Bound by the Past, Locked by the Heart novel Chapter 195

Unsurprisingly, Randal reacted as if she had just poured gasoline on a fire. His expression darkened in a flash. "You can't owe me, but you can owe him?"

Willa closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Here we go again.

It was like this every single time.

No matter what they talked about, he always managed to steer it right back to his possessive paranoia.

Sean Thorne, Martin Jenson, Corbin Sommers—any man who appeared in her orbit was automatically deemed a threat in his eyes.

She forced down her frustration and softened her tone to explain, "Randal, Sean has a wife and kids. He helped me because my dad saved his mother's life years ago. Between us, it's never been the kind of relationship you're imagining."

Randal stared at her unblinking, his gaze deep and searching, as if trying to decipher the truth in her words.

After a long silence, he finally backed down, reluctantly compromising, though still visibly dissatisfied. "Let's assume you're telling the truth. I still can't stand it."

"You have so many people around you, but I only have you."

Hearing those almost hopelessly devoted words, Willa's heart unconsciously softened, and her defensive posture dropped. "Outside of matters concerning my dad, I'll try my best not to see him. Is that acceptable?"

He remained silent for a long time before finally letting out a muffled, "Okay."

Willa knew he hadn't truly let it go.

He just didn't want to make her angry again while she was in this condition.

That thorn was still buried in his heart, pricking him, and she had no idea when it would tear through the surface again.

The next day, entirely ignoring her protests, Randal forced her transfer to a VIP suite in a private hospital.

With his hands full of endless business affairs, he couldn't realistically stay by her side twenty-four hours a day. So, after leaving behind two bodyguards and hiring a private nurse, he hurried off with Miles Zane, who had rushed to the hospital to fetch him.

Once Randal was gone, the room descended into utter silence.

The bodyguards stood sentinel outside the door, and the nurse didn't dare utter a single unnecessary word.

Willa was completely caught off guard. She never imagined Randal would transfer her to a hospital under the Sterlings' control.

"Randal really is something, not giving me any heads up," Scarlett said, feigning a tone of light reprimand. "You've been here for days, and I just found out. If I had known earlier, I would have arranged a much better room for you."

"This is already perfectly fine," Willa replied dismissively, unwilling to engage further.

Scarlett's smile didn't waver. "That's good to hear. If you need anything at all, just tell the nurses. I've already put the word in."

Willa didn't respond.

The atmosphere grew painfully awkward.

Scarlett, however, acted as if she couldn't feel the tension at all. She pulled an envelope from her designer bag and handed it over.

"This is the wedding invitation for Randal and me. You're more than welcome to attend openly this time. Don't go pulling any stunts to make Randal lose control like you did before. You wouldn't be able to handle the consequences of that."

Willa lifted her gaze to meet hers. "Ms. Sterling, what exactly are you trying to say?"