Chapter 338

---- Chapter 338 The day of Donovan's discharge finally arrived. Early that morning, Giselle went home to shower, wash her hair, and apply a light, meticulous touch of makeup. She slipped into a black dress -casual yet dignified -and made her way to the hospital to bring him out. His household staff and assistants had already handled all the paperwork , medicine , and luggage. Donovan only needed to change back into his own clothes, pick up his phone, and walk out of the ward. Though not fully healed, his body had regained most of its strength.

He looked clear-eyed and refreshed, his posture strong, his spirit intact. As long as he avoided strenuous acti ity for the near future, he seemed no different froma man in perfect health. Arm inarm, they crossed the lobby to the parking lot. Giselle helped him into the passenger seat before sliding behind the wheel herself. As she pulled up the navigation system, she drew ina steadying breath. "It's only 10:00 am Monday. A normal workday for most people." He glanced at her. "So? What's on your mind?" "So, no better time than now.

Let's go to the city hall." She reached into her bag and flashed the documents she had ---- prepared days ago. "Right now?" He had only just been released, the faint scent of antiseptic still clinging to him. He hadn't expected this turn so soon. "Yes, Right now." For once, Giselle's resolve burned without a trace of hesitation. "If we wait a few days, something else might happen. I don't want to risk it." "Then let's go." He didn't hesitate. For Donovan, marriage registration was no different from having a meal out -something already decided , not worth agonizing over dates or timing.

They first drove to his villa so he could collect the necessary documents and change into more formal clothes. Then they headed straight to the district city hall. Because it was Monday morning, the city hall was quiet, with no long lines. They posed for their photo, filled out the paperwork, and stepped up to the counter. Giselle wrote her name carefully , her hand trembling slightly as her heart raced. Donovan, by contrast , scrawled his signature with the easy flourish he used for business contracts, as if this too were just another document in his endless stack.

The clerk stamped the papers, slid the marriage certificate across the counter, and offered a routine congratulations. Back in the car, Giselle sat motionless for a long time before ---- turning the key. She opened her certificate, staring at her name and ID printed alongside his, at the smiling photo of the two of them pressed together on the page. Her head spun. It had all happened so fast, too unreal to grasp. The man she had schemed to win, the man she had loved with a desperate passion and hated with equal intensity , was now-legally , indisputably-her husband.

With that certificate in her hands, their bond had transformed entirely. "Darling." She turned her gaze on him, her smile edged with triumph, her eyes gleaming like a hunter who had finally captured her prey. "From now on, you're the most important person in my life." Donovan's eyes on her were filled with indulgence and quiet amusement . Whatever motives she might hold, it no longer mattered to him. Now that she bore his name, she had the freedom to stir up whatever storms she wished in his world.

As long as that certificate bound her to his side, he believed the core of their troubles was already solved. Everything else was noise, "Donovan," she murmured, "Ilove you."