The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 410

Hot? She had nearly died of a heart attack!

"Neither. It was Victoria."

"What? Her?" Winona's voice instantly dropped, entirely laced with concern. "Did she see anything?"

Riley quickly replayed the incident in her head. Sebastian had moved incredibly fast, burying her against his chest. Victoria definitely hadn't seen her face. If she had, there was no way she would have walked away so quietly. But while her upper half was completely hidden, her shoes and the bottom of her pants were definitely exposed.

Realizing this, she panicked. "She shouldn't have seen my face, but Winona, I need a massive favor."

"Name it."

"She definitely saw my pants and my shoes. I'm going to take a picture of exactly what I'm wearing right now and send it to you. I need you to go buy the exact same outfit and wear it today."

"Consider it done."

"Thank you."

"Oh, please, Riley! We're practically family. I've got your back."

A rush of warmth flooded Riley's chest. They chatted for another minute before hanging up. As soon as the call ended, Riley snapped a picture of her black trousers and white flats and sent it to Winona.

Literally a second later, Sebastian texted: [Take a picture of your pants and shoes and send it to me.]

It seemed Sebastian was operating on the exact same wavelength. That undeniable sense of being perfectly in sync made Riley smile. She quickly typed back: [I already sent it to Winona. She just called me.]

Sebastian: [So smart.]

He was praising her again.

It was just two words, but they made Riley's heart flutter like crazy.

Just then, Holly walked into the office. Seeing Riley smiling at her phone, she teased, "What are you looking at, Dr. Vance? You look really happy."

Riley immediately shoved her phone face-down and wiped the smile off her face. "Nothing." She grabbed a random patient file from her desk and pretended to read.

Holly sat down at her desk and stared across at Riley. "Hey, the whole hospital is talking about how you're close friends with Director Chambers. Is that actually true?"

Riley's fingers paused on the edge of the file. She hadn't expected the rumor about her and Zach to spread like wildfire. But then again, there were a dozen doctors in that hallway. Departments talked. Doctors gossiped. It wasn't that surprising.

Riley gave a definitive nod. "Ever since his kidnapping fifteen years ago, he's suffered from chronic insomnia. I want to try treating him, but I strongly suspect he's hiding the severity of it from me. That's why I need you."

Zach knew Sebastian was completely gone for Riley, but he hadn't realized the obsession ran this deep. His insomnia was his single greatest physical weakness. If the wrong people found out, it could be weaponized against him.

Yet, he had handed that weakness over to Riley on a silver platter. That was absolute, blind trust. He already viewed her as his own.

"What do you want to know?"

"He mentioned you regulate his medication. I need to know exactly when he started taking it, and what his current dosage is." Afraid Zach might try to cover for him, she added, "You're a doctor. You know as well as I do that a physician needs absolute transparency to design an effective treatment plan."

Zach could easily guess that Sebastian was downplaying his medication to keep Riley from worrying. But Riley was right. If they were going to fix this, there could be no secrets.

"I only took over his case three years ago when he finally returned to the St. John family. Back then, it was brutal. He was entirely dependent on heavy sedatives just to simulate sleep. His tolerance and reliance were terrifying. If he missed a dose, he would literally be awake for days. I eventually brought in a team of specialists to work on the psychological trauma, which took the edge off. We've managed to lower the dosage significantly since then."

Riley's face fell, a heavy, sick feeling settling in her stomach. Relying on heavy chemical sedatives for years was catastrophic for the nervous system. But she couldn't just cut him off cold turkey, or the rebound insomnia would destroy him. It had to be a slow, agonizingly careful weaning process.

They spent the next twenty minutes discussing the granular details of Sebastian's medical history. Zach laid everything on the table.

The more Riley heard, the more her heart ached for him. When she finally left Zach's office, she felt like she was carrying a boulder on her chest. She pulled out her phone and sent Sebastian a text: [Where is the sleep diary you promised to send me?]