Chapter 361 - 345: Are We Having Many?

Elliot Sheridan smiled gently. "I heard you married Erin Irving. Congratulations!"

Joanne Donovan’s smile grew even more awkward. The marriage hadn’t been her choice; she had been completely forced into it.

Photos of Elliot Sheridan helping Joanne Donovan up were snapped in quick succession and published in the next day’s newspapers.

Elliot Sheridan’s exoneration, and his act of repaying malice with virtue toward the daughter who framed him, became the next day’s front-page headline. Quincy Rhodes’s imprisonment was the second top story.

As soon as the market opened, the company’s continuously falling stock suddenly skyrocketed. Capitalizing on this momentum, Elliot Sheridan was expected to return to the company and take charge again, which would also boost employee morale.

But, unexpectedly, there was no sign of Elliot Sheridan at all.

The company’s stock, after rising for only two days, fell again, fluctuating around its previous price.

This was when Elliot Sheridan should have stepped up and taken back control of the company. Instead, it was as if he had vanished. Reporters staked out the Sheridan Family residence but couldn’t get a single shot of him.

It wasn’t until ten days later that everyone learned of their whereabouts from Georgia Thorne’s social media post.

Georgia Thorne posted a photo of Elliot Sheridan’s back as he stood by the sea, stating that he needed some time to rest.

Everyone finally understood. No wonder they had been staking out Portmire for ten days without seeing a shadow of him. Turns out he had taken his wife on vacation.

In reality, they hadn’t gone on vacation; they had moved into a seaside villa.

The day after his release from prison, he had taken Georgia Thorne to the villa, ostensibly to enjoy a private life just for the two of them.

After finally being reunited with him, Georgia Thorne naturally went along. She wanted to be able to see him at all times, unwilling to let him disappear from her sight again, even for a short while.

Georgia Thorne had become clingy, the strong, independent woman persona she had built up recently completely collapsing.

During those ten days, she constantly stuck by Elliot Sheridan’s side, loving to act cute for him and just watch him.

Elliot Sheridan savored this look from Georgia Thorne, seeing that he was the only one in her eyes.

Georgia Thorne wasn’t the least bit surprised that Elliot Sheridan knew about her pregnancy.

The biggest "spy" he had planted by her side was Sam Yates. Sam had been with her the whole time and would definitely know she was pregnant.

Besides, if even Dylan Heston knew, there was no reason Elliot wouldn’t know.

In the afternoon, the two of them sat basking in the sun.

Georgia Thorne hugged him, resting her head comfortably on his shoulder, and asked curiously, "What was your first reaction when you found out I was pregnant?"

Elliot Sheridan caressed her shoulder with one hand. "I don’t know. I was a bit of a mess."

"A mess?" Georgia Thorne lifted her head and glanced at him.

’It was a little hard to imagine what he looked like when he was a mess.’

"A total mess. And I thought about so many things," Elliot Sheridan said. "I wondered if you were scared without me, how you managed to get through this time all by yourself, if you were thinking of me..."

"Wait, you were only thinking about me?... Weren’t you thinking about the baby?" Georgia Thorne cut him off.

’Since I’m pregnant, the baby should be the main focus, right?’

"The baby’s still tiny. We don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl. What’s there to think about?"

’That’s exactly what someone who’s never been a father would say.’

Georgia Thorne said defensively, "It’s much bigger than tiny! The baby was already quite big at my last check-up. My belly is already showing. Feel it if you don’t believe me."

She took Elliot Sheridan’s large hand and placed it on her round belly. The baby inside was growing day by day; she could feel it.

On his first night after being released from prison, Elliot Sheridan barely slept at all.

Honestly, he had always looked forward to having a child, but he never expected it to happen at a time like this.

It had come as a complete surprise, yet it made him so happy. He liked children, but he especially loved the idea of having a child with Georgia Thorne.

Truly, every day in prison had been torture for him. There wasn’t a moment he wasn’t thinking about Georgia Thorne.

He knew Georgia Thorne’s nature. She would show her delicate side to those she was close to, but when she was alone, she would become stronger than anyone.

It was this kind of girl that made him both love her and ache for her.

When he heard about her pregnancy from Dylan Heston, his first reaction was actually fear.

He was afraid Georgia Thorne would cry because he wasn’t there for her, so he decided to wrap things up as quickly as possible.

Ultimately, he could only be at ease after seeing Georgia Thorne safe and sound by his side with his own eyes.

The palm of Elliot Sheridan’s hand was dry and warm, pressing comfortably against Georgia Thorne’s lower abdomen.

He found it miraculous that a tiny life was gestating inside Georgia’s belly.

"Were you scared?" he asked softly, leaning close to Georgia Thorne’s ear.

Georgia Thorne’s eyes were lazily half-closed, already feeling a little sleepy. Lying on Elliot Sheridan’s chest, she said languidly, "I wasn’t scared."

He hadn’t specified, but Georgia Thorne understood what he was asking.

Even if he had really been sentenced to thirty years in prison, she would have waited for him with their child.

It wasn’t a matter of being scared or not, but a matter of being lonely or not.

Without him, she had been truly lonely.

But when she found out she was pregnant, that loneliness lessened. Perhaps she would give birth to a baby who looked just like Elliot Sheridan.

Thankfully, he was here now, safe and sound by her side.

Her slender fingers gripped Elliot Sheridan’s shoulder tightly. She lifted her small face and bit him on the chin.

Not too hard, just enough to leave two clear rows of teeth marks. She said with satisfaction, "Don’t you dare leave me and the baby again!"

’Now they were a happy family of three.’

Elliot Sheridan’s heart felt incredibly soft, swelling with happiness. He hugged Georgia Thorne even tighter. "Mm. I’ll protect you and our daughter."

As her pregnancy progressed, she got past the morning sickness but found herself frequently drowsy.

It always felt like she could never get enough sleep.

The two had only been outside for a short while before Georgia Thorne fell asleep.

He pushed himself up, lifted Georgia Thorne into his arms, and carried her into the bedroom.

Georgia Thorne slept for about two or three hours before she was suddenly jolted awake by a nightmare.

Drenched in sweat, she opened her eyes and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling above, feeling disoriented.

Then, a memory immediately surfaced in her empty mind. She threw off the covers and scrambled out of bed to find Elliot Sheridan.

After searching the entire upstairs, she hurried downstairs. Mrs. Halloway saw her rushing. "Madam, please slow down!"

Georgia Thorne looked frantic. She grabbed Mrs. Halloway and asked, "Where is he?"

Mrs. Halloway didn’t react right away and looked at Georgia Thorne blankly. Georgia Thorne frowned, let go of her, and started walking outside.

Just as Georgia Thorne reached the door, Mrs. Halloway finally processed the question and called out, "The master is in the back garden!"

Hearing this, Georgia Thorne immediately ran outside.

The villa had its own small garden.

Before she even got there, she could hear the RUMBLE of machinery.

Seeing Elliot Sheridan standing next to a machine, talking with the worker operating it, she ran toward him.

Before she could even get close, Elliot Sheridan suddenly turned around, as if he had eyes in the back of his head.

He grabbed Georgia Thorne’s hand. Her palms and forehead were covered in a fine layer of sweat. He chided her softly, "Why are you running in such a hurry?"

Georgia Thorne shook her head and smiled. "What are you doing?"

She didn’t tell him she’d just had a nightmare.

She had dreamed that everything that had happened recently was just a dream, something she had imagined, and that Elliot Sheridan was actually still in prison. The shock had woken her up.

When she couldn’t see Elliot upon waking, she had panicked, feeling an urgent need to see him immediately.

She squeezed Elliot Sheridan’s hand tightly. ’Thankfully, this is all real. I’m not dreaming.’

"Did the noise wake you?" Elliot Sheridan stroked her forehead. "I want to plant a few trees, so when the children are older, they can play under them."

Hearing him say "children," Georgia Thorne blushed. "Are we going to have a lot of kids?"

"No need. Two is enough."

He only wanted two children, preferably a boy and a girl, so the son could look after his sister.

That way, he could take Georgia Thorne traveling everywhere.

"But this one hasn’t even been born yet!" Georgia Thorne said playfully, poking her belly.

"It’s fine, we have plenty of time... And don’t worry about my performance. After the baby is born, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to experience my youthful vigor."

Georgia Thorne: "Er..."

Georgia Thorne was taken aback by Elliot Sheridan’s words; that was not what she had been thinking at all.

The machine began to dig into the earth, sending dust flying everywhere in the garden. Elliot Sheridan led Georgia Thorne back into the villa.

The sudden appearance of two new trees in the garden didn’t seem out of place. On the contrary, it made the space feel more alive.

The trees had just been planted; they were still young and needed time to grow.

Perhaps by the time their baby was born, they would be well-established.

During their ten days at the villa, the two of them forgot about the outside world, their life peaceful and serene.

Both Georgia Thorne and Elliot Sheridan longed for this kind of life, but they also knew that before they could truly have it, there were still things that needed to be done.

After their ten-day holiday, Elliot Sheridan brought Georgia Thorne back to the Sheridan residence.

Sharon Ennis, knowing they were returning today, had been busy all day. She had also invited Byron Shaw over.

Georgia Thorne followed Elliot Sheridan into the house and saw Byron Shaw sitting in the living room, playing chess with James Sheridan.

Aidan Sheridan came down the stairs and called out happily, "Elliot, you’re back!"

Elliot Sheridan grunted in acknowledgment, his gaze turning icy as he looked at him. Aidan understood the look. He turned to Georgia Thorne and softly called her "Sister-in-law."