The CEO's Empathy Pregnancy Pains

At that moment, Michael finally got how much Emily actually cared about him. Before, he'd been too stubborn to see it, treating her like she was just there for his convenience-calling her up when he needed something and ignoring her the rest of the time.

Now, he felt like a total jerk. Emily, the one he'd never really paid attention to, had taken a whipping for him. Seeing those marks on her back made him feel worse than if he'd been the one getting whipped.

"Let go of me, Michael. Don't make me hate you," Emily struggled harder.

Michael suddenly let go. Emily stood up and slapped him. She didn't have much strength, so it didn't hurt him much. Compared to the pain on his back, it was nothing.

For the first time, Emily saw guilt and hesitation on Michael's face. 'Is he actually feeling sorry for me?' she wondered.

After hitting him, she noticed Michael wasn't mad. Normally, he was so aloof that he wouldn't tolerate being slapped by anyone.

"You hit me so easily, so why did you take that whip for me?" Michael sneered.

Emily, still feverish and sweating from the struggle, snapped back, "Yeah, I shouldn't have taken it for you. I should've let grandpa beat you to death. Then we wouldn't need a divorce, and I could inherit your estate!"

Thinking about Michael lifting her clothes earlier, she didn't know whether to feel more ashamed or angry.

Either way, she really didn't want to see him right now. She checked her phone and saw it was already 2:30 a.m.

"Are you still not leaving?" Emily glared at him coldly.

"Emily, you're still running a fever. I'll get you some medicine," Michael said, deciding not to argue since she was still sick.

He turned and left, probably to find some fever medicine. But he wasn't feeling great either; his back hurt a lot, and he had to tough it out.

Emily weakly pulled the blanket over herself. After hitting Michael, she was still shaking. She didn't know what had come over her. 'How could I hit him? Am I really that out of it from the fever?' Then she thought about the fever medicine. 'Can I even take it now?'

While Michael was out looking for medicine, she quickly got up and searched on her phone whether pregnant women could take fever medicine.

The answer was that they shouldn't take it casually; physical cooling was best. Just as she was reading, Michael came back, and she hurriedly hid her phone.

"What are you looking at that's so secretive?" Michael sneered, holding medicine in one hand and a cup of water in the other.

Emily didn't respond, just looked at the medicine in his hand and said coldly, "I'm not taking it. Take it away."

Michael paused. "Emily, stop being unreasonable. Take the medicine, or I'll force it down your throat," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Emily watched him step closer, trembling nervously, desperately thinking of an excuse. "I'm allergic to fever medicine. I can't take it," she blurted out in a panic.

Michael clearly didn't believe her. "Emily, do you really want me to force the medicine down your throat?" His patience was wearing thin.

Emily stubbornly refused to take the medicine, but she was really uncomfortable from the fever. She had secretly taken her temperature earlier, and it was nearing 102 degrees Fahrenheit. "I really am allergic. Do you have any alcohol? I can use physical cooling. I always get through fevers this way," Emily compromised, retreating to a secondary option.

In the middle of the night, Emily really didn't want to bother anyone else, so she had to ask Michael to find some alcohol. Even Michael found it hard to believe he was actually listening to her. After some fuss, his face turned pale.

"I'll do it myself," Emily said, taking the alcohol from him. She didn't want Michael helping her wipe down; that would be way too awkward.

She quickly wiped her neck and arms with the alcohol and then tossed it aside, mainly because Michael refused to leave and insisted on watching her.

Michael suddenly felt the urge to explain that he'd been impulsive earlier, but he didn't know how to start because he had indeed brought up the divorce. 'Do I not want a divorce now?' he wondered. But thinking of Sophia, he still didn't say anything.

"Get some sleep," Michael said stiffly and then left.

Emily relaxed only after he left. She had noticed his pale and sickly face but didn't say anything. Maybe she was too proud to speak up.

The next day, Mason found out about the commotion in the middle of the night. Emily hadn't gotten up yet when Mason brought the family doctor over.

After a check-up confirmed that her fever had subsided, Mason was relieved. "At least Michael was considerate. Go, call him over," Mason snorted. He also reassured Emily not to worry about today's family banquet and to rest well. Emily felt a warm feeling in her heart. In the entire Smith family, only Mason truly cared for her.

The Smith Family banquet naturally included members of the Smith Family's extended branches. In fact, calling it a family banquet was more like a work report. Most of them were there to report their monthly work progress to the head of the Smith family.

The younger generation had to report their achievements and learning.

Because Michael had taken care of Emily the previous night, Mason excused him and let him continue to host the banquet.

Emily, feeling unwell, originally didn't have to attend the banquet, but she insisted on going. She didn't want her last days in the Smith Family to be subject to criticism.

She didn't care what others said about her, but she didn't want anyone to say that Mason was foolish for valuing her.Exclusive © content by N(ô)ve/l/Drama.Org.

Mason had ordered the servants to deliver her dress when she arrived yesterday, with various luxurious dresses for her to choose from.

In the end, she chose a light blue dress because it didn't expose her back and matched the old mansion well. She liked it very much.

But today's weather was bad; it was still raining and a bit chilly. She wanted to go back to get a coat but found that there wasn't enough time, so she had to give up.

The daytime family banquet was just a chat among the ladies, commonly known as gossip. When Emily arrived, the reception hall was already filled with people.

She only knew a few of them, and when they saw her, they all turned their eyes towards her, some with disdain, some with contempt. She pretended to ignore them all.

"Mom," she softly called out as she walked to Scarlett's side. No matter her relationship with Michael, she followed the etiquette and manners to not lose composure in front of others. Scarlett responded lightly, clearly being indifferent to her, so the others gave her mocking glances even more brazenly.