The CEO's Midnight Remedy novel Chapter 202

hapter 202

Part of me wanted to wake him, to ask about the woman in red, to demand explanations I had no right to. But another part–the part that felt the steady rhythm of his breathing against my side–couldn’t bring myself to disturb him. The vulnerability he showed in sleep was something rare and precious. Whatever jealousy I felt dissolved slightly as I watched him rest.

“Take us to Mr. Kane’s apartment,” I instructed Marcus quietly.

When we arrived at Devon’s luxury building, Marcus helped me guide a half–conscious Devon into the elevator. The weight of him against me, the warmth of his body–it was both burden and comfort. Once inside his apartment, I realized Devon’s skin was burning up.

“He’s running a fever,” I told Marcus, pressing my palm against Devon’s forehead. The heat radiating from him alarmed me. “Call a doctor.”

While Marcus made the call, there was a sharp knock at the door. Marcus’s face drained of color.

“It’s Mrs. Kane,” he whispered urgently.

“His mother?” I felt panic rise in my throat. Meeting Devon’s mother while helping her drunk, feverish son into bed wasn’t exactly how I’d imagined our

introduction.

“Quick–hide in his bedroom,” Marcus urged, practically shoving me through the door. “Don’t make a sound.”

I slid under Devon’s massive bed just as I heard the apartment door open and the distinctive click of expensive heels across the marble floor. My heart pounded so loudly I was certain it would give me away. From my hiding spot, I could see only feet and the lower portion of the room, but it was enough.

“Is the infection back?” Eleanor Kane’s voice was crisp with concern as she entered the bedroom. “Devon, why won’t you rest properly?”

I watched her perfectly manicured feet move around the room as a doctor examined Devon. The infection in his abdomen wound had flared up again, causing the fever. I found myself wondering about that wound–another mystery about Devon I wasn’t privy to.

“This family has been sick for too long,” Eleanor sighed, her voice heavy with meaning that I couldn’t fully grasp. She spoke briefly with the doctor about Devon’s medication before leaving in a flurry of quiet fury.

As I lay there under the bed, I realized how little I knew about Devon’s life–his family, his past, even his current injuries. The woman in the nightclub photo was just one small piece of a larger puzzle. Somehow, that thought made me feel both better and worse.

After everyone had gone, I crawled out from under the bed, my joints stiff from lying on the hard floor. I stood, brushing dust from my clothes, and startled the doctor who was still organizing his medical bag.

‘Will he be alright?” I asked, nodding toward Devon’s sleeping form.

“The fever should break by morning,” the doctor replied, eyeing me curiously. “Are you his…”

“Business associate,” I supplied quickly, the words sounding hollow even to my own/ears. “We have a contract.”

Marcus returned after escorting Eleanor out. “You should go home if you need to, Ms. Harper. I’ll stay with him.”

I nodded, understanding the dismissal. Devon was vulnerable now, and I wasn’t family or even a real girlfriend. I was just… temporary. The thought sat uncomfortably in my chest as I gathered my purse.

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Chapter 202

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The ride back to the Harper mansion was quiet. Marcus kept his eyes on the road, and I kept mine on the passing city lights, trying not to think about

Devon’s fever or the way his hand had held mine in sleep. Or the woman in red who had made him smile. The silence of the car gave me too much space to

wonder, to worry.

I returned to the Harper mansion just as dawn was breaking over Manhattan. The golden light spilled across the foyer as I stepped inside, illuminating the space where just hours ago, Victoria had knelt before my father, pleading her innocence.

As I moved toward the stairs, I heard Scarlett’s voice from the living room.

“Daddy, can Mom come home for my birthday? The party won’t be complete without her.”

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