursed her lips. "Didn’t I tell you to take care of yourself? Why are you running a fever?"

"I’m fine." Leona shook his head, his mind finally catching up to reality. Freeing one hand, he gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Why did you come back so suddenly? Are you leaving again?"

He wondered if she had returned early because she couldn’t find the antidote. Even though he hadn’t held out much hope, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment.

Annabelle’s lips curled into a faint smile. She stared at him intently, her eyes reflecting nothing but him. After a moment, she spoke in a soft whisper, "I found the antidote."

Leona jolted in shock. Had she actually found it? He stared at her, completely dumbfounded and unable to form a single word.

A flash of deep sorrow darted across Annabelle’s eyes before she looked up with a radiant smile. "You’re going to live for a very, very long time. You don’t have to die."

Leona stared at her for a long moment before suddenly leaping to his feet. He scooped her into his arms and spun her around in circles, whooping with pure exhilaration. "Wow! I’m saved! I’m not going to die! Hahaha! Annabelle, I don’t have to die! I can stay by your side forever!"

Pain pierced Annabelle’s chest without warning, sharp and relentless, as if countless steel needles were driving into her heart. The agony spread, each throb more vicious than the last. He was saved. He would live. But she still had to leave him.

The morning sun was gentle rather than blinding. It cast a warm, sprawling glow over his handsome face, making it impossible to look away.

Leona finally stopped spinning and held her close. He gazed deeply into her eyes, as if trying to etch her every smile and frown into his very soul. After a long pause, his lips parted slowly. "Annabelle, I don’t have to die. I can stay with you forever and ever. This is wonderful..."

Annabelle met his affectionate gaze. He stared at her unblinkingly, his dark eyes like a bottomless abyss threatening to pull her in. In that moment, they were the only two people in the world.

Yes, he was finally free from death’s grasp. But the thought of her own origins and their impending separation in just two or three months filled her heart with an icy dread.

Pulling her tight, his voice grew thick with emotion. "Honey, I really thought I was going to leave you... When I first found out I was dying, you were the one I was most worried about.

"Thank you, Annabelle. Thank you for finding the antidote. I never said a word to you, but I was so terrified. I was terrified we would be torn apart. This past month apart has been absolute torture. I truly believed I was going to die. Thank you. Thank you so much."

Leona choked out the barrage of thanks, his voice trembling irrepressibly.

Annabelle simply offered a gentle smile. "As long as you’re okay, I’m okay. There’s no need for thanks."

Leona held her in pure contentment, silently taking in her soft, tender features. It seemed that life demanded immense ups and downs before a person could truly see things clearly. During their month apart, he had replayed their past countless times, realizing that meeting Annabelle was the greatest blessing of his life. What had he ever done to deserve such an incredible woman? In the past, no matter how terribly he treated her, she had never once left his side.