Love at First Sight? Mr. Harrison Has Been Scheming All Along-Chapter 16: Your Boyfriend

"Okay, okay." Evelyn didn’t dare linger. In a fawning tone, she said, "You should get some rest then. I’ll take Miles to the hospital." Sean watched Evelyn leave before closing the door again.

Rory’s eyes were fixed on Sean.

The man’s profile was sharp with sculpted features. The combination could only be described as perfect.

Although Miles bore some resemblance to him, their presence was worlds apart.

He’d buttoned five buttons on his shirt, completely covering his abs. But the fabric clung to his body and traced the powerful lines of his muscles.

He was also the young and capable head of the Harrison Group.

Was there anyone who wouldn’t be drawn to such a charismatic man?

Sean noticed her unblinking gaze fixed on his body. His eyes crinkled with a smile. "Enjoying what you see?"

By the time Rory snapped out of it, her cheeks were as red as a tomato.

She scrambled to her feet, and tried to explain herself. "No, I—I was just thinking about something else."

"Thinking about what?"

"Thinking... that Auntie Irving is taking Miles to Elysian Hospital. We’ll definitely run into him if we go there. You said you don’t want your family to know you’re hurt, so... we should go to a different hospital." Rory paused before continuing, "I have a classmate who works at Veridia First Central Hospital, and it’s not far. I can ask her if she can get us some anesthetic and find an empty treatment room. I’ll suture your wound myself."

"Alright."

Sean nodded in agreement.

Rory had gone to Veridia Medical University, in a direct-entry program that combined her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate.

Most of her classmates were in the same program, so they’d known each other for eight years.

They were all quite close.

Rory first sent a message to her classmate, Stella Yates.

Once she confirmed Stella wasn’t asleep, she explained the situation.

Stella replied quickly, "I happen to be on duty today. Just let me know when you’re close, and I’ll meet you in the ER."

Rory left in Sean’s car.

The car pulled up directly to the emergency entrance of Veridia First Central Hospital.

"Rory!" Stella saw her get out of the car and rushed over to hug her. "Seriously, how long has it been? And to think you wouldn’t have even contacted me if you didn’t need a favor!"

"I’m sorry. I’ve been so busy with exams this past year, and I barely had time to sleep."

"I get it, I totally get it. Same here. I work overtime all day long—I’m about to lose all my hair!"

"Private hospitals are a bit better in that regard."

"Oh, is your hospital hiring? I want in."

As soon as they met, the two couldn’t help but start complaining about their lives.

It wasn’t until Sean got out of the car that Stella’s attention was completely captured. Her face was a mask of barely contained curiosity. "So, this is the patient, right?"

"Yes." Rory said, a bit sheepishly. "For... certain reasons, I couldn’t take him to Elysian for sutures, so we had to come here."

"Don’t worry about it, it’s no big deal. I’ll take you to a treatment room first, then go get the meds for you."

Stella waved her hand dismissively.

Most of the suturing materials were readily available for general use.

But the anesthetic was another story.

Every vial was tracked, and its use had to be logged in the system.

It took Stella Yates less than ten minutes to procure the anesthetic and bring it to the treatment room. "Okay, you can do the sutures now. I’ll be right outside. Just shout if you need anything."

"Okay, thank you."

Rory’s eyes were full of gratitude.

"Hey, don’t mention it. We go way back." Stella glanced at Sean, who was sitting on a stool. "Alright, I’ll leave you to it."

After Stella left, only Rory and Sean remained in the small treatment room.

Rory carefully helped him take off his shirt.

Like in any hospital, the treatment room was lit by fluorescent lights.

The lighting was much brighter than it had been in his bedroom.

The cool-toned light flooded the small room, illuminating the scars on his back, making them look even clearer and more savage.

Rory stole a couple of glances.

’Based on my experience, these scars must have accumulated over many years.’

’It was a case of new wounds being added before the old ones could even heal.’

’The fainter ones weren’t necessarily from shallower injuries, just older ones.’

’Children recover much faster than adults, so their wounds tend to heal more easily and without scarring.’

’And it didn’t look like the scars were all caused by the same type of object...’

Sean Harrison noticed her looking at the scars on his back but said nothing to stop her.

He just sat there motionlessly.

Rory quickly looked away. She administered the anesthetic and, once it took effect, swiftly sutured the skin.

"This had to be re-sutured, so the recovery will take longer than before—probably twenty days to a month." Rory said while wrapping his torso in gauze. "You’ll need to change the dressing regularly and clean away any exudate. That will help the wound heal properly."

Thinking of the other scars on his back, she added, "If you take proper care of it, this one won’t leave a scar."

A faint smile touched Sean’ lips. "Alright. In that case, I’ll get your work schedule from the hospital and have you clean the wound regularly."

"Okay. If I’m on the schedule, I’ll be there. I won’t take any time off for that."

Rory was well aware that his wound had reopened because of her.

It was only right for her to take responsibility.

She finished wrapping the gauze and helped him put his shirt back on. Standing up, she added one more piece of advice. "Oh, right. You’re not supposed to drink alcohol or eat spicy food or seafood while this is healing. But if you have a business dinner you can’t avoid, a little bit won’t hurt."

Rory had said the same things to Miles in the past.

She could still remember the annoyed look on Miles’s face. "If I had to listen to all this nonsense," he’d said, "I might as well just be dead."

She figured Sean wouldn’t want to hear it either.

Whatever. She’d said her piece. Whether he listened or not wasn’t her problem.

Sean stood up from the stool, adjusted his belt, and looked at her earnestly. "I’ll follow the doctor’s orders."

It was such a common phrase.

But hearing him say it in such a sincere, agreeable tone made her cheeks flush inexplicably.

Rory quickly bent down to tidy up the supplies she had used, then left the treatment room with him.

Stella was waiting by the door.

When they came out, she walked them to the ER entrance.

"Thank you," Rory said sincerely. "I’ll call you in a day or two, and we’ll set a time for dinner to properly catch up."

"Of course," Stella smiled. "Go take care of your boyfriend first. We can meet for dinner later. It’s been so long already, what’s another day or two?"

"Boyfriend?"

Rory was stunned for a moment.

Stella pointed at Sean. "Don’t tell me you were trying to hide him from me? Isn’t this the boyfriend you were always talking about back in school? The one who never once came to visit you?"