Don’t Fall for the Billionaire Lover

Chloe wasn't always this talkative.

Back then, she was the kind of person who handled everything herself—no matter how small, no matter how overwhelming, she took care of it all. Day after day, life just slipped through her fingers.

"Connor, Teddy and Amelia finally got married. I gave them the biggest wedding gift I could. Amelia's doing okay now-her condition's stable, thanks to Dr. Foster."

"I managed to get Aaron's school registration moved to Eldridge City. He'll be able to go to school here from now on."

"Tim asked me yesterday when you're going to wake up. I told him it would be before his birthday, so please, don't let him down."noveldrama

Life was quiet. No drama, no big changes.

Connor still lay in that hospital bed, machines quietly recording every heartbeat, every breath. Chloe couldn't make sense of it-he'd woken up once, even if only briefly. Why had he slipped away again?

The doctor explained it gently: when the rocks came crashing down, Connor's brain got hurt-bleeding in places you couldn't see. The truth was, he shouldn't have lasted this long. But somehow, he did, holding on with nothing but stubborn willpower, just to let Chloe see hope again.

The doctors had pulled him back from the edge, but he never really came back. He was trapped-alive, but unreachable.

For over half a year, Chloe took care of him. Everyone around her ached for her, tried to convince her to let go. But she was still Chloe-maybe even more optimistic than before, more determined to fight for him. She'd lost count of how many times the hospital had handed her those critical condition notices.

Not once did she consider giving up.

Even the doctor started to gently push: "Chloe, the chances of Connor waking up are almost zero. Have you thought about stopping the treatment?"

She shook her head every time. The Sartori family left the decision to her. So she kept going, day after day, talking to him as if nothing had changed.

“Tim's birthday is in two weeks. He asks about you every day. Are you really not planning on waking up?"

She sighed. "You know, you're not Sleeping Beauty. If you keep this up, I'm actually going to get mad at you."

"Oh, and Lucas called me again last night-drunk as always. Did I ever tell you? When we were trapped underground, buried so deep no one thought we'd make it, it was Lucas who helped find us. Years ago, Linda put a micro-tracker under my skin, right at the base of my neck. That's how she always found me, no matter where I went. Lucas knew about it. So when I was wandering around with amnesia, he found me right away."

"It's creepy, right? Linda is kind of crazy, but she's saved my life twice now."

Chloe's voice caught when she mentioned Linda, but she shook it off and kept going. “Grant actually gave the treasure map to my brother that day, just in case. He came to rescue us, but no one expected Hank to destroy the whole underground city. All that priceless stuff ended up with the government. It took a month just to move everything out."

"I'm rambling again. Lucas still won't give up. He swears he's changed wants me to go to Japan with him, even wants to bring Tim. Says he doesn't want to replace you, just wants to make things right as a friend..."

All the while, Chloe kept massaging Connor's arms, gentle and patient. His body had recovered surprisingly well, thanks to the hospital's tech and he constant care-his muscles hadn't wasted away, even after all these months.

She'd been at this for almost a year.

Then, all of a sudden, Chloe felt it-Connor's finger twitched.

For a second, time stopped. She stared, hardly daring to breathe, afraid she'd imagined it.

But then, his finger moved again.

It was like her heart started beating after a year of holding its breath.

Slowly, she looked up at his face.

Connor's eyes were open.

Clear and sharp, nothing like someone who'd slept for months.

Those eyes-deep, steady, a little cold, but burning with something fierce-locked

onto her as he managed to mutter, “Lucas... if he dares.....”

Chloe couldn't believe it. Hearing his

voice,

after so long, left her s Then, laughter bubbled up, and tears

spilled down her cheeks ar

once.

Connor's eyes softened, a mix of pain and so much tenderness.

"Chloe, I'm awake. Thank you... for everything this year..."

That was it. Chloe broke down, sobbing, unable to hold it in any longer.

She wasn't crying for all the

hardship, or for the long, lonely nights full of hope and

disappointment. She cried because

Connor remembered-he knew he'd been gone for a year.

Which meant-he'd been aware all along.

He'd felt every day pass, every sunrise and sunset. He'd heard her words, felt her happiness, her sadness, her anger-everything.

He'd just been trapped, locked inside a body that wouldn't move, that ached, that refused to let him reach her.

Chloe could imagine him, fighting every single day to break free, just to see her again.

She cried because her heart ached for him-like a thousand arrows, all at once.