Two Reborn, One Throne novel Chapter 185

After parting ways with Tillie, Amber headed to the hospital.

With the Exam prep period starting, Amber needed to tell her dad that she wouldn't be studying at school, but rather taking Vance to the library for their final sprint.

As she walked through the hospital's main entrance, she unexpectedly saw her father talking with Howard. Amber stopped in her tracks. It wasn't exactly eavesdropping.

"Arthur, are the medical bills for people without health insurance always this steep?"

Grace had decided to give Howard a chance to prove himself, and to show his sincerity, Howard had volunteered to pay her hospital bills. But when he saw the receipt, he froze in place.

Howard was a government employee, fully covered by state health benefits. His experience with medical care was completely different from uninsured gig workers like Arthur and Grace.

When Lucian called him yesterday, he was thrilled. But after hearing what Lucian had to say, Howard had hesitated for a long time. Eventually, he thought, why not give it a shot?

He had pursued Grace for just as long as Arthur had. Simply because he was a man who cared about his image, Grace felt he was useless, not a "real man," and chose Arthur instead.

He had been deeply jealous for years. Later, he found out they had never officially tied the knot, and that Grace just strung Arthur along, looking down on him while acting superior. Grace essentially treated Arthur as free labor.

He had been waiting for the day Grace finally came to her senses.

Even though yesterday's scene was awkward, he was somewhat grateful to Amber. If she hadn't provoked Grace, Grace never would have agreed to date him. But now that it was actually happening... Howard suddenly wanted to back out.

Three days of hospital fees, just for some bruises from a beating, cost five thousand bucks? That was insanely expensive.

If Grace, who didn't have insurance, got seriously ill in the future, he'd be the one footing the massive bills.

He liked Grace, sure, but with the money it would take to support her, he could easily find a much younger woman. Wouldn't that be better?

No matter how well she maintained herself, she was forty years old. She wouldn't look good for many more years. Besides, he didn't need her to take care of him in his old age. He had kids and had been a widower for years. The reason he never remarried was because he understood marriage was a trap. As long as he stayed single, resolving his physical needs with whoever caught his eye was perfectly fine.

Grace had been his target since he was thirty, lingering in his mind like the one that got away. He just wanted to conquer her, to finally get her into bed. Tying down the rest of his life to her? Totally unnecessary.

Hearing this, the hand Arthur used to grip the medical bill instinctively clenched. His first reaction was to rebuke Howard—if this small amount hurt him now, what about the future? But he quickly calmed down. Whether it hurt Howard's wallet or not had absolutely nothing to do with him.

"Yeah, it's always this expensive for uninsured freelancers without corporate backing."

Arthur didn't want to elaborate. He disliked Howard, from his background to his complete lack of character.

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