The Cold Surgeon's Contract Bride novel Chapter 654

Absolutely not!

How could I possibly be on a date with Ferris?

The words almost burst out of my mouth, but Lucille tightened her grip on my wrist. "If that's the reason, I'll let it slide."

"...No." Even if Lucille was going to be upset, I refused to lie.

But I also didn't want to tell her that I had dinner with Caspian.

Since I had already decided not to pursue anything romantic with Caspian, there was no point in giving him—or anyone else—false hope. I couldn't let them get the wrong idea.

So I simply said, "I've just been swamped with work lately. It slipped my mind. I'm sorry, Mom."

"Then why didn't you answer any of the dozen calls I made? Ms. Hunter at the hospital said you clocked out ages ago, and Amber told me she was already home. What were you so busy doing that you couldn't pick up?" Lucille wasn't going to let me off the hook so easily; she wanted all the details.

"I was... already home. I was in the shower, and my phone was on silent, so I didn't hear it," I lied, quickly coming up with an excuse.

"You really scared me half to death, kiddo. I thought something terrible had happened to you when you wouldn't answer!" Lucille bought it immediately, her grip tightening as she lectured me. "Don't ever do that again. I'm getting older, my heart can't take this kind of stress. If anything happened to you, I wouldn't know how to live with myself..."

"I know, I promise I'll answer right away next time." I meant it. A situation like tonight wouldn't happen again; I wouldn't give her a reason to panic.

"You definitely haven't eaten yet, right? Perfect timing. Your uncle and I were too worried to eat. It wasn't until we finally called Ferris and he assured us you were safe that we could relax. But we still haven't touched dinner." Lucille looked like she was still recovering from a scare as she rambled on. "The food is still warming on the stove. We can all eat together once we're inside."