She stayed quiet for a moment, then asked, “And you’re asking about me? What about you—are you alright?”

At that moment, despite the distance between them, they both felt a sense of sorrow and resignation.

“I won’t lie,” Elissa said with a weary smile. “It doesn’t sit well with me.”

She paused for a moment, then continued, “But it’s only discomfort for me. For you, it’s a whole different story…”

In Srixby, the complicated history between Linda and the Flynn brothers had long been the talk of the town. Everyone knew the story. When all was said and done, Elissa and Linda had only clashed over love. Hadley’s situation, though, ran much deeper.

For her, romance wasn’t the heart of the issue. What she had endured because of Linda went far beyond rivalry. Linda wasn’t just competition; she was a source of real pain.

“I’m genuinely more worried about you, Hadley,” Elissa said.

Hadley didn’t respond right away, quietly mulling over her thoughts. From what Elissa had just said, it was clear she already knew Linda had returned, and that meant Ernest hadn’t kept it from her.

That made sense.

Unlike Eric, Ernest had a longer, more complicated past with Linda. And with how much time he was now spending at the hospital with Linda, perhaps being honest from the start was for the best.

However…

Hadley’s brows furrowed as she remembered the uneasy look on Eric’s face when he told her that Linda had come back for Ernest this time, and that somehow Elissa was also involved. There was definitely more going on.

And yet, Elissa didn’t seem to know any of it.

Unfortunately, Hadley could only speculate. She didn’t know the full story herself.

Lаττ ch?ρτ?rs ιn glov?ls.

“Hadley?” Elissa’s voice came through again, puzzled by the long silence. “Are you still there? Can you hear me?”

“Yes, I can hear you.” Hadley snapped back to the moment and continued the conversation.

She didn’t hold anything back. “Honestly… I’m not doing great. But…” Forcing a lightness into her voice, she added with a small smile, “I’m hanging in there. Things will work out eventually, so don’t worry about me.”

Elissa let out a soft sigh. “I wish I could do more… But if you ever need anything, I’m here.”

She added, “Whether you want to talk, vent, or just have someone by your side, I’m always just a call away. Anything at all, just say the word.” Read complete version only at find?novel.net

“Thank you,” Hadley replied with a smile. “I’ll definitely reach out if I need to.”

“By the way,” Elissa suddenly remembered the reason she called. “You asked about the time to visit the bridal shop?”

“Yes, I did.”

Without hesitating, Elissa asked the question that had been on her mind. “So… your wedding plans—nothing has changed?”

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