After His Sweetheart Moved In, He Came Home Every Night-Chapter 6: Confirming the Relationship
For once, Old Master Sterling wasn’t angry. He even looked somewhat surprised. "You have someone you like? Where is he from?"
Alice York braced herself and continued, "He and I... aren’t officially in a relationship yet."
Old Master Sterling asked again, "Is he from Silvanus? What does he do for work?"
Alice York answered, "He’s from Silvanus, and he’s... a teacher."
She made it up on the spot.
Any profession would do. She couldn’t let Old Master Sterling turn her marriage into a business transaction.
"A doctor and a teacher. The professions are a good match." Although Old Master Sterling said words of approving, his tone made it impossible to tell if he truly meant it.
A servant came over to refill their tea. Hot, white steam swirled between the two grand, carved-wood armchairs. It created the man’s stern profile and the emotions churned in his eyes.
Just then, the servant noticed faint bluish veins standing out on the back of the hand the man was using to hold his teacup.
The next moment, the man slowly raised his gaze, and the servant was so startled they nearly dropped the teapot.
"How clumsy. Get ahold of yourself," Old Master Sterling snapped, displeased.
The frightened servant backed away, and the hands holding the teapot trembled as if they were sick.
Wyatt Sterling turned his head. "You really are getting old, fussing endlessly over such trivial matters."
Old Master Sterling, feeling that he was losing the face, waved his hand dismissively. "Alright, all of you, out. You too."
The last part was directed at Alice York.
Alice let out a sigh of relief. Without looking at Wyatt’s expression, she turned and left.
After dismissing everyone, Old Master Sterling said in his tone displeased, "You rarely see Alice, so you don’t know her temper. If I don’t put her in her place today, there’s no telling what trouble she’ll bring to the Sterlings in the future."
Wyatt picked up his teacup. "A minnow in the ocean. How big of a wave can it possibly make?"
Old Master Sterling snorted. "You never know."
-
When Alice came out of the room, she could feel another wave of nausea rising in her stomach.
She tried to hold it back, but the feeling was too overwhelming. After only a moment, she couldn’t take it anymore and rushed to a nearby trash can.
She gagged up some stomach acid. As the nausea subsided and she was about to straighten up, a tissue was suddenly offered to her from the side.
"Are you alright?" the man asked, his voice tinged with concern.
Alice straightened up and turned her head. A flash of surprise crossed her eyes when she saw the man. "Owen."
She had just been sick, and her voice was a little hoarse.
"Long time no see, Alice." A gentle smile spread across Owen Sterling’s face.
Alice returned his smile.
The Owen Sterling from her memories was just like the man before her now. He always greeted her with a gentle smile. He was the only person in the Sterling family who had never been cruel to her.
"Here, wipe your mouth." Owen prompted, and indicated for Alice to take the tissue.
Alice took the tissue and thanked him. Owen then asked, "You seemed quite sick just now. Is it an upset stomach?"
Rarely shown such concern, Alice was touched. "Yes, I’ve always had a weak stomach."
"You should be more careful about what you eat, then," Owen reminded her.
"Mm," she nodded.
They hadn’t seen each other in three years. Owen’s appearance hadn’t changed much, but Alice York could sense that his every action was more mature and composed than before.
"I heard you moved out of the old residence and are living on your own?" Owen asked casually, tucking the remaining tissues into his pocket.
Alice replied, "I rented a place close to the hospital. I only come back here occasionally."
Owen looked at her. "Serene Creek Hospital?"
Alice York nodded. "Yes."
Serene Creek Hospital was controlled by Sterling Group, which meant Alice York was now essentially trapped there.
At that moment, Owen’s eyes were full of sympathy for her. "You should have had better options back then, a path with a brighter future, instead of being trapped here."
Alice lowered her gaze. "It’s still alright now."
Owen Sterling said gently, "You don’t have to pretend to be strong in front of me. I know you well."
The words had barely left his lips when an untimely voice cut in from behind. "Your grandfather has been waiting for you for ages. What are you ’knowing someone’ out here?" 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖
Alice York’s body went rigid.
Owen looked up. Upon seeing who it was, he immediately explained, "Uncle, I was just passing by and ran into Alice. We were just talking for a moment."
Alice turned around stiffly and greeted. "Uncle."
She wished she could leave immediately, but she obviously couldn’t.
Wyatt walked over, as his gaze sweeping across Alice’s face. "Just got a lecture from Grandpa, and now you’re out here grabbing the first person you see to complain?"
Alice shook her head. "I wasn’t."
Wyatt withdrew his gaze. "The Sterlings don’t support useless people. Instead of complaining, you’d be better off reflecting on your own shortcomings."
The words were utterly heartless.
Humiliation washed over Alice York’s face.
Owen knew he had gotten Alice into trouble and immediately tried to explain for her. "Uncle, it’s not what you think..."
"’Think?’" Wyatt cut him off, his face cold. "Since when do I rely on assumptions to pass judgment?"
Owen was left speechless, not daring to argue back.
Wyatt reminded him pointedly, "How long do you intend to make your grandfather wait?"
"I’m heading over now." Owen stepped aside. But before he left, he didn’t forget to reassure Alice York. "It’s alright, don’t worry about it. I’ve been busy since I just got back, but once things settle down, I’ll take you out for a nice meal."
These words were meant as a comfort to Alice, and Owen didn’t see anything wrong with them.
Alice, however, stood with a stiff neck, not daring to nod. She only managed a soft "mm-hm" in response.
After Owen left, Alice looked up at Wyatt, who was still standing beside her. Every time she stood near him, she could feel both safe and suffocated. She had always been afraid of him.
"Uncle, you’re the most influential senior in the Sterling Family..."
Before she could finish, Wyatt glanced over at her.
She took a shallow breath. "And as a junior in this family, I want to know... am I truly such a terrible person in your eyes?"
Wyatt stared at her. "You should know the answer to that yourself."
"I... I understand." Hearing this answer, Alice asked no more questions and turned to leave.
Wyatt watched Alice’s retreating back in silence until Mason stepped up beside him. "Miss Alice has no idea you were helping her out of a bind today."
Wyatt shot Mason a cold glare.
Mason Cheney immediately shut his mouth.
-
In the end, Alice couldn’t leave the residence that day either. Mindy had insisted she stay another day.
However, since Nathan Sterling disliked Alice and was vying intensely for attention, Mindy had to spend her time placating her younger son, leaving her little time to bother Alice.
Zoe sent her a message saying the blind date had been rescheduled, so Alice shouldn’t worry about it.
Alice sent a sticker in reply and turned off her phone. The next day, she returned to work at the hospital as usual.
After a busy morning, the lunch time came finally. Alice was about to go eat. when Cassia, the head nurse, hurried over and called out, "Dr. York, that patient in the ICU says he wants to go home and rest."
Alice paused, her hand halfway through unbuttoning her white coat. "Wasn’t he just admitted to the ICU today?"
Cassia’s expression was complicated. "He was, but he’s insisting he wants to go home and rest. He’s demanding we remove his cardiac monitor."
Alice pursed her lips. "That’s against hospital rules. We can’t take responsibility for that."
The words had barely left her mouth when the crisp sound of high heels echoed from outside the door. CLICK-CLACK-CLICK. The sound grew closer until a woman appeared in the office.
"Is the doctor here?"
"That’s the patient’s family," Cassia whispered, tugging on Alice’s sleeve.
Alice looked up and was ready to handle the situation when her heart sank the moment she saw the woman’s face.
It was her...
