My Secret Husband Is My Cold Boss novel Chapter 7

The palm-sized document rested flat in his hand.

Staring at the glaringly obvious certificate, Winona was so stunned she lost the ability to speak. After a long thirty seconds of silence, she finally snapped back to reality, snatched the booklet, and flipped it open.

“Don't you try to fool me.”

In the small photograph, the girl sitting next to her son had her hair pulled back into a neat ponytail.

She wore no makeup, her face fresh and radiant, possessing a stunning natural beauty that felt entirely effortless.

“Wendy Gates?”

Winona read the name aloud and looked up at him.

Sampson nodded. “Yes.”

She had never even heard of this woman, which only made her more suspicious.

“This isn't the girl I set you up with. You can't just print out a fake document to get me off your back.”

She lifted the certificate to the light, inspecting the embossed seal for signs of forgery.

“I'm not lying to you.”

Sampson lowered his gaze. “I ran into her yesterday when I was filing my onboarding paperwork. She happened to be looking for a quick marriage, and I thought we were compatible, so we did it.”

Winona exploded with rage. “Compatible? How is this compatible?”

“Forget the fact that this is clearly some impulsive love-at-first-sight nonsense. You actually eloped behind my back? Have you lost your damn mind?”

She emphasized her point by slapping him hard on the arm.

It was the very first time in Sampson's life he could ever remember being struck by her.

She showed absolutely no mercy, pummeling him while she interrogated him.

“I told you to go on a date. Did I tell you to run off and get hitched?”

“Where's the engagement ring? When do we meet her parents?”

“You married this poor girl without giving her anything? Is this how I raised you?”

Half of her anger over his bachelorhood had been completely performative.

But right now, she was genuinely furious.

Seeing her eyes actually reddening with frustration.

Sampson tried to reason with her. “Mom, she was perfectly fine with it.”

“Fine with it? Did she whisper that in your ear?”

She wasn't having any of it.

In her mind, marrying a woman required a massive, extravagant, and ridiculously expensive celebration.

Doing it like this meant the poor girl was getting completely screwed over.

Realizing the deed was already done, Winona gritted her teeth and stomped upstairs to get ready to head to the bank.

“I'm going to pull together a massive nest egg for her. Just wait until your father gets home to kick your ass.”

“Mom.”

Sampson called out again. “Stop making a fuss over this.”

After wearing a twenty-pound lead apron all day, she could barely stand by the time she finally left the OR.

She pulled her phone from her locker. On the lock screen was a missed call from Sampson two hours ago.

It was now 9:30 PM. Calling him back this late felt intrusive.

She decided to wait until morning.

Standing still for even a moment made her legs feel like jelly, so she slumped against the wall and closed her eyes to rest.

After finishing his final operation, Dr. Franklin stepped out of the surgical suite.

As he turned the corner, he was met with a pitiful sight.

Wendy was huddled in a corner, her eyes closed as she tried to catch a few fleeting seconds of sleep.

Her surgical mask was pulled up halfway over her eyes to block out the harsh fluorescent lights.

He knew his student well. Unless she was genuinely pushed past her physical limits, she would never resort to sleeping in the hallway.

He walked over and called out gently, “Wendy.”

She snapped her eyes open and checked her watch. She had been asleep for ten minutes.

Scrambling to her feet, she addressed him. “Doctor.”

Dr. Franklin looked at her with concern. “Exhausted? It's freezing out here. Go back to the on-call room and rest.”

But a twenty-something's body couldn't possibly be as drained as the senior surgeon's.

She shook her head. “I'm okay. Just a little groggy. Closing my eyes for a minute did the trick.”