The Cold Surgeon's Contract Bride novel Chapter 93

Ferris's tone was full of interrogation.

As his gaze swept over the fallen water bottle at my feet, his expression grew harsh.

I knew exactly what he meant. He thought I was deliberately humiliating Zoey in front of everyone.

He was protecting her.

My stomach was already doing flips, and seeing him show such blatant favoritism toward her felt like a bucket of ice water had been poured over me. The freezing chill spread from my heart to my limbs, biting deep into my bones.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, others might not know about our relationship, but surely he did, right?

After three years of sharing his bed, was I really going to be humiliated like this just for accidentally knocking away a bottle of water offered by his new favorite?

I forced down the nausea, but the explanation caught in my throat. Then, I heard Ferris snap, "She was just bringing you some water. What kind of attitude is this?"

I looked at the man in front of me in utter disbelief, feeling a bitter urge to laugh.

What attitude?

I was just so sick to my stomach that I accidentally knocked the water out of her hand. What other attitude could it possibly be?

Did Ferris actually think I did it on purpose?

Was I really that petty in his eyes?

"No, Ferris," Zoey, who had kept her head bowed, suddenly spoke up, her voice thick with tears. "Selena didn't mean it. She must be feeling awful from the carsickness..."

She shot me a timid glance before lowering her head again.

As if she were afraid I was going to eat her alive.

But what did I even do? I just couldn't stomach the smell of durian on her and had a physical reaction to it.

Besides, this was a business trip. Who would be foolish enough to intentionally start trouble right now?

The more I thought about it, the angrier I felt. Between the physical discomfort and my rising temper, it felt like a lump of cotton was suffocating my chest.

"Have some water first."

Long, elegant fingers holding a bottle of water appeared in my line of sight. Caspian had materialized by my side, offering me a reassuring look.

I looked at him, recalling what had just happened, and asked, "How did you know I couldn't handle the smell of durian?"

Even Ferris, who had been with me for three years, hadn't noticed it. I was genuinely curious.

Caspian glanced at me, a flicker of embarrassment in his eyes. "To be honest, Dr. Hayes, I can't stand that smell either," he admitted frankly.

It all made perfect sense now.

We were kindred spirits in that regard.

"Thanks to you," Caspian said with a sigh of relief, "otherwise I would've been the one making a scene in front of everyone."

Well, at least my vomiting served some purpose.

Seeing that I didn't reply, Caspian quickly added, "I didn't mean anything by that, Dr. Hayes. I was just expressing my gratitude."

"If you really want to thank me, Dr. Cross, why don't you share a copy of your presentation slides with me?"

Caspian paused for a moment before taking out his phone. A second later, my phone chimed with a message notification.