Winning Her Heart Back (Emelie Hoven )

Chapter 923 Elias and Ashley's Side Story: Love

Elias's POV:

Elias and Ashley's unhappy partings only repeated countless times. It didn't take long for them to run into another issue.

Maya started pushing for a baby.

In truth, she was eyeing Ashley's inheritance. Her sneaky plan was simple: if they had a child, that child would be an Undvike by blood. Hence, they could rightfully inherit Ashley's fortune.

Well, Elias thought that made a lot of sense. If they had an heir, not only would Ashley's annoying relatives back off, but so would the greedy ones from the Undvike family.

Once they saw that the next generation was already set to inherit, they'd have no claim. Thus, they would start giving up, and Ashley would feel less pressure too.

Hence, without hesitation, he went to ask Ashley for a baby.

Ashley heard his request and thought for a moment that Elias had lost his mind. They were practically living apart, yet he wanted a baby?

She sneered as she tossed the prenuptial agreement at him again. Unless he signed it, she would refuse to talk to him. At this point, Ashley was fully convinced that Elias was after her inheritance.

When reasoning with her failed, Elias did something underhanded. He swapped out her birth control pills for folic acid and fertility meds.

In the end, Ashley did end up pregnant, just like Elias had wanted. However, their relationship hit rock bottom. On top of the sneaky pill swap, which infuriated Ashley, she also suspected Elias of cheating. At the same time, Elias saw Ashley and Beathan at a hotel together and was convinced that they'd rekindled their old flame.

That fight was brutal. So brutal, in fact, that Elias actually considered jumping into the city river. William was incredulous as he asked, "Really? Is it that bad?"

"Yes! Yes, it's that bad!!" Elias wailed. His dear Aunt Ash didn't want him, so what was the point of living?

Jayden suggested, "If you can't let her go, then stop sulking like some lovesick drama queen and go after her! Win her back! It's gotta be better than sitting around acting like a jilted wife."

Elias slammed his drink down. "You're right."

Without wasting any time, he went for it. They said persistence could win over even the fiercest of women. Whether it worked on anyone else, Elias didn't know, but it definitely worked for him.

Ashley was a high-offense, low-defense type of person. She looked like a total ice queen. Scratch that, she was a total ice queen.

However, her romantic history was a blank slate. In her 30 years, she had only ever dated Beathan. So, she was completely unprepared for Elias's relentless and shameless advances.

Being the younger partner also had its perks as she gave him a lot of leeway. No matter how outrageous his actions were, he could always use his age as an excuse.

Whenever she was enraged by his outrageous behavior, she would sigh and say, "Forget it. He's just a young man." When she let it slide, Elias was encouraged to push his luck further and further.

Elias personally took care of Ashley throughout her pregnancy. He was attentive, thorough, and surprisingly competent. It was hard to believe this once-wild playboy was even more meticulous than a professional caretaker. Ashley often had leg cramps during her pregnancy. If she so much as turned in bed, that would trigger them. Somehow, Elias would always wake up before she could even sit up, already massaging her legs to ease the tension.

Ashley had no idea how he did it. She barely moved, and he always seemed to be in a deep sleep.

Nevertheless, he woke up every time at the slightest hint of her discomfort. The first thing he'd ask, in a sleepy voice, was if she was okay.

It was hard not to be moved by the little things he did. Slowly, Ashley went from being completely resistant to reluctantly accepting his care. By the end, she was even showing up at the Undvike family home to stand up for him.

Ashley had a sneaking suspicion that she'd fallen into a trap-a trap of tenderness.

She said with a half-smile, "I bet you're feeling pretty pleased with yourself now. You'll finally get your hands on my inheritance."

Elias didn't know what to say to that. Why was everything always about her inheritance?

He sighed and bent down to rest his head against her belly. "My dear, do I look like I need more money? I don't need money. I've got enough to last me two lifetimes. What would I do with more?

"I don't want your inheritance. I just want to take the burden off your shoulders. I know you are troubled because of the valuable things you own. I just want to help you. Tell me, what can I do to make you believe me?"

Ashley had never considered it from that angle before. After a while, she reached out and patted his head, like she was stroking a puppy.

Dogs were said to be the most loyal animals to humans, and Elias did have some puppy-like traits. He was her very own puppy.

At that point, they had already decided to spend their lives together. They would be a happy family of three once the baby was born.

However, fate was cruel, and an accident happened.

There was a tragedy at the courthouse, and their baby was gone. And Ashley fell into a deep coma, as though she would never wake up.

During the first month, Elias lived like a zombie. He went days without eating, drinking, or sleeping, only giving in to his body's survival instinct at the brink of collapse.

Eventually, Maya found him passed out in the house and rushed him to the hospital, where he was saved just in time. He'd nearly starved himself to death.

When he woke up, Maya, who was both furious and heartbroken, slapped him across the face, sobbing, "Do you want to leave your mother too? Your father already abandoned me, and you're my only family left. Are you going to leave me as well?"

Elias didn't respond.

"She's not dead!" Maya cried. "Ashley will wake up someday, but if you die, you'll never see her again! And her inheritance? It'll all be taken by her relatives! If you don't pull yourself together and protect it, when she wakes up and sees everything's gone, she'll hate you forever!"

Elias heard that and finally found a new purpose in living. A spark reignited in his eyes.

That was it. He had to protect everything for her, to keep everything intact until she woke up and life could return to how it once was.

However, how was he supposed to do that?

Dogs buried the food that they couldn't finish, taking it back to their den. Elias did just that. He transferred Ashley's movable assets into his own name to stop her relatives from touching anything.

He feared that she'd misunderstand him again when she woke up, thinking he was after her money. So, he kept a ledger, noting down every asset.

He recorded every detail of her shops, investments, and the monthly profits. When she woke up, he'd return

everything to her. He had everything ready and was just waiting for her to wake up.