I Was His Wife, Then His Widow, Then No One's But My Own novel Chapter 405

That night, the pain from her wound kept Nora tossing and turning. Every time she glanced over, she saw Xander's strikingly handsome face watching over her. His expression was so incredibly tender it wrapped her in a blanket of absolute security.

Xander's magnetic voice murmured softly near her ear. "Does it hurt again?"

Nora nodded. She didn't feel the need to play tough in front of this man.

Xander sat up slowly from the adjacent cot and switched on the dim nightlight. "Then I'll tell you a story to help you sleep."

Nora blinked in surprise, a smile tugging at her lips. "Are you treating me like a toddler?"

Xander gently pulled her blankets up a little higher, his voice soothing. "My mother used to tell me this story when I was a kid. I was sick a lot back then, always running fevers and stuck in hospitals. Whenever the pain kept me awake, she would tell me this story. Eventually, I memorized it."

Hearing that, Nora lay back obediently and quieted down. She looked at him with soft, misty eyes.

Xander cleared his throat and began speaking in a low, rhythmic cadence.

Nora blinked, utterly captivated. "And then what happened?"

"Then, the mentor gave the boy another seed," Xander continued smoothly. "This time, the boy understood the lesson. Nothing could be rushed. Everything in the world has its own natural rhythm, and the moment you try to force it, things can go horribly wrong."

Xander paused for a moment. "Eventually, the boy grew up. He successfully inherited the old man's practice and became the most legendary physician in the region. And just like that seed, he learned to plant his roots deep and grow steadily, never rushing, never forcing things."