The Cold Surgeon's Contract Bride novel Chapter 471

"Selena, are you sure you want to leave?" He grabbed my wrist, a dark, stormy tide surging in his eyes, his tone low but laced with barely suppressed agitation.

"It's an emergency, I have to go. As for Silas's checkup, I'll leave that in your capable hands, Dr. Sterling. I'll have my mother treat you to dinner sometime to express our gratitude." I gently but firmly pried his fingers away, staring calmly into his eyes with a thin, polite smile on my face.

The light in Ferris's eyes dimmed bit by bit, replaced by an even fiercer, surging tide. He seemed like he wanted to say something else, but I didn't give him the chance, turning and leaving the hospital room without a backward glance.

I knew he was disappointed and angry.

Disappointed because his forced transaction wasn't working on me; my attitude was tough and resistant, refusing to bend to his will.

Angry because not only was I rejecting his unreasonable demands, but I was also acting deliberately close to Leon just to spite him.

But I didn't care in the slightest.

And there was no need to care.

"Then I won't disturb you and Lucille any longer. I'll take my leave now, Dr. Sterling," Leon's voice rang out from behind me.

A moment later, he caught up to my pace. "Dr. Hayes."

I paused in my tracks, looking at him with a hint of awkwardness and apology. "I'm sorry, Leon. Silas was entirely out of line back there. Please don't take it to heart, and can we just pretend today's incident never happened?"

Originally, I had wanted to avoid him as well, but Leon wasn't just my colleague; he was my friend, a friend who had bonded with me through fire. I felt it was necessary to make things clear so we wouldn't have any misunderstandings and to prevent our relationship from becoming awkward in the future.

That morning, I had been so focused on sorting out paperwork with Vivian that I hadn't made time for breakfast. In reality, I hadn't had the appetite anyway. In the end, I hadn't accomplished what I set out to do, got pulled away halfway by the head nurse to help out at the hospital, and after a whole morning of running around, my stomach was completely empty. I really wanted to eat.

And Leon was an excellent dining companion. Eating with him always put me in a good mood and improved my appetite, so I immediately agreed. "Sure, but it's my treat today. You can be in charge of ordering, Leon, sound good?"

"Then I'll be in charge of keeping you company, sound good?" Before Leon could do more than nod, a lazy drawl sounded from behind me.

The tone was far too familiar. I whipped around immediately, coming face-to-face with a handsome, smiling visage.

Caspian.